Easy Chicken Tikka Masala
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10000x better (and faster) than take-out! And the chicken is perfectly tender with the creamiest, most flavor-packed sauce ever!
WHAT IS CHICKEN TIKKA MASALA?
Tikka masala is a very popular Indian dish (that may have actually originated from Great Britain) that consists of boneless chicken in a spiced curry sauce of tomatoes, cream, and traditional Indian spices such as garam masala and turmeric.
HOW TO MAKE CHICKEN TIKKA MASALA
- Cook the rice. Let’s get the rice going first so it can cook while we prep everything else. Now we love this over basmati rice but Jasmine rice can be substituted.
- Brown the chicken. Cook the chicken until nice and golden brown – we want a good sear to lock in all the flavors and juices inside the meat.
- Add your spices. Stir in all your spices and aromatics until fragrant – tomato paste, garlic, ginger, garam masala, chili powder and turmeric.
- Make the sauce. Simmer simmer simmer to let all the flavors blend together, about 10 minutes.
- Serve. Stir in heavy cream and sprinkle with cilantro, serving over rice and naan.
TIPS AND TRICKS FOR SUCCESS
- Chicken breasts can be substituted, but chicken thighs are highly recommended here.
- Make sure you have plenty of naan for serving, dipping, sopping.
- For a dairy-free version, coconut milk can be substituted for the heavy cream.
Easy Chicken Tikka Masala: Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, chicken breasts can absolutely be used here but chicken thighs have more dark meat and a higher fat content which will yield juicier, more flavorful chicken.
Heavy cream (or heavy whipping cream) has one of the highest fat contents with about 36-40% fat. Half and half or whole milk are suitable substitutes, but will yield a lighter result.
Yes! You can freeze the leftovers without the heavy cream in individual freezer bags, thaw overnight, and reheat on the stovetop, adding heavy cream when serving.
Easy Chicken Tikka Masala
Ingredients
- 1 cup basmati rice
- 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch chunks
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
- ½ medium sweet onion, diced
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 ½ teaspoons garam masala
- 1 ½ teaspoons chili powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground turmeric
- 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 cup chicken stock
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Instructions
- In a large saucepan of 2 cups water, cook rice according to package instructions; set aside.
- Season chicken with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add chicken and onion to the stockpot and cook until golden, about 4-5 minutes.
- Stir in tomato paste, garlic, ginger, garam masala, chili powder and turmeric until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Stir in tomato sauce and chicken stock; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced and slightly thickened, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in heavy cream until heated through, about 1 minute.
- Serve immediately with rice, garnished with cilantro, if desired.
Did you make this recipe?
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just made this. What a wonderful dish. Wish I had this recipe years ago!
Overall, very good. I think the spices taste a bit off compared to most Indian restaurants and the occasions I’ve had home-cooked authentic Indian food, and maybe a bit too much tomato flavor. It definitely was a bit more authentic tasting once the cream was added. It was fairly quick and overall very tasty. Its made for good lunches at work this week. I will probably make again the next time I have to work a lot of night shifts in a row. Can’t beat quick, easy, and tasty!
This is the best recipe ever, I made it for my family just to try something new, it has become a regular in our household now. I use Hungarian fresh red pepper paste instead of any chili powders and it is amazing! I also only use fresh ginger for both the marinade and sauce and use turkish (süzme) concentrated yoghurt for a really extra creamy texture. Words can’t seem to even do this dish justice, you just have to try it out.
This Recipe is fantastic. I love the spice blend. I will try with tofu and coconut milk when my vegan daughter is home. Thanks for a great recipe!
My family LOVED this! Especially my husband! I’m wondering if I could Substitute coconut milk for the heavy whipping cream to make it dairy free? I wonder How much this would alter the flavor.
What a great idea! But unfortunately, without having tried this myself, I cannot answer with certainty. But if you get a chance to try it, please let me know how it turns out! Good luck! 🙂
This is my second review and now with a question, and I am so sorry that I cannot help myself but I imagine that you understand! We have made this once a week since discovering you and the recipe. Now I am wondering if you would be able to please give a bit of advice if I want to create tikka masala soup using the same base for the recipe with adjustments? Thanks! I am so willing for you to take the lead here though I do have a general idea of adding more liquid to the base, making use of perhaps my love, coconut milk, along with tomato sauce, and a bit more vegetable broth? More quantity for those days or evenings when no one else is home! Ha! Thanks! Look forward to more of your work.
That sounds like such a great idea! Please let me know how it turns out! 🙂
It was delicious! Tasted just like our favorite Indian restaurant! Thanks!
I haven’t made this yet, I’m making it tomorrow. Any recommendations on adding vegetables?
Cauliflower, carrots, chickpeas, or peas would be great additions, CD! 🙂
It’s a great recipe and very easy. It came out delicious.My husband cooks indian food but he was amazed by this.I pulled it off better than him I did it with salad, naan on the side. My kids loved it. They said they could have it all day without problem.
Absolutely delicious! I’ve made it twice now, once with thighs and once with breasts, both times it turned out very good. I served it with naan and green peas on the side to my kids. Makes great leftovers to take to work the next day. A very economical recipe too, as it uses inexpensive simple ingredients and makes a lot. I’m definitely making it again!
Excellent. Easy and made it in the fly for sisters visit. We luved it.
I absolutely LOVE this recipe!! Now that I am in my early 50s I have been trying to experiment internationally with food recipes. I know it’s not healthy but I love food that is “saucy”! My husband and adult son also enjoy this meal. It is really easy so long as you organize your ingredients ahead of time and have everything ready to go…making it in one pot is a bonus!
This is outrageously simple and tasty. Wasn’t what I expected at all. Way above that. I added a little bit extra of all ingredients and put some green chillies in as well. It’s a wonderful dish, both spicy and tasty at the same time.
Holy macaroni. This is amazing, and quite easy, after all the chopping. I didn’t measure the garlic, ginger or tomato paste, but I probably added some extra of all of them, and I’d do it again in a minute. I also only had 1.25lb of chicken, so I threw some cauliflower in (after the chicken browned) to make up the difference. I will be making it again ASAP. Both my husband, two-year-old and I ate seconds.
This was SO GOOD!! I travel to India twice a year for work and just love chicken tikka and miss it so much and this hit the spot. My son says chicken tikka is his favorite India dish and just loved this.
Easy and delicious. I add more of the spices.
You have described one of the best and easy way to make chicken Tikka masala. I love it and its simplicity. Sure I can surprised my family this weekend with your recipe. Thanks.
This was amazing. It had the right balance of heat and spice.
I want to make it again. I know dairy doesn’t freeze well. Do you think it would work to make it without the cream, freeze it and then add the cream when reheating it?
Absolutely!
I have a few different versions of chicken tiki masala and this one is by far the best – and it so easy! Thank you so much for taking the time to make these recipes and then sharing them with us. You have such an incredible flavor palette and it is amazing how even some of us “non-chefs” can reap the rewards of your labor.
This really is one of the best Tikka Masala recipes out there. It’s perfect as-is or as a base to build on for other variations. I feel like this is about as close to authentic as you can get without getting complicated, requiring marinating, making ghee, toasting spices, etc… I would bet you wouldn’t even notice the difference which is why this recipe is so awesome.