This One Pan Tandoori Chicken recipe gives you juicy, succulent, smoky-flavored chicken without a tandoor (clay oven)! All you need is the stovetop, a nonstick skillet/pan, and 30 minutes of cooking time.
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Why you’ll love this tandoori chicken recipe
Leftovers can be used for lunch. Tandoori chicken is perfect as protein for a salad lunch or as a wrap the next day, similar to these chicken seekh kababs.
It can be prepped ahead and refrigerated/frozen for future meals. Uncooked chicken can stay in the fridge for up to 24 hours and in the freezer for up to 6 months.
How to get the signature red color
Restaurants usually add a lot of red food coloring to tandoori chicken and tikkas. We’ll keep it toxin-free with beetroot powder. I have also purchased plant-based food coloring at Whole Foods. And more recently, I have started to use tomato paste instead, and it has worked well.
How to cook tandoori chicken on the stovetop
Make the marinade. Put all the marinade ingredients into a large bowl and whisk till well combined. Set aside.
Pat the chicken pieces. Dry the chicken pieces thoroughly with a paper towel and cut slits( 1-3 diagonally depending on the size of the chicken) into the flesh for better absorption of the marinade.
Massage the marinade into the chicken. Add the chicken pieces to the bowl of marinade and toss to coat completely. Ensure the marinade gets into the slits
Marinate. Ideally, for juicy chicken, the marination time is 4 hours to overnight, but you can skip that if short on time. Using thighs and legs helps in this regard as well.
Sear and cook the chicken. In a large nonstick skillet, heat oil and sear the chicken pieces on high heat for about 3 minutes on both sides. Once browned, cover the pan and let the pieces cook through on medium-low heat, about 25 minutes. The chicken will release water, but we are going to dry it out once the chicken pieces are cooked through.
Dry out the water. Next, crank up the heat and dry out the moisture from the pan. The masala will stick to the chicken pieces, and you will see oil rise to the top.
Smoke the chicken. This is an optional step, but it will give a more authentic taste and will be similar to restaurant-style tandoori chicken. Full instructions are in the recipe card below.
Garnish and serve. Garnish with chopped cilantro and a drizzle of lime juice and serve immediately.
Other ways to make the tandoori chicken
Bake: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Lay the chicken pieces on an oven-safe rack placed in a sheet pan. You can line the sheet pan with foil for easy cleanup. Cook the chicken for 30 minutes. Broil for 5 minutes to get some char on the meat.
Air fry: Follow your air fryer’s instructions manual. I air-fried my chicken pieces in 2-piece batches at 400ºF / 200ºC for 20 minutes, as I own a smaller model.
Outdoor Grill: Place the chicken pieces on the heated grill and let the chicken cook. Flip and baste the chicken with some oil every 4-5 minutes till the chicken is cooked through. This should take about 20-25 minutes.
How to serve
Salads and chutneys. At most restaurants, a salad of sliced onions, cucumbers, and lemon wedges usually accompanies grilled items. Or make some kachumbar.
Chutneys. Raita (a mixture of green chutney and yogurt) and tamarind chutney are also served.
Daal. Serve with daal and some rice/cauliflower rice and make it a well-rounded weeknight meal.
Naan. Look for gluten-free naan/flatbread (not always the healthiest option, but now available at most Indian grocery stores).
If you like easy chicken recipes, you’ll love my
If you try this recipe, I’d appreciate it so much if you would rate it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️! And let me know in the comments how it worked out for you. I love hearing feedback and the recipe rating helps others find this recipe!
One Pan Tandoori Chicken Tikka
Ingredients
For the marinade
- 2 tablespoons yogurt plain, whole milk
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon minced ginger
- 1 teaspoon salt or to taste
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika for color
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garam masala powder
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste for color * See notes
- 2 tablespoons oil divided
- 1/2 lime or lemon juiced
Chicken
- 2 pounds bone-in, skinless chicken thighs * See note
For the garnish
- cilantro
- lime wedges
- sliced onions
Instructions
- Put all the marinade ingredients into a large bowl and whisk till well combined. Set aside.
- Dry the chicken pieces thoroughly with a paper towel and cut slits( 1-3 diagonally depending on the size of the chicken) into the flesh for better absorption of the marinade. Add the chicken pieces and toss to coat completely. Ensure the marinade gets into the slits by massaging it in. Set aside.
- Heat a large pan and once hot, add 1 tablespoon of oil. Next, add the chicken pieces in one layer. On high heat, sear the chicken for 4 minutes on one side and then flip to sear the other side for another 4 minutes Lower the heat to medium low and cover the pan and let the chicken cook through, about 25 minutes.
- Uncover the pan. There will be water released from the chicken. Increase the heat to medium high and dry out the moisture. Once all the water has dried out, the masala will stick to the chicken and oil will rise to the top. The chicken is ready to eat.
- Make an inverted tent with a small piece of foil and place it in the center of the pan with the cooked tandoori chicken. Heat up a small piece of coal on direct flame. Once heated through, gently pick up the charcoal and lay it in the foil. Drizzle oil on the coal to get it smoking. Cover the pan and let the chicken smoke for 5 minutes.
- Garnish with sliced onion rings, cilantro, and a drizzle of lime juice and serve immediately with green chutney, tamarind chutney, and or raita.
Notes
- You can use 4 leg quarters, 8 legs and thighs or 8-10 drumsticks.
- The time it takes to cook the chicken depends on the size of the pieces. Chicken should be cooked to 165°F/74°C to be safe to eat. Check by inserting a food thermometer into the thickest part of the chicken.
- Tomato paste gives the chicken a deep red color, but you can also use beetroot powder or red food coloring as well.
Zeeshan Shah says
I use this marinade for marinading boneless, skinless chicken thighs, drumsticks and breasts. Such an easy marinade!
Mariam says
Will definitely try this ❤️
Zeeshan says
🥰