I am not a very good cook (I am a good eater, though - ha!) but over the past few months, I have found my niche with a chicken kebab dish. I started out trying to replicate Tandoori Chicken at home but with a few trials and errors (mostly the latter) I have developed this amazing recipe of my very own pan grilled chicken kebab.
Here’s how I make it:
Step 1 - marinade the chicken (10-15 minutes)
1. Take 4 chicken thighs on the bone but with the skin off. Score the pieces so that the marinade really penetrates.
2. Put them in a box which you can chuck into the freezer before adding the marinade masala
3. Now add the magic marinade masala which is...
• 2-3 tbs of ginger garlic paste, mustard oil
• 2-3 tbs of onion paste
• 1-2 tps of red chilli powder
• 1 tps of turmeric powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, garlic powder and onion powder
• 1/2 packer of dry tandoori masala
• Add the juice of 1green lime
• 1 tbs of apple cider vinegar
4. Massage the masala marinade onto the pieces nicely
5. Close the lid and let it rest for at least 1 hour if you want to freeze it / or put it in the fridge for at least 12 hours - the longer the better
Step 2 - pan grill the chicken (cooking time: 20-25 minutes)
1. Take out the chicken from the freezer and thaw for 8-10 hours before cooking
2. Take a large frying pan and heat 1 tbs of white oil and 1tbs of mustard oil or ghee (for flavour) On high
3. Once the oil is nice and hot, put the chicken piece flat side down
4. Fry for 3-4 mins before flipping; fry the other side as well for 2-3 mins
5. Now cover and let the chicken cook for 4-5 mins (turn down the heat to half way)
6. Open the over, flip the chicken and cover again to cook for another 4-5 mins
7. Turn up the heat to max and fry off the chicken on both sides for 2-3 minutes each to finish it off
Note: This pan grilling technique keeps the chicken juicy and moist on the inside and crispy, smoky on the outside (as you can see above). We tried using the oven but the chicken got quite dry.
Step 3 - garnish and plate up (5-7 mins)
1. Make a nice salad of sliced cucumber, red onions, tomatoes and carrots. Dress with squeeze of lime, chat masala and black rock salt.
2. Add a couple of green lime wedges
3. Place the chicken to rest on the plate for 2 mins and sprinkle chat masala
4. Garnish with coriander leaves
5. I recommend making a raita on the side (take some curd in a bowl, mix it up to a smooth consistency, add some boondi, chat masala, chilli powder and black rock salt. Mix gently.)
Step 4 - tuck in
I recommend serving with parantha, pita bread or naans. See it disappear in 10 mins. Yummy!
Step 5: wash the frying pan
The frying pan will be a mess after cooking the chicken. So I usually rise off the pan when cooled. Then put a little hot water and cleaning liquid, cover with 3 sheets of kitchen paper towels and lease to soak it overnight. It does the job and becomes easy to clean in the morning without the need for vigorous scrubbing!