Feb 152006
An elegant dish from the state of Punjab, tandoori murgh is one of the most-popular chicken dishes. It can be made in a tandoor (clay oven), baked in an oven or grilled on a barbecue.
3 lb chicken pieces
1 small onion
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt
1 tsp fresh ginger, chopped
2 garlic cloves
2 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
2 whole cloves
1 tsp cumin seeds
4 cardamom pods
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garam masala
1/4 tsp red food coloring
- Remove the skin and all visible fat from the chicken pieces. Cut 2–3 slits, 1 inch long and 1/2 inch deep, in each piece of chicken. Place in a casserole dish and set aside.
- Cut onion into 4–6 pieces.
- In a blender jar put onion, tomato sauce, yogurt, ginger, garlic cloves, coriander powder, cayenne pepper, cloves, cumin seeds, cardamom pods, salt, garam masala and red food coloring. Blend to a smooth paste.
- Pour the tandoori paste on the chicken and turn pieces to thoroughly coat with spices. Cover with a lid or plastic wrap and marinate in the refrigerator 4–24 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 400° F.
- Remove chicken pieces from the marinade, saving marinade. Arrange pieces in a broiler pan. Bake uncovered in the middle of the oven for 30 minutes. Turn pieces over and brush with remaining marinade. Bake for 10–15 minutes until chicken is tender.
- Turn oven to broil. Turn pieces over once again and broil for 5 minutes to get a nice red color.
- Transfer to a serving platter. Serve with lemon wedges or squeeze lemon juice over the chicken before eating, if desired.Makes 6 servings