This is an easy baked Tandoori Chicken recipe for everyone who happens not to have a tandoor sitting in the middle of your kitchen! Made with accessible ingredients from scratch, chicken is infused with flavour from a yogurt tandoori chicken marinade then baked until golden with little charred bits.
Finger lickin’ good!
Tandoori Chicken recipe
Butter Chicken, Chicken Tikka Masala or Tandoori Chicken?? Any outing to an Indian restaurant causes a crisis of indecision as we battle it out between these 3 wildly popular Indian chicken dishes!
There’s no denying that one of the reasons why we love Tandoori chicken is the signature smokey chargrilled flavour that can only be achieved in a clay tandoor built to withhold fierce charcoal heat.
But don’t worry, you won’t miss the chargrill flavour in this Tandoori Chicken recipe. My trick is to jack up the flavour of the marinade to compensate – we’re talking big, big flavours here!
Tandoori Chicken Marinade
Here’s what you need for the Tandoori Chicken Marinade.
Kashmiri Chilli is what gives Tandoori the signature red colour. Tastes like paprika with a bit of spiciness, you’ll need to hunt down an Indian grocery store for this. But don’t worry, paprika is a near perfect flavour sub! The chicken won’t be quite as red but will still have a red hue. You can easily increase the redness with a drop or two of red food colouring.
How to make it
The making part is very straight forward: mix marinate, add the chicken, then leave to marinate. 12 to 24 hours is best, or 48 hours. If you’re in a rush, then 2 to 3 hours will do the trick if you cut slashes into the chicken.
While this is a baked tandoori chicken recipe, it’s a ripper on the barbie too. And off the charts amazing if cooked over charcoal!
What to serve with Tandoori chicken
Here’s what I serve with Tandoori Chicken:
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Saffron Rice– love the colour contrast! Recipe below. Though plain basmati rice will do in a pinch (or other rice of choice).
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Minted Yogurt– the freshness of the mint and cool yogurt pairs so well with all things Indian. Recipe below.
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Side Salad*– try this Indian Tomato Salad or use the same dressing with slices of cucumber. Otherwise, check out this South Indian-style Cabbage & Carrot Salad with Coconut. A simpler alternative is Everyday Cabbage Salad (it’s in the recipe notes).
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Flatbreads – When naan is in hot demand, I reach for my Easy No Yeast Flatbreads. Because it’s not a saucy curry, I like to brush the flatbreads with garlic butter for extra flavour – SO GOOD!
* Fresh side salads are less common in Indian cuisine, vegetables tend to be cooked. So don’t get too caught up about an authentic fresh side salad – go with what you like! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Baked Tandoori Chicken
Ingredients
Tandoori Marinade:
- 1 1/2 cups plain yoghurt (full fat best)
- 2 tbsp oil (any)
- 1 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp ginger , grated
- 5 garlic cloves , minced
- 3 tsp garam masala spice mix (Note 1)
- 1.5 tbsp kashmiri chilli powder (Note 2 subs)
- 1 tsp turmeric powder
- 2 tsp cumin
- 2 1/2 tsp coriander powder
- 1/2 tsp chilli powder, adjust to taste (pure, not US chili Note 3)
- 1 tsp salt
Chicken:
- 1.2kg / 2.4lb drumsticks, bone-in skin on chicken thighs or Marylands (whole chicken legs) (Note 4)
- Oil spray
Mint Yoghurt (optional)
- 1 cup plain yoghurt
- 1/2 cup mint leaves, packed
- Salt and pepper
- Olive oil
Serving
- Basmati rice OR Saffron rice (see note)
Instructions
- Mix Marinade ingredients in a large bowl. Add chicken, cover and marinate 12 to 24 hours (Note 5)
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Line a tray with foil and place a rack on the tray.
- Remove chicken from the Marinade, shaking off excess (reserve Marinade), and place on the rack. Bake for 20 minutes, then slather Marinade generously on both sides.
- Bake for a further 10 minutes, brush/dab top with Marinade.
- Bake further 10 minutes, do a final baste with Marinade then spray with oil.
- Increase heat to 220C/450F. Bake for a further 10 to 15 minutes until you get some nice charred spots. Serve with Minted Yogurt and Saffron Rice (below) or plain Basmati Rice.
Minted Yoghurt:
- Combine ingredients in a food processor and blitz until mint is very finely chopped.
BBQ Option:
- Preheat BBQ with closed lid to medium, brush grills lightly with oil. Place bone-in skin-on chicken skin side down on grills, cook 5 min until surface is just caramelised - no more.
- Baste, then flip. Baste, then close lid. Cook for 20 minutes or until internal temperature is 175F/80C (bone in thighs and drumsticks), basting once or twice more.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Originally published September 2015. Completely rewritten April 2019, new photos, new video, tidied up video and most importantly, new Life of Dozer section added!
Life of Dozer
Final photo from Dozer’s birthday cake recipe from Monday – when I was trying to do a “nice” overhead photo of the cake and when he saw I was teetering on a ladder fiddling with my camera, he knew it was an opportune time to lunge in for ANOTHER slice!
Saras says
Hi,
Thanks for the recipe. Both my boys l9ved it. And this is my first tandoori diy! Turned out really well! 👌
Nagi says
That’s so great to hear Saras!!
Jax says
Hi Nagi!
I’ve come back to make your tandoori marinade again.. but Is this a new/different one? Didn’t you have one with onion, and it all (marinade ingredients) went in the processor?!
Or am I thinking of another recipe altogether??!😋😄
Alexis Zgud says
This was delicious with bone-in chicken thighs! Paired it with basmati rice, spicy cucumber raita and store bought naan. So delicious!
Nagi says
Sounds like you nailed it Alexis!!
Marlene says
Another Mr. Fussy-approved recipe, Nagi! I have Kashmiri Chili (San Diego has great Inidan groceries) and various tandoori masalas from my trip to India, so I used those in addition to your recipe. I’m glad I made enough for a second meal, which I froze and we had a week later. Definitely added to my favorites Pinterest board. (I shoudl have one just for your recipes!) Next time I will make a larger batch.
Nagi says
I’m so glad it was a hit Marlene, thanks so much for letting me know!
Janet says
I make this Tandoori chicken every week we all love it… it cooks very well in halogen oven thanks nagi 😁
Nagi says
I’m so glad it is a hit!
Uddip Mitra says
Tried a lot of recipes for tandoori chicken and its variants. This one tasted as good as one of the best I had had 20 years back in India. My wife and I loved it. Thank you. Since you got us the taste we were looking for, we are very eager to try your other recipes.
Nagi says
Thanks so much Uddip for the great feedback!
Carol Brewster says
Marinated a whole chicken which had been cut into separate pieces and then cooked on the Bbq. Very very tasty. Yum yum. Eaten with flatbread, tomato and onion salad and home made raita. A recipe to keep and use over and over again.
Nagi says
Perfect Carol!
Monique says
Cooking this tonite for dinner, can’t wait to taste it. About the saffron rice and the end of the recipe notes, how would I cook it in a rice cooker?
Nagi says
I haven’t tried just yet Monique, but I hope you love it!
Lincoln@LincsFlavours says
Every Indian family has its own recipe, but I find they often put in a little red food colouring. It gives the dish a brighter colour and goes well with the yellow of the rice.
I have a stone pizza oven. It is a good alternative if you don’t have the traditional Indian oven! I mention it as perhaps some of your other readers have one too……
Nagi says
Great idea Lincoln!
Emma says
I made this last evening for dinner! Fantastic!! Love your blog!
Nagi says
Thanks so much Emma!
Amani says
I can’t wait to try this recipe. Does the skin get soggy? Do you think it would work well if I used skinless chicken? Thanks!
J says
Hi N! I hope your having a great time with ur friends in the US! I love turmeric in my food and I also have smoky paprika, so I could make this chicken dish…not spicy!😂
Dozer looks like he has a new girlfriend Lucy! 🐕 His birthday cake looks so yummy! 🎂
Have a great weekend coming up in the States! Yay!
Sharon Rausch says
Thank you so much for sharing your helpful information. It’s very unique post
Belinda Dishon says
This looks so delicious but I am Lactose intolerant. Is there any substitute for the yoghurt please?
Debbie says
I used coconut yoghurt – lactose free. Tastes good – not quite the same but the spices make up for it. My son is lactose intolerant- a good substitute!!
Eha says
Oh, I would so love I to have a tandoori oven . . . restaurateur friends do and I am pea green with envy! Absolutely love your marinade which methinks will become a standby !!! Can get Kashmiri chilli an all my country supermarkets . . . . legs are fun to serve and eat . . . truly yum !
Jayne Knight says
Belated Birthday hugs to you Dozer. That cake looks yummy!
I made this Tandoori Chicken previously. Very tasty.
x x x
Shaki says
Nagii is it okii to cook this on a gas stove by adding coconut milk n do it as a curry?
Margaret King says
I have always thought you should NOT use the marinade that the food was sitting in- especially if it only cooks for an additional 10 minutes. Am I worried for nothing? I think I might just hold some of the marinade out to use for slathering on during the extra cooking.
Debbie says
With this recipe you can. All the marinade gets cooked – nothing seeps from the chicken into the marinade. It’s not the same rule as beef as beef ‘bleeds’ chicken doesn’t. I have had great success with this recipe and have it cooking in my oven as we speak! Kids love it! So do I!
Alice says
Can I cook this without the skin? For dietary restriction purposes
Debbie says
Absolutely- I use skin free no bone in chicken thigh – works great!!
sarah kaye says
Hi Nagi
Could you do this recipe with French trimmed lamb cutlets.
Love your recipes.
Sarah