This quick roast tandoori chicken recipe is one of my favorites to pull up when I’m in the mood for a BOOST of spice and roast chicken comfort. As a bonus, it doesn’t take longer than 45 mins start to finish, so it’s a win win! So you guessed it—no special ovens needed, no hours of marinating, just easy straight forward spice and flavor goodness! Serve it up with a fresh tangy yogurt with garlic and herbs to cool off
Yes another roast chicken recipe! If you haven’t guessed it, yes I have a thing for roast chicken. I mean who doesn’t? And I have a thing for a whole chicken roasted. I think it reminds me of my grandma’s cooking and big family gatherings. These memories are priceless. And I’m getting a bit carried away right now, because I miss all of that!! I miss my family too much!
Ok back to the tandoori chicken recipe, which is one of my mom’s favorites. My dad is not a “spicy” anything person, just a mild touch and he will detect it right away. So for him, I use minimal to no chili flakes at all—which still makes this a DELICIOUS roast tandoori chicken! It’s all about the flavors here, the spice is a compliment—a much needed compliment for me, but feel free to adjust it to your taste. And don’t forget we’re making a really refreshing yogurt garlic and herb sauce alongside, which is perfect to cool down any spice.
So let’s start with the yogurt. It’s simply a combination of really tangy balkan style yogurt with a pinch of salt, a pinch of lime juice, a clove of garlic and plenty of fresh herbs. Plenty. I used chopped mint, parsley and dill. All in equal amounts. And I tasted every single one of them. If you’ve missed this Turkish style chicken skewers recipe—a–you’ve missed a lot! and b—you missed another fabulous way to cool off your spice meals. A yogurt drink—which simply blended yogurt, some ice cubes or cold water, plenty of fresh herbs. This drink on the side of your spicy meal is not only healthier and better for your digestion, it also cools down all the flavors, freshens them up and blends them in fabulously!
Now on to the tandoori chicken. So it’s no secret I’ve butterflied the chicken again. A simple trick that I mentioned in details in this easiest garlic herb roast chicken post with step by step photos. This helps you roast a whole chicken in about 40 mins. And it uses minimal effort but impacts maximum flavors. It’s one of those easy tips that when I use at my cooking classes, I get the reaction—“why didn’t I ever think of this before!?” and “That’s it, it’s that easy?” so really, again, it’s a win win! You can definitely use cut up chicken pieces for this recipe, or your favorite pieces of chicken. I just had a thing for a whole chicken today.
I love to have the option of mixing my flavor spice mix and rubbing it all over the chicken, then roasting it right away. I have nothing against marinating, I just love having both choices, and depending on my time I can pick which one to go for. So in order to roast this tandoori chicken right away, we’re adding a TON of flavors. All in my handy tiny food processor—which I adore! Because it whips up marinades, sauces, pestos, everything! So I add all ingredients in the food processor until smooth, then rub it all over the chicken and in between the skin and flesh of the chicken.
At this point to sped up my roasting time I sear the chicken on both sides for 2 mins per side only—this perfects my crust on the chicken and jump starts my roasting. And my second tip is to keep 1/4 cup of the spice mix aside to pile over the chicken after it’s been seared—this creates a nice crust over the chicken when it roasts. Just before placing the chicken in the oven, I throw in a sliced onion and thin slices of lemon for oh yes, MORE flavor!
After that, my fabulous tandoori chicken hits the oven, while I quickly whip my yogurt sauce, heat up my naan bread and prepare the mood for some serious lick your finger YUMMY chicken dinner!! Now take a moment on your next trip to the grocery store and pick yourself a nice whole chicken, bring it home and make this quick roast tandoori chicken—enjoy!
- 1 whole chicken, about 5-6 lbs, butterflied (see step by step photos in this easiest garlic herb roast chicken)
- Tandoori Mix:
- 1 red onion
- 6 cloves of garlic
- 1 teaspoon of ginger powder
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon of all spice
- 2 teaspoon of garam masala spice
- ½ teaspoon of turmeric
- 2 tablespoons of paprika
- 1 teaspoon of child flakes (more or less to your taste, or omit all together)
- ½ cup combined of fresh mint and parsley leaves
- juice of 2 limes
- ¼ cup of plain Yogurt
- 1½ teaspoon of salt (more or less to taste)
- 2 teaspoons of black pepper
- For roasting:
- 2 tablespoon of canola oil (or any vegetable oil)
- 1 large onion sliced
- 1 large lemon sliced
- Yogurt Sauce:
- 1 cup of plain Yogurt
- 1 garlic clove
- juice of half a lime
- ⅛ teaspoon of salt
- ½ cup of chopped mixed herbs (one herb or a mixture of herbs—I used parsley, mint and dill
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- In a small food processor, process all the ingredients for the Tandoori mix until smooth.
- Butterfly the chicken (photos and details in this easiest garlic herb roast chicken). Rub the tandoori mix over both sides of the chicken and in between the skin and flesh of the chicken. Reserve about ¼ cup of the tandoori mix and set aside.
- Preheat a cast iron (or any oven safe skillet) over high heat, add in the oil.
- Add the chicken (breast side down) into the hot skillet and sear it for 2 minutes. Flip the chicken and sear it for another 2 minutes, then flip it back again.
- Pile the ¼ cup of the tandoori mixture over the top of the chicken and spread it evenly over the chicken.
- Scatter the onion and lemon slices around and underneath the chicken then take the skillet into the oven and roast it uncovered for about 40 minutes (depending o the size of your chicken, and up to 45 mins). When putting the skillet in the oven, make sure the chicken thighs are towards the back of the oven while the chicken breasts are towards the door (as there is less heat towards the oven door).
- When the chicken is ready (the thighs should register 170 degrees with a meat thermometer), cover it lovely with aluminum foil for 8 mins and then serve it.
- For the yogurt sauce: Mix all ingredients together, adjust salt and serve alongside the chicken.
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