So my wife and I ate at an Indian restaurant a couple weeks ago. She got the chicken tikka masala, and though we’re no strangers to Indian cooking, this particular meal just hit right and she raved about it. She said “you should try making this sometime!” Which felt mildly insulting, since I make Indian-style curries pretty often, though I don’t think I’ve made tikka masala recently— I gravitate more towards a vindaloo.
So, today’s the day- got the chicken marinating in yogurt and spices in the fridge now. I’m wondering what I can do to ‘next level’ the meal. I want to match or top her restaurant experience. I already start with whole spices that I toast and grind myself- no store bought curry powder in this house. Some of the things I’m doing or considering:
I’m making naan for a side, which I don’t ordinarily bother with when I make a curry.
I’m going to mostly cook the chicken by grilling it, to give it a nice smoky flavor before I finish it in the gravy.
I’m going to clarify and brown butter to make ghee.
Should I add saffron to the rice? I’ve had rice with saffron added in some Indian restaurants, but in this case I’m not sure whether saffron would complement or overpower the taste of the masala.
I’m mostly following the recipe below, which discusses ‘British’ and ‘Indian’ styles of masala. I’m grinding, not using whole spices, ‘British style’, though I will add whole bay leaves, cloves and a cinnamon stick to flavor the ghee early on that I’ll remove later. ‘Indian style’ also involves grinding cashews, making a cashew cream and adding it. I think I have some whole cashews, but I’m not sure whether or not I feel like a nut today.
In your case I’d say there’s nothing more to do other than keep your senses engaged while preparing this culinary masterpiece. So many components yet you are on top of the game. Taste smell touch as you go. If it’s perfect or missing that one spice to bring to the next level. You’ll know what it is.
I don’t see saffron as making much difference except visually. If your tikka is elevated spice-wise it should dominate the rice. Otherwise, you know your wife’s tastes better than we do so you have to use your experience in this dish. How hot does she like it? Any particular seasoning she’s fond of? I’d suggest make your best rice and maybe some kind of dahl to contrast the main dish, so sweet and mild if the tikka is hot and spicy, or vice versa.
Ok, thanks. I will save the saffron for another day.
Eh, I’m already attempting naan for the first time, I think making a dahl as well would be a bit more work than I’m feeling up to. Also I don’t want to distract from the main dish too much- tikka masala and naan is what my wife had at the restaurant and those are the two things she’s asking for.
Raita though, maybe…it seems like an easy thing to make that would be complementary to the meal and a good dip for the naan. Not sure if we have any cucumber though; will have to check. Don’t feel like a store run.
Was going to add, but missed the edit window, I do like the sound of this red lentil Dahl recipe I found and will most likely make it another time with some naan, so thanks for the recommendation!
A couple of things that weren’t explicitly mentioned, and likely can’t be changed for this, but might make a difference in the pursuit of next level. Breast or thigh meat? I find for butter chicken and other dishes where I want the spices to be the emphasis, that I’m happier with breast, contrary to my normal preference for thighs, because the comparative mildness of flavor is a plus, not a minus.
Second, and this may just be me, but a lot of restaurant-level dishes season heavily at all steps - they don’t always taste salty, but there’s more salt in there when I’m cooking at home and trying to be careful with salt intake. So as you’re cooking, season and taste, taste and season. Or just use some MSG - which I often do when I’m making a dish of many flavors. Cheap, easy, and you bet most restaurants use it.
I often go with thighs for curries, but chose breast meat this time. As you point out, breast meat just seemed better for this particular dish.
I do have a container of MSG I use as a ‘secret ingredient’ sometimes. Not sure if I want to use it in this curry though- it’s going to have a lot going on already flavor-wise. plus it seems a bit like ‘cheating’ for this dish for some reason, though I’m fine using it in other things. Might be a game-time call as I’m tasting.
I also sometimes feel this way, that it’s ‘cheating’ rather than just depending on my mad skillz, but if it’s all about elevating that great dish to the next level your wife is looking for…
And I have enough friends that have worked in the restaurant industry admitting to use it (or other umami enhancer that doesn’t have the bad PR) that I can normally shrug it off.
Same way, and same reason I mentioned being generous on the salt use. That was the biggest tip some of those friends mentioned - if you don’t have to put the sodium content in the dish on the menu, that you just use as much as you can before it starts tasting actively salty and all the customer tastes is more flavor.
Yep, I remember some famous chef, might have been Anthony Bourdain, was asked “what’s the secret to why restaurant food always tastes better than what you try to make at home?” And his answer was that restaurants use salt and butter in amounts the average home cook would think was crazy.
The one thing I’ve noticed that makes a BIG difference is not just broiling the chicken, but actually grilling it on a grill. What I do is marinate whole chicken thighs or breasts, grill them whole, then cut them into chunks. I prefer boneless, skinless thighs for this, because you have more leeway to get the meat good and grilled, versus boneless, skinless breasts.
Yeah, that’s what I did- with a little bit of applewood added to the coals for smoke flavor. And it did make a huge flavor difference. I grilled the chicken to not quite being done and finished cooking it in the gravy, so it wouldn’t get too dried out on the grill.
The final verdict: my wife said I “ knocked it out of the park” and I have to agree. I’m often the worst critic of my own cooking, but I actually said to myself “damn I’m a good cook” while eating it. The naan turned out pretty darn good too, despite it being the first time I ever made it.
And my 18 year old son said “that was good, dad” which for him is the equivalent of handing out a 3 star Michelin rating.
My gf loved my most recent chicken tikka masala. The big difference was using tofu instead of the chicken. For some reason the texture/taste was different enough to be noteworthy.
