Chicken Tikka

Today I made chicken Tikka - what would be used for Tikka Masala.  I skipped the Masala sauce because I want to use the chicken in a mediterranean salad with chickpeas, mint and a cucumber/yogurt dressing.  Doesn't that sound good?!  I'm excited about it... haha.

Chicken ingredients:

INGREDIENTS
Chicken Tikka
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon table salt
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts , trimmed of fat
1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt (see note above)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

I got the recipe from the Cook's Illustrated cookbook.  It requires patting spices on the chicken (cardamom, cayenne pepper, cumin and salt) and letting it marinate for 30-60 minutes while you make the yogurt sauce.

For the yogurt sauce, combine the yogurt, oil, garlic and ginger together with a whisk.  When the chicken is done marinating, turn on your broiler.  I put it on medium broil, but it would have been better on high (I learned later).

Take your tongs and coat the chicken breast in the yogurt sauce.  Then put the chicken directly on the broiler.  Cook it for 10-18 minutes, until the chicken is 160 degrees on the inside (you will need a cooking thermometer) and the chicken is slightly charred on the outside.

I haven't tried this batch of chicken this time because I am going to use it for lunch salads to bring to work, but last time I made this, the chicken was so delicious and like creamy because of the yogurt.  I loved the subtle spices and, overall, this chicken is really pretty healthy!  So I think it's a win win.  When I put the salad together I will add a picture of that too.

I made the cucumber/yogurt dressing.  It tastes sort of like tzatziki (Greek dip) but is more "dressing-like" than "dip-like"  The recipe also called for dill and jalapeno, so it is a little different.  In any event, it is refreshing, delicious, and, again, way fewer calories than your typical salad dressing.

















Here is the recipe I used from Whole Foods: http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipe/yogurt-cucumber-dressing