Chicken Tikka
A proper chicken built around boneless chicken thighs, natural yoghurt and fresh red chillis β roughly 70 minutes start to finish, and rated medium to make. You'll find the full ingredient list (with a scaler to change the servings), 7 steps of method, substitutions, and ideas for what to serve alongside.
You'll mainly reach for grill / broiler and pan. At medium difficulty across 7 steps, it's manageable with a little attention.
What you'll need
Shopping list (6)
Pantry staples (you likely have these)
π Unit converter
How to make it
- Cut the chicken thighs into bite-sized chunks and place them in a large bowl.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the yoghurt, milk, lemon juice, tomato paste, grated garlic and ginger, finely chopped chillis, cumin, garam masala, turmeric, mustard seed oil and salt to make a smooth marinade.
- Pour the marinade over the chicken, mix until every piece is well coated, then cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or ideally overnight.
- Thread the marinated chicken onto skewers, leaving small gaps between the pieces, and let any excess marinade drip off.
- Heat a grill, grill pan or broiler to high and cook the skewers for about 10 to 14 minutes, turning every few minutes, until the edges are lightly charred and the chicken is cooked through to an internal temperature of 165 F (74 C).
- Rest the skewers for a couple of minutes, then slide the chicken off and scatter with chopped cilantro.
- Serve hot with lemon wedges, naan or rice.
You'll use: Grill / broiler Β· Pan Β· Whisk Β· Grill pan
Ingredient substitutions
- Milk
- any unsweetened plant milk Β· Β½ cup evaporated milk + Β½ cup water
- Lemon
- lime Β· 1 tbsp white wine vinegar per lemon
Tips & common questions
How long does Chicken Tikka take to make?
About 70 minutes from start to finish β an estimate based on the 7 steps and 14 ingredients. Times vary with your kitchen and how much prep you do ahead.
What can I use instead of milk?
Try any unsweetened plant milk. See the substitutions section above for more swaps.
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes β use the servings control above the ingredients and every quantity rescales automatically (fractions included). Cooking times stay roughly the same; very large batches may need a little longer.
How should I store leftovers?
Cool leftovers quickly, refrigerate in an airtight container, and eat within 3 days. Reheat until piping hot throughout.
Related recipes
Chicken Tikka is an original recipe developed in-house by Consomee. Photo: Chicken tikka in Araku Valley, Andhra Pradesh 01.jpg by Satdeep Gill, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons. We add the serving scaler, ingredient tools, timing and structure on top β how we source recipes.