Indian Grilled Chicken

I like to incorporate foods with Indian flavors at least once a week, so that Ram has a taste of home (or something close to it). I found the inspiration for this dish on hannaford.com, where you can select from a number of recipes.

This dish is Indian grilled chicken. I used my George Foreman grill, which can burn the outside of whatever is on the grill, unless I open the cover a few minutes into grilling. The heating surfaces, I find, are actually too hot, and the outside of food cooks significantly faster than the inside. That said, I used the George Foreman grill so I could achieve the illusion of grilling. (For the record, the illusion pales in comparison to actually grilling.)

I marinaded this chicken in a mixture of plain yogurt and two tablespoons each of paprika, red chili powder, black pepper, and tumeric. I also threw in some cumin seeds and minced garlic and ginger. I put all of this in a large storage bag and threw in the chicken. I smooshed it (that's a technical term) around in the bag, coating all of the chicken, and kept the bag in the refrigerator. (To prevent potential leaking, I always put bags of meat/marinade in a container, like a shallow pan or a bowl.)

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I grilled the meat with the lid closed for a few minutes. I removed the lid and let it continue cooking until it passed the firm-to-the-touch test (about twenty-five or thirty minutes).

The carrots were mixed with some cilantro, onion, and lemon juice. I did let them marinate, since I had all day to prepare the meal, but they could be served immediately. If you're dying for a starch of some kind, basmati rice or even couscous would be great. We were going carb-free for the night, so I served this as-is. If you're in the mood for Indian food (or want to give it a first try), this is an easy-to-prepare dish that uses the spices without requiring the traditional cooking methods that, frankly, so few of us know anyway. I hope you enjoy with fork in hand.