Easy Tandoori Chicken Recipe

Name: Easy Tandoori Chicken
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 10 min
Ingredients: 2 Tbs ginger; 2 Tbs garlic; 2 pound chicken thigh; 3 Tbs yogurt; 3 oz (1 packet Sukhi’s Tandoori Marinade)

Tandoori Chicken is a celebrated Indian dish known around the world! Here’s everything you need to know about Tandoori Chicken and an easy Tandoori Chicken Recipe to go with it!

What is Tandoor?

Tandoor is a cylinder-shaped oven that’s typically made out of clay or metal. This special oven typically uses firewood or charcoal as its fuel, but many tandoors today are electric or gas-powered. The food that’s made in Tandoor is called — you guessed it — Tandoori! Tandoor style cooking and baking is wildly popular in India as it originated there some 5000 years ago.

How to make Tandoori Chicken

Tandoori Chicken is marinated chicken that’s roasted in the popular clay oven. Don’t have one? No worries! You can grill it on the barbeque instead and still get all of the great flavors. The best part? It’s super easy!

First, you marinate the chicken thighs in a mixture of blended yogurt, Sukhi’s Tandoori Marinade, ginger, and garlic. Let the thighs soak up that marinade overnight and then put them in the microwave for one minute prior to grilling for juicier meat. Grill on your barbeque until evenly cooked to 165°F. Enjoy!

What is Tandoori Masala?

Tandoori Masala is similar to Tandoori Chicken in that both chicken dishes are typically cooked in a Tandoor. Where they differ is in the preparation. While you soak Tandoori Chicken in a wet marinade overnight, Tandoori Masala is prepped by rubbing the chicken down in a blend of spices like coriander, cumin, garlic powder, ginger, cloves, mace, fenugreek, cinnamon, black pepper, cardamom, and nutmeg. Equally delicious, but made with a dry rub instead! Also, Tandoori Masala is often made with smaller pieces of chicken while Tandoori Chicken uses larger or whole pieces.

How to Make Tandoori Chicken in an Oven

Don’t have access to Tandoor or grill? No problem! You can bake the Tandoori Chicken in your oven! You should prep the chicken the same way and then bake at 400°F for about 30 minutes. It’s recommended that every 15 minutes, you baste the chicken in either butter or some fresh marinade to keep your meal tender.

What Makes Tandoori Chicken Red?

One of the first things you’ll notice about Tandoori chicken (besides its amazing aroma) is that it’s bright red in color! This is because red food coloring is added to the marinade to give the chicken its deep burgundy hue. If you’d rather not use food coloring, you can use a mixture of harissa paste and turmeric, red chili powder, or Kashmiri red chili powder to create a similar look. Better yet, if you’re using our marinade, we’ve got the all-natural coloring in there for you!

What Do You Eat/Serve Tandoori Chicken with?

So, you’ve got the Tandoori Chicken — now what? There are a few different options that one serves with this dish. For a pretty presentation, you can garnish with cilantro and lemon slices. You can make a side of veggies like roasted potatoes, serve up a side of rice with Sukhi’s Chutney, or with some rounds of Sukhi’s Naan!

Sukhi’s Tandoori Marinade

Our Tandoori Marinade recipe is based on a traditional North Indian specialty, the most popular marinade style for delicious, tender meats. While many recipes use artificial red color, ours uses only natural ingredients. Make your life easier and pick up our marinade for a quick and delicious traditional Indian meal!

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