Tandoori Chicken Question

Karhunkoski · Post by **Karhunkoski** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 1:13 pm

Haven't tried this before, this is the plan:

chicken breasts, scored so the marinade will absorb

marinade of:

garam masala
ginger
chilli
garlic
red food colouring
joghurt
paprika (?)

marinade overnight, cook in a pyrex at 250 celsius.

Anyone who's tackled this before, can you offer any advice?

Danke.

**Sponsor:**

muddymuddy1 · Post by **muddymuddy1** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 1:27 pm

Small observations

I don't use the paprika.

I spread the pieces out on a wire rack (over a baking tray to catch the drips!) and cook on the highest oven heat possible. (Having marinaded overnight, they don't dry out)

Otherwise should be yummy!

Karhunkoski · Post by **Karhunkoski** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 1:29 pm

Thanks muddy

Do you cook as whole fillets or do you cut into small pieces?

muddymuddy1 · Post by **muddymuddy1** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 1:31 pm

I cut them into approx. thirds. Not too small....or they will dry out!

Karhunkoski · Post by **Karhunkoski** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 1:37 pm

Kiva!

and to serve, mint sauce? Fresh mint whizzed up in the blender with some joghurt?

(Because of the lack of Indian options near me, nearest in Tampere I think, 180Km, I keep trying to recreate the UK Indian Food scene at home)

muddymuddy1 · Post by **muddymuddy1** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 1:44 pm

Now you are talking.......

I have recently found this recipe for the mint sauce which is great!

4 cups Mint - chopped
4 cups Fresh Coriander - chopped
2 tbs Onions - chopped
1 tbs Ginger - chopped
4 green chillies - chopped
1/2 cup Yoghurt
1 tbs sugar
Salt

Then blend the lot.

It is a fantastic colour and tastes terrific.

Enjoy and let us know how it works out

Karhunkoski · Post by **Karhunkoski** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 1:49 pm

That sounds top dollar, never thought of using coriander in the mint sauce

If you're passing Jyväskylä tomorrow evening, feel free to drop by!

muddymuddy1 · Post by **muddymuddy1** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 2:00 pm

Thanks for the offer but I am a little far away

I have however been inspired and will be eating the same simultaneously

Karhunkoski · Post by **Karhunkoski** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 2:03 pm

Splendid! Look forward to exchanging tasting notes!

sinikettu · Post by **sinikettu** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 2:11 pm

muddymuddy1 wrote:I cut them into approx. thirds. Not too small....or they will dry out!

If you cook it a bit longer on a lower temp..e.g 200 C...
instead of 250 C..should not dry out..will also be more tender...

Mint sauce recipe looks good...what dishes have you used it ..Lamb?

Rosamunda · Post by **Rosamunda** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 2:25 pm

No won't work. Tandoori style the outside needs to seize. Cooking it slowly in a cooler oven isn't the same. But I am no expert.

I've been doing chicken tagines since I lugged a ceramic tagine and ras-el-hanout spices back from Tunisia. Now those you can do slow in the oven. Really good, but a shame that the Finnish chicken has ZERO flavour. Tasted so much better in Djerba!

muddymuddy1 · Post by **muddymuddy1** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 2:28 pm

Hey......I hope that too many cooks won't spoil this broth

I think the hotter oven for a shorter period is better, as it more closely simulates the Tandoor oven. But again, I am no expert either.

sinikettu, I have only used the mint sauce so far to accompany this chicken, however it was so good, that I just finished off the leftovers like a cold soup

sinikettu · Post by **sinikettu** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 2:40 pm

muddymuddy1 wrote:Hey......I hope that too many cooks won't spoil this broth

I step back..I have never cooked Tandori ..but on thinking ..Penny is probably correct...outside needs to seize
I use wine to try and add flavour to Finnish Chicken and that likes "slow and low..."...

raamv · Post by **raamv** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 3:14 pm

Tandoori oven is made of clay.
Main purpose of cooking is to cook all the sides uniformly and slowly for a long time. The idea of tandoori cooking is to "capture" the marinade inside the meat when cooking.
IMO, Its Really better cook it at a low Temp and it wontl dry it out..
It really depends on how much of marinade has been absorbed by the chicken breast overnite and how long yo cook it. Cooking it high could dry chicken very fast considering the fact that the marinade is also a "dry" marinade. If you have a way of packing the marinade with the chicken inside a tin foil, high might work.
One thing that makes the marinade really effective is to "poke" the breast with the marinade using 3-pronges forks so that the marinade is buried deep inside.
Sinikettu is right on the dot..
Depending on the hotness of the garam masala, I would also add some Chili powder if needed.
and dont forget to glaze it routinely with a little bit of lime/lemon +honey mix..
For sweeter Tandoori: Add a little bit of cinnamon powder
For hotter : add more red chilli
Generally, serving Tandoori with Lemon/lime is common.

Karhunkoski · Post by **Karhunkoski** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 3:17 pm

Believe it or not, I was once a Process Technologist in the chicken industry, designing cooking profiles for multi-chamber mixed-humidity continuous ovens that handled up to 4 tonnes an hour.

Now I need to blast a few measly fillets and I'm floundering

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