Malai Chicken Tikka

I’m not going to waffle on today but here is a nice and light malai chicken tikka recipe. You may have had the bright red chicken tikka; malai (cream) chicken tikka is the softer and creamier sister of the bunch and a breeze to make! Plus, it is the perfect dish for this bbq weather right now. 

If you are not allergic to nuts, I highly recommend adding in some cashew nut paste (just blitz up cashew nuts with a tiny bit of water) and adding it to the marinade. This makes for a super duper creamy version and is how Indian restaurants nail it every time. Just add it in to the cream and yoghurt marinating mixture.  

Equipment I used for this recipe:

• Wooden Skewers
• BBQ Brush

MALAI CHICKEN TIKKA RECIPE

Serves 6 

INGREDIENTS
½ kg boneless chicken, breast or thigh, cut into pieces
½ tsp salt 
1.5 heaped tsp garlic
1 heaped tsp ginger 
Juice of ½ a lemon 

4 tbsp thick yoghurt 
½ tsp cardamom powder
4 green chillies 
½ tsp garam masala 
½ tsp salt 
½ tsp white pepper
1 large handful of coriander leaves
2 tbsp grated cheddar or mozzarella cheese

60ml double cream 
1 tsp cornflour 

1 tbsp butter, melted

Pinch of chaat masala 

METHOD

1. Marinate chicken with salt, garlic, ginger, and lemon. Leave this to the side for 15-20 minutes. 
2. In a blender, blitz the yoghurt, cardamom powder, green chillies, coriander, garam masala, salt and pepper together. Taste to see if anything needs to be added. 
3. In a bowl, mix together the double cream and cornflour. Add in the yoghurt mixture and mix well. Then mix in the chicken and grated cheese.
4. Cover this in cling film and leave this to marinate in the fridge for at least an hour – an overnight marinade will be really great as the chicken will be softer and tender. 
5. Take the chicken out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before cooking and soak the wooden skewers in water. Turn on the grill or bbq. 
6. Shake off the excess marinade from the chicken and skewer the pieces. Place on a tray under the grill or put on the bbq grill for 12-15 minutes. Baste the skewers with melted butter every 5 minutes. 
7. Once the skewers are cooked, sprinkle on some chaat masala and serve with salad or rice.