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This is sort of rescue cookery: ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
cattitude had found a recipe for chicken tikka masala, and he got as far as cutting up the meat, making the marinade, and putting it in the refrigerator, and then he got sick. Neither of us was up for a complicated new recipe, and the instructions called for metal skewers that are out of stock at the nearest supermarket. So I made something very simple last night, and left the chicken marinating.
Tonight, I simplified, and we got something that isn't even close to chicken tikka masala, but worked reasonably well.
So:
Day 1:
4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Juice of 2 lemons
1 tsp salt
150ml plain yoghurt (that's a little over 1/4 cup)
1 tbsp pureed ginger (use a pestle and mortar)
1 tbsp crushed garlic (about 3 cloves)
1½ tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp smoked sweet paprika
Cut the chicken into bite-sized chunks and stir in the lemon juice and salt. Leave to marinate for 30 minutes. Stir the remaining marinade ingredients together and add to the bowl. Stir well to coat, cover and chill overnight.
[Those instructions and ingredient list are from an article in the Guardian.]
We left the chicken to marinate an extra day, and poked around for simpler ideas; Cattitude suggested that I just simmer it in a covered frying pan.
So:
One small onion (a larger one might have been good, this is what I had, and on further consideration I might use a small one next time)
Two small cloves garlic
Peanut oil
Ground cloves
Ground cinnamon
Smoked paprika
Ginger paste
I chopped up the onion, and put the garlic through a garlic press that turns it into small pieces.
Then I started some basmati rice, aiming it to be ready before the chicken.
Heat the frying pan on medium (about 4 on my electric stove, which is a bit less than half of its full power). When the pan is hot, add the onion and garlic. Cook for a few minutes, until they're soft. Sprinkle the cloves, cinnamon, and paprika on the onion, stir, and cook a moment longer.
Pour the chicken and marinade into the pan. Add a dollop of ginger paste (this probably would benefit from a larger amount than I used). Stir, cover, and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. It was cooking fairly quickly near the end, so I turned the heat down some.
Salt and pepper to taste at the table, but it really will need at least a bit of both. Adding plain yogurt also helps, with texture as much as flavor. ("Yogurt" here is ordinary whole milk yogurt; sour cream would probably work, but low-fat or fat-free yogurt likely not.)
There are enough leftovers for lunch; I'm probably going to add tomato paste and more ginger when I reheat this.
At the moment this is somewhere between lab notes and a recipe.
cattitude had found a recipe for chicken tikka masala, and he got as far as cutting up the meat, making the marinade, and putting it in the refrigerator, and then he got sick. Neither of us was up for a complicated new recipe, and the instructions called for metal skewers that are out of stock at the nearest supermarket. So I made something very simple last night, and left the chicken marinating.Tonight, I simplified, and we got something that isn't even close to chicken tikka masala, but worked reasonably well.
So:
Day 1:
4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Juice of 2 lemons
1 tsp salt
150ml plain yoghurt (that's a little over 1/4 cup)
1 tbsp pureed ginger (use a pestle and mortar)
1 tbsp crushed garlic (about 3 cloves)
1½ tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp smoked sweet paprika
Cut the chicken into bite-sized chunks and stir in the lemon juice and salt. Leave to marinate for 30 minutes. Stir the remaining marinade ingredients together and add to the bowl. Stir well to coat, cover and chill overnight.
[Those instructions and ingredient list are from an article in the Guardian.]
We left the chicken to marinate an extra day, and poked around for simpler ideas; Cattitude suggested that I just simmer it in a covered frying pan.
So:
One small onion (a larger one might have been good, this is what I had, and on further consideration I might use a small one next time)
Two small cloves garlic
Peanut oil
Ground cloves
Ground cinnamon
Smoked paprika
Ginger paste
I chopped up the onion, and put the garlic through a garlic press that turns it into small pieces.
Then I started some basmati rice, aiming it to be ready before the chicken.
Heat the frying pan on medium (about 4 on my electric stove, which is a bit less than half of its full power). When the pan is hot, add the onion and garlic. Cook for a few minutes, until they're soft. Sprinkle the cloves, cinnamon, and paprika on the onion, stir, and cook a moment longer.
Pour the chicken and marinade into the pan. Add a dollop of ginger paste (this probably would benefit from a larger amount than I used). Stir, cover, and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. It was cooking fairly quickly near the end, so I turned the heat down some.
Salt and pepper to taste at the table, but it really will need at least a bit of both. Adding plain yogurt also helps, with texture as much as flavor. ("Yogurt" here is ordinary whole milk yogurt; sour cream would probably work, but low-fat or fat-free yogurt likely not.)
There are enough leftovers for lunch; I'm probably going to add tomato paste and more ginger when I reheat this.
At the moment this is somewhere between lab notes and a recipe.
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