Healthy Chicken Tikka Masala

Our Healthy Chicken Tikka Masala is made up of juicy and tender chunks of chicken that have been marinated and grilled and then stirred in to a delicious creamy mild sauce. Bursting with garlic, ginger and spices, this an easy curry that the whole family will love, and it tastes far more indulgent than it is.

We have made a classic Indian takeaway order that little bit healthier, so you can still enjoy your Friday night curry without feeling sluggish after.  This Healthy Chicken Tikka Masala is creamy, with a hint of spice, but doesn't have all the ghee and cream that you would usually find in a takeaway curry. But it still tastes just as delicious.

Jump to:

• What you will need
• Step by step
• What should you try it?
• What makes it healthy?
• What to serve it with
• FAQs
• Extra tips
• More curry recipes
• Recipe
• Feedback

What you will need

Step by step

One: Add all the ingredients for the chicken to a bowl. Mix well, cover and put in the fridge to marinate for 30 minutes.

Two: Put the onion, garlic and ginger into a food processor. Blend to form a smooth paste. Alternatively, you could use a pestle and mortar.

Three: Heat a little oil in a pan and add the onion paste. Gently cook for 2 minutes.

Four: Add the tikka seasoning, tomatoes, stock and coriander. Stir and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes.

Five: Preheat your grill (broiler) and thread the marinated chicken onto skewers (pre-soaked if using wooden). Put the chicken skewers under the grill (broiler) and cook for 15 minutes, turning regularly.

Six: Blend the sauce so it is smooth.

Seven: Add the yogurt and almonds. Mix well and gently heat.

Eight: Once the chicken is cooked through, add to the sauce. Stir so the chicken is coated.

Nine: Serve the healthy chicken tikka masala over rice with naan breads, mango chutney and raita (all optional).

What should you try it?

What makes it healthy?

We all love an indulgent Indian takeaway, however sometimes it can leave you feeling really sluggish from all the oil, butter and cream. That's why we try to make our own light versions at home as often as possible, and it saves us money too. Healthy is such a subjective work, but a few changes to the classic recipe certainly makes this lighter.

To start with, we have used just a little olive oil to cook the onion, garlic and ginger, however you could use an oil spray to use even less oil. We haven't added any butter or ghee, because although they do add some extra flavour, they add a lot of extra fat too. We find this curry it still delicious without it.

The creaminess in this curry comes from natural yoghurt (that is also used in the marinade of the chicken pieces) rather than double cream. We think that this curry still tastes really creamy and indulgent, but lower in fat.

You can also add some extra vegetables to this if you like. Why not add some finely diced mushrooms, courgette, aubergine or bell pepper to the pan at the same time as the onion paste. You could also stir in some spinach or peas to the sauce at the same time as the chicken to give the dish a veggie boost.

What to serve it with

Curry goes perfectly with rice, which soaks up all that incredible creamy sauce. You could just go with plain basmati rice, or why not try our Turmeric Rice for something a little different. You could swap rice for quinoa for a protein boost.

Soft and fluffy bread is always a good option with curry too, so why not try making our Homemade Flatbreads - they are so simple. And then dip them in some of our homemade cucumber raita.

If you want a little more colour, then this Cucumber Tomato Salad or Carrot and Coriander Salad go well with a curry.

FAQs

Extra tips

• Make sure to soak wooden skewers for 30 minutes before threading the chicken on to them. This ensures that they don't burn when cooking.
• If you don't cut your chicken in to large pieces, then you won't need to turn them half way through cooking.
• If you want to make this curry spicier, then you can add some chilli powder to the chicken marinade, and to the sauce marinade. You could also add a sprinkle of red chilli flakes before serving.
• You don't have to add the ground almonds, but we find that it gives the sauce a really nice texture.
• Make a vegetarian version of this by swapping the chicken for chickpeas, halloumi/paneer or even just loads of vegetables. Make up a big pan of sauce and then swap the chicken for a veggie alternative.

More curry recipes

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