Tandoori Chicken - A delicious Indian meal you can make at home

By: Angela Frances - MSTv Food Correspondent

Tandori chicken is especially popular in Indian restaurants in North America and Europe. In the original version, whole chickens are marinated in yogurt and spices, usually strong colored with an intense red food coloring, then impaled on skewers and lowered into the tandoor.

The tandoor is a clay oven widely used in northern India. With wood or coals as fuel, it cooks food quickly at a high temperatures. Western kitchens can approximate cooking this dish on a grill or in a very hot oven.

Our chicken marinade is similar to typical ones for tandoori chicken, but without using of butter or food coloring.

First, let's make the ginger oil:  Yield: 8 oz.

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1 1/2 - 2 Tbsp. Fresh ginger root grated or chopped fine
8 oz. Flovorless oil, such as canola, corn, safflower, or grapeseed
1. Combine chopped salad and oil in a jar. Shake well.
2. Let stand for 30 minutes. Refrigerate.
3.The oil is ready to use as soon as it has taken on the desired flavor, which may be in 1-2 hours. After 2 days, strain the oil through a paper coffee filter. Store in the refrigerator.

Now, the chicken:  Yield: 4 portions

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3-4 lbs. Chicken parts or halves, or hole Cornish hens
4 oz. Unflavored yogurt (low-fat if desired)
2 oz. Onion, grated
1/4 tsp. Crushed garlic
1/4 tsp. Grated ginger root
1/2 tsp. Ground cumin
1/4 tsp. Ground cardamom
pinch Mace
1/4 tsp. cayenne
1/4 tsp. Black pepper
1/2 tsp. Salt

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1. Place chicken in a ziploc bag. Poor all ingredients (except for ginger oil) over chicken. Marinate at least 8 hours or overnight, turning once.

2. Remove chicken from marinade. Reserve marinade. Broil or grill the chicken basting with marinade several times during cooking until done.

3. Shortly before chicken is done, brush the pieces once or twice with ginger oil.

Serve over brown rice cooked in chicken stock. Remember when cooking brown rice, you must use two times the amount of liquid than when cooking white rice. Also, twice the amount of cook time is needed.

Enjoy!!

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