Chicken Tandoori

Let's wrap up our week of Indian food with this easy version of tandoori.  In traditional tandoori, the meat is marinated in yogurt and carefully selected spices and baked in a special oven.  But really, how many of us have a tandoori oven?  Okay, I think at least one of my readers has one so I hope she won't roll her eyes at this delicious knockoff of an old WW recipe.  Plus, with only FIVE ingredients you can feel like you made a gourmet meal with hardly any effort.

I used Greek yogurt to give this dish more tang and I used regular curry but those of you who like it hotter should try Madras curry, which is made with more cayenne pepper.  Also, I should have taken my own advice and pounded the chicken flat before I cooked it, so don't be like me.

We enjoyed this dish with a side of Spring-Green Saag.

Print this recipe:  Chicken Tandoori

Chicken Tandoori
makes 4 servings

1 cup plain or greek yogurt

1 tablespoon curry powder

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (pounded flat)

1 large onion, cut into wedges

juice of 1 lemon (about 3 tablespoons)


Mix the yogurt and curry in a container or large ziplock bag, add the chicken and coat well.  Marinate the chicken at least one hour but all day would be fine.  Remove the container from the fridge about 20 minutes before cooking to let the meat warm up.

Move the top oven rack to the second space from the top (about 5 inches from the broiler) and preheat the broiler to high heat.

Line a baking sheet with foil (you'll be glad later) and scrape the excess marinade from the chicken.  Broil the chicken for about 8 minutes (keep an eye on it).

Turn the chicken and add the onion wedges to the pan and return to broil for another 8 minutes.  Turn the onions if they start to burn. 

To serve, squeeze the lemon juice over the chicken and onions, transfer the chicken to a cutting board and slice, serve with the onions.

Spring Green Saag

Continuing on our 'Indian food' theme this week, one of my favorite veggies cooked Indian style is spinach.  If Popeye was my husband he would be thrilled at how much we have spinach at our house.  Bubba certainly doesn't mind but the Kid does....so pooey on her!

I borrowed this recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie.  She has a great blog with healthy dessert recipes and once in a while, a non-dessert recipe.  This side dish was quick and delicious and to be honest, I could have eaten the entire dish it all by myself and called it dinner.  I used Greek yogurt and it gave the dish a great tangy flavor.

I served this along with Chicken Tandoori (will post Friday), and although they have very similar ingredients, the dishes complemented each other rather than copied each other.

Print this recipe:  Spring-Green Saag

Spring-Green Saag

Spring-Green Saag

serves four as a side dish

1 package frozen spinach, thawed (10-12 oz.)

1 medium onion or 1/2 large onion, chopped

2 teaspoons curry powder

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon salt (or more if desired)

1/4 teaspoon dry ginger (or 1 teaspoon fresh)

1 teaspoon olive oil (or more if desired)

1/4 cup to 1/2 cup yogurt, depending on desired creaminess

Wring out the spinach in a (preferably green) dishcloth until dry.

Add onion and oil to a hot pan. Sauté 3 minutes, or until it begins to brown.

Stir in the garlic, curry, and ginger, and sauté for another minute. Then add the spinach, as well as 2 tablespoons water. Cook another minute, or until most of the water has absorbed.

Remove from heat and stir in yogurt, as well as 1/4 cup water (or non-dairy milk). You can also add a little coriander and turmeric, if desired, for more flavor.

Spring-Green Saag and Chicken Tandoori

Butter Chicken

P10 has created a monster - an Indian food monster...people at work and the waiters at Bollywood must think I'm a junkie for this stuff (they're right).  It's embarrassing when the waiter knows what you want before you even sit down.... oh yeah, but still can't do spicy... 

But, I have to realize that I can only go when I have some willpower in my pocket...because I can't resist the naan bread and will end up eating the whole thing - TAKEOUT is good for when you don't want to be tempted by other things.

This was really really really good.  And it was very creamy, rich and filling.  I served this by itself but I bet it would be great with Cauliflower Rice made with a touch of curry powder.

Please be careful going down the list of ingredients.  I accidentally put in too much garam masala (because I was going 1/2 tsp all the way down the line and oops...) and that seasoning is STRONG.   I even went to brag to my Indian co-worker about making this dish and she said 'dang we don't even use garam masala-it's too strong!'   So if you don't have any, don't feel like to you have to run out and buy some for this recipe.

TIP - tomato paste:  I hate opening a can and having so much leftover.  So, I measure it out in tablespoons and plop them on a paper plate (not touching) and put in the freezer, then when they're frozen, toss them together in a baggie and keep frozen until you need some.  No waste and tomato paste is so good in many dishes.

Butter Chicken

makes 4 servings

2 tbsp butter

1 onion, finely diced

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 tsp chili powder (use less if you don't like it too hot)

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp garam masala

14 oz uncooked chicken, cut into cubes (2 large chicken breasts)

3 1/2 oz tomato paste

3/4 cup of cream

parsley, fresh or dried

Mix all of spices together, then the add spices to the chicken cubes, mix and set aside.  I did this all in a baggie and it was easy.

Melt the butter and fry the onion and garlic gently for 2 minutes. Add the spiced chicken and continue to fry gently for a further 5 minutes.

Add the tomato paste and cream and simmer gently for 5 minutes.

Sprinkle with parsley before serving to make it pretty.

Print the recipe:  Butter Chicken

Black Bean Soup

Let's end our week of warm veggie soups with this lovely easy recipe...

This warm thick hearty soup was just perfect on a cold day.  It was really easy to make and very filling and it makes a lot.  I loved coming in the door and having dinner all set to go!

It’s a crockpot recipe but I think you could just put this together and simmer on the back of the stove all day and still have a great meal. 

Black Bean Soup

makes several servings

3 cans black beans (undrained)

1 can diced tomatoes (undrained)

2 cups chicken or vegetable broth

16 oz frozen vegetables

1 cup salsa

1 teaspoon lime juice

garlic salt

toppings: sour cream/Greek yogurt, cheddar cheese, additional salsa

Empty the beans and tomatoes into the crockpot - do not rinse or drain the beans.

Mix in the vegetables and broth.

Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 5 hours, the longer it cooks the better it tastes.

Before serving, use an immersion blender (or carefully pour small batches into blender) and puree until smooth.

Stir in salsa and lime juice.  Season to taste with garlic salt.

Serve hot with toppings of your choice.