Chicken Tikka Masala

This dish is one of our favorites! It has a very generous portion size for being on the lower side of calories and the flavor is incredible. The peppers add a nice little kick of spice, while the yogurt gives the sauce a rich creamy texture. The garam masala is a very mild flavor in this one. I highly recommend adding this to your weekly menu. Enjoy!

Serves: 2 | Serving Size: 1/2 of dish

Ingredients:

• Chicken:
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoon garam masala
  • 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 2 (6 ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breast
  • 1/2 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
• Sauce:
  • 1 (14.5ounce) can crushed or diced tomatoes
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 medium sweet yellow onion, chopped
  • 2 Serrano peppers, seeded and minced (spicier option, keep the seeds!)
  • 2 teaspoon tomato paste
  • 2 teaspoon garam masala
  • 1 garlic clove – minced
  • 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/3 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
  • salt
• For serving:
  • 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 2 cups brown rice cooked

Directions:

• For the Chicken:
  1. Make spice mixture by combining salt, garam masala and cayenne in a bowl.
  2. Pat chicken breasts dry with paper towels and season generously with spice mixture, place covered in fridge for up to 60 minutes. Make chicken coating by whisking the yogurt, oil, garlic and grated ginger together, cover and refrigerate for remaining time left on chicken.
  3. Adjust oven rack to top position, heat broiler on high. Cover a wire rack with aluminum foil and place on a foil lined, rimmed, baking sheet.
  4. Dip chicken in yogurt mixture, coating very generously and place chicken on wire rack (discard excess yogurt mixture).
  5. Broil chicken until charred in spots and chicken registers 165degrees, about 20 minutes, flipping chicken half way through.
• For the Sauce:
  1. On stove top, add oil and onion to large sauce pan and cook over medium heat until softened and browned, about 8 minutes. Add Serrano peppers, tomato paste, garam masala, garlic and ginger, stir to combine well. Add tomatoes, sugar and salt and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Once chicken registered 165 degrees, remove from oven, let rest for 5 minutes. While chicken rests, remove sauce mixture from heat and stir in yogurt, cover to keep warm.
• Cut rested chicken into bite size pieces and stir into sauce mixture. Season with salt as needed.
• To serve: 1 cup brown rice, topped with chicken mixture and cilantro for garnish. Enjoy!

Nutrition Information*:
Per serving: Calories: 479; Total Fat: 27g;  Cholesterol: 27mg; Sodium: 63mg; Total Carbohydrates: 21g; Dietary Fiber: 3g; Sugars: 13g; Protein: 41g
Nutrition Bonus: Potassium: 207mg; Vitamin A: 27%; Vitamin C: 47%; Calcium: 26%; Iron: 12%
*nutritional information does not include brown rice serving. For lower fat option, use less olive oil.

Modified from: America’s Test Kitchen (2014). “Chicken Tikka Masala.” The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook. Boston: America’s Test Kitchen, 2014. 109. Print.