Pakistani cuisine has many grill-friendly recipes, such as grilled tandoori lamb chops, bihari kebab, chicken malai tikka, and hariyali (green) chicken tikka. This chicken tikka boti is perhaps the easiest and most well-known of all these Pakistani recipes.
Why you’ll love this recipe
The ingredients
Chicken - I like to use chicken tenderloins cut up in 1.5-inch cubes for this tikka boti recipe. Ginger - Fresh ginger, crushed using a mortar and pestle will result in the best flavor for this easy chicken tikka boti recipe. Garlic - I make my own garlic paste for all my recipes. As a shortcut, you can use a garlic press. About 10 garlic cloves will equal 1 tablespoon. Lemon - Lemon juice adds flavor and helps tenderize the meat through its acidity. Vinegar - Vinegar also helps as a tenderizer and since its flavor profile is different from the lemon, it adds a depth of flavor to the recipe. Cooking Oil - Adding an oil that has a high smoke point to the marinade helps keep the chicken juicy and succulent when it’s cooked. Food coloring - This is not necessary but gives a restaurant finish to the chicken boti kabab. If you don’t like using food coloring, you can try beet powder instead. Spice blend - The spices used in the blend are fairly simple and I can usually source them through my local grocery store.
Please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the complete list of ingredients with measurements and recipe instructions.
Substitutions & variations
Turn this into Chicken Malai Boti - Add ½ cup yogurt and ½ cup heavy whipping cream (malai) to your marinade; this becomes a whole different recipe! Make Chicken Tikka Masala with the leftovers - Make a curry using onions, tomato paste, yogurt, and cream. Add any leftover chicken tikka pieces to this to create a quick and easy chicken tikka masala recipe. Use this to recreate other meals -I love adding leftovers to salads like my Thai chicken salad with mango. Air fry the chicken boti - Not in the mood to grill, or the weather won’t permit it? Air fry the chicken boti at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 10-15 minutes (the time will vary a little according to the air fryer model) Cook indoors on a grill pan - Don’t have an air fryer and want to cook indoors? Use soaked wooden skewers instead of metal skewers to cook the chicken boti in a grill pan on your stovetop.
Step-by-step instructions
Step 5 - Once the chicken is a nice golden brown and cooked through, serve it directly on the skewers or remove the chicken pieces carefully and serve with some cilantro mint chutney, tamarind dipping sauce, kachumber salad, and Pakistani street-style air fryer corn.
Expert tips
Soak our wooden skewers - If you are going to use bamboo wooden skewers to grill your chicken make sure to soak them in water overnight. If cooking indoors use a piece of charcoal to smoke the meat - If you’re cooking your chicken boti indoors, you can still give it a smoky flavor. Place the cooked chicken boti in a pot along with a small dipping bowl. Place heated and lit coal in the bowl and pour a tablespoon of oil (any type will do) on the hot coal. Cover the pot as soon as the coal starts to smoke and keep it covered for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, remove the bowl with the coal and cover the pot till it’s time to serve the chicken.
Other recipes you may like
For more Pakistani chicken recipes like this, check out 15+ chicken recipes from Pakistan. If you decide to try this recipe, please don’t forget to leave a rating and comment below! If you take a picture, then tag me on Instagram! Thank you!
