Murg Malai Tikka Kabab
Tandoori Chicken or Chicken Tikka makes regular appearance in all Indian restaurants. The Malai Tikka Kabab is little different from the usual orange hued Chicken Tikka that you see in the appetizer section of the restaurant’s menu.
The unusual ingredient in this recipe is the cheese that is used in the marinade; besides adding to the creaminess, it also sets this recipe apart from the other Indian tandoori chicken recipes which usually uses yogurt or cream. Murg Malai Tikka Kabab are irresistible tender succulent and fragrant pieces of chicken that melts in your mouth as they are marinated in thick yogurt, cream/malai, cheese, saffron, herbs & spices and grilled to perfection.
Murg Malai Tikka Kabab/Skewered Chicken Marinated in Cream, Cheese and Herbs
Ingredients:
- 1 lb of boneless chicken breast cut in to 1.5 inch cubes
- 2 tablespoons Ghee (may be substituted with butter)
- 1/2 lemon or lime
- 1/2 onion, thickly sliced
- Skewers
For Marinade:Wet marinade:
- 1 tablespoon of shredded or crumbled mozzarella cheese
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 2 tablespoons of heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon of garlic paste
- 1 tablespoon of onion, grated
- 2 tablespoons of sour creme or greek yogurt
- 1.5 tablespoons of ginger paste
- 1 tablespoon Ghee
Dry marinade:
- 1/4 spoon of meat tenderizer ( I use the papaya extract, available in the Indian Grocery Stores)
- Sea Salt
- a generous pinch of saffron
- 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds/jeera
- 1 teaspoon of Garam Masala (also available in Indian Grocery)
- 1/2 teaspoons of orange food (Optional)
- 1 tablespoon of red chilli powder (Optional)
- 1 tablespoon of Kasoori Methi (this is dried fenugreek leaves available in Indian Grocers)
- 1 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
Preparation:Pat the cubed chicken pieces with a paper towel to remove as much moisture as you can. In a bowl combine all the dry marinade ingredients, ( if using liquid food color, mix it with the wet marinade) and rub it on to the chicken pierces and let the chicken cubes sit in the refrigerator for about half an hour.
In the mean time mix all the ingredients for the wet marinade in a bowl. (you may use a blender to mix everything together). Mix it well so there are no lumps.
Take the chicken out and add this marinade to the chicken pieces. Cover and place in the refrigerate for at least 1-2 hours.
To grill the chicken: run the skewers with some marinade and skewer the cubes in bamboo skewers (soak them in water for at least 1/2 hour) or metal ones. Grill them on one side, turn them around and brush them with marinade and ghee/butter midway. Cook till they have spots on them and no juice runs. Like all other Tikkas this is best char grilled.
To Broil: Bast the meat with ghee/butter/oil and broil in the oven at 450 degree F for about 20 -25 minutes, or cook until chicken is tender and flesh is white, turning them around mid way and basting them with ghee/butter and marinade. Broil them till they are done and no meat juices run and there are little brown spots on the chicken cubes. The cooking time will vary in different ovens. My oven switches on and off when set to broil, so it takes longer (leaving the meat tender). But any oven with constant direct heat will take less time. Please adjust.
Alternative Method/On stove top in a grill pan:
Heat a large grill pan and coat it with ghee/butter/oil. Place the skewers on the pan and cook at low to medium heat for about 15-20 minutes turning them around and basting them with ghee/butter and little bit of the marinade from time to time. Cook them till they are done and no meat juices run and there are little brown spots on the chicken cubes.
Serve on the bed of grilled Onions and Squeeze fresh Lemon/Lime juice on the Chicken and Onion, with Mint & Coriander Chutneyc as a dipping sauce. Serve the kebab with pilaf, couscous, or pasta or as appetizers with your favorite condiment. The Malai Kabab makes a great party dish, and each time I serve them they disappear quite quickly. Try it out, & you will not regret.
Note: I have cooked the chicken in a stove top double grill pan this time. If you are making it in larger quantities, it is easier to broil it in the oven or use the grill.
Related Posts:
Sheekh Kabob (Skewered Chicken)
Stuffed Meatballs with Grilled Scallions and Orange Mint Yogurt Sauce
OH GOSH !! This is GREAT !! my home gonna soon turn to a resturant ! Thanks Soma to you and your blogs !!
Looks well marinated..Nice color.
Mouthwatering murgh..looks like wat we have in restaurant..great work Soma..
Soma,
It looks so good…I am definitely going to try it…It looks exactly like restaurant’s…..
These look soooo mouthwatering, I mean the photos are literally calling my taste buds 😀
Soma,
Made it today…It is a hit….Jamir loved it…Kids loved it…Thank you for sharing the recipe….
This chicken looks absolutely divine!! Will definitely give this a try next time….. and you have a great blog here….love the recipes…..and adding you to my blogroll
I just tried this recipe and its very delicious. The different herbs and spices really complement each other. Highly recommended! Feel welcome to check out my website for free chicken marinade recipes.
looks yummy.. will try this soon..
Hello,
The chicken tikka looks amazing. Saw that ur name is Soma. Reminded me of my friend in School in pune of whom I completely lost track later on. We had played a small bengali roe in ourschool’s gathering. I still have that photo. Thanks for bringing back ol memories…
Love your info – as a fellow chicken lover I’ll be back!
It truly is lovely to get different ideas for dishes together with easy to understand approaches to make them. My partner and I served up this dish for dinner last weekend. The whole family liked it, I am going to be offering it regularly from now on.
A great hit every time I make it! My friends love it. Thanks for posting Soma
Vinay, Thank you!! We got to plan a meeting!!
Cheers
Soma
Dear SomaDi,Thanx for sharing this wonderful recipe,I made it last weekend and it was great……….Please share some middle eastern chicken recipies…..
Soma,
Onek din dhore bhabchi eta korbo kintu mone hochilo jodi bhalo na hoy..Reshma aamake last weeke call kore bollo je O tomar ayi recipta try koreche aar eto bhalo hoyeche..O aamake baar baar bollo try kore dekh..AAjke korechi..Ki bhalo je hoyeshe…Oshadharon recipe..Thank You…
nice, i lyk it….. awesome….it’s finger licking gud…
A quick question ….isn’t 20-25min too long to cook boneless chicken breasts? Won’t it make them too dry?
The cooking time will depend on the oven you are using ( I will update the post). The oven I have switches to on and off if I set it to broil as it chars and cooks and then goes through auto switch off and back on again. It takes that long in mine to cook and not it does not dry up as the heat is not constant. Please do adjust the cooking time and cook until chicken is tender and flesh is white.
Hi Soma,
I have put up the recipe for Murg Malai Tikka in my blog http://myfoodtreasures.blogspot.com.au/2012/10/murg-malai-tikka-chicken-malai-cream.html. Of course, the recipe is closely inspired by yours and I have mentioned you and your blog in my post. Hope you like it.
Regards
I tried this recipe on my new grill i got as a gift from my wife “Kabobeque BBQ Grills”.
the kabobs came out amazing, they were juicy, soft and flavorful. A++ recipe
The grill i got automatically rotates 13 skewers, so this kabob recipe was a fast n fun thing.
thanks for sharing recipe
ITS WONDERFUL DISH ITS TASTE WAS GOOD AND INDIAN NON-VEG STARTER NON SPICY
1/4 spoon of meat tenderizer ( I use the papaya extract, available in the Indian Grocery Stores)
Sea Salt
a generous pinch of saffron
1 teaspoon of cumin seeds/jeera
1 teaspoon of Garam Masala (also available in Indian Grocery)
1/2 teaspoons of orange food (Optional)
1 tablespoon of red chilli powder (Optional)
1 tablespoon of Kasoori Methi (this is dried fenugreek leaves available in Indian Grocers)
1 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
I made this last night. It was really really good. Everyone loved this. Thank you for such awesome recipe.