Chicken Tikka Masala and Naan

Several years back, I didn't really like Indian food. At all. I tried. Honestly, I really did. But I just didn't like it. (Except naan...but let's be honest. It's hard to mess up bread.)

They say your taste buds change every seven years. I don't really know if that's true, but I can actually stomach Indian food now, and there are dishes I actually like. I still don't usually actively seek Indian restaurants, but now at least have something to order when I do end up in one. Although one of my biggest problems is that I can never for the life of me remember what any of the dishes are called.

Several months back, one of my roommates got Indian food with her boyfriend and brought home leftovers. She let me try her chicken tikka masala and I liked it so much, I was determined to find a recipe for it. (And I had to have her remind me of the name probably four times, until I finally wrote it down. I've probably actually eaten it before, but couldn't remember the name.)

This weekend I made it for the second time. It is so scrumptious! On the side I made naan bread from scratch. Now this naan recipe is something. First of all, it tastes great, as good as the restaurant. Second of all, I think it's a bit of a miracle recipe because I read it and think, "There's no way those ingredients can make bread." But it does! Third, it turns out naan is really fun to make. I wish I had a big tandoor oven to cook it in, but I don't. But this version is pretty great actually.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Ingredients

• 1 cup plain yogurt
  
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
• 2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
• 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
• 4 long skewers (or however many it takes)

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
• 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
  

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine yogurt, lemon juice, 2 teaspoons cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, ginger, and 2 teaspoons salt. Stir in chicken, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
2. Preheat a grill for high heat.
3. Lightly oil the grill grate. Thread chicken onto skewers, and discard marinade. Grill until juices run clear, about 5 minutes on each side.
4. Melt butter in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Saute garlic and jalapeno for 1 minute. Season with 2 teaspoons cumin, paprika, and 2 teaspoons salt. Stir in tomato sauce and cream. Simmer on low heat until sauce thickens, about 20 minutes. Add grilled chicken, and simmer for 10 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter, and garnish with fresh cilantro.

Notes

• Personally, I doubled the sauce. I just don't think there's enough! And I like having lots to dip my naan in.
  
• I mixed all the marinade and chicken in a big ziploc bag and put that straight into the fridge. Beats having another bowl to wash.
• I've made this on both a George Foreman grill and a grill pan. Both are okay, but I'd love to try it on a real outdoor grill. I wish the indoor options had better ways of letting the excess marinade drip off.
  
• For some reason I have a really hard time telling when the chicken is done...
• Also, I use fat free half and half instead of cream. And fat free plain yogurt. It tastes great, and I get to feel good about all the calories and fat I'm saving.
• I didn't really want this to be that spicy, so I left out all the hot stuff: no cayenne pepper, no black pepper (which I actually don't like anyway, regardless of the context), and the jalapenos. But if you're into that sort of thing, knock yourself out.
  

Naan

Ingredients

• 4 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 cups plain yogurt
• (That's really it! Can you believe it?!)

Directions

1. Mix together flour, baking powder and salt.
2. Stir in the yogurt till the dough is too stiff for a spoon, then knead it in the bowl till it holds together well, adding more flour if necessary.
3. Turn it out on a floured surface and continue kneading for about 5 minutes till the dough feels smooth and elastic.
4. Form the dough into a ball and put it in an oiled bowl, covered with a towel, to rest for an hour or longer.
5. Take the dough out and cut it into 10 equal pieces. Form each into a ball and press the balls flat into round discs.
6. Heat a large frying pan or griddle, either seasoned cast iron or a good non-stick finish, and turn on broiler in the oven.
7. Take 1 piece of dough at a time and roll it out on a floured surface till it is about 8-10 inches across and less than 1/4 inch thick.
8. Lay it on the hot griddle and cook it over a medium heat for 4-5 minutes.
9. It will puff up in places or all over, and there will be some blackish-brown spots on the bottom.
10. Slide a spatula under the naan and transfer it to the oven, directly onto the rack, for a minute or two, just till it finishes puffing up into a balloon and begins to color lightly on top.
11. Remove naan from the oven and brush it lightly with melted butter if you like.
12. Continue this way with all the dough, stacking the breads into a napkin-lined basket.
13. Serve the breads hot, fresh from the oven, or let them cool and wrap them up.
14. To reheat, wrap them in aluminum foil, in packets of 4 or 5 breads and put them in a 400 degree oven for 10-15 minutes.

Notes

• Okay, I know this is like a bazillion steps, but it's really not as complicated as it sounds, I promise.
• You don't have to do the broiler step if you don't want to. I didn't. I just flipped it over on the griddle. The broiler step just let's you keep all that puffiness, I think.
• I was fairly liberal with the flour as I kneaded it on the counter.
  
• Sometimes it takes a couple to get the hang of how thick or thin to roll them out. I rolled them out with a rolling pin.
• I used a non stick griddle. You don't need to grease it (not even with cooking spray). I promise.
  
• I sprayed with mine spray butter when they were finished, for a little flavor. But it's probably not really necessary.
• I'm pretty sure it took less than 4-5 minutes on a side. Just turn it over when the blackish-brown spots appear. But don't burn it.
  
• The first time I tried this recipe a few months back, I didn't get around to making the bread for 2 days after I made the dough, so I left it in the fridge. I don't recommend this. It made the dough really elastic and it was hard to keep it rolled to the desired thickness, and made them come out very inconsistently. Just letting it rest an hour or two made it perfect.

And if it's true what they say about how the more dishes you use, the better the meal...well, this must be out of this world then. (Let's just say, I miss having a dishwasher!)