Celebrate Inauguration Day with a meal fit for a vice president

Today is Inauguration Day. To celebrate, I Googled our incoming vice president, Kamala Harris, and her diverse cultural background and learned that Tikka Masala is one of her favorite Indian dishes.

Even if you didn’t vote for Biden/Harris, I hope you can at least celebrate the first woman, first Black American and first South Asian American to become vice president. That is indeed worth celebrating.

After a little research, I found that Tikka Masala’s origins could be Indian or it could be British. Either way, if it’s one of Kamala’s favorites, it’s good enough for our Inauguration Day dinner.

This dish is warming, flavorful and satisfying. Honestly, Indian cuisine isn’t one I’ve cooked much. Perhaps Indian cooking should be a new winter project. If you have a favorite Indian cookbook, please email me to share.

To serve alongside your Tikka Masala, pick up some naan bread and basmati rice. The bread is fabulous for dipping in the sauce, and basmati rice is traditionally served with Indian food. Be sure to get a bag of basmati when you’re gathering ingredients from the store.

Notice I said gathering. It seems these days a lot of us are opting for grocery delivery or pickup. My gut tells me that after COVID, one thing that will remain is the way we now shop for food. The ease and convenience oftentimes is preferable to a stroll through the store. Although count me in the group loves grocery shopping.

Whether you make this dish or not, winter is a great time to explore other cuisines — particularly now, when we have more time at home and can spend some of that time in the kitchen.

Chicken Tikka Masala

1 tablespoon garam masala

2 teaspoons ground turmeric

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons hot paprika or 1 teaspoon cayenne

1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, plus more for seasoning

1 teaspoon black pepper, plus more for seasoning

1½ cups whole-milk yogurt

2 tablespoons fresh lemon or lime juice

6 large cloves garlic, finely grated

2-inch piece of ginger, finely grated

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, left whole, or breasts, cut in half lengthwise or in thirds if extra large

2 tablespoons vegetable oil or ghee

1 large onion, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons tomato paste

1 28-ounce can whole tomatoes

¾ cup heavy cream

1½ cups coarsely chopped cilantro leaves

Combine garam masala, turmeric, cumin, paprika, 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper in a small bowl.

In a medium bowl, whisk 1 cup yogurt, lemon juice, 3 cloves of garlic, half the ginger and half the spice mixture together. Add chicken and toss to coat. Cover and chill at least 4 hours, up to 8 hours.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large, heavy bottomed pot over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally until lightly browned in spots, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add tomato paste, remaining garlic, ginger and spice mixture and cook, stirring frequently until spices are fragrant and tomato paste has started caramelizing on the bottom of the pot, about 2 minutes.

Crush tomatoes with your hands, leaving some larger bits and add them and any liquid left in the can to the pot along with heavy cream and 1 cup water. Season with salt and pepper and stir, scraping any bits from the bottom of the pot. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally until flavors meld and the sauce is thickened slightly, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from heat and cover until chicken is ready (or after cooling, refrigerate if marinating chicken for more than 4 hours).

Once chicken is ready, turn on the broiler and place oven rack about 6 inches away from heat source.

Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a wire rack inside the pan. Remove chicken from the marinade, scraping off any excess, and place the pieces on the rack. Broil just until lightly charred in spots, 5 to 7 minutes on the first side, before flipping pieces and broiling an additional 2 to 3 minutes.

Bring tomato sauce to a simmer if it’s not already. Remove chicken from the oven and transfer to spiced tomato sauce along with remaining ½ cup yogurt. Continue to simmer until chicken is cooked through and sauce is thickened nicely, 10 to 15 minutes.

Divide chicken among four bowls and top with cilantro. Serve with rice or naan for dipping.

New York Times Cooking

This story was originally published January 20, 2021 at 5:00 AM.