Tandoori Chicken Breasts in Creamy Curry Sauce

We've been doing a bit of Indian cooking out of the Ajanta cookbook, which you should buy (really, its awesome, click at the bottom of our post). Ajanta is one of our favorite Indian restaurants in the East Bay.

Ingredients (Serves 6)

Tandoori Chicken

2 lemons
3 teaspoons salt
6 chicken breasts, boned and skinned

Marinade

2 shallots, minced
1 cup yogurt
8 to 10 cloves garlic, minced
2-inch piece ginger, minced
3 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon garam masala
1.5 tablespoon oil

Makhanwala sauce

2 tablespoons oil
6 cloves garlic, chopped
2 inch piece ginger, chopped
9 medium tomatoes, pureed
1 green chile, stem removed, chopped
1 tablespoon dried fenugreek herb
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons turmeric
4 teaspoons paprika
1/2 to 2 teaspoons hot chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin powder
1/2 cup yogurt
3/4 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons Garam Masala

Preparation


Tandoori Chicken:
1. Cut lemons in half. Place 2 teaspoons salt on a shallow plate. Dip 1/2 lemon in salt; squeeze the lemon applying juice and salt to the chicken breasts. Continue until all the chicken breasts are covered with salt and lemon juice. Set aside for about 30 minutes.



2. Prepare marinade by mixing together all of the ingredients. Generously coat the chicken breasts with marinade and refrigerate 24 hours or overnight. Bring to room temperature before cooking.





3. Preheat broiler in the oven. Place marinated chicken on roasting rack so the chicken is exposed to the heat from all sides. Place the rack in the oven about 8 inches below the broiler. Place aluminum foil under the rack to catch the drippings. Broil the chicken for 8 minutes. Turn over the breasts and broil on the other side for 5 minutes. It is okay of the breasts are slightly undercooked at this time since they will simmer in the Makhanwala sauce later. Allow to cook and then cut each breast into four pieces.




Makhanwala Sauce:

1. Heat the oil in a 6 to 8 quart saucepot. When hot, add garlic and ginger. Oil should be so hot that ginger and garlic sizzle when added. Saute for about 10 seconds.

2. Add pureed tomatoes, green chile pepper, fenugreek herb, salt and all the spices except garam masala. Simmer, partially covered, over low to medium heat until the sauce becomes quite think. Whisk in yogurt and cream.



Putting it all together:

Add chicken breasts and simmer, uncovered, over low to medium heat for 10 minutes. Add Garam Masala and cook 2 minutes or more. Check to see that the chicken is cooked through and tender. When done, the sauce should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about the consistency of buttermilk. If the sauce is too thick, add some water during cooking. If the sauce is too thin, remove all the chicken with a slotted spoon and reduce the sauce by boiling until it reaches the desired consistency. Return chicken to the pan.




***We served this dish with rice, Alu Aur Sem Ki Fali (Green Beans with Potatoes), and chapati bread.