Chicken Tikka Masala

This is one of my favorite Indian dishes. It was the first thing I ever ate at an Indian restaurant and is almost always what I order. Until I found this recipe it never even occurred to me that I could make it at home.

I found this recipe in the book English Trifle by Josi Kilpack. I'm a huge fan of culinary mysteries and was excited when I found this new author. I have tried several other recipes from her books and they have all been good. My kids never know what I am talking about when I tell them we are having Chicken Tikka Masala for dinner, so I just call it Indian food.

No pictures, as we were all too excited to eat it!

Chicken Tikka Masala
Chicken
1 cup plain yogurt
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp cumin
1-2 tsp cayenne pepper (whatever you can tolerate)
2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground ginger
1 1/2 lbs chicken breasts or thighs, cut into bite size pieces
Combine all ingredients in a gallon size ziploc bag, seal bag and knead mixture by hand. Allow chicken to marinate at least one hour or longer in refrigerator.
After marinating, remove chicken from bag and grill or broil until cooked through. Marinade will cook off and you can discard the rest.
Sauce
1 Tbsp butter
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno, minced (optional if you want extra heat)
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp salt
1 8oz can tomato sauce
1 cup whipping cream
Basmati rice, cooked
Chopped cilantro for garnish
Melt butter in a large skillet and add garlic and jalapeno. Cook 1 minute. Add coriander, cumin, paprika, garam masala and salt. Add tomato sauce and cover skillet. Simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cream and simmer until sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Add cooked chicken to sauce and simmer an additional 5 minutes. Serve over rice and garnish with cilantro.