Hi everyone! I'm still here!!
In 2 more days, I will be able to post my #1 restaurant! According to Photo Bucket, my pics will be visible again on Friday, so I have just been holding off until then so I can tempt you with more food porn!
In the mean time, I remember that one of you had asked me for the Tandoori Chicken recipe that the server gave me at Sanaa. Well, I'm making it tonight!! So, I dug the recipe out yesterday (it was still in my waist-pack from the trip!
), marinated the chicken yesterday and I will be cooking it tonight! Here's the recipe, for Tandoori Chicken from Sanaa at Animal Kingdom Villas, Kidani Village:
Ingredients:
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
3 lemons
2 pounds plain yogurt
1/4 cup chickpea flour
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
4 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
2 tbsp. kosher salt
1/2 tbsp. freshly ground black pepper
3 tbsp. canola oil
Method of Preparation:
For the yogurt marinade and dipping sauce:
1. Lightly toast the cumin, paprika, turmeric in a dry pan on low heat; do not allow spices to burn. Remove toasted spices from pan and set aside to cool.
2. Squeeze lemon juice into a large mixing bowl, removing all seeds.
3. To the same mixing bowl, add yogurt, chickpea flour, chili powder, cayenne pepper and the toasted spices from step 1 above and mix well.
4. Set aside 1/4 of the marinade for use as dipping sauce. The remaining 3/4 will be used to marinate the chicken.
For the chicken:
1. Trim chicken thighs to remove all excess fat and pieces of bone. Cut the cleaned meat into quarters and season liberally with salt and pepper. Add the yogurt marinade to the chicken, mix well to thoroughly coat and allow the chicken to marinate for at least 24 hours in the refrigerator.
2. Pre-hear broiler in oven,line a cookie sheet or baking pan with foil and lightly grease using a pastry brush or paper towl with canola oil to prevent chicken from sticking.
3. Remove chicken from marinade and allow excess liquid to drain. Spread chicken pieces evenly and broil for 10 minutes or until nicely browned, watch closely to prevent burning. Carefully remove chicken from oven and turn each piece over and return to oven to brown other side. The chicken will be done when browned on the outside and at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit internal temperature is reached using a probe-type thermometer.
4. Serve with Basmati rice or Indian style flat bread and the reserved yogurt marinade for dipping.
Chef's note: Be very careful when broiling because of extreme hight heat, use a kitchen towel or oven mitt when handling hot pans, (never a wet one) to prevent steam burns.
And there you have it! I made a few changes though:
1. I used bottled lemon juice, and I kept tasting the yogurt-spice mixture until it resembled what I had at Sanaa...and it sure did!
2. The only places I know of that sell chickpea flour are Indian markets, and unfortunately, we don't have a store of this type near my house. I looked online and discovered how to make chickpea flour. You drain and rinse a can of chickpeas (I used low sodium), then dry them with paper towels. Then, you put them on a baking sheet in a single layer and roast in the oven at 250 degrees for 2-3 hours. I did mine for 3 hours (I kept checking after 2 hours). Then, you put them either in a blender or food processor and process until it becomes a flour. This worked very well and gave me more flour than needed!
3. I didn't have cumin in the house (my fault, I thought I did but I was wrong), so I used coriander instead. The yogurt marinade still tasted like the one I had at Sanaa!
4. I used the cayenne pepper to taste, so I don't know exactly how much I used. I don't like things too spicy, but I like them with a medium spice. That's what I did, I made it so it has a medium spice to it.
My chicken is marinating in the fridge right now, since yesterday! I mixed everything together in a mixing bowl, then transferred it to a large ziplock bag for marinating in the fridge.
I'm serving my chicken with a brown rice/wild rice blend, broccoli (just for me, DH doesn't touch broccoli and will have salad instead!) and whole wheat Naan that I found at my grocery store! Of course I will heat the Naan in the oven first!!
I will let you guys know how this comes out! But, if the yogurt mixture is any indication, this is going to be a very good dinner! Thank goodness I made enough for leftovers tomorrow!
The boys won't eat this so I am making them grilled cheese sandwiches with broccoli and corn (at their request!).