Chicken Tikka Masala

Method

1. marinate240 min
   refrigerated, covered
   chicken + yogurt + lemon juice + half the ginger + half the garlic + turmeric + cumin + coriander + 1 tsp paprika + chili powder + 0.5 tsp garam masala + 0.75 tsp salt — yoghurt works differently from a straight acid marinade: its lactic acid is mild and its calcium switches on the meat's own proteases, so the fibres loosen from within instead of the surface going chalky and tight the way it does in a lemon-only soak. Four hours is the floor; overnight is better, and past about 24 hours thigh meat starts to go pasty
2. prep10 min
   room temperature
   thread or spread the chicken on a rack over a foil-lined tray, shaking off pooled marinade but leaving a thick clinging coat — the rack matters, because whey dripping onto a flat tray boils under the meat and steams away every chance of char
3. char12 min
   broiler at max, or grill over direct high heat, 6 inches from the element
   marinated chicken, turning once, until the edges are blackened in patches and the yoghurt coat is blistered and dry. The char is not decoration — the marinade's milk sugars and proteins are what brown, and that burnt-yoghurt bitterness is the single flavour that separates tikka masala from a plain tomato-cream curry. Pull the chicken while the centre is just short of done; it finishes in the sauce
4. saute10 min
   medium heat
   butter + oil + onion, until soft and the edges are going gold — use butter and oil together, because butter alone scorches its milk solids before the onion has given up its water
5. saute2 min
   medium heat
   + remaining ginger + remaining garlic + tomato paste + 0.5 tsp paprika, until the paste darkens from red to brick and stops smelling tinny; ground spices and paste need fat contact to bloom, and this is the only moment in the recipe they get it
6. simmer18 min
   low, partly covered
   + crushed tomato + water + 0.5 tsp salt, until the sauce pulls away from the spoon and a slick of orange fat separates at the edge — that separation is the signal the raw tomato water has cooked off. Blend smooth, then return to the pan
7. simmer8 min
   very low, never boiling
   + charred chicken + cream + crushed fenugreek leaf + remaining garam masala, until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce coats it. Keep it below a boil: cream held at a rolling boil in an acidic tomato base curdles, and the fenugreek is added late because its aroma is volatile and cooks off in minutes = tikka masala
8. rest5 min
   off heat, covered
   the sauce thickens slightly and the charred crust drinks in gravy; finish with cilantro and taste for salt, adding the pinch of sugar only if the canned tomato has come out sharp