Paleo Chicken Tikka Masala

 

So here it is, possibly one of the most loved curries of the British, the Chicken Tikka Masala and boy is it delicious! This is ultimate comfort food at it’s best! In fact it is thought to have originated in the an Indian restaurant in the UK! You can read more about that here.

This dish doesn’t take a particular amount of skill to make but it will require you to marinade your chicken the night before if you want it to taste that little bit more special. You will then have to bake it before making your masala sauce.

This curry is pretty spicy so if you’re not a spice fiend just add 1/4-1/2 tsp of chilli powder to your masala rather than the 1/2 tbsp.

I hope that you enjoy my Paleo Chicken Tikka Masala as much as I do!!!

Serves: 4 people

Preparation Time: 20 minutes (plus overnight wait for marinating chicken)

Cooking Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

For the marinated chicken:

3 cloves garlic (peeled)
2″ piece of root ginger (peeled)
Seeds from 5 green cardamom pods
1/4 tsp black peppercorns
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg or mace
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground red chilli powder
1/4 tsp ground turmeric
1/4 cup coconut yogurt
Juice 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp good quality olive oil
500g chicken breast (cubed)
2 tbsp raw grass-fed butter (to baste)

For the masala sauce:

4 large tomatoes
3/4 cup tomato purée (roughly 200g)
2 cups of water
2 garlic cloves (peeled)
1″ piece root ginger (peeled)
1 green chilli (deseeded & finely diced)
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds (ground)
1/2-3/4 tsp Himalayan pink salt (dependent upon your tastes)
1 tsp whole cloves
1/2 tbsp red chilli powder
6 green cardamom pods (crushed)
2 tbsp raw grass-fed butter
1/3 cup coconut milk
1 tbsp raw honey

To garnish:

Small piece of root ginger (julienned)
Small handful of fresh coriander (roughly chopped)

Method:

1. The night before cooking start by making the marinade for your chicken. In a pestle and mortar grind your garlic, root ginger and spices into a paste
2. In a medium sized mixing bowl mix together the coconut yogurt, lemon juice and olive oil. Add in your spice paste and mix thoroughly. Add your cubed chicken breast and mix until covered evenly. Cover the bowl in cling film and place into the fridge overnight.
3. The following day pre-heat your oven to 180C/Gas Mark 4 and place your marinated chicken into a pyrex/baking dish.
4. Melt your butter and set aside.
5. Bake the chicken for 10 minutes but give it a quick stir and baste it twice with some of the melted butter. Drain off the excess marinade and juices and baste with the remaining melted butter. Return to the oven for a couple more minutes until it is lightly golden on the outside but still slightly undercooked. Remove from the oven and leave to one side.
6. In a pestle and mortar grind your ginger and garlic into a smooth paste.
7. In a large saucepan combine the chopped tomatoes, tomato puree and water. Stir until evenly mixed then add your ginger and garlic paste, diced green chilli, salt and the rest of the spices. Cook on a low heat for roughly 20 minutes until the sauce has reduced and become very thick. Remove the pan from the heat.
8. Strain the sauce through a large sieve into another container. Pour the strained sauce back into the saucepan and then bring to the boil.
9. Reduce the heat to a low heat and then add the butter, coconut milk and raw honey. Stir thoroughly.
10. Stir in the chicken and warm through.
11. Serve up and garnish with ginger juliennes and chopped fresh coriander.