Tandoori Chicken
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Craving tandoori chicken? This easy recipe brings that restaurant-style flavor home with everyday spices and a quick yogurt marinade.
Tandoori chicken isn’t just delicious—it’s a total stunner, too, thanks to all those bold spices and its vibrant color. This version, adapted from Food & Wine, gets its deep, warm flavor from a mix of toasted spices, yogurt, and citrus. The chicken turns out tender and juicy with crisp skin and just the right amount of char—and you don’t need a tandoor oven to make it.
Instead of making a traditional green chutney, I like to serve tandoori chicken with store-bought mango chutney—it adds a touch of gingery sweetness that pairs beautifully with the warm spices. For a complete meal, serve the chicken with naan, basmati rice pilaf with dried fruits and almonds (or simple basmati rice), and a refreshing cucumber mint salad. It’s a dish the whole family will love—even the kids!
“This is the best tandoori chicken recipe you will find. It is definitely restaurant quality, or better.”
What You’ll Need To Make Tandoori Chicken
- Paprika, garam masala, cumin, coriander, turmeric, and cayenne pepper: This blend gives the chicken its warm, bold flavor and vibrant color. Traditional tandoori chicken uses ground Kashmiri chili, but paprika makes a great and easy-to-find substitute.
- Fresh ginger and garlic: These aromatics are the foundation of the marinade and pack in a ton of flavor.
- Greek yogurt: The base of the marinade—the acidity in it tenderizes the chicken and helps the spices cling to the meat.
- Lime zest and juice: Adds fresh citrusy brightness to balance the bold spices.
- Chicken drumsticks: Juicy, flavorful, and great for high-heat cooking. You can also use bone-in thighs; breasts tend to dry out too easily with this cooking method.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Toast the spices. Combine the spices in a small skillet and toast over medium heat for a few minutes, just until fragrant.
Pro Tip: Don’t walk away—spices can go from perfectly toasted to burnt in seconds. As soon as they smell aromatic, they’re ready.
Step 2: Make the marinade. In a mini food processor or blender, combine the toasted spices with the ginger, garlic, yogurt, lime juice and zest, oil, and salt. Blend until smooth.
Step 3: Prep the chicken. Use a sharp knife to slash the drumsticks—this helps the marinade soak deeper into the meat. (Cut deep enough to get through the skin and into the meat, but not so deep that the drumsticks fall apart while cooking.)
Step 4: Marinate the chicken. Toss the drumsticks with the marinade, cover, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight. (In a rush? You can cook them right away and they’ll still be tasty.)
Step 5: Arrange on a rack. Line a baking sheet with foil and top with a greased oven-safe rack. Place the chicken on the rack, leaving space between pieces. The rack lets the hot air circulate and helps the skin crisp up instead of steaming in its own juices.
Step 6: Roast then broil. Bake at 450°F for 45 minutes, flipping once, until the chicken is cooked through and the skin is crisp. Turn on the broiler and broil the chicken for about 5 minutes, until the skin is super crisp and lightly charred. (Keep an eye on the broiler—things move fast. You’re looking for darkened edges and blistered skin.) Serve the chicken with mango chutney and lime wedges and enjoy!
More chicken recipes to Love
Tandoori Chicken
This tandoori chicken looks as good as it tastes—juicy, charred, and full of warm spices.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon garam masala (substitute curry powder if you can't find it)
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (use ¼ teaspoon for less heat)
- 3 tablespoons peeled and roughly chopped fresh ginger (see note)
- 7 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
- ¼ cup whole milk Greek yogurt
- Zest and juice from one lime (about 1 teaspoon zest and 2 tablespoons juice)
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 2½ teaspoons salt
- 12 chicken drumsticks (about 4 pounds)
- 1 (9 ounce) jar mango chutney, for serving (optional)
- A few sprigs cilantro, for garnishing the platter (optional)
- Lime wedges, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- In a small pan over medium-low heat, combine the paprika, garam masala, cumin, coriander, turmeric and cayenne pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 2 minutes, until spices are fragrant.
- Add the spices to a blender or mini food processor, along with the ginger, garlic, Greek yogurt, lime zest and juice, oil and salt; process until smooth.
- Using a very sharp knife, make 2 or 3 slashes in each drumstick (be careful; they are slippery). Place the drumsticks in a large bowl and toss with the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with heavy duty aluminum foil (for easy clean-up) and set an oven-proof rack over top. Spray the rack with nonstick cooking spray or grease with vegetable oil.
- Arrange the chicken on the rack, leaving a bit of space between the pieces. Spoon any marinade left in the bowl evenly over the drumsticks. Roast for 45 minutes, turning once midway through, until the chicken is golden brown and cooked through (be sure to turn on your exhaust fan as the oven will get a little smoky). Turn on the broiler and broil the chicken about 6 inches from the heat for 3-5 minutes, until lightly charred and crisp all over. Transfer the chicken to a platter and garnish with cilantro sprigs and lime wedges, and serve with mango chutney on the side.
- Note: Check out easy guidance on how to peel, grate, and chop fresh ginger here.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Serving size: 3 drumsticks (nutritional data does not include chutney)
- Calories: 807
- Fat: 53g
- Saturated fat: 11g
- Carbohydrates: 8g
- Sugar: 1g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 73g
- Sodium: 1884mg
- Cholesterol: 369mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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First, I have to tell you that every recipe I’ve tried from your site has been amazing and easy to prepare with the clear instructions. Thank you!
My question about this Tandoori Chicken is do you think it could be made on the grill, and if so, how long should it be grilled, when should it be turned?
Thanks, Margaret! So glad you are enjoying the recipes. This chicken can definitely be made on a grill. I would start the grill on medium-high heat (grease the grates by lightly dipping a wad of paper towels in vegetable oil and, using tongs, carefully rub over the grates several times until glossy and coated). Place the chicken on the grill, then cover and cook, turning occasionally, until the skin is browned and crisp but not charred, about 10 minutes. (Keep an eye on it in case there are any flare-ups.) Turn the chicken pieces again, then either turn the heat down to medium-low or move the chicken to a cooler part of the grill. Continue cooking, covered, until the chicken is cooked through, about 15 minutes more. Hope that helps and please let me know how it turns out!
I’m doing this on a charcoal grill with wings for a football game. Just do them indirect no coals under the meat until they are cooked through and then spread the coals out for the final sear, mimics the oven/ broiler method.
Do you think this recipe would work with salmon/fish or with shrimp? I remember eating tandoori seafood once and thought this would be a great recipe to try and replicate that. Thanks!
Hi Ana, Yes, just reduce the marinating time to 20-30 minutes. Please come back and let me know how it turns out 🙂
I made this for my husband and son today and they loved it. Thank you!
My husband is a huge tandoori chicken fan – it’s what he always orders at an Indian restaurant. After I made this dish last night, he proclaimed it better than any Indian restaurant we had ever visited (and we have some very good ones in our area). This recipe will be a regular at our house!
So glad you all enjoyed it, Gail!
From the moment I read the list of ingredients on this recipe, I knew it was a winner. It reminds me of a Pakistani dish a friend of mine taught me to make. Her ingredients included ginger & garlic paste, yogurt, chat masala and cayenne pepper. Though the chicken was quite tasty, your recipe is superb! The fresh ginger blended w/ the toasted spices are so fragrant and delicious. My children were all calling for more, more, more. Any day you can please everyone in our kitchen is definitely a great cooking day!
Thanks for sharing Jenn 🙂
I made this, along with the Basmati rice pilaf, last night and it was AMAZING! My boyfriend, who is a chef, raved about both of them! The rice pilaf was a perfect accompaniment to the chicken. Thank you!
So glad you enjoyed, Melissa!
This was terrific! Made it with drumsticks and bone-in thighs and marinated overnight. Tons of flavor and just the right amount of heat…The crispy skin was indeed the best part.
Made this for dinner over the weekend using chicken thighs and they were GREAT! I served it with the Basmati Rice with nuts and dried fruit (which was a huge hit) and the cucumber salad. I think next time I would replace with cucumber salad with cucumber raita.
Yum, this was a hit with the kids and family. I used both drum sticks and thighs and chicken breast. It turned out best for pieces with the bone in.
The mango chutney and nan bread go great with this.
Made this tonight for my husband and two teenage boys and it was devoured. Thanks, Jenn…it’s a keeper!