It’s very easy to make chicken tikka masala at home than you think. Homemade tikka masala or sauce tastes better than any restaurant or dhaba.
What is chicken tikka masala?
Chicken tikka masala is one of the popular chicken dishes around the world. Marinated chicken pieces in Indian spice mix are grilled to perfection in tandoor, oven, or barbecue and then tossed in a spicy gravy or curry called masala. Tikka masala is a smooth and silky blend of onion, tomato, and Indian spices.
What is the difference between butter chicken (makhani) and chicken tikka masala?
Both are popular dishes around the world. Butter masala or makhani originates from Delhi, North India, and tikka masala is a British invention. Kundal Lal Gujral, who ran a restaurant in Delhi called Moti mahal, did not want any leftover cooked meat in his restaurant to dry out. To avoid this, he cooked them in aromatic tomato-based gravy along with butter and cream, adding richness to the overall dish, and named it Butter chicken or Murgh Makhani. On the other hand, chicken tikka masala was developed in the UK by a person from the subcontinental region. Chicken tikka refers to pieces of chicken grilled on skewers, and masala means Indian spice blend used to make tikkas or gravy. Butter masala is on the sweeter side, and Tikka masala is on the spicier side. This is a delicious entree that can be prepared for your upcoming tailgating events, game nights (football or super bowl), potluck, Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas holiday dinner parties!
What is the difference between chicken tikka and chicken tikka masala?
Chicken tikka is a dry item served as a side, starter, or appetizer. Marinated chicken in Indian spices is grilled to perfection on a BBQ/grill, tandoor, stovetop, or oven. Chicken tikka masala is nothing but chicken tikka cooked in tomato-onion gravy along with additional spices, thus making it hotter and spicier. You can serve Chicken Tikka Masala as an entrée or main dish with Indian breads like naan or roti. All ingredients required for tikka and tikka masala are very basic and available at any Indian store. But these days, you can even find these spices at all big stores like Walmart, Target, and Kroger.
Ingredients
4 skewers Chicken tikka skewers, use our chicken tikka recipe, need four 12-inch long skewers 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds 1 Onion, finely chopped 2 Garlic cloves, finely chopped ½ inch Ginger, finely chopped 1 tablespoon Cooking oil 1 can Tomato sauce, i.e., 8 oz can or puree from 2 large tomatoes 2 tablespoon Sour cream (or heavy cream) 1 tablespoon Kashmiri red chile powder, for color 1 teaspoon Red chile powder, for spiciness (adjust to taste) 1 teaspoon Garam masala powder (or Tandoori Masala Powder or Curry powder) 2 to 3 teaspoon Coriander powder 1 teaspoon Salt (adjust to taste) 1 tablespoon Butter or Oil ¼ cup Water 2 tablespoon Chicken tikka marinade (completely optional)
How to make the best chicken tikka masala at home?
In short, one just has to follow 4 easy steps
Marinate the chicken Cook the chicken on skewers over a grill, barbeque, stovetop, tandoor, or oven. Make the tikka sauce or masala. Combine tikka masala and Chicken tikka.
Once you have Chicken tikka or paneer tikka or any meat or vegetarian tikkas ready, preparing the masala (gravy or curry or sauce) is super easy. This recipe below gives you a spicy curry, which is what my family and friends love. But based on the heat level you can tolerate, adjust the amount of red chili powder you add to the dish. You can even skip adding red chili powder to the tikka masala to obtain a milder gravy. In the USA, you get really good quality tomato sauce, and thus I have substituted tomatoes with this tomato sauce. Add two pureed tomatoes to the recipe if you do not have store-bought tomato sauce. Please note that the tomato sauce available in countries like the USA differs from what we get in India. To start with chicken tikka masala, heat the oil in a pan, and add cumin seeds. When they splutter, add onions, garlic, and ginger, and sauté until they become translucent. Then add sour cream, tomato sauce, and all the spice powders like chili powder, garam masala powder (tandoori masala), and coriander powder as per your taste. Because I had some extra marinade from preparing chicken tikkas, I have added it to the gravy - this is entirely optional. Once this comes to a simmer, add the prepared chicken tikkas along with the grilled veggies if desired and continue to simmer for additional 5 minutes. Finally, add butter to this and serve with your favorite bread!
Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala
I also like to prepare chicken tikka masala in my Instant Pot. We will assume that we do not have pre-cooked chicken tikka. Marinate the chicken as per instructions given in my tikka recipe. Set the instant pot (IP) to Saute mode. Set it to the highest setting. Place the marinated chicken pieces in the steel insert and leave it undisturbed for 2 to 3 minutes to develop some color. Flip the chicken pieces and let it brown on the other side for another 2 minutes. Remove the chicken pieces and set aside. In the same pot (do not have to clean after roasting the chicken), add oil, cumin seeds, chopped onions, ginger, and garlic, and saute until light golden in color. Add tomato puree, chicken pieces, and pressure cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally for another 5 minutes, before manually releasing the pressure. Open the lid, and turn the IP back to Saute mode, add sour cream and other spice powders, stir well and simmer for 5 minutes. The Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala is ready. Serve with rice or breads of your choice. While you are here don’t forget to check out our best chicken handi recipe, easy chicken biryani, simple chicken pulao.
Recipe card
Breads that go well with Tikka Masala
15 quick and easy vegan flatbread recipes – don’t miss to check this out. Pita Bread – popular on the blog Thai roti bread – popular on the blog Rumali Roti Tava Naan Garlic Butter Naan Garlic Cheese Naan
More chicken recipes to try
Chicken Roast Chicken Biryani Chicken Lollipop or Drums of Heaven Orange chicken Butter chicken Chicken Tikka Satay Chicken Cranberry Chicken Chicken tikka biryani Tandoori-style grilled chicken Chicken kali mirch Easy chicken biryani Tandoori chicken wings Spicy sriracha chicken wings
Vegetarian options
Chole / Chickpeas masala / Chana Masala Paneer Butter Masala Paneer Matar Masala Paneer in Butter Garlic Cream Sauce Paneer Tikka Masala Kadai Paneer Palak Paneer Mushroom Butter Masala
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