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grilled bihari chicken tikka on a tray
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5 from 1 vote

Bihari Chicken Tikka

A Bihari masala style marinated, melt in your mouth chicken, grilled or baked in the oven
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Resting time1 hour
Total Time1 hour 45 minutes
Course: 30 min meals, Chicken Recipes, dinner, HEALTHY RECIPES
Cuisine: Fusion Food, Indian, pakistani, South Asian
Diet: Halal
Servings: 4 pieces
Calories: 166kcal
Author: Wajiha

Ingredients

  • 4 pieces Chicken legs with thighs, skin removed and cuts along the length of the pieces. around 1 kg chicken
  • Oil for cooking
  • 1 piece coal for smoke

Chicken Marinade

  • 1 large onion sliced and fried golden or 1/2 cup or prefried onions
  • 1/2 cup yogurt
  • 2 teaspoon salt or to taste
  • 2 teaspoon cumin seed powder roasted is even better
  • 2 teaspoon red chili powder
  • 1 tablespoon ginger garlic paste
  • 1 teaspoon crushed black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
  • 2 tablespoon raw papaya paste or 1/2 teaspoon meat tenderizer.
  • 1 tsp roasted poppy seeds optional
  • 2 tablespoon oil

Instructions

  • Wash and pat your chicken dry. Add cuts along the lengths of your chicken pieces.
  • Add all the ingredients of the marinade to a blender. Make a smooth paste.
  • Marinate the chicken pieces in the heavy marinade, covering all the slits. Cover the chicken and let it marinade for 2 hours not more. (If you wish to marinate longer or overnight, then skip the papaya paste)
  • Remove the chicken from the fridge atleast 30 mins before you plan to cook it.

Cooking Methods

  • On a BBQ grill -
    This is pretty straightforward. You fire up your grill and grill on both sides till it's nice and charred.
  • Pan frying.
    Pan fry the pieces on a grill pan at high heat on both sides for about 4 mins each. Then reduce the heat to low. Cover the pan and let it cook for another 10 minutes. You can smoke coal at this point if you like.
  • Baking and air frying-
    Preheat oven to 180 ℃ or 375 ℉. Grease a pan with oil or butter and place your chicken pieces on it. Coat the chicken with oil as well. Bake for 20 mins, 10 mins on each side. You can glaze the pieces with oil or leftover marinade when you flip them over. Broil for 1 minute towards the end for a nice charred finish. You can smoke it with coal at this point if you like.
  • Serve with some extra lemon slices to squeeze on top, onion slices and mint chutney.

Notes

  • The spice level of Bihari Chicken tikka is mostly moderate, you can add more red chili if you'd like a high spice level. 
  • You can prepare all types of chicken cuts with the same marination. Reduce the salt to 1 tsp if using small boneless cubes.
  • For a dairy-free recipe, you can substitute yogurt with 4 tablespoons of lemon juice and 2 tablespoons of vinegar.
  • Raw papaya paste makes the chicken super tender and gives you an authentic Bihari chicken texture. DO NOT leave the chicken uncooked for more than 4 hours the marination has papaya paste.
  • If you don't have the paste, then marinate your chicken overnight to allow the lemon and yogurt to soften the chicken. 
  • You can use the same recipe on fish fillets

Nutrition

Serving: 1piece | Calories: 166kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 67g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 2mg | Sodium: 1199mg | Potassium: 103mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 368IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 53mg | Iron: 0.3mg