Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Paleo Tikka Masala

I absolutely love the spiciness and full flavor of Indian food. One of my favorites is Chicken Tikka Masala. Creamy tomato sauce and tender chicken....how can you not love it? I recently learned that it is considered the most popular restaurant dish in the UK! I was completely unawares of the origin.

Typical Tikka Masala
"A survey in the United Kingdom claimed that it is that country's most popular restaurant dish.[3] One in seven curries sold in the UK is chicken tikka masala. The cross-cultural popularity of the dish in the UK led former Foreign Secretary Robin Cook to proclaim it as "a true British national dish".[4] 

 In the past few years I've been exposed to Indian (and apparently British) food, both home made and at the buffet. So many dishes use ingredients in ways that aren't common here, so it piqued my interest. I absolutely love experiencing new cuisine.

My husband and I have been tooling around with paleo versions of Indian dishes. In this one I've taken multiple different recipes and created a paleo amalgamation!

Marinade
Cumin, cinnamon, cayenne pepper, black pepper, ginger, paprika, garlic, lemon juice, and coconut oil

Sauce/Gravy
Ghee, chopped onions, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, water

My paleo-tized version
 I marinaded chicken thighs for 1 hour, then placed them in the pressure cooker with the gravy ingredients. Cooked at pressure for 12 min, and allowed it sit for 10 before quick releasing the pressure.

I added coconut milk at the end to add a bit of creaminess!

Cauliflower "rice"
The spiciness of my dish required some rice-like companion. Cauliflower works really well! I even used the stem AND leaves. I'm not crazy, I promise. I added a bit of ghee and voila, it became a pretty darn good version for one of my favorite dishes!

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