One of my favorite baked chicken recipes is so simple, it's nearly embarrassing to call a recipe. That said, it's also a great foundational recipe for building additional flavor into your meal:
This is an Indian baked chicken tweak over some simple curried rice. The original recipe takes an hour to bake and this one is no different. You simply spend some of that first half hour of baking time whipping up a sauce in your food processor and then letting your oven bake it into the partially-cooked chicken. The heat in the oven gets the sauce bubbly and fragrant.
I like a fair bit of heat in my food, so I tend to season the chicken liberally with the cayenne pepper and lean toward two tablespoons of curry powder. Oh, and my curry powder has a bit of kick to it. If you want things milder, limit or omit the cayenne and use less of a tamer curry powder. As is often the case here, I encourage you to make this recipe your own and feel free to share your successes with the community in the comments section below the recipe!
Indian Baked Chicken
- 4 chicken thighs, bone-in with skin
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Cayenne pepper, to taste
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1-2 tablespoons curry powder, to taste
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 can (14.5-ounce) diced tomatoes, undrained (I used fire-roasted tomatoes)
- 1-2 T. tomato paste
Preheat the oven to 400° F. Place the chicken thighs on a baking sheet (I like to cover mine with a silicone baking mat to make cleanup easier) and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper according to your tastes. Place the chicken in the preheated oven and set a time for 30 minutes.
While the chicken is baking, combine the remaining ingredients (onion through tomato paste) in a food processor and process until a chunky sauce forms. When the 30 minutes of bake time for the chicken has elapsed, remove it from the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350° F, and spoon the sauce liberally over the sizzling chicken. Return the chicken to the oven for another 30 minutes. Serve hot over your favorite rice.
- Yields: 4 servings
- Preparation Time: 1 hour