Tandoori Chicken

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated
1 tablespoon garam masala
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 cup plain yogurt, whole or low-fat
Juice of 2 limes, divided
2 teaspoons salt
5-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Instructions
1. Heat oil in small skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add garam masala, cumin, and chili powder; continue to cook until fragrant, 30 to 60 seconds longer. Transfer half of garlic-spice mixture to medium bowl; stir in yogurt, juice of 1 lime, and set aside.

2. In large bowl, combine remaining garlic-spice mixture, juice from remaining lime, and salt. Using sharp knife, lightly score the smoother side of each piece of chicken, making 2 or 3 shallow cuts; transfer to bowl. Using hands, gently massage salt-spice mixture into chicken until all pieces are evenly coated; let stand at room temperature 30 minutes.

3. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 325*F. Pour yogurt mixture over chicken and toss until chicken is evenly coated with thick layer. Arrange chicken pieces, scored-side down, on wire rack set in foil-lined, rimmed baking sheet or broiler pan. Discard excess yogurt mixture. Bake chicken until instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of chicken registers 125*F, 15 to 25 minutes. (Smaller pieces may cook faster than larger pieces. Transfer chicken pieces to plate as they reach correct temperature.)

4. After removing chicken from oven, turn oven to broil and heat 10 minutes. Once broiler is heated, flip chicken pieces over and broil until chicken is lightly charred in spots and instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of chicken registers 165*F, 8 to 15 minutes. Transfer chicken to large plate, tent loosely with foil, and rest 5 minutes.

Comments
I believe I saw this recipe made on an episode of America’s Test Kitchen so I was pretty happy to see it in the 2009 Cook’s Illustrated Annual.  I modified the recipe slightly to use boneless, skinless chicken breasts and we were very pleased with the results.  The chicken was very moist, tender, and extremely flavorful.  The 30 minute marinade really does the trick. 

This was also easy enough that I can envision preparing chicken this way to use in other Indian recipes, such as my beloved Butter Chicken. 

Shown here with Indian Potatoes with Peas.

Cook’s Illustrated 2009