8.1 Indian

Let me make a confession up front - I’ve never managed to make Indian food that is as good as you can get at many standard Indian restaurants. Indeed it is for that reason that periodically I make a run to Dayton, 40 miles away, to stock up at Amar Indian Restaurant, an excellent source. Nevertheless, there are a few recipes I’ve had some success with. My go-to source for them is 1000 Indian Recipes, by Neelam Batra; unless otherwise specified, this is where recipes originated.

8.1.1 Ajwain Chicken

This is one that Amar used to serve but removed it from their menu a few years ago. I found this suitable substitute. It’s a fair amount of work, but the result is worth the effort.

Ingredients

For the marinade

4-6 skinless bone-in chicken thighs
1 cup yogurt (avoid low fat)
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp red pepper (cayenne or flakes)
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp ajwain seeds

For preparation

1/4 cup olive oil
1 cinnamon stick 3 black cardamom pods
3 whole cloves
1 tbsp cumin seeds
1 large onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, sliced
2” piece of ginger, peeled and sliced
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 cup chicken stock

  1. Mix the marinade ingredients, add the chicken, and let it marinate overnight.
  2. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add cinnamon, cardamom, cumin seeds, and red pepper flakes.
  3. Once the spices begin to sizzle (about 30 seconds) add the onion and saute for about 10 minutes, until the onions are softened and reduced in size by about a half.
  4. Add the ginger and garlic and continue to sauté for another 5 minutes.
  5. Add the turmeric, followed by the chicken and sauté for about 20 minutes, turning occasionally
  6. Add the chicken stock and cook on low heat for 40-50 minutes

Serve with rice.

8.1.1.1 For the Instant Pot®

  1. Follow the instructions above through step 5 (using the sauté setting for preparing the onions, spices and chicken).
  2. Remove the chicken temporarily and add the chicken broth.
  3. Put the trivet in place and place the chicken pieces on it.
  4. Pressure Cook on high for 8 minutes, followed by a 5 minute natural release.
  5. Switch the cover switch to vent and let all remaining steam release.
  6. Remove the chicken. If the sauce needs some thickening, set on sauté and cook until it is sufficiently released.

8.1.2 Chile Fry (Bhuna Murchi Murgh)

This is one I particularly like - as Indian recipes go, it’s relatively straightforward. This is actually a southern India dish, so it is quite distinct from the northern Indian cuisine with which we are most familiar. The sesame oil is a key ingredient.

Ingredients

2 tbsp peanut oil
1 tbsp Asian sesame oil
5-7 dried chiles
2 1 inch pieces of peeled ginger, cut into matchsticks
1-2 medium onions, chopped
1 large clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp paprika
2 lb skinless chicken thighs, cut in half through the bone
1 cup fresh cilantro, including soft stems
1/4 cup white vinegar
~1/2 cup water
salt and pepper, to taste

  1. Heat the oils in a large pan and add the peppers and ginger. Stir until lightly browned, about two minutes.
  2. Add the onions and cook until browned, about 15 minutes.
  3. Add garlic, paprika and chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is browned, about 5 minutes.
  4. Add the cilantro, water, vinegar, salt and pepper.
  5. Cook over high heat until it comes to a boil and then reduce heat to medium.
  6. Cook uncovered for about 20 minutes, until most of the liquid has evaporated.
  7. Serve with rice.

8.1.3 Tamarind Chicken (Imli Murgh)

The original recipe calls for tamarind paste. I’ve never made it myself, rather I have used commercial tamarind concentrate in its place. This dish comes from Goa, a former Portuguese colony, and again is quite different from the Northern Indian cuisine widely available in the US.

Ingredients

3-4 tsp tamarind paste or concentrate
3 tbsp peanut oil
1 inch stick of cinammon, split lengthwise
2 black cardamom pods, gently crushed
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 large onion, sliced
1 tbsp peeled minced ginger
1 clove garlic, peeled
6 boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite size pieces
1 tbsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp turmeric
salt to taste
3-5 serrano peppers, split or with skin punctured
1 tbsp white vinegar
1 tbsp brown sugar
fresh cilantro, chopped, for garnish

  1. Heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat and add cinnamon, cardamom and cumin. Sizzle briefly.
  2. Add the onions and cook until browned, 10-15 minutes.
  3. Mix in the finger and garlic, and then add chicken, coriander, turmeric and salt. Cook with stirring until the chicken is golden, about 5-7 minutes.
  4. Add the tamarind, serrano chiles, vinegar and brown sugar.
  5. Cook uncovered for 7-10 minutes, until the chicken is soft and the sauce clings to it.

Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve (as always) over rice.

8.1.4 Chicken Tikka

This and the following recipe, for lamb kofta, are presented together, since I’ve found that both are great with the same masala. This one can be grilled or broiled, although what I really like is the ersatz tandoor method using the Green Egg that is given below. The lamb kofta recipe was originally designed for the Instant Pot®, but the next time I make it I’m going to bake the meatballs, as we do for Turkish meat balls.

This is one of my favorite dishes from my favorite Indian restaurant. A reader on the NYT site suggested a sauce for use when serving over rice. I’ve included that here as well.

Ingredients

six boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1 inch pieces
1/4 cup malt vinegar or lemon juice
1 +1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup plain yogurt
3 tbsp malt vinegar
2-3 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder (“deggi murch”)
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp sweet or semisharp paprika
1+1 tbsp dried fenugreek (optional)
1 tbsp ginger garlic paste

  1. In a bowl, combine the chicken with the lemon juice, 1 tsp salt and 1 tbsp. ginger garlic paste. Let it rest 10 minutes.
  2. Mix together the yogurt, malt vinegar, chilli powder, garam masala, turmeric, 1/2 tsp salt, coriander, cumin, paprika, fenugreek, and 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste in another bowl.
  3. Blot the chicken dry and add it to the yogurt mixture. Refrigerate for 3-4 hours.
  4. Prepare your grill and heat it to 450o F.
  5. For conventional grilling, place the chicken on skewers and grill, turning occasionally, until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches ~160o F. For Tandoor-style cooking, see below.
  6. This can be served as is, but it can also be used for chicken tikka masala, using the masala recipe included below.

8.1.4.1 Tandoor-style Cooking

An alternative way to cook these, somewhat similar to how it is done in an authentic tandoor, can be founr here. It involves using long skewers that are positioned through the upper vent of a very hot Egg.

  1. Ignite coals in a Green Egg, and leave it open until the coals are glowing.
  2. Place the chicken pieces on long (17”) metal skewers, with a half of a lemon or lime at the end (these serve as stoppers so the chicken won’t fall out during cooking.
  3. Close the egg, keeping both vents wide open.
  4. Place the skewers into the top vent, with their handles draped over the edge of the vent.
  5. Cook for about 15 minutes.
  6. Remove one skewer and check the internal temperature of a large piece of chicken. You want it to be 165 o F. or greater. If necessary, return the chicken to the Egg.
  7. Continue cooking until the desired temperature is reached.

8.1.4.2 Notes

Thermoworks has a blog post with a very similar tikka recipe, along with a stovetop masala to serve with it. The only big difference in the tikka is the inclusion of cumin, coriander and paprika. I have added them above and liked the results My first time cooking this turned out well (I served it with Basmati pilau) and it was great. White rice is fine, especially if you’re serving it as a masala. If you are serving plain chicken tikka, then you might want to consider serving it over Basmati Pilau.

Second time is the charm. When I repeated this recipe, adding the additional spices and preparing the sauce described for lamb kofta the results were superb. Indeed, it was the closest I’ve come to replicating one of my favorite restaurant dishes. Hence, I decided to combine this and the kofta recipe into a single section.

Third time. I had this with plain rice (too lazy to make the pilau) and discovered that it works well. And at least for me, 15 minutes in the “tandoor” has done it every time.

Left: Top of skewers hanging in Green Egg. Right: Although not always accurate, the dome thermometer shows the ideal temperature for tandoori cooking.

8.1.5 Lamb Kofta

The original recipe here calls for use of ground chicken. That is not my favorite so I’ve substituted lamb. And the first time I made this, I did it in the Instant Pot®, but the resulting meatballs were rather soggy. Also, since I’ve found that the sauce works with chicken tikka as well, I thought it might be a good idea to separate the preparation of the sauce from that of the kofta.

Ingredients

1 pound ground lamb
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (optional)
1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
1 tablespoons poppy seeds (optional)
1/2 tablespoon white or malt vinegar
1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1 teaspoons ginger paste or freshly grated ginger
1 teaspoons garlic paste or freshly grated garlic
1 3/4 teaspoons Kashmiri or other mild red chile powder (or 1 teaspoon red-pepper flakes)
1 egg
Vegetable or other neutral oil, for greasing hands

  1. Preheat your oven to 350o F.*
  2. Combine all of the meatball ingredients, except the oil, and shape the mixture into eight balls. and place on a foil covered sheet pan that has had a light coat of spray oil applied
  3. Bake for 12-14 minutes.
  4. Add the meatballs to the sauce and let simmer for about 5 minutes.
  5. Serve with rice and naan.

8.1.6 Masala

As noted, this is derived from the original recipe for lamb kofta, I’ve used it (successfully) with that and chicken tikka, but I imagine there might be a way to use it in vegetarian cooking. Malai kofta uses vegetarian “meatballs”, but there might also be a way to cook beans in it.

Ingredients

3 tbsp ghee or neutral oil
1 large yellow or red onion, finely chopped
1½ teaspoons ginger paste or freshly grated ginger
1½ teaspoons garlic paste or freshly grated garlic
1½ teaspoons Kashmiri or other mild red chile powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
4 Roma tomatoes, finely chopped, or 1½ cups canned crushed tomatoes
1 teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more to taste
3/4 cups unsalted chicken stock or water
4 Thai green chiles, sliced
¼ cup full-fat plain Greek yogurt
½ teaspoon garam masala
2 tablespoons roughly chopped cilantro

  1. Set your instant pot to sauté and add the oil.
  2. Add the onions and sauté for 5-7 minutes until soft and transluscent.
  3. Add the chilli powder, cumin and turmeric and stir for thirty seconds.
  4. Add the tomatoes and salt. Cook for 5-7 minutes.
  5. Add the chicken stock, garlic/ginger, and chopped peppers. Hit cancel on the IP.
  6. Remove the inner lining and when boiling has ceased stir in the yogurt.
  7. Pressure cook for 20 minutes, followed by 10 minutes of natural release. Thicken on the sauté setting as desired.
  8. Add whatever protein you have prepared and serve over rice. Garnish with cilantro and/or garam masala as desired.

8.1.7 Chana Masala

I’m not a bean eater, but my wife is. She has tried making beans in the IP, but thus far she hasn’t found a combination she likes. In preparing the previous three recipes, I wondered if beans could be used in place of chicken or lamb, and that led me to this recipe. The key cooking parameters are 35 minutes on high pressure followed by a natural release.