A tandoori marinade should cling to the food. Thick strained yogurt carries the ginger, garlic, and spices, while Kashmiri chilli adds colour and a measured warmth. This version is designed for chicken cooked on a grill or in a hot oven; the tandoor itself brings a particular heat and smoke that a home oven will only approximate.
Tandoori Marinade
Thick yogurt, Kashmiri chilli, and dried fenugreek
Strained yogurt keeps the spice coating on the chicken during its long refrigerated marinade.
Ingredients
Instructions
Serving Ideas
- Serve the cooked chicken with sliced onion, lemon wedges, and mint chutney.
Substitutions
- Neutral oil is the stated alternative to culinary mustard oil. Omit fenugreek if unavailable; another herb will not reproduce its aroma.
Chef Tips
- If ordinary yogurt looks watery, strain it in the refrigerator before weighing. Thin yogurt slips off and puddles during cooking.
Recipe Notes
The total includes the minimum 6-hour marinade. Cooking time for the chicken is additional.
Storage
Refrigerate unused marinade at 4°C or below for up to 2 days. Keep chicken in the refrigerator throughout marinating and respect its use-by date.
Allergen Notes
Contains milk; contains mustard when mustard oil is used.
Reference
Recipe context: Swasthi’s Recipes — Tandoori chicken technique.