Chicken tikka masala is a rich, deeply spiced tomato and cashew gravy with chunks of charred yogurt-marinated chicken folded through it. There are a few steps but it's not too hard to make.

Now, I don't have a tandoor or an oven at home, and I'm guessing you don't either. There are a few options you've got for cooking the chicken in a tikka style: The best option for creating the charred, smokey flavour is using a charcoal or gas barbecue. If you don’t have one at home then using the broiler or grill function on your oven will do a similar job. The other option is to use a pizza oven as it gets incredibly hot and replicates the function of a tandoor in a very similar way. This curry is delicious the next day, so feel free to make a double batch and save the rest for work or school lunches.

Tikka Masala Tips

The two marinades

The first marinade (ginger garlic paste, Kashmiri chilli, lemon juice and salt) seasons the chicken and starts to tenderise the meat. The second marinade (yogurt, spices, tempered mustard oil and more ginger garlic paste) adds moisture and the deep spice flavour. Combine them and the lemon and salt from the first dilute into the second, and neither does its job properly.

Temper the mustard oil

Raw mustard seed oil is sharp and slightly acrid. Heat it in a small pot until it just starts to smoke, then turn off the heat and let it cool for 10 to 15 minutes. This burns off the volatile compounds and mellows the oil into a warm, nutty flavour. When it’s cool, mix it into the yogurt marinade. Don’t add it hot or the yogurt will split.

Blend for a silky gravy

Once the gravy has simmered for 30 minutes with the tomatoes, cashews, onions and spices, fish out the bay leaves and blend until smooth. The cashews give a rich, velvety texture that would otherwise take a lot more cream to achieve. Be careful blending hot liquid, use a stick blender straight in the pot, or a jug blender with the lid vented.

Ingredient Notes

Ginger garlic paste: Equal parts ginger and garlic, blitzed to a medium paste with a little neutral oil. If you cook Indian food often, make a big batch and keep it in the fridge for a couple of weeks or freeze in ice cube trays. For this recipe you’ll need around 5 tablespoons in total across the two marinades and the gravy, so it’s worth making a full batch upfront.

Mustard seed oil: Sharp and pungent raw, mellow and nutty once tempered. Find it at Indian grocers or larger supermarkets. Heat it to smoke point before use in the marinade. Don’t sub in regular oil if you can help it, the flavour is part of what makes tikka masala taste like tikka masala.

Kashmiri chilli powder: Deep red colour, mild heat. This is what gives tikka masala its signature red-orange colour without setting your mouth on fire. Regular chilli powder isn’t a good substitute (too spicy, wrong colour). Look for it at Indian grocers.

Kasuri methi: Dried fenugreek leaves. It adds a slightly sweet, earthy aroma that can’t really be replicated with anything else. Indian grocers stock it. Don’t skip it if you can help it, it’s what sets a great tikka masala apart from a decent one.

Equipment

• Small pot (for tempering the mustard oil)

• Large mixing bowl (for the marinades)

• Chopping board

• Chef’s knife

• Large Dutch oven or heavy-based pot

• Blender or stick blender

• Charcoal or gas BBQ (or oven with a grill/broil setting)

• Wire rack

• Wooden spoon

• Tongs