Chicken Tikka Masala
Chicken Tikka Masala is a popular Indian dish that is so full of flavor, so easy to make and is better than take-out. Tender chicken is marinated in spices and yogurt, then cooked in a tomato puree/passata with spices for a classic Indian flavor.
If you ask a British person what their favorite food is, one of the most popilar answers will be curry. But it must be an Indian curry, the most popular takeaway food in the UK.
Over 200 years ago the first ‘curry house’ opened and it’s been a British food staple ever since and Indian cuisine has become a $5 billion a year industry.
Chicken tikka masala is the most popular Indian dish, but it’s not very waist friendly because it’s loaded with heavy cream. For this recipe I replaced the cream with milk and yogurt.
This switch not only makes this easy Chicken Tikka Masala healthier, but it turns out delicious every time. I found my takeaway right in my own kitchen and the leftovers are even better!
London has more Indian restaurants than Mumbai and Delhi!
Wow. But one can’t just live on takeaway food, (well, my friends might beg to differ) because I prefer to make it myself so I know what ingredients I’m eating, so, this started my quest to find my own ‘takeaway’ recipe.
Chicken Tikka Masala – Step by Step
Chicken breasts are marinated in yogurt and Indian spices.
While the chicken marinates, onions are softened in oil and cooked garlic, ginger and more Indian spices. If you like it spicier, add a pinch of cayenne, paprika or red pepper flakes.
Tomato paste is added to the onions for the start of the rich tomato flavor.
Milk, tomato puree/passata and the chicken is then added and simmered to tender perfection.
Chicken Tikka Masala in the Slow Cooker
It is easy to convert this stove-top method to the slow cooker. Make the recipe up to step 4. Instead of adding the chicken to the onions and tomato paste, add everything to the slow cooker. Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 3 hours.
Serving suggestion
A side of naan bread is a must when eating Indian food. I just posted a brand new recipe for the EASIEST Naan Bread (< click for recipe).
Chicken Tikka Masala
Tender chicken is marinated in spices and yogurt, then cooked in a tomato sauce with spices for a classic Indian flavor.
Ingredients
- For the marinade:
- 2/3 cup (170 grams) plain yogurt
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped or grated
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger grated
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 pounds (907 grams) boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into large cubes
- For the sauce:
- 1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 cup (132 grams) yellow onion, cut into large pieces
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
- 3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped or grated
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 14 ounces (358 grams) whole tomatoes or passata/pureed tomatoes (see note)
- ½ cup (118 ml) milk
- 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped (optional)
Instructions
- For the marinade:
- To a large bowl add the yogurt, garlic, ginger, garam masala, coriander, salt, mix well. Add in the chicken pieces and mix to coat well, cover allow to sit at room temperature for 1 hour.
- For the sauce:
- To a large saucepan add the vegetable oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the grated ginger, garlic, cumin, garam masala and salt. Stir in the spices until well mixed with the onion and cook for 1 minute, stirring often.
- Stir in the tomato paste and cook for a few seconds while stirring. Add the chicken and yogurt that has been marinating, stir. Add the milk, tomatoes or passata and mix well.
- Simmer on low heat uncovered until sauce thickens and the chicken is cooked and tender, about 15 minutes. Check for salt and add more if needed. If the passata is making the sauce taste acidic, you can add a small amount of sugar, but this is purely optional.
- Serve over basmati rice and garnish with cilantro with a side of naan bread.
Notes
This is pureed tinned tomatoes with no herbs or spices added.
Nutrition Information
Yield
1Amount Per Serving Calories 380Saturated Fat 6gCholesterol 152mgSodium 1087mgCarbohydrates 9gProtein 51g
106 Comments on “Chicken Tikka Masala”
Thank you so much for posting this. As with American Chili, there are SO many variations. So after looking at several recipes, I was a bit confused by the whole marinating part, and the “What gets mixed with what, and when”. THIS clarifies it perfectly for me. Wish me luck!
You’re welcome. Good luck and enjoy.
In the instructions you say to add sugar but I don’t see a quantity listed in the ingredients section. How much sugar do you typically use or was that a typo?
I’m sorry it was not very clear, I’ve edited the text to make it read better.
Hi. Plan to make this recipe as it sounds lovely. Just a couple of Q’s if that’s ok…
1) can I use a tin of peeled plum tomatoes instead of the tomato purée? If so should I drain them first or just chuck the lot in?
2) some of the comments mention fenugreek but I can’t see this in your ingredients? Should I add or not? If so, how much?
3) can I use ginger paste instead of fresh? If so, 1 table spoon still?
Thanks
I’m very happy to answer your questions. You can use a tin of plum tomatoes,they will make the sauce chunkier. You can crush them with your hands if you like, no need to drain. Since so many people had a hard time finding fenugreek, I edited the recipe and took it out, so no need for it. I haven’t used ginger paste, but if it is just all ginger (without anything else added) you should be able to add the same amount as the recipe. I hope this helps, let me know if you have any more questions and enjoy 🙂
It wasn’t bad- it was kinda bland though. I like a bit more kick to it- I think I will add more masala next time
I’m sorry that you found the chicken tikka masala was bland. For more of a ‘kick’ next time I would use a red pepper like cayenne, paprika or kasmirial pepper as masala is not that spicy.
I have tried many tikka masala recipes and want to try this one as I haven’t found the right one yet. Would you halve the amounts if cooking for 2 people? Many thanks.
Yes, halving the recipe should be enough for 2. Let me know if you have any more questions and enjoy 🙂
Hi,
I read through all the comments. I love to do that for variations and tips on a new recipe. I loved how you handled the “Debbie Downer” comments. Having said that I have a few comments and questions, but please remember I am grateful for your recipe!
I’m Indian. Cooked plenty of different Indian recipes including tikka masala and butter chicken. They’re always different and unique. My mother in law’s recipes are so amazing and I just can’t do “pinch of this” and “more of this if it tastes off”. I can’t tell if it tastes off! I need exact measurements!
Anyways I regress. Here are my questions/comments:
1. You said in the notes that it’s 14oz of tomato purée but the comments said tomato sauce. I believe both are very different. Which one did you mean? I made mine with tomato purée and it was very acidic like one commenter mentioned. I added 2-3 tablespoons of heavy cream which cut the acidity but is there any other suggestion you have since I was trying to make this without heavy cream?
2. This chicken was so tender and amazing! My husband (Indian British) said it was one of the best tender chicken I’ve ever made! I cooked mine for about 20 min on low. Loved it! Very good recipe.
3. We added some peas to this! And ate it over wheat couscous. It soaked up the sauce so nicely.
Thank you.
Thank you for your comments, they are always appreciated. I’m British and growing up in the North of England, we ate a lot of Indian food. Given this, I tread lightly when it comes to making some traditional dishes as I don’t want to offend or get anything wrong so I am very happy that you and your husband enjoyed the dish. I did correct the ‘tomato sauce’ reference to puree/passata, as I know this can be many different things (like ketchup in the U.K). I love how you served it and I like to add peas too. If you’re finding it too acidic, this may be the yogurt you’re tasting and not the tomato. Perhaps cutting back on the amount of yogurt might only be my suggestion as I don’t like to use heavy cream either. I hope this helps and thank you again for choosing my recipe.
My local Indian restaurant is closed so I made this last night. Wow, I’m very impressed with myself how easy and good it was. I added spicy red chili powder for extra heat.
I’m glad you found my recipe, thank you for sharing
My husband and I too love a good curry. This curry is tender and has a thick sauce which we too like however it is a bit on the sweet side for us though there is no sugar added. I did add 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper and that helped give some heat, however; it does lack the complex taste of the typical Tikka.
This is one of my most popular and loved recipes. If you omitted or didn’t use all of the spices, this can affect the flavor. I’m also wondering if your tomatoes had sugar in them. I’m sorry it wasn’t what you expected.
We still enjoyed it. Really like your steak and ale pie!
Thank you 🙂
I love this recipe and make it regularly. It’s great for a dinner party because it can be made in advance. My family loves it. It is consistently delicious every time I make it!! My husband is British and has high standards for Indian food!
This is so nice to hear, thank you.
Granted that I used Madras Curry Powder in place of Garam Masala, this did not taste remotely how I wanted it to. The tomato flavor was way too strong and acidic, and didn’t taste anything like my local Indian restaurant makes it. I don’t like my food spicy, so that wasn’t my issue. It just seemed off on all levels.
The combination of spices that I suggest is a proven formula and if you use any other I cannot guarantee the flavor outcome. If you try the recipe again using the spices in the recipe, you’ll see that it is much better.
Love love this recipe! Cook it at least once a week! Closest recipe to the real thing that I’ve found. Yummy!
I guess your recipes are not that spicy and therefore not authentic Indian. I added heavy cream and extra yogurt. The tomato paste is not necessary since it gives a strong tomato flavor and I would then have to add a tsp of sugar to cut it. I also doubled all the spices and added Kashmiri red cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes (1/2 tsp), extra garem masala, black pepper. I used vegetable oil and ghee mixed and fried the chicken pieces to golden brown. I then added it to the curry and let it simmer for 1/2 hour and then added a lot of green coriander (cilentro). Nowadays even Indian restaurants in the US do not make their dishes hot and spicy. A shame. Otherwise, your basic recipe is good. I believe the original recipe calls for grilling the chicken in strips and then cutting them into pieces before adding to the curry. That’s extra work that I feel is not needed.
I do not claim that my recipe is authentic, I am British and this is how I’ve always made it. I always give choices to my readers as to the spice level they prefer and they can adjust accordingly to their taste. I agree that the extra work of grilling the chicken is not needed. This is one of my post popular recipes and I welcome your comment and suggestions. Thanks for visiting and I’m happy you made it to your liking.
This has become a staple in my family’s dinner menu. We usually make jasmine rice and heat up a bag of peas and then place the tikka masala on top.
Thank you so much for the nice feedback. I like serving it with peas and rice too 🙂
I did mine over a bed of quinoa with a side of roasted broccoli. It was delicious. Keeper recipe.
What a delicious, healthy idea. I need to try this. Thanks for stopping by.
I am allergic to chicken, also turkey. Would lamb be a good substitute for the chicken? The recipe sounds wonderful. Thanks
Lamb is very popular in Indian cuisine so it will work really well.
This cooking on the stove right now. It smells so good! I can’t eat dairy so I substituted almond yogurt and coconut cream.
Thank you for the great feedback. I’m so glad you were able to adapt it to your dietary needs and hope you enjoyed it.
Made this to satisfy a pregnancy craving (I had it bad!). I made too much, do you think this could freeze well?
This is a great dish for freezing. After freezing, when you are ready to eat, leave it in the fridge to thaw overnight and reheat in a saucepan. I hope you and the baby enjoyed it 🙂
Hi Janette, I made this for a “Taste of Nations” social at our church tonight. I doubled the recipe and there was none left, which was a huge compliment as there was a lot of food presented. Thank you for sharing this recipe with us. I will be following you.😁
Aww, this is lovely Debby and made my day. Thank you so much for sharing and following.
I made this last night and I’ll never get Indian takeout again. Thank you for the best recipe ever!
Hi I just tried the recipe. I think I used the wrong tomato sauce. I didn’t know there were different kinds of tomato sauce. I had a hunts tomato sauce that had spices added and a Goya tomato sauce. I used the Goya but it doesn’t quite taste as authentic as I hoped. What kind of tomato sauce do you use?
Hello Maryam, I use a good quality like Hunts or Pomi sauce, but it is important to check the ingredients to make sure that there are no other ingredients in there like herbs, spices or garlic or it will drastically change the recipe. Goya do tend to add ingredients to their tomato sauce so if you can find a different brand that would help. You can also use crushed tomatoes or diced tomatoes that will add a little texture to the sauce, but you do just want just tomatoes, nothing else. I hope you make it again because it really is a good dish and is one of my most popular recipes.
Hi Janette we also love our curries, and am very keen to try your Chicken Tikka Masala. In Australia tomato sauce is not sold in cans and I am wondering would this be the equivalent of our tomato purée in a can or is it the same as tomato sauce in a bottle (the sauce you would pour over a sausage sandwich)?
Hi Gail, I would not use the tomato sauce you mentioned, you need pure tomato sauce with no flavorings added so the puree will work perfectly fine. I hope you like the recipe.
Hello, I absolutely love chicken tikka masala. When I go to my favorite Indian restautant, the sauce is so delicious, but the chicken is chopped in huge chunks, and they use dark meat. I prefer lean chicken breast cut in small pieces. I plan to make this tomorrow. If this recipe needs more spicy hot flavor, can I add cayenne? I am really excited ti make this recipe.
Hi Susan, that is what I love about making my own is that I can make it how I want it and now so can you. I think you could add cayenne to increase the spice, just taste as you add. I hope you like it and thanks for stopping by.
Hi Janet
I made this tonight and was lovely!! Tasted as if we went to an Indian restaurant. 🙂 Would you mind clarifying though how many grams of tomatoe sauce you use? Just when I made it there wasn’t actually much sauce by the time I served it up! So I think maybe I didn’t put as much in as I should have! Thanks
Hi Janet, I’m so glad you liked it. I use a 400 gram tin of tomato sauce, which is the equivalent to the 14 ounce tin that are in the recipe. I hope this helps.
Hi thanks very much!! I didn’t use that much so will give it another go!! Thanks for replying.
Hallo Janette, I’ve tried your recipe yesterday….and my husband and I decidet that we don’t need to go out to an indian Restaurant anymore! It was realy realy nice! Thank you for sharing this recipe! 😊
Thank you so much Catrin, this is such a lovely compliment. I’m so glad you liked it 🙂
Hi! I am looking forward to making this this weekend as I love the dish but hate the typical heavy cream. I did have a spice question. I happen to have a Shan pack of “meat masala” mix. I read the ingredients and it contain “fenugreek” – would this be sufficient?
Hi Tonya, I’m not familiar with this mix but if it has other spices and flavors, the dish will not taste the same.
Hi, my husband and I just tried Tikka Masala for the first time last night and fell in love! I was excited to find your recipe on pinterest, can you recommend a good brand of garam masala? I’ve never purchased it before. Thanks!
Hello Cammie, I am finding that my local grocery stores carry garam masala in the spice aisle and right now I have McCormicks, but I have tried other brands and they are all good. It should be pretty easy for you to find.
I want to make this this weekend and I am wondering what type of milk to use. I have almond milk or canned fullfat coconut milk?
Hi Ali, I just use regular whole or 2% milk but you could use almond milk.Coconut milk would change the flavor somewhat. I hope this helps and I hope you like it 🙂
Made this recipe tonight and it’s delicious! My husband and I love Indian food and we were so happy to find a healthier alternative to our usual takeout chicken tikka masala. I used ground mustard seed instead of fenugreek. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Thank you so much for your feedback Sarah. I must try using mustard seed.
I just made this for my family for dinner. It was absolutely delicious and so flavorful. I didn’t have fenugreek so went on line to see if I could use an alternative. I read that you can substitute mustard seed ground up a bit and heated which is what I did. I added half a teaspoon. I will def be making this regularly. So easy and so tasty. (And I love that it is a lighter version of the traditional recipe…..without losing any flavor)
Thank you so much Sandy, I’m so glad you like it. I am making it myself right right now. I need to try the mustard seed substitute. 🙂
I made this last night for dinner. I am absolutely in love with this dish. I didn’t have time to marinate the meat for 2 hrs as instructed, it was more like 20 minutes but still came out delicious! The whole family, including the children, age 7 and 9, devoured this….and this type of food is not a normal in our house!!!!! Will definitely be making many times again in the future. Thank you for posting!!!!!!
Thank you so much Kristin for coming back and leaving such a lovely comment, you have made my day. You must have made it so tasty to get kids to eat it 🙂
Just wondering the estimate on Calories for the curry? I loveeee Indian food but we recently started calorie counting!
Hi Rebecca, I don’t have the exact calorie count, but I would say this is about as low calorie as you could make it and a serving is probably no more than 200 calories since there’s not really ingredient that is highly caloric (that is without rice) Just make sure you buy the ingredients that do have the lowest calories. I hope this helps.
Do you cook the chicken beforehand or put it raw into the yogurt?
The chicken is raw when it marinates in the yogurt
hi janette – any suggestions for adapting this for a slow cooker?
Hi Lisa, you know cooking this in the slow cooker is a great idea. Just marinate the chicken like in the recipe, then after marinating add all the ingredients in the recipe to the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours or 4 hours on high. Enjoy 🙂
I’m making this now. I am wondering if I use the yogurt the meat has been marinating in, or do I throw that away and use new yogurt? Thanks for the recipe
Hello Mary, great question. Because you are basically boiling the sauce, it is safe to use the yogurt marinade. I hope you enjoy the dish.
Hi Kathy, I do mention that I have lightened up the recipe without cream, but it does not lack in flavor as all the comments will attest to. I also do not claim to be Indian so if you are looking for real style, there are many recipes out there that will appeal to what you’re looking for. Thank you for stopping by.
I just wanted to commend you for your well stated, yet gracious reply to that post. And thank you for adapting a dish to make it a bit more health conscious, while still keeping the flavor & heart of the dish. I will definitely be trying it. I love chicken tikka masala.
Thank you so much Teisha. I hope you like it 🙂
The flavor was delicious but the sauce never thickened, what did I do wrong?
Hello Brenda. I’m glad you liked the flavor. The lack of thickening can sometimes come from the tomatoes if they have extra liquid. What I have done in this case is simmer longer and allow some of the liquid to reduce. If this doesn’t work, mix a little corn starch with cold water and stir into the sauce as it cooks uncovered. I hope this helps and hope you make it again.
I tried this tonight and, while it smelled delicious, it turned out rather bland. Any suggestions?
Hello Bri With all the flavorful spices used, I’m not sure how it could have been bland. I make this myself about every 2 weeks and it’s comes out flavorful every time as well as many of my readers. Because I’m not in the kitchen with you when you make it I’m not really sure what could be wrong. Do you have all the measurements correct? Are you using all the suggested spices? Did you allow it to cook for the 15 minutes? This helps develop the flavors.
Can I use fenugreek seeds ground up? All I can find at my specialty store is fenugreek seed. Is it the same thing? I can grind it up if so.
Yes, grinding the fenugreek seeds is perfect. You will get great flavor. I hope you enjoy the recipe Andrea.
Hi Janette!
I’m looking forward to making this and was just curious to know if you’d recommend Greek or plain yoghurt? I’m leaning towards experimenting with the Greek. Thanks
Hi Kathryn, I have used both and I found that regular yogurt works best because Greek tends to make the sauce grainy. I hope you enjoy it.
Re: fenugreek
We have ground fenugreek from a Middle Eastern market. But we also just got some fenugreek leaves online from World Spice Market in San Francisco. They have the most amazing and varied line of products at super reasonable prices. I am fairly certain they have ground fenugreek as well. That’s where I get garam masala and curry blends as well.
Seriously craving tikka masala on this snowy day, so I thought I’d give your recipe a try. Wow, is it ever good! I didn’t have yogurt on hand, so I used buttermilk in the marinade. And then at the end, I discovered I was out of milk, too…so I substituted coconut milk. Still turned out great, and it smells fantastic. Sitting down now to a bowl of delicious tikka masala…with no driving in the snow required. 😉
Thank you for the feedback Kathleen. I’m glad you were able to make it work and stay in from the snow. It sounds delicious.
Hi Janette,
I was just stopping by to say that I can’t wait to try this recipe tonight! 🙂
While I’m at the supermarket though, I want to just clarify; I can use Plain Greek Yogurt for the “Low Fat Plain Yogurt” that your recipe calls for without compromising the flavor or texture? Let me know! 🙂
Thank you,
Nicole
Hi Nicole, yes Greek is fine. Any plain yogurt will work. I hope you like it and thank you for stopping by.
Hi,
I was wondering if the chicken could marinate overnight?
Thanks for the recipe, we’re so excited to try it!
Susan
Hi Susan, absolutely. It will be just that more flavorful. Thank you for stopping by.
What is fenugreek and can something be substituted for it. Thanks. Looks delicious.
Hi Val, fenugreek is a spice that is usually not found in many supermarkets. You could substitute equal amounts of mustard and fennel powder, or use mild curry powder. I hope this helps and thank you for stopping by.
Great, thanks.
Delicious recipe, and so easy, thank you!! First time made we used “fake” chicken (vegetarian), and tarragon as a desperate substitute for the fenugreek. It was good, but your recipe is better!
Thank you so much for your feedback Lena. I’m glad you enjoyed it.
I am thinking I will make this this week and am wondering where you found ground fenugreek? I have fenugreek pills I have taken in the past and it seems strange to me that it would be the same thing?
Thanks!!
I hope you do make it Rebecca, it’s my favorite Indian dish and comes out great every time. I buy fenugreek at my local Indian market, but if you don’t have one close to you maybe there’s a spice store close or if all else fails you could order online. Hope this helps and thank you for visiting.
I made this yesterday and I am in love! Thank you. I have tried many recipes and this by far is my favorite!
I love to hear this Ali, thank you so much 🙂
thanks for this recipe. I love this dish.
Simon
Love the flavors of this dish. Looks awesome.
It may be wrong, but I am jealous of anyone who can put something like this together and make it look so appetizingly beautiful; great job Janette!
Love to dig in with hot tandoori roti! Yum! pinned and tweeted 🙂
This looks amazing – it couldn’t look any more delicious! Thanks for sharing this recipe!
This chicken tikka masala looks amazing! NZ is the same as far as curries go. We LOVE them!
This looks amazing Janette! I love Asian recipes – and chicken tikka masala is a favorite Indian dish!
This recipe is so perfect, I am thinking of adapting it into a vegetarian version (Paneer Tikka Masala). Just curious why you used Yogurt instead of heavy cream? To keep it on the healthier side, I assume? Your recipe is exactly like the way they serve it at Indian Restaurants.
Hi Rini, yes I used the yogurt just to lighten up the recipe. Paneer version would be so good.
Dear Janette, what a hearty and delicious meal. This looks wonderful. xo