At Indian As Apple Pie, I'm determined to make this staple at once simple and healthy for you and your family. We tend to marinate meat in yogurt (or dahi) to help keep the meat tender. A good tandoori masala is a must - either freshly made or store-bought. I truly only trust ours, which I created to keep the Red Food Dye 40 out out out.
I will say I cooked my marinated chicken on the stovetop and then cooked a batch up on the grill. The grill texture won out. I'd opt for that, but stovetop will work if you don't have access to a grill. Below, you'll notice a regular yogurt marinade to the left and one made with Greek yogurt (or hung yogurt as we call it) to the right. I thought both worked well, but many restaurants use the thicker yogurt to help it cling to the meat.
*Any plain, unsweetened yogurt will do, but the yogurt typically used for Indian marinades is dahi. Found in the Indian grocery store, it’s a bit more tart — the perfect taste profile for Indian cuisine. Many restaurants use thicker yogurt so the marinade sticks better to the protein.
You can use plain, unsweetened Greek yogurt. Another option is to make your own thicker yogurt by buying the dahi, placing it in cheesecloth or a nut bag (my preference), and letting the water drip away. This is essentially the way to make Greek yogurt at home and what we call hung yogurt or hung curd. No matter what you decide, it will be delicious.
I’ve made this recipe with all types of yogurt, but just keep in mind it must be plain, not sweetened, and not vanilla. I use full-fat yogurt, but that’s up to you.
Do as I do, get some dahi, reserve a small amount as a starter, and follow the recipe in my most recent cookbook, Instant Pot Indian, page 161, to make your own yogurt in the Instant Pot. I then place it in nut bags, drain away the liquid (which I reserve for curries), and make my own ‘Greek’ yogurt. It is THE most addictive and delicious yogurt on the planet! Give it a try. For a fuller Tandoori Chicken recipe, check out my book Indian For Everyone, pages 189 and 190.
[[ recipeID=recipe-2mbuxpuvy, title=Stovetop: Quick Tandoori Chicken ]]
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by Anupy Singla, Indian As Apple Pie
Servings: 5
Keywords: Indian Recipes, Tandoori, Tandoori Masala, Chicken
*Any plain, unsweetened yogurt will do, but the yogurt typically used for Indian marinades is dahi. Found in the Indian grocery store, it’s a bit more tart — the perfect taste profile for Indian cuisine. Many restaurants use thicker yogurt so the marinade sticks better to the protein.
You can use plain, unsweetened Greek yogurt. Another option is to make your own thicker yogurt by buying the dahi, placing it in a cheesecloth, and letting the water drip away. This is essentially the way to make Greek yogurt at home and what we call hung yogurt or hung curd. No matter what you decide, it will be delicious.I’ve made this recipe with all types of yogurt, but just keep in mind it must be plain, not sweetened, and not vanilla. I use full-fat yogurt, but that’s up to you.
Do as I do, get some dahi, reserve a small amount as a starter, and follow this recipe to make your own yogurt in the Instant Pot. I then place it in nut bags, drain away the liquid (which I reserve for curries), and make my own ‘Greek’ yogurt. It is THE most addictive and delicious yogurt on the planet! Give it a try.
This recipe is by Anupy Singla, Indian As Apple Pie. If you share or copy this recipe, we’d greatly appreciate it if you let others know where you found it!
