This should not be considered a traditional recipe, especially given that it is not cooked in a tandoor. However, it tastes similar and is fairly easy to make. Several recipes I researched recommended a much longer marinating time such as overnight. I am leery of leaving chicken in a marinade that includes lemon juice for more than a couple hours as it can make the chicken mushy. However, I have also read that the yogurt in this marinade decreases its acidity and helps prevent breaking down the proteins. I have not tried a longer marinading time, so cannot say if it results in even more flavor–perhaps that will be a future experiment.
The vegetables used here are just a suggestion, and may be substituted, added to, or omitted based on your taste. In the references section there is a version that uses sweet potatoes instead of zucchini. I prefer to just eat this alone or with a side of rice. If pairing this with something like garlic naan or use as a filler for pita bread, then you probably want to cut the chicken thighs into more bite-sized pieces before adding to the marinade.
Timings
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 5 minutes
Wait: 1 hour
Total: 1 hour 15 minutes
Equipment Notes
- I use an oven that can reach 550°F / 290°C. If your oven does not reach that temperature, then cooking times may increase and you may want to use the broiler at the end to add more charring to the top.
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1/2t ginger, grated
- 3 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 1/2t smoked paprika
- 1t ground cumin
- 1t ground coriander (or 1t additional cumin)
- 1/2t garam marsala
- 1t kosher salt
- 1/4t ground pepper
- 1T lemon juice
- 1 1/2t tomato paste
- 1T avacado oil
- 1/4C greek yogurt
Chicken / Vegetables
- 1lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- 1 zucchini cut into 1/2in slices
- 1/2t kosher salt
- 1/2t lime juice
- 1T high smoke point neutral oil such as avocado oil
- 1/4 red onion, sliced
- 1/2 red bell pepper, sliced
- 1 jalapeño, ribs and seeds removed, sliced
- 2T butter, melted
Steps
- Add all the marinade ingredients to a bowl that has enough space to hold the marinade and the chicken along with some room to mix things.
- Add the chicken to the marinade. Mix well with your hands working the marinade into all the nooks and crannies. Cover and let rest for at least 30 minutes.
- Add the zucchini, kosher salt, oil, and lime juice to a bowl and toss. Let rest about 15 minutes or until the chicken is done resting.
- Cover the bottom of a 1/4 sheet pan with parchment paper and spread the oil over it. Lay the zucchini slices evenly across the pan.
- Spread the remaining vegetables evenly over the zucchini.
- Place the chicken on top of the vegetables trying to cover things as much as possible. Spread any remaining marinade on top.
- Pour the melted butter evenly over everything and put into a 550°F/290°C oven. Bake for 30 minutes or until there is some charring on top. If additional charring is desired, then put under a broiler for a couple minutes.