Recipe of the week: Chicken tikka masala: The new national dish—of England

Chicken tikka masala is the world’s most popular Indian restaurant dish, said Rebecca Hays in Cook’s Illustrated. Why, then, “is it so rarely made at home?” Supposedly, the dish was first created by a quick-thinking Bangladeshi chef at a London curry house. When a diner complained about a plate of chicken tikka that had been left in the tandoor oven too long, the chef combined canned tomato soup with cream, added a few Indian spices, and poured it over the dried-out tikka.

The dish became so popular in Britain that former Foreign Secretary Robin Cook once claimed it had displaced Yorkshire pudding and fish and chips as the “true national dish.” But, perhaps because it is not an authentic Indian dish, Indian cookbooks all but ignore chicken tikka masala, and they never re-create the taste and texture we get in a restaurant. We set out to try.

Recipe of the week

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Chicken Tikka Masala

Chicken Tikka

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp table salt

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of fat

1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 2 tsp)

1 tbsp grated fresh ginger

Masala Sauce

3 tbsp vegetable oil

1 medium onion, diced fine (about 1-1/4 cups)

2 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 2 tsp)

2 tsp grated fresh ginger

1 fresh serrano chili, ribs and seeds removed, flesh minced

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 tbsp garam masala

1 (28-oz) can crushed tomatoes

2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp table salt

2/3 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

For the chicken: Combine cumin, coriander, cayenne, and salt in small bowl. Sprinkle both sides of chicken with spice mixture, pressing gently so mixture adheres. Place chicken on plate, cover with plastic wrap, refrigerate 30 to 60 minutes. In large bowl, whisk together yogurt, oil, garlic, ginger;

set aside.

For the sauce: Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, chili, tomato paste, and garam masala; cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes, sugar, salt; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in cream and return to simmer. Remove pan from heat and cover to keep warm.

While sauce simmers, adjust oven rack to upper-middle position (about 6 inches from heating element) and heat broiler. Using tongs, dip chicken into yogurt mixture (chicken should be coated with thick layer of yogurt) and arrange on wire rack set in foil-lined rimmed baking sheet or broiler pan. Discard excess yogurt mixture. Broil chicken until thickest parts register 160 degrees on instant-read thermometer and exterior is lightly charred in spots, 10 to 18 minutes, flipping chicken halfway through cooking.

Let chicken rest 5 minutes, then cut into 1-inch chunks and stir into warm sauce (do not simmer chicken in sauce). Stir in cilantro, adjust seasoning with salt, and serve. Serve with basmati rice. Serves 4 to 6.