Tandoori Chicken & Basmati Rice

Tonight I was wanting something easy and light and remembered one of my favorite chicken dishes, Tandoori Chicken. This is an easy version of a delicious Indian dish. It is named for the oven it is cooked in, a Tandoor, which is a cylindrical clay oven. Since I haven’t splurged on this beauty yet, here’s a cheater method to get a similar flavor. I’ve been using this recipe for a while and we love it because the chicken is moist and full of flavor. I hope you enjoy it as well.

Tandoori Chicken

½ tsp. cumin
1 TBSP. tandoori spice (see below)
1/3 c. plain nonfat yogurt
1 lb. chicken breast (or your favorite cut)

In a bowl or ziptop bag, combine the cumin and tandoori spice. Mix in the yogurt, add the chicken and toss well to coat, then set aside.

Heat grill or grill pan to medium-high heat, spray with cooking spray and grill the chicken, turning once, until cooked through (about 5 minutes each side). You could also put a rack (greased) on a pan and cook chicken in the oven at about 375 for 30-40 min. until done. This serves 4.

I served this with basmati rice and some flatbread. Cook about 1 c. basmati (or jasmine) rice according to package. When rice is cooked, stir in 1 c. frozen petite peas. Put lid back on pot and let sit for about 5 minutes, the peas will cook in the steam. If you don’t like peas, give this a try anyway, because it is very tasty. If you still don’t like them, I have also added chopped dried apricots to the rice and it is very good as well.

You can find tandoori spice in some stores if they have a good ethnic aisle. My local store doesn’t carry it, so I got a recipe online and just make my own. It is like curry in that it is just a mixture of other spices. If you put this mix in a small airtight container, it will keep in the freezer for a good year or so. Speaking of freezing spices, did you know it is a good idea to freeze or refrigerate any red spices? They lose their flavor quickly at room temperature so this helps preserve them.

Tandoori Spice:

1 TBSP. garlic salt
1 TBSP. paprika
2 tsp. cayenne
2 tsp. coriander
2 tsp. ground cumin
½ tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. ground cloves