Indian Recipe for Awadhi Murg Tikka

Indian food is one of our favorites, but many people don’t realize how varied it is from region to region. Whether you are a meat-lover or a vegetarian, there are flavors aplenty for all of our culinary travelers when they go to India. Here is a wonderful chicken recipe from the Awadhi region of Uttar Pradesh.

Awadhi Murg Tikka

Ingredients:
1 1/2 – 2 lbs Boneless chicken breasts or thighs
10 ml malt vinegar
30 gr fresh ginger
20 gr garlic
20 gr red pepper flakes
10 gr each of peppercorns, cloves, and ground cardamom
5 gr ground cumin
salt to taste
200 gr yogurt
30 gr cheddar cheese
5 gr garam masala powder
20 ml refined oil

Preparation:
Peel ginger and garlic and make a fine paste.
Put yogurt in a muslin cloth and hang it for 25-30 minutes to remove extra water.
Grate cheese, mash it well with peppercorns, cloves, cardamom, cumin powder, 10 gr (half) the red pepper flakes. Then add the drained yogurt and mix together to get a good creamy marinade.
Take the boneless chicken and cut into 2” square pieces.
Take these pieces and mix malt vinegar, ginger & garlic paste, salt and the rest of the red pepper and let sit for 20 minutes.
Take out the pieces and remove any excess water.
Add the yogurt marinade to the chicken pieces and mix it well.
Add the garam masala powder.
Check the seasoning and roast the chicken tikka in skewers in a Tandoor (clay oven), rotating the skewers periodically for even cooking. (If you don’t have a clay oven, you can grill the chicken on a gas or charcoal grill.) While the chicken tikkas are cooking, continue basting them with clarified butter to keep them from drying out.
Remove the chicken tikkas from the skewers and serve hot with sliced onion, and lemon wedges, and Chat Masala (a spice blend available in most specialty Indian stores).

You can learn to make this wonderful dish in India during one of our fabulous cooking vacations in India.

By Peg Kern

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