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Home » Recipes » Dinner

Easy Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe

Published: Dec 21, 2020 · Updated: Sep 7, 2021 by Naomi Willis · This post may contain affiliate links

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This is such an easy Chicken Tikka Masala recipe, and it's just like the ones you get from an Indian restaurant or takeaway!

easy chicken tikka masala recipe

This is such an easy Chicken Tikka Masala recipe, and it's just like the ones you get from an Indian restaurant or takeaway!

Undoubtedly, Chicken Tikka Masala is THE most popular Indian dish in the UK. Some 23 million portions of the nation's favourite dish are sold each year in Indian restaurants, and M&S sell around 15 tons a week!

But...it may not be a true Indian food, having likely been created in England!

Where it really came from doesn't matter too much as it's a firm favourite, with a mix of spice, but not too much, and a delicious sauce.

What spices go in Tikka Masala?

chicken tikka masala spices

Chicken Tikka Masala is all about the combination of spices.

Together, they create a wonderful aroma and make the curry so tasty.

The spices you need to make Tikka Masala are:

  • turmeric
  • cumin
  • mild chilli powder
  • garam masala
  • garlic granules
  • ginger
  • salt

If you prefer your curries spicier, then use hotter chilli powder instead. Don't just add in more of the mild as it will throw off the mix of the other spices.

If you keep the same proportions of Tikka Masala spices, you can always bulk make your powder. This way, you can have it ready-made in your store cupboard and will save yourself time in the future.

Why is Chicken Tikka Masala red?

Some people think that Indian restaurants and takeouts add some kind of food colouring to a Tikka Masala to give it a reddish-orange colour.

However, you don't need to do this (and they may not either).

The rich colour is all down to the variety of spices you use.

The main spices in the masala are turmeric, which has a golden yellow colour as well as the powered chilli and tomato which have a bright red colour.

How do you marinate chicken for Tikka Masala?

chicken tikka masala marinade

Once you've got all your Tikka Masala spices together, you need to start marinating your chicken. The longer you can marinate the chicken for the greater the flavour.

Using a yoghurt will allow the spices to cling to the chicken better.

You can leave the chicken marinating for as little as an hour in the fridge, but 24 hours will mean you get a lot more taste.

Do be sure to cover the dish you're marinating the chicken tikka masala in, as it has a powerful flavour and will make your fridge smell 🙂

What is the difference between Chicken Tikka and Chicken Tikka Masala?

chicken tikka masala

Tikka and Tikka Masala start pretty much the same.

For both dishes, you need to put together the spices and marinate the chicken chunks.

However, it's what happens after this time that changes the two dishes.

For a Chicken Tikka, the chicken is then cooked (traditionally) in a Tandoor oven, but under the grill will work too.

For a Chicken Tikka Masala, the chicken is cooked in creamy (and delicious) masala sauce.

We used balti dishes like these ones from Amazon to serve our masala, which keeps the sauce separate from the rice.

As we have Indian food all the time, they are a perfect way to serve curry.

How do you make easy chicken tikka masala?

Step 1

Chicken Tikka Masala is an easy recipe, but you do need to give yourself a bit of time. It's not about doing much, but just allowing all the spices to marinate and let the flavours to sink in.

You need to allow at least one hour, but it's best if you can prepare the chicken 24 hours in advance to get the most out of the spices.

After you've combined all the spices, mix them with the yoghurt and chicken, so everything is coated well.

Step 2

When it's ready, you can cook the chicken and begin to prepare your sauce base.

Step 3

After frying your onions, the spices get added, and the colour of the sauce starts coming together to make the classic Tikka Masala red-orange.

Step 4

You then need to add the final ingredients and let the Tikka Masala simmer to cook the chicken through.

I love naan bread! So it's a staple side dish. Rice is perfect on the side, as is saag aloo and poppadums.

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easy chicken tikka masala recipe
easy chicken tikka masala recipe

Chicken Tikka Masala

This is such an easy Chicken Tikka Masala recipe and it's just like the ones you get from an Indian restaurant or takeaway!
5 from 10 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian
Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes
Plus marinating time +: 1 hour hour
Total Time: 40 minutes minutes
Servings: 6
Calories: 416kcal
Author: Skint Chef

Ingredients

Marinade

  • 800 g chicken diced
  • 1 cup plain yoghurt
  • 2 tablespoon garlic granules
  • 1 tablespoon ginger
  • 1½ teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon mild chilli powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon garam masala

Sauce

  • 2 tablespoon oil
  • 2 tablespoon butter
  • 3 medium onions sliced
  • 3 cloves garlic crushed
  • 2 tablespoon cumin
  • 2 tablespoon garam masala
  • 1½ tablespoon ginger
  • 1½ tablespoon chilli powder
  • 1½ teaspoon coriander
  • 500 g tomato passata
  • 200 ml water optional
  • 200 ml double cream
  • 1½ teaspoon brown sugar
  • handful of fresh coriander

Instructions

Marinade

  • Mix all the seasoning together and then add the chicken, put cling film over the top, leave in the fridge for 24 hours if possible, however 1 hour is fine.

Sauce

  • Heat the oil in a large pan and then brown the chicken. Remove and set aside.
  • Add butter to the pan and cook the onions and the garlic for around 5 minutes, add all the other spices and the tomato puree (the sauce should now be a nice deep red colour). You may need to add the water here depending on how dry the sauce is. Add the brown sugar, most of the cream (you need to keep a bit back for decoration at the end) add the chicken, and simmer gently for 15 - 20 minutes until chicken is thoroughly cooked through.
  • Serve with a drizzle of cream and fresh coriander on top for decoration.

Notes

Enjoy your Chicken Tikka Masala with your favourite rice, naans and poppadums.
If you want to make the curry cheaper, exchange the chicken breast for chicken thighs - they cook just as well.
 
Nutrition data provided is provided as an estimate only. It is the reader's responsibility to calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients you use in your recipe if you need to follow a particular diet or for medical purposes.
Calories: 416kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 110mg | Sodium: 581mg | Potassium: 807mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 1879IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 139mg | Iron: 5mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @skintchef or tag #skintchef!
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Nina Jason

    July 05, 2019 at 11:46 am

    I personally gave you five stars because you explain this recipe and gave me a different taste. please add more indians recipies. I already bookmark your site for future

    Reply
    • Ricky Willis

      July 07, 2019 at 12:06 pm

      Thanks Nina - so glad you enjoyed our easy Tikka Masala recipe 🙂

      There are more fakeaway recipes on the way soon!

      Reply
  2. Dawn

    March 04, 2020 at 9:03 am

    I'm making this at the moment, and just want to query 20 oz of tomato puree??? According to Google, 20oz is around a pint. Given that tubes of tomato puree are only generally 200g, I want to check if it really does mean tomato puree (thick, concentrated paste) or if it should say passata (smooth runny tomato sauce)??? Can you please confirm? Thanks

    Reply
    • Ricky Willis

      March 04, 2020 at 9:51 am

      Hey Dawn, good spot! Yep, that was a typo at our end. You're right, it is passata. We've updated the recipe. Hope your dinner was delicious 🙂

      Reply
  3. Robyn

    March 13, 2020 at 1:13 am

    Hi, great recipe. But I have put tooo much chili in. How can I tame it down a bit without compromising the other flavours.

    Reply
  4. Kelly

    March 15, 2020 at 1:22 pm

    Can I use dry ginger or is fresh ginger required?

    Reply
  5. Liz

    April 25, 2020 at 4:53 pm

    This was amazing we really loved it the flavours are fantastic. I have made one day a week since I found this recipe I give you 10👏👏👏👏

    Reply
    • Kiera

      July 26, 2020 at 7:49 pm

      How long do you cook the chicken for before adding it to the sauce

      Reply
  6. Debbie Deakin

    July 29, 2020 at 10:21 pm

    Really good and easy especially for a novuce cook like me thank you so pleased i found your site

    Reply
  7. Vera

    November 18, 2020 at 5:13 pm

    Taste great and so easy to make !
    Thank you !!

    Reply
  8. Neil

    December 19, 2020 at 12:27 am

    Can I use goat instead of chicken

    Reply
    • Ricky Willis

      December 21, 2020 at 8:00 pm

      Hey Neil, Yes, I'm sure that will be fine. Let us know how it turns out.

      Reply
  9. Carina

    March 25, 2021 at 5:03 pm

    Hello can you freeze this please?

    Reply
  10. Mary Atieno

    April 14, 2021 at 12:32 pm

    This is great I did sometimes back and I had forgotten some steps but I have learnt more

    Reply
  11. Donna

    July 17, 2021 at 10:13 am

    My go to chicken tikka masala recipe.Brilliant every time

    Reply
  12. Anne Marie Binch

    May 22, 2022 at 3:42 pm

    amazing! I am so happy to have found such a fantastic authentic and informative site and especially this recipe. Really authentic! Thank you.

    Reply
  13. Lucy

    September 29, 2022 at 10:20 pm

    Best chicken tikka masala I’ve ever tried. However, how do you think this will be slow cooked have you tried it?

    🙂

    Reply

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