Tandoori Chicken & Cucumber Raita

  Posted on February 8, 2010  by Leslie Blythe  No comments

A Day at the Country Club, Darling

We spent Sunday at the Northern Trust Open at the Riviera Country Club. I had never been to a golf tournament before. We had the VIP tickets that got us into the hospitality tent situation. It worked for me – fabulous food, one of my favorite Chardonnays, Far Niente, to sip while occasionally looking down on the course. Yes, I could get used to this very easily! It’s not often I get to go to things like this.

We actually did walk a bit of the course. My husband said it was a bit “under” attended due to the absence of a certain golfer. We did get some time to chat with the Mayor of Los Angeles, quite the charmer, as one would expect. We also saw Arnold Schwarzenegger drive by with the top down on his car and a big cigar in his mouth, probably not thinking about how California is slipping further into one big sink hole!

Anyway, my daughter wanted me to come home with major celebrity sightings, but that, I’m afraid, was it. Oh, almost forgot, Governor Gray Davis was there too. She was underwhelmed. I thought maybe the free baseball caps and water bottles would impress her. Not!

Anyway, back to the food bit. I did eat lots of great things, but really enjoyed the chicken tandori and cucumber raita they served. It is actually very healthy and delicious with rice.

Tandoori Chicken

Serves 4

1 1/2 lb chicken parts
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 Tbs vegetable oil
2 Tbs lemon juice
2 cloves garlic
1 inch piece fresh ginger
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp ground cardamom

Run garlic through a press, or finely mince.

Grate ginger.

Mix together yogurt, oil, lemon juice, garlic, ginger, and spices.

Make diagonal slashes in the chicken meat to allow marinade to penetrate better. Pour yogurt mixture over chicken parts.

Marinate for 4 hours at room temperature, or overnight in the refrigerator, turning occasionally. If the chicken is placed in the refrigerator, bring it to room temperature before cooking (approximately 1 hour).
Preheat broiler.

Brush grill or shallow baking pan with a little oil to keep chicken from sticking. Arrange chicken on the pan.
Broil chicken 2-3 inches away from the heat until cooked through, approximately 25 minutes, turning halfway through.
Serve hot with basmati rice or naan (Indian flatbread).

Cucumber Raita

2 cucumbers, peeled and finely chopped
1 cup plain yogurt
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
salt and pepper
Chopped mint

Combine cucumbers with yogurt in a bowl. Fry cumin in a dry pan for 1 minute until fragrant, then add to yogurt mixture with the ginger. Season with salt and pepper. Place in a bowl. Serve chilled.

Can be refrigerated up to 2 days.