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  3. Murgh kay tikkay (or Murgh tikka)

Murgh kay tikkay (or Murgh tikka)

Preparation time
over 2 hours

Cooking time
less than 10 mins

Serves
Serves 4

By Cyrus Todiwala
From Saturday Kitchen

Ingredients

For the tikka

  • 800g/1lb 12oz boned chicken, legs and breasts, cut into 4cm/1½in x 4cm/1½in pieces
  • ½ tsp ground turmeric
  • 40g/1½oz unsalted butter, softened
  • 40g/1½oz peeled fresh root ginger
  • 40g/1½oz peeled garlic
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder (or more, to taste)
  • 2 tbsp lime juice
  • ½ tsp garam masala
  • 2 –3 tbsp rapeseed or sunflower oil
  • 150g/5½oz Greek-style yoghurt
  • salt and ground black pepper

For the wrap

  • 1 green pepper, sliced
  • 1 red pepper, sliced
  • 2.5–4cm/1–1½in piece fresh root ginger, shredded or chopped
  • 1–2 green chillies, chopped (to taste)
  • 5–6 sprigs fresh coriander with leaves and stem, chopped
  • 8–10 fresh mint leaves, shredded
  • 1–2 red onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 lime, juice only (a good squeeze)
  • 1–2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 8 chapatis or tortillas, to serve

Method

  1. Rub salt, pepper and turmeric into the chicken and set aside.

  2. Blend the butter, ginger, garlic, cumin, coriander, chilli powder, lime juice, garam masala and oil and half of the yoghurt In a blender or food processor, to a smooth paste. (Alternatively, you can whisk the ingredients in a bowl.) When all the spices are well blended either in the food processor or whisked by hand, stir in the remaining yoghurt. Check here for spiciness to suit your taste and add a bit more chilli if you like.

  3. Add the chicken to the marinade in a bowl and coat well. The chicken is now best set aside in the refrigerator for at least 4–5 hours, ideally overnight. When you are ready to cook, skewer the pieces of chicken onto wooden skewers, or you can leave them loose.

  4. To cook the tikka, either preheat a barbecue (or preheat the grill to high and the oven to 230C/210C Fan/Gas 8). Cook the chicken in the barbecue, basting from time to time to give it a juicy appearance. Alternatively grill until browned and then transfer to the hot oven. Make sure that the meat in the grill is on a wire mesh with a drip tray below. The tikka should cook in 6 –10 minutes, depending on the size, but check to make sure the juices run clear or the temperature is 74C.

  5. For the salad, combine the peppers, ginger, chilli, coriander, mint and red onion in a bowl. Drizzle over the lime juice and oil. (Alternatively you can fry the peppers and mix them into the salad once cooled.)

  6. To serve, partly cool the chicken tikka, then slice into strips. Put the tikka in a tortilla or a chapatti, place some salad alongside, then roll the tortilla or the chapati tightly so that the roll is nice and tight.

  7. Heat a frying pan to hot and cook the wrap lightly on all sides. When all four sides are done, serve either whole or cut into pieces.

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