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Indian · Punjab

Tandoori Chicken — Two-Marinade System (तंदूरी चिकन)

Tandoori chicken (तंदूरी चिकन) is the most globally recognised Indian preparation, but the home-cooked version rarely captures the restaurant result because the two-marinade system is not understood. The first marinade (overnight): lemon juice, salt, and fine cuts scored through the skin and into the flesh — the acid begins protein denaturation and the salt draws moisture out and back in with the citric acid. The second marinade (4–6 hours): yoghurt, Kashmiri chilli, coriander, cumin, garam masala, ginger-garlic paste, mustard oil, and kasoori methi — this marinade provides the fat-coating and spice penetration. Only after both marination stages is the chicken ready for the tandoor.

‹Swipe for the next dish›
Serves4
Total40 min (plus 4 hr marinating)
Sourced0of 12 in BC
Cook
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I

The Market List

The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.

800g
chicken thighs
skin-on, cut into 5cm pieces
Your own market
200g
Greek yogurt
full-fat
Your own market
30ml
ginger-garlic paste
freshly ground
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
15ml
Kashmiri chilli powder
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
5ml
ground cumin
toasted
Your own market
5ml
ground coriander
toasted
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
2ml
turmeric powder
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
2ml
Kashmiri saffron threads
bloomed in 30ml warm water
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1
large onion
thinly sliced
Your own market
60ml
vegetable oil
Your own market
Salt and Tellicherry black pepper
to taste
Your own market
Fresh coriander leaves and lemon wedges for garnish
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
II

The Method

1
Combine yogurt, ginger-garlic paste, Kashmiri chilli powder, cumin, coriander, turmeric, saffron with soaking liquid, and salt in a bowl; whisk until smooth.
From the canon — Turmeric (हल्दी, haldi — Curcuma longa) is the most universally used spice in Indian cooking: the yellow-orange rhizome whose primary active compound (curcum… Turmeric — Fresh vs Dried in Indian Cooking (हल्दी) →
2
Coat chicken pieces thoroughly in marinade; refrigerate covered for minimum 4 hours, preferably overnight.
3
Heat vegetable oil in a cast-iron skillet or tandoor oven to 220°C; arrange chicken on skewers or directly in pan.
4
Grill or bake chicken 18–22 minutes, rotating halfway, until charred at edges and internal temperature reaches 74°C.
5
Rest chicken 3 minutes; serve scattered with fried onions, fresh coriander, and lemon wedges.
IV

Sensory Tests

◇Where it lives or dies. The moment where tandoori chicken lives or dies is the final char — the chicken must reach a dark, spotted char on the surface before it is considered done. In a home oven, switch to the grill (broiler) for the final 3 minutes to develop the surface char that is the signature of the tandoor. Without the char, the chicken is simply baked in a spiced yoghurt coating — good, but not tandoori.
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VI

What to Pour

Pouring for British Columbia ·

The pairing
Bushmills Malt 10 Year Old
Old Bushmills Distillery · County Antrim — Bushmills Distillery
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Whisky
From British Columbia
SOV Wheated Rye Whisky
Sons of Vancouver Distillery · Metro Vancouver
Sons of Vancouver Distillery · North Vancouver →
Whisky
Without alcohol

No pour without alcohol holds against this yet.

Each tap is counted, so the stockist sees the demand Provenance sends them.

Why each one works is part of membership — Enter · from $49 a year →

The whole pairing
Pillar VII
Origin and lineage are part of membership.
Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
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