Tandoori Chicken

After a recent trip to the library, I've been reading Ted Allen's book, "The Food You Want to Eat."  What I like about this book is that it's simple, delicious food that you can make at home.  It really doesn't take any fancy gadgets or gizmo's to make this food.  He covers everything from fried chicken, pasta, and deserts.  I also really like how he gives suggestions for good wine pairings.
 His recipe for Tandoori(ish) Chicken (page 122) looked really good.  I decided to give it a whirl with some slight modifications.
He recommends doing this on the grill.  As it was currently snowing, I decided to try this on the broiler.  I know, the true grill-masters don't let a little cold weather stop them from getting out the charcoal, but I'm a wimp.
I had all the ingredients on hand.  The only thing slightly usual is the turmeric and cardamom, but both are easily found at your regular grocery store.


for the marinade:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 medium onion, quartered
3 medium garlic cloves
2-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Pinch of cayenne pepper
Pinch of ground cardamom

1 1/2 to 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast.
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Combine all of the marinade ingredients in a blender or food processor and puree.  Pour out into a glass baking dish.  Add the chicken and stir to coat.  Add the floor and stir to combine.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.

I cooked this under the broiler, for 10-20 minutes for until browned and cooked through, turning once.

All I can say about this recipe is that it was delicious.  The yogurt kept the chicken moist, much like buttermilk in a fried chicken recipe.  The exotic spices and cayenne gave it a bit of a kick.  This paired well, of course, with white rice.   (I mean, what doesn't go well with white rice?).  If you are feeling a little bit naughty, spring for the basmati rice.  If you have never tried it, do!  It has a nice mild sweet flavor and aroma that will really make your curry dish sing.

While we are on the subject of chicken, I just remembered that when I was about five, I lived out west, in a somewhat rural area.  Our neighbors kept chickens.  Every day, I looked at the flock as I was walking home from school.  I remember thinking it was funny how the chickens squawked and pecked at the ground.  One fine fall day, as I was walking down our lane from the bus stop, I witnessed my neighbor cutting the head off one of his chickens with an ax.  I think this permanently scarred me.  I remember flapping feathers, blood, and much running about from the now headless chicken.  I had home sobbing unconscionably.  My mom had to explain the whole circle of life animal thing.  In retrospect, I don't think I ate chicken for a very long time after that.


But eat this, you will be glad you did!