Tandoori Style Grilled Chicken

Tandoori chicken..Hearing the name itself makes me crave for it:) Whenever I go for lunch buffets in  restaurants, I have it as a main course and the main course as sidedish:)

Tandoori chicken originated in Punjab. It is a popular dish in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and among South Asia.
The name comes from the type of cylindrical clay oven, a tandoor, in which the dish is traditionally prepared. The chicken is marinated in yogurt and seasoned with the spice mixture tandoori masala. It is traditionally cooked at high temperatures in a tandoor (clay oven), but it can also be prepared on a traditional barbecue grill or a conventional oven.

Here, I used the electric grill to make this tandoori chicken.

Tandoori Style Chicken Recipe

Preparation time : 20 mins | Cooking time : 1 hr | Marination : 3 hrs (minimum)
Category : Tandoori | Cuisine : Punjabi

Ingredients for the Marinade:

Chicken legs - 8 pieces
Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Yogurt - 2 tbsp
Ginger garlic paste - 1 tbsp
Shan Tandoori Masala (or any branded tandoori masala) - 25 gms
Lemon juice - 1 tsp
Oil - 2 tbsp
Red food color (optional) - 4-5 drops
*No salt is needed if you are using Shan masala as the masala itself have in it*. 

Method

1. Clean and cut 2 or 3 long slits on each chicken piece.

2. Mix all the ingredients given under marination to a smooth paste.

3. Apply it all over the chicken making sure to apply well between all the slits and inside.

4. Allow the marinated chicken to sit for atleast 3 hrs in refrigerator or overnight. Longer the time of marination, yummiest the taste of chicken.

In Grill:

1. Spray or coat the grill with oil & arrange the chicken pieces on the grill.

2. Keep flipping the pieces till it gets cooked well on both sides.

In Oven:

1. Preheat your oven to 425 degree F. Keep it in Bake mode.

2. Arrange the marinated chicken legs in a baking or aluminium tray.

3. Cook for 25 mins till the chicken is tender. You can now see the chicken leaving water. Now take    the tray out, drain the water and turn the legs the other side. Drizzle some oil over the flipped legs.

4. Keep it again in the oven for 30 more mins for the chicken to get roasted. For the last 5 mins, switch the oven to broil mode.

6. Remove from oven and serve hot, garnished with sliced onions, bell peppers and lime wedges and also can be heated on griddle if serving later.

Points to be noted

• If you dont have readymade tandoori masala, you can prepare your own with the following ingredients:

         Garam masala powder - 1 tsp
         Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
         Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
         Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
         Coriander powder - 1 tsp
         Salt as needed
         Rest all the same method.

• I usually marinate overnight. But atleast 3 hrs of marination is needed for the masala to get well inside the chicken pieces.
• You can eat this guilt-free as it consumes only less oil.