Chicken Tikka Masala (चिकन टिक्का मसाला) is a curry dish with chicken tikka. Chicken tikkas (मुर्ग़ टिक्का) are roasted chicken chunks. The chicken is prepared by separating it from the bone and cutting it into chuncks on skewers. Then the chicken is marinated in spices like turmeric powder and yogurt. Then the chicken is baked in a tandoor (तन्दूर) oven. A tandoor oven is cylinder-like in shape and made out of clay. Traditionally the tandoor was heated by burning charcoal or wood, but nowadays, restaurants use electricity or gas to heat the tandoor oven.
The curry itself is made from a tomato soup base. The tomato is what gives the curry its orange color. The curry is also thick and creamy because of the coconut cream. Some people like to eat the chicken tikka masala with some Indian bread such as tandoori naan (नान) and tandoori roti (रोटी) . Naan and roti can be baked in tandoor ovens as well. These breads are usually made from flour and water and may be painted with ghii (घी), an Indian butter. Instead of bread, the curry may be consumed with rice. There really is no one way to consume chicken tikka masala. The recipe varies from region to region and family to famiy.
The true origins of chicken tikka masala are unknown. Some say the dish was made in the 1970s in the United Kingdom. In fact, the local Glasgow community is petitioning the European Union to make Chicken Tikka Masala a Protected Designation of Origin dish. The Protected Designation of Origin would make Glasgow the recognized home of Chicken Tikka Masala. However, a number of Indian chefs are claiming that the dish is being wrongfully claimed as its own. These chefs claim that although the ingredients may have been different, the original idea came from the recipes made for Mughal emperors.
Putting politics aside, it’s obvious that any place lucky enough to claim the chicken tikka masala will reap financial benefits and universal fame. The taste of chicken tikka masala is undeniably liked by all over the world, a fact that is not surpring.
