Chicken Tikka Masala
Chicken Tikka Masala is the nation’s favourite dish, so I simply had to take the One Pound Meals challenge and recreate it for under a quid. And it was a huge success! By griddling marinated chicken thighs, I managed to get that charred tandoor tikka effect. Then, by reducing tinned tomatoes and enriching them with cream, the sauce now has that local takeaway authenticity that a ready-meal just can’t provide.
INGREDIENTS (Makes 1 portion)
◆ ½ mug basmati rice
◆ 1 mug water
◆ 1 chicken thigh, de-boned
◆ 3tsp tandoori curry powder
◆ ¼ onion, sliced
◆ 200g chopped tomatoes (from a 400g tin)
◆ 50ml single cream
◆ Olive oil
◆ Salt and pepper
1 Put the rice and water in a saucepan, bring to the boil and simmer gently, with the lid on, for about 7 minutes. When all the water has been absorbed, remove from the heat and set aside until ready to serve. 2 Meanwhile, in a bowl, coat the chicken in 1 teaspoon of the tandoori curry powder and a splash of oil. Preheat a griddle pan (or frying pan) until hot, then chargrill your chicken skin-side down for 7 minutes, then a further 7 minutes on the other side, until cooked through. 3 While the chicken is cooking, gently fry the onion in a separate pan with a splash of oil over a medium heat. When softened, add the tomatoes and the remaining curry powder and simmer for 5 minutes until reduced a little. Next, add the cream and continue to simmer for a few minutes until you reach the desired takeaway masala sauce consistency. 4 Cut your griddled chicken into cubes and stir them into the sauce to create your chicken tikka masala. Serve with the rice and enjoy on a Friday night with a cold beer!