Chicken Tikka Masala

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This chicken tikka masala recipe is everything you want it to be! It’s creamy, luscious, flavorful, and the best part? It’s an easy chicken recipe to make at home for a delicious weeknight dinner! It’s just as delicious as takeout from your favorite Indian restaurant.

Marinated in yogurt, then broiled and simmered in a creamy, rich tomato-based sauce, this recipe is fragrant and is perfect for serving with basmati rice, naan bread, or roti to soak up the velvety, mouthwatering sauce. It’ll definitely become a new family favorite as both adults and kids will want seconds!

If you’re interested in another Indian-inspired easy chicken recipe for dinner this week, then try my tandoori chicken recipe, butter chicken recipe, or chicken curry recipe!

What You Need to Make This Recipe

Ingredients needed to make chicken tikka masala.

Chicken — I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts, but you can also use boneless, skinless chicken thighs.

Yogurt — a thick yogurt for the marinade is best. If the yogurt is runny, it won’t cling onto the chicken as well and might run off the chicken when you broil it. As the seasoning is also infused into the yogurt, you want the yogurt to cling to the chicken as it cooks. The yogurt also helps keep the chicken from drying out as it broils.

Seasoning — this recipe uses red Kashmiri chili powder, garam masala, ground coriander, salt, ground cumin, and turmeric. Make sure these are not stale! While spices and seasoning don’t tend to expire, they do lose flavor and potency over time.

Tomato puree — when you buy tomato puree for this recipe, make sure it does not contain additional spices and flavorings.

Cream — adding cream at the end helps balance out the intense flavor from the seasoning and gives the sauce a rich, creamy texture.

How to Make Chicken Tikka Masala

Set of two photo showing spices, yogurt, and meat combined in a bowl and more spices added to a pot of onions.

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the chicken with the yogurt, ginger, garlic, lemon juice, red Kashmiri chili powder, garam masala, ground coriander, salt, ground cumin, and turmeric. Toss until well coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight.

2. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger and cook until the onion is starting to brown. Add the coriander, salt, garam masala, cumin, chili powder, and turmeric, and cook until fragrant and toasted, stirring constantly.

Set of two photos showing tomato puree added to a pot and diced chicken on a rack.

3. Add the tomato puree and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Simmer until thick and dark in color, stirring occasionally.

4. Meanwhile, position the oven rack directly under the broiler and preheat to High Broil. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and set a wire rack inside. Arrange the marinated chicken pieces in a single layer on the rack. Broil until the chicken is sticky and dark on the edges and set aside.

Set of two photos showing cream added to the sauce in the pot and chicken stirred in.

5. Once the tomato and spice mixture has thickened, stir in water and cream until smooth.

6. Add chicken and simmer. Serve over hot cooked rice or with naan. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

Overhead view of chicken tikka masala in a white Dutch oven garnished with cilantro with naan beside it.

Pro Tips for Making This Recipe

The longer you’re able to marinate the chicken, the better! The yogurt marinade helps to tenderize the meat and infuse it with flavor.
Make sure to cut the chicken as uniformly as possible, as it ensures the chicken cooks evenly.
Once you add the chicken to the sauce, don’t skip simmering it. Simmering everything together allows the flavors to develop and meld.
The chicken needs to be cooked on a rack due to the liquid released. This ensures the chicken does not get soggy and can brown nicely.
When cooking the onions, be patient and cook them until brown. This is key for developing deep, rich flavor in your sauce.

A spoonful of chicken tikka masala with cilantro lifted from a bowl.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this recipe the same as butter chicken?

Butter chicken and chicken tikka masala are both popular curry dishes that use similar ingredients but are not the same. Butter chicken does not traditionally use onions, and the sauce is sweeter and silky smooth. Butter chicken is also cooked in butter instead of oil, like in this recipe.

What’s the difference between chicken tikka and chicken tikka masala?

Tikka refers to pieces of meat, and masala refers to a sauce. So, chicken tikka is typically served as a dry dish, without a sauce, with a side dip. On the other hand, chicken tikka masala is a curry dish where you cook the chicken in a tomato-based creamy sauce.

Is this recipe spicy?

Thanks to the tomato and cream-based sauce, the dish is not super spicy. You can add more chili powder if you’d like for the dish to be spicier.

How do I store leftovers?

Once the leftovers have cooled to room temperature, transfer them to an airtight container. Store for up to 4 days. You can reheat leftovers in the microwave or on the stovetop.

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If you’ve tried this Chicken Tikka Masala recipe, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!