Ready for a quick and easy supper? This Chicken Tikka Masala is so simple to make, and it’s packed with flavor from the tomato and Indian spices.
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I don’t have a good story to go with this recipe, other than one day a couple years ago, FishChick7 and I were on our way home from the children’s hospital and we stopped for lunch. She wanted a burrito; I didn’t.
Lucky for me there was a Mexican food place and an Indian take-out place in the same shopping center. She got her burrito, and I tried something new: Chicken Tikka Masala.
It was basically the only thing on the menu besides Dahl and Tandoori Chicken that I recognized. It was love at first bite.
Later I quizzed my friend Prerna long-distance via Facebook, as to what she put in hers. After a few tries in the kitchen, I was thrilled to send her a picture and receive two thumbs up in response.
What does chicken tikka masala taste like?
Chicken tikka masala is a tomato cream based dish with lots of yummy flavorful spices like curry powder and garam masala.
What’s the difference between butter chicken and tikka masala?
There are a few main difference between these two Indian dishes.
- Tomato intensity – Butter chicken has less tomato intensity.
- Cream– Tikka masala is less creamy than butter chicken
- Cooking style – If cooked traditionally tikka masala is cooked in a tandoor and butter chicken is cooked in a pan over a fire.
Ingredients for chicken tikka masala
- Oil/butter
- Chicken
- Onion
- Garlic
- Serrano chile
- Ginger
- Diced tomatoes
- Tomato paste
- Garam masala
- Curry powder
- Cream
- Cilantro
How to make chicken tikka masala
-
Heat oil and butter. In a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat, heat the oil and butter together until butter is melted.
-
Cook chicken. Add the chicken, onion, garlic, ginger, and chile. Saute, about 7 minutes until the chicken is mostly cooked and the onion has gone clear.
-
Add tomatoes and spices. Stir in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, garam masala, and curry powder. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
-
Add cream. Stir in the cream, if using, and heat for another five minutes or so. Garnish with the cilantro and serve.
Chicken thighs or breasts?
We used chicken breasts in this recipe, but you can definitely use chicken thighs if that’s what you have. Chicken thighs also tend to be a bit cheaper so it could cut down on the cost of this meal for you as well!
What do I serve chicken tikka masala with?
This is a dish that the whole family loves and one that is really adaptable. We serve it over rice like my easy stovetop rice, but I imagine it would be just as good over cauliflower rice or microwave spaghetti squash if you’re going grain-free.
Can I leave out the cream for tikka masala?
You can also make it with or without the cream. We like it both ways.
If you want to make it fully dairy-free, you can use more oil and omit the butter or ghee. With those adaptations, it would work for the whole 30.
Without Cream: This is what it looks like without the cream. Because I forgot to add the cream before I took the picture!
Want more 30 Minute Dinners?
This recipe is one of the 200+ featured in my new cookbook, Good Cheap Eats Dinner in 30 Minutes or Less. Yes, you can make this in a half hour. What’s more is that there is a really good recipe for Coconut Rice alongside it in the book. Oh yum! This is definitely going on the meal plan soon.
There are also a few other Indian-style recipes in the book, including a Curried Chicken Naan Pizza and a Kachumber Salad. These are so yummy! (If I do say so myself. And I do.) I hope you’ll get a chance to check out the cookbook. Your local library may have it, but if they don’t you can always request that they order it.
HOW TO SAVE MONEY MAKING THIS RECIPE:
Here are some of the strategies I use to make this recipe more economical:
- Meal plan around what’s on sale. Don’t decide to make this when chicken is $5/pound and you have none in the freezer. Next time you see chicken on sale, add this to your meal plan!
- Do a price comparison. I know that ALDI is the best place for me to buy chicken when there isn’t a great sale elsewhere. It’s normally $1.89/lb! I keep track of prices so that I know who has the best deal where.
- Stock up on ingredients when they are on sale. Buy extra chicken as well as the other ingredients and stash them away in your pantry so you can make this dish whenever you want.
TOOLS YOU MIGHT NEED TO MAKE THIS RECIPE EASY:
This is a pretty straight-forward dish. You don’t need any fancy equipment. However, having some good basic kitchen tools can really make your time in the kitchen more enjoyable. Over time, I’ve honed my collection so that they are perfect for my needs. Here are the tools that I like to use in this recipe.
- plastic cutting boards – I have blue boards for veggies and white boards for meat.
- Ergo Chef chef’s knife – I’ve had my set for several years and they work well for trimming chicken and chopping vegetables.
- a good quality saucepan – I love this one I just got that has a built in strainer.
If you prepare this recipe, be sure to share a picture on social media and hashtag it #GOODCHEAPEATS. I can't wait to see what you cook up!
Chicken Tikka Masala
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoon butter or ghee
- 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 1 onion chopped (about 1 cup)
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger (chopped)
- 1 serrano chile cored and finely chopped; add more if you like it very spicy
- 1 15-ounce can petite diced tomatoes drained
- 8 oz tomato sauce
- 2 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon curry powder
- ½ cup whipping cream optional
- fresh cilantro (chopped) for garnish
Instructions
- In a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat, heat the oil and butter together until butter is melted. Add the chicken, onion, garlic, ginger, and chile. Saute, about 7 minutes until the chicken is mostly cooked and the onion has gone clear.
- Stir in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, garam masala, and curry powder. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the cream, if using, and heat for another five minutes or so. Garnish with the cilantro and serve.
- Remember: If you’re making this for the Whole 30, you’ll need to use ghee instead of butter, and omit the cream.
Notes
Nutrition
Leslie
If you are going to freeze this, can you freeze it after the heavy cream is added?
Erika Cole
I do like the flavor of marinating the chicken in a yogurt with spices beforehand, but this is great for getting dinner on the table quickly!! I’ll be working this in to my meal rotation. ?
Carol
Very tasty. Husband and I both liked. Subbed soy creamer for whipping cream due to dairy issues .
Jessica Fisher
Glad you enjoyed it and that you were able to make it DF!
Leslie
We love this recipe! This is spicy hot, rich, and satisfying. The kids love it, too, though they have grown up in
Louisiana eating spicy fare, so you may need to start off mild, depending on what you are used to. It’s fairly easy to make, too! Once you buy the Masala spice (a jar lasts awhile) and the peppers the recipe pretty much falls into place whenever you are craving it.
Jody Plitt
Just made this from your cookbook, along with the coconut rice. I just tasted it and I am excited to serve it for dinner shortly! I love Indian food and this is great. A lot of flavor!
Jessica Fisher
Yay! So glad you liked it!
Kate
Finally got to make this for dinner tonight–absolutely wonderful! My husband and I thought it tasted just like our favorite Indian restaurant. I can’t wait to make this again!
Jessica Fisher
A belated thank you. I’m glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Jennifer
LOVED this!! Thank you for posting this! 🙂 My husband and I are huge fans of Indian food and have found jarred/pkgd Indian sauces to be missing something. I have tried to find recipes to make it myself, but time and time again have gotten overwhelmed at the list of ingredients and the intense work in the recipe. Pre-kids that might have been a possibly; not now! lol My girls and I loved this tonight, although even the little bit of spice was noticed by them so I think next time I’ll give them a little sour cream with theirs as another suggested. Can’t wait for my husband to get home from work to try this – he has very high standards for Indian food and I think even he will love it!! Thank you once again for a simple but delicious recipe. (On a side note, I can’t wait to get your latest cookbook – it’s on it’s way and it can’t come soon enough! lol)
Jessica Fisher
A belated thank you for your encouraging words! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
ridneyRD
I made this last night and loved it! So easy and tasty! Mine was a bit soupy as I threw in a bunch of chopped tomatoes from the garden but still delicious, definitely a keeper 🙂
Jessica Fisher
So glad you liked it!
Jennifer
Delicious! Works beautifully with potatoes and a handful of peas subbed in for chicken to make this veggie friendly too. Very tasty sauce base.
Anna
I made this for supper last night, it was fabulous! Even my curry hating husband loved it.
Jessica Fisher
Yay! So glad you liked it!
Lori
You must have read my mind! I need a recipe for this as we do not have a nearby Indian restaurant and the jarred simmer sauce leaves lots to be desired. Chicken Tikka Misala is amazing and my entire family agrees, though two of my kids add sour cream to cut the heat. My daughter helps me make garlic naan…so yummy. Family favorite! Can’t wait to try your recipe! Thanks for sharing!
Jessica Fisher
This one isn’t super hot, so you can tweak it as you need to.
Kristin
Oh gosh this looks so good! It’s okay to make and eat this for breakfast, right? Yum!
Jessica Fisher
I think so!
Adelle F.
Coconut milk is a great sub for dairy in Indian foods, too. My daughter is dairy free and I do this sub all the time. Delish!
Elly
I love using coconut milk in curries and things as well! And I love that it’s a shelf-stable option.
Mary P
In your ingredients, you have garlic listed twice and no ginger. I am assuming that one of those is fresh ginger. This sounds really good, and I will definitely be trying it.
Jessica Fisher
Good catch. Yes!