If you’re looking for a chicken tikka masala recipe, you’re absolutely in the right place! It’s your lucky day because out of all the different cuisines I’ve tried my hand at, Indian cuisine is where I shine. Well, I’d better be good at it since I am Indian and lived there for 22 years of my life. 😃
We all know how wildly popular chicken tikka masala is around the world. Perhaps it might come across as slightly intimidating to cook at home. But you won’t believe how straight forward the recipe is! PLUS, I’ve tried my best to make this recipe super simple and quick!
Before we get into it, I want you to throw out the notion that all Indian food takes hours to prepare. Sure, it can if you want it to. But on this blog, I’ll show how you can cook the most flavorsome dishes in 30 minutes!
Technically, “tikka” means food that has been marinated in spices and roasted. Today, we’re not going to roast the chicken, but simply pan sear it. Traditionally, the curry that becomes the tikka masala curry is slow cooked for an hour or so. But, again, we’re going to skip that and as promised, do a short version of it.
But don’t worry about all that! This chicken tikka masala is still going to be the best you’ve ever had! That I promise you. 😀
So, let’s get into it!
How do I make chicken tikka masala?
- Roast the chicken
- Prepare the tikka masala curry
- Combine to make chicken tikka masala
Now that you have a basic idea of what’s involved, let’s begin!
Roast the chicken
First, cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces and then let’s marinate it. In a large bowl, add chicken, yogurt, red chili powder, ground cumin, ground coriander, turmeric, garam masala and dry mango powder.
Note: The dry mango powder is optional, but I recommend it as it adds a lovely tanginess to the curry!
Mix this well and set it aside. All the spices listed above are used in almost every Indian dish. So if you plan to cook Indian dishes, you could purchase these spices for your kitchen.
If time permits, I recommend marinating the chicken overnight or at least for 30 minutes. Marinating meats like chicken and pork help retain the moisture and make it juicer when cooked. It also keeps the meat tender. And lastly, it reduces the time it takes to cook!
But you can always cook it right away too. Today, I’m skipping the wait time and moving on! 
Once you’re ready to cook the chicken, add some olive oil to a hot pan and add the meat. Don’t crowd the pan. Cook it in batches if needed.
Cook on high heat so that the chicken is lightly charred. After about 5 minutes, the chicken should have an even golden brown roast. Transfer it to a bowl and set it aside while we prepare the tikka masala curry.
Prepare the tikka masala curry
In the same pan, on medium heat, add olive oil and cumin seeds. Cumin seeds are essential in Indian cooking, they add a beautiful earthy flavor to any dish.
Cumin seeds love to pop in hot oil so quickly add in the diced onions. Sauté the onions until they are lightly browned. Add in the finely chopped green chilies and sauté for a minute.
Next, add the ginger-garlic paste and cook for about 2 minutes. This paste is another versatile ingredient to keep handy. It saves you the time from peeling and chopping garlic and ginger every time. We all know how annoying peeling garlic can get!
Now add in the tomato purée. Since this is a quick recipe, we’ll just stick to using canned tomato purée. Alternatively, you can blend fresh tomatoes and make your own purée.
Season it with salt (to taste) and stir well. Cover the pan with a lid and cook the purée for about 5 minutes. Next, we add in the spices – garam masala, ground coriander, ground cumin and turmeric and mix well.
You may notice that the curry is getting really thick. Let’s add a cup of water and stir well. Let this cook without a lid for about 3-5 minutes.
Now, to achieve that rich, creamy curry that we see in restaurants, stir in about 2 tablespoons of heavy cream. This lightens the color of the curry to a deep orange. Also add 1/4 cup of chopped cilantro.
Combine to make chicken tikka masala
Now that the curry is almost ready, it’s time to add in the pan-seared chicken and stir well. Cover the pan with a lid and cook for about 2-3 minutes to let the flavors combine.
Lastly, garnishing with chopped cilantro truly completes the visual and flavor palette of this curry! 😍
Serve your heavenly chicken tikka masala with white rice or naan!
P.S. I will definitely share a naan recipe with ya’ll soon!
Step up your family dinner nights with this heavenly chicken tikka masala recipe!
You did it! I hope you enjoy your meal as much as we did! 
Please leave your rating and comments below. It’ll motivate me to keep creating and sharing my experiments in the kitchen with you guys!
See you next time!
Chicken Tikka Masala
Ingredients
Chicken marinade
- 1 large chicken breast (cut into bite-sized pieces)
- 2 tbsp plain yogurt
- 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste (or you can use minced ginger and garlic)
- ½ tbsp red chili powder (to reduce the heat, use ¼ tsp)
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- ½ tsp garam masala
- ¼ tsp dry mango powder (optional)
- ½ tbsp salt (add to taste)
Tikka masala curry
- 2 medium yellow onions (finely chopped)
- 1½ cup canned tomato purée (or blend 3 tomatoes to make the purée)
- 3 green chilis (finely chopped. For less heat, use 1 green chili)
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 2 tsp salt (add to taste)
- 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste (or you can use minced ginger and garlic)
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- 1 cup water
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
- ½ cup cilantro (roughly chopped)
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients under Chicken marinade in a large bowl. Mix well so that the chicken is evenly coated. (You can cook the chicken right away, or set it aside to marinate for 30 minutes.)
- In a hot pan with olive oil, add in the marinated chicken and cook for about 5 minutes, or until completely cooked. Keep stirring the chicken to ensure that it is lightly and evenly charred. Set the cooked chicken aside in a large bowl.
- In the same pan, add olive oil and cumin seeds and let it crackle. Then add in the finely chopped onion and sauté until they are lightly browned.
- Next, add in the finely chopped green chilis and sauté for a minute. Add the ginger-garlic paste and keep stirring.
- Once the raw smell of the ginger-garlic paste fades, add in the tomato purée. Season it with salt and mix well. Cover the pan and cook on low heat for about 5 minutes.
- Add the garam masala, ground coriander, ground cumin and turmeric and mix well.
- On medium heat, add water and cook the curry for 3-5 minutes without a lid. Stir occasionally. Now add in the heavy cream and ¼ cup of cilantro.
- Add the cooked chicken to the tikka masala curry. Let it simmer on low heat for 2-3 minutes.
- Garnish with chopped cilantro. Serve with white rice or naan.
