← Nouns Cooking · Indian

Ingredients

• 600 g boneless chicken thighs or breast, cut into 4 cm chunks
• 120 g thick Greek yogurt or hung curd
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 cm piece Ginger, finely grated
• 4 cloves Garlic, crushed
• 1½ tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
• ¼ tsp Ground turmeric
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1½ tsp Ground coriander
• 1 tsp Garam masala
• 1 tsp Chaat masala (optional)
• 1 tbsp Dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi), crushed
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tbsp mustard or vegetable oil
• 1 green or red bell pepper, cut into 3 cm squares
• 1 Red onion, cut into chunks and separated into layers
• 2 tbsp melted butter or ghee, for brushing
• 1 Lemon, cut into wedges, to serve

Method

1. Mix all the marinade ingredients in a bowl. Add the chicken and stir until every piece is thickly coated, then toss in the pepper and onion. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight. If using wooden skewers, soak them in water for 30 min.
2. Heat the oven to 240°C (220°C fan) / 460°F, or as high as it goes. Line a baking tray with foil and set a wire rack on top.
3. Thread the chicken onto skewers, alternating with pieces of pepper and onion, leaving small gaps so the heat can get around. Lay them on the rack.
4. Roast for 10 min, then turn, brush with melted butter and roast for 8–10 min more, until charred at the edges and cooked through (75°C / 165°F in the thickest piece).
5. For extra char, slide the tray under a hot grill for 2 min. Sprinkle with chaat masala and serve with lemon wedges, sliced onion and mint chutney or raita.

Tips

• Thick yogurt clings better and keeps the chicken juicy; if your yogurt is runny, strain it in a sieve lined with kitchen paper for 30 minutes.
• Thighs stay juicier than breast at high heat. Leftovers make a great chicken tikka masala the next day.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Swasthi's Recipes BBC Good Food