Sometimes delicious is just staring you in the face. This is one of those times. Indian onion salad. Move over Yucatan pickled onions. There’s a new sheriff in town.
Onions. Chilies. Spice. Cilantro. Don’t think you need Indian onion salad in your life? I think you’re wrong…
Indian onion salad is not what you might think
Onion salad. Sounds a bit challenging. I get that. Crazy talk even. Who would want to eat a bunch of raw onions?
Turns out I would. And I bet you will too.
It’s not what you think. The flavours are balanced. Mellow even. With great crunch. A little spicy. But not overpowering.
It works. It works really well actually. Thanks to a little bit of cooking voodoo.
There’s a way to take the bite out of raw onions
I learned this one from Rick Bayless. And it’s a game changer.
Ever wonder by your pico isn’t like the one they serve at your favourite taqueria? Why it’s too sharp?
It’s because they know something. Something you need to learn. De-flaming onions. Sounds exotic. But it’s so simple it’s ridiculous.
Wash that raw onion bite down the drain. That’s it. Seriously. It’s that easy. From ouch to yum in 15 seconds.
Just put the onions in whatever container you have that has holes in it. Colander. Sieve. Steamer basket. Doesn’t really matter.
Stick the onions under the faucet. Run cold water over them for 15 seconds. Done.
Done enough for me anyway. I don’t want onions with absolutely zero bite. If I wanted zero bite I’d use apples. Don’t try that. Apples suck in this recipe.
A perfect match for tandoori chicken
They say necessity is the mother of invention. Truth be told in my case it was more desperation than necessity.
Had friends coming for a backyard BBQ. Was going to make shashlik. Somehow managed to forget to get green peppers. Yes. I am really that dumb.
No time to run to the store. So I started thinking. What could go really well with tandoori chicken?
I came up with Indian onion salad. Wasn’t really all that hopeful at first. Bit of a dinner party hail mary. But sometimes things go your way.
Cool salad against hot tandoori chicken. Crunch from the onion. Bite from the green chilies.
Zing from the lemon. Complexity from the spice. And the way the juices from the tandoori chicken mix with the Indian onion salad dressing.
It was a hit. And so it became a blog post.
Indian onion salad makes for a killer roti chicken tikka roll
I really like Indian onion salad under tandoori chicken. Or chicken tikka. It’s my new go to.
It’s great with poppadum too. Forget that radioactive red onion stuff. This is way better.
Works with tandoori chicken shashlik . That’s a good one. Think stylized Indian fajitas.
But my favourite is on a chicken tikka sandwich. Fast. Easy. And seriously, seriously delicious. The perfect Tuesday night dinner.
Fresh roti. That’s another word for chapatti if you’re wondering. A layer of Indian onion salad. Chicken tikka.
And a creamy green chili cilantro drizzle. That is one serious Indian-ish taco. Always a hit around here. Might have to do a blog post for that one too.
Oh, and if you’re wondering – tikka is just a fancy name for boneless tandoori chicken. Little pieces. Cooked on a skewer. There’s no other difference.
Not sure why tandoori chicken bites wasn’t a good enough name.
Indian or Indian-ish?
There is a straight up Indian onion salad. It’s called laccha pyaaz. That’s where I got the idea. But this isn’t quite the same.
I’m a bit of a heretic. Not so concerned about lines. I have a whole series on Indian-ish. Stuff that doesn’t quite fit the mold. Indian inspired.
This is laacha pyaaz meets pico de gallo. Sort of. When you just make stuff up in a blind panic it’s a little hard to categorize.
I’ve dropped a few ingredients. Changed some other ones. This one is not as assertive as the full blown Indian version.
Which is unusual for me. I’m a big fan of the flavour sledgehammer. But I think it’s actually a strength in this case. Makes it more versatile.
It’s killer with tandoori chicken. The way the spicy drippings work with the cool crunch of onion is amazing.
But I’d serve this with a roast chicken. I’d put it on a grilled pork chop. Anything grilled really. On a sandwich. Or a composed salad. Indian-ish makes it super versatile.
Make Indian onion salad
This is good stuff. I think it’s great stuff. It’s my new go to for any time I make tandoori chicken.
I get it’s a little odd sounding. Not immediately intuitive. So I’m asking you to take a leap of faith.
I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. Indian onion salad with tandoori chicken. It’s good living. Seriously good living in fact.
Indian(ish) onion salad
Ingredients
- 1 Large red onion thinly sliced (10 ounces or around 300 grams)
- 2 green chilies seeded and finely chopped
- 1/3 cup cilantro minced
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt less if using fine table salt
- 1/2 tsp ground pepper
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil any neutral oil (canola etc)
- 1/2 lemon juiced
Instructions
- Slice the onions. Thin. I mean like 1/16 of an inch. 1/8 at the outside. This is the hardest part. A sharp knife helps a lot here.
- De-flame the onions. Place the onions in a sieve and run under cold water for 15 seconds. This makes a huge difference. Takes the bite right out of the onions. Kind of magic. Don’t skip this step. Do this when you make pico too.
- In a bowl large enough to hold all the ingredients combine everything (onions, chilies, cilantro, cumin, Kashmiri chili powder, salt, pepper, neutral oil and lemon juice) and mix thoroughly to combine. Tongs are perfect for this. Tongs are perfect for a lot of things. Get a good set of tongs. Your life will be better for it.
- Let stand for an hour at room temperature. This lets the onions soften and everything come together. It winds up sort of like pickled onions from a texture perspective.
- Taste and adjust salt and lemon. Make some chicken tikka and smile.
Nutrition
Indian(ish) onion salad
Ingredients
- 1 Large red onion thinly sliced (10 ounces or around 300 grams)
- 2 green chilies seeded and finely chopped
- 1/3 cup cilantro minced
- 1 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt less if using fine table salt
- 1/2 tsp ground pepper
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil any neutral oil (canola etc)
- 1/2 lemon juiced
Instructions
- Slice the onions. Thin. I mean like 1/16 of an inch. 1/8 at the outside. This is the hardest part. A sharp knife helps a lot here.
- De-flame the onions. Place the onions in a sieve and run under cold water for 15 seconds. This makes a huge difference. Takes the bite right out of the onions. Kind of magic. Don’t skip this step. Do this when you make pico too.
- In a bowl large enough to hold all the ingredients combine everything (onions, chilies, cilantro, cumin, Kashmiri chili powder, salt, pepper, neutral oil and lemon juice) and mix thoroughly to combine. Tongs are perfect for this. Tongs are perfect for a lot of things. Get a good set of tongs. Your life will be better for it.
- Let stand for an hour at room temperature. This lets the onions soften and everything come together. It winds up sort of like pickled onions from a texture perspective.
- Taste and adjust salt and lemon. Make some chicken tikka and smile.
Nutrition
Chicken tikka masala is a restaurant favourite just about everywhere. And you can make it in 30 minutes. For real.
Smooth sauce. Well spiced. Layered flavours. Might even be better than you get at your local Indian restaurant.
That’s a pretty bold assertion. I know. You can let me know what you think.
Curries in 30 minutes
This is part of a series. There’s already a masala chicken curry. A madras. A jalfrezi.
Full disclosure. It’s not a new recipe. I’m redoing a series from 2017. It was called nearly restaurant style back then.
The recipes stay the same. I’m just updating the names. And the text. And the pictures. Pretty much everything other than the recipe.
I’ll be adding some new recipes too. I like this series. Always have. I’m hoping you will too.
The onions are the thing
If you’ve cooked Indian you know. Onions are the thing. And those onions need to be cooked. And that takes time.
There’s no getting around it. Well cooked onions are fundamental. But how you cook your onions isn’t cast in stone.
That’s where this approach is different. Stick some onions in the microwave. Cook them until soft.
Puree with a little oil and water. That’s the magic here. A kitchen hack that really works.
Do that and it takes minutes to make the curry. Literally minutes. Flavours like you get in restaurants. In 30 minutes flat.
Just a little cream for big, bold chicken tikka masala taste
I use very little cream in this version. Lots of coconut milk. But just a hint of cream for richness.
More than a little cream blunts all the nuanced flavours. And that just doesn’t work for me.
Might be restaurant chicken tikka masala heresy. That’s OK. I don’t care about rules. But I do care about tasty. This is tasty.
This chicken tikka masala is all about building layers of flavour. I don’t want anything to come in the way of that flavour and my mouth.
BBQ tandoori chicken. Preferably over charcoal. That’s already huge. Layer on tomato. Spice. Coconut milk.
A bit of jaggery or brown sugar. Some lemon to balance it. And a hint of cream for richness. That’s what makes this special.
All tandoori masalas are not created equal
This chicken tikka masala uses quite a bit of tandoori masala. You can make tandoori masala or you can buy it.
If you buy it then you need to pay attention. Some tandoori masalas contain a lot of salt. A lot. A crazy amount in some cases.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing in itself. But it can wreak havoc with this recipe. With any recipe really.
Taste your tandoori masala. If it tastes like salt it’s salty.
Check the ingredient list. Most countries require ingredients be listed in order of quantity from highest to lowest. If salt is number one or number two it’s salty.
Again, that’s not a problem in itself. You just need to be aware. If your tandoori masala is salty leave the salt specified in the recipe out.
Taste at the end. Decide. Does it need more salt? Add a bit at a time. Until it’s just right. You just need to manage it.
Commercial tandoori masalas also contain food colouring. I used a commercial blend for this recipe. So it would look like what you get when you make it.
I think it’s too red. But there’s not much I can do about that.
30 minute chicken tikka masala with a catch
You can make this dish in 30 minutes. Easy. But only if you make the chicken tikka ahead of time.
I’m fast in the kitchen. And pretty organized. And there’s no way one person can BBQ chicken tikka and pull this curry together in half an hour.
So don’t try. And don’t expect this to take 30 minutes if you don’t pre-cook your tikka.
Maybe plan for this one tomorrow. And make something grilled tonight. And cook the tikka while you are at it. It will keep a day.
Or make tikka and freeze it. Do that and you can make this dish any time you want. Just don’t refreeze your chicken. That does bad things to the texture.
Or team up. Put one person on making the tikka. And the other at the stove making the curry. I could make that work in 30 minutes.
Or bite the bullet and realize it’s going to take you 45 minutes. Maybe a bit more.
I suppose I should have called this “30 minute tikka masala as long as you pre-cook your tikka”. That’s a terrible name though. So I just couldn’t do it.
I’m sorry if I’ve led you astray.
The 30 minute technique works with any curry
The best part of all this is once you figure it you can reproduce pretty much everything on the menu. Madras, jalfrezi, dhansak, dopiaza. They all work.
This may not be the most intuitive chicken tikka masala recipe you’ve ever seen. I get that. It’s completely different from pretty much every recipe out there.
Don’t let that scare you. This works. It works well. Take a leap of faith. You will never look back.
30 minute chicken tikka masala
Ingredients
The onion paste
- 2 cups onions – coarsely chopped
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 cup water
quick tandoori chicken skewers
- 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs cut into 3 pieces per thigh. or 2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 3 tbsp tandoori masala – you can get this from any Indian grocer.
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
chicken tikka masala
- 1 tbsp garlic ginger paste
- 1 1/2 tsp coriander powder
- 1 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 2 tsp tandoori masala – see note. Please see note.
- 1 tsp kashmiri chili powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt – about half if you are using table salt
- 2 tbsp tomato paste diluted to the consistency of tomato sauce
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- 1 tbsp brown sugar or jaggery if you have it
- 1/6 lemon – juiced
- 1 tbsp heavy cream – I use 35 percent milk fat
Instructions
The onion paste
- Place the onions in a microwave safe dish and cover loosely. Microwave at 70 percent until the onions are soft and translucent. This takes 10 minutes in my 1100 watt microwave. I can’t predict how long it will take in yours…
- Remove the onions from the microwave. Be careful. They will be hot. Let them cool slightly. Place the onions, 2 tbsp vegetable oil and 1 cup of warm water in a blender and puree until smooth. Set aside.
tandoori chicken skewers
- Combine the tandoori masala, salt and oil. Stir to combine.
- Cut chicken into large bite size pieces. Combine tandoori marinade with the chicken. Toss to coat the chicken and let sit, refrigerated, for one hour or so.
- Thread the chicken on skewers (pre-soaked is a good idea if you are using wood). Grill, over medium high heat until just done. This should take about 5-6 minutes. Alternately, you can broil them. Set aside.
chicken tikka masala
- Taste your tandoori masala. If it tastes like salt you have a salty product. Leave out the salt specified in this recipe. You can adjust at the end.
- In a small bowl, combine the coriander, cumin, garam masala, 2 tsp tandoori masala, kashmiri chili powder and kosher salt if you are using it. This is your spice mix.
- Heat 4 tbsp vegetable oil in a pot over medium heat until it shimmers.
- Add the garlic ginger paste and cook until it stops spluttering. You’ll understand what I mean when you do it.
- Turn the heat to medium low. Add the spice mix and stir continuously until it starts to smell really good – around 30-40 seconds. Watch it carefully. If you burn the spices at this point you have to start over.
- Add the diluted tomato paste and stir to combine. Turn the heat up to medium. Cook for 1 minute.
- Add the onion paste and turn the heat up to medium high. Cook, stirring occasionally for about 5-6 minutes. Cover it loosely. It will splatter. If it doesn’t your heat is too low. The curry will darken a bit as it cooks.
- Turn the heat down to medium low. Add the coconut milk and brown sugar and simmer for another 3-4 minutes.
- Add the pre-cooked tandoori chicken and lemon juice. Simmer until the chicken is warmed through – another 2-3 minutes.
- Add the heavy cream. Stir to combine.
- Taste for salt. If you’ve left the salt out it’s time to decide if it needs more. I can’t help you here. Not until I take over global production of tandoori masala anyway.
- Grab a spoonful of the sauce. Look at it. If it seems a little thick add a bit of water. Maybe 2 or 3 tablespoons. Stir and warm it through. Your goal is the lush restaurant gravy texture you know and love.
- Garnish with a bit of cilantro or fried shallots if desired. Drizzle a little more cream overtop if you want “the look”. Enjoy!
