Indian-spiced Roast Chicken
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You know that feeling? That feeling of standing infront of an ingredient that you work with week in and week out. An ingredient that is very versatile but for some or other reason you have no ideas what to do with? That’s how I felt last week when I had two, beautiful and plump, free-range chickens in front of me but had no idea what to do with them. Of course I could go the tried and tested route and flavour it with lemon juice and lots of herbs but I wanted something different. Yet, I still wanted the familiarity associated with roast chicken and all the comfort it brings (can you tell I’m an indecisive person?).
I spent all day thinking of new ways to use this chicken and really just couldn’t come up with anything. Eventually I started going through my blog for inspiration (not something I do often, I must admit). I saw the Butter Chicken Grilled Chicken post and thought why not incorporate something along those lines with a whole chicken. And so, the Indian-spiced Roast Chicken was born. I made a simple marinade using yoghurt, curry paste (korma), garam masala and lime juice and smeared it under the chicken skin and all over the chicken. I also spooned the left-over marinade into the cavity of the chicken. The end result was juicy, tender and incredibly flavoured chicken that had me licking my fingers. I served the chicken with a cucumber and red onion salad and naan bread and it was a meal to remember! (Perfect for Valentine’s day actually!)
Then on another note, we have been working very hard on re-designing the Simply Delicious you are looking at right now. The new site is fresher, cleaner and prettier (in my opinion) and I have to thank my incredibly hard working and multi-talented husband, Chris for this re-vamp. He is the most incredible web-designer! The site will be launched tomorrow (15 February 2011) and I hope you guys will love it as much as I do.
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Serves 4-6
I’ve gotten a few comments from readers who have found the chicken too strongly spiced. If you like gently spiced/milder food, halve the quantities of he seasoning and spices. I like bold, punchy flavours and so I like to use loads of spice on my food. Also, the rub is only used on the outside of the chicken so I like it to be a bit stronger as the chicken meat itself can be quite bland.
1 x 1.5-2kg free-range chicken, innards removed
1 cup plain yoghurt
3 tbsp curry paste (I used a Korma paste)
2 tbsp garam masala (I used a hot mix from my local curry shop)
2 tsp salt
juice of 2 limes (or lemons)
1 tsp sugar
to serve
cucumber & red onion salad
naan bread
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°c.
- Combine all the marinade ingredients and smear all over the chicken. I gently loosened the skin over the chicken breasts and smeared some of the marinade underneath the skin as well. Spoon the remaining marinade into the cavity of the chicken.
- Place the chicken into a roasting tray and place in the oven.
- Allow to roast for 45 minutes at 180 °c before turning the heat up to 220°c. Allow the chicken to roast for another 30-45 minutes checking regularly to see that the spice mixture isn’t burning.
- Remove the chicken from the oven and check that it’s cooked throughout by checking that the juices run clear when you cut into it. Return to the oven, covered with foil if it’s not cooked to your liking.
- Serve the chicken with naan bread and cucumber salad.
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I was most impressed with this chicken recipe – so tasty, yet easy to prepare. I added some fresh chopped coriander to the yoghurt marinade, as well as some chopped chillies, as my husband and I are spicy food freaks! I also used my own home-made garam masala. We cooked the chicken on our gas barbeque (braai), using a drip tray beneath in which I roasted potatoes and pumpkin.We loved this succulent yet deliciously spicy chicken dish – a nice variation on the usual tandoori skewers. Thank you very much. I’ll be cooking this meal again and again.
Tried this recepie today – loved it !
A big Y U M <3
Gonna try it for tonight
I hope you liked it! 🙂
The chicken was very good. I had to adjust the cook time and temperature substantially, as I bought a six pound chicken, but if you plan for that, you should be pleased with the results. I don’t normally eat the skin on chicken, but this was crisp and tasty–I couldn’t resist!
So glad you liked it.
Hi, I make the Indian spicy chicken all the time and your recipe is missing a few ingredients.
Respectfully I would like to point them out.
Pls add yogurt to few tbsp of oil , add garlic to this recipie and paprika or red chillies for the authentic red colour, otherwise food color also works . Pls try and let me know.
Thanks for your comment. I didn’t add any garlic as it would just burn during the roasting process and add unpleasant bitterness. As far as the coloring goes, I quite like the way the chicken looks as is but if you’d like to add paprika or chilli, you’re more than welcome. All recipes are adaptable to change as you feel fit.
Currently making this recipe for thanksgiving!!!
What did you think Shamira?
This looks yummy!
I have chicken thighs instead. Will the same recipe work for them?
Have you tried this on the grill before?
Thank you!
Yep, chicken thighs will work just fine. No, I haven’t but I think it’ll be fine. The marinade might catch and burn a little though. I hope you love this recipe!
Alida, this chicken was great and so juicy! I didn’t have yogurt so used sour cream and that worked well. There was so much of the mixture, I just ended up rolling the chicken around in it so I could get as much of it as possible on and in the chicken. I actually didn’t care for the marinade (on it’s own) when I tasted it but went ahead and cooked the chicken anyway and am so glad I did because it is amazing when done! Thank you for creating and sharing this wonderful and new way to roast chicken. I also appreciate the person who posted the link to the homemade curry pastes… I used store-bought korma curry but will definitely try making my own next time.
I’m so glad you liked it Heather, it’s definitely one of my favourites. The marinade when raw can be quite unpleasant as none of the spices have been cooked out but as you saw, once it’s cooked, it’s beautiful and aromatic.
Oh My Goodness! Made this tonight and it was awesome. Like you, I love spice but didn’t have spicy curry paste or garam masala. The only change I made was adding cayenne pepper to pump up the heat. My husband is licking his fingers as we speak. Great recipe!
I’m so pleased you (and your husband) loved this chicken. It’s one of my favourites!
I think it would be great in a crockpot. The cooking times might just need to be adjusted a little.
this looks amazing. I wonder how it would turn out if I made it in my crockpot…
Nus, I’m sure 48 hours should be fine if it’s well sealed and the chicken is fresh.
What’s the longest time the chicken can be marinating in the fridge for? Is 48 hours too long?
My chicken is marinating in this as we speak… Can’t wait to try it!!
I hope you love it!
Lee, In South Africa we use the Metric system so all my recipes use Degrees Celsius.
Increased to 375 fahrenheit
Are the degrees in Celsius or Fahrenheit seems to be taking really long to cook
I followed this recipe after pinning it, it was great loved it, I’d recommend covering the bird for the first 30mins however as the marinade did begin to catch! All in all a great mid-week number well done!
This chicken is REALLY yummy! It makes quite a bit of marinade so I ended up using about half as a dipping sauce on the side, to which I added a few tablespoons of apricot preserves. The skin is the best part. Lot’s of flavor! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
This looks amazing! On my to do list for next week.
Great tip. Thanks Sorcha!
I love curry, I’m going to try this recipe, can’t wait to try it, thanks
Hope you enjoy it Isabel!
That is so mouthwatering! Can’t wait to try it!
Thanks Julia!
Made it for the first time for dinner tonight. We loved it. I couldnt find any garam masala so I used chili powder. I also added some stuff to the recipe. I changed the salt measurement to 1/4 tsp. I dont like using salt when I cook. Definitely making whole chicken like this everytime 🙂
So glad you liked it! I also just love it.
Instead of replacing the garam masala with chili powder, you could more closely approximate the flavour of garam masala with a combination of nutmeg, cinnamon, cayenne, and black pepper … add some coriander, cumin and cardamom if you have them, too.
We cooked this on our charcoal grill this last night for Mother’s Day here in the US. Fantastic! The spice level was perfect for us, and the smoke from the grill enhanced the flavor. I will definitely make this next time I want to impress dinner guests. I couldn’t find korma curry paste at our main grocery so I used Jamie Oliver’s recipe. http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/uncategorised-recipes/easy-homemade-curry-pastes
So glad you liked it Angie!
I just found this recipe through a friend on Pinterest last week, and made it for the first time tonight. I is awesome! My husband and I both loved it! Thank you so much – now I have a new way to roast chicken!
I’m so glad you liked it Jes!
I followed the recipe exactly as stated and used all the right ingredients.It came out bad. 2tsp of salt was waaaay to much and 45min at 180 and then another 45min at 220 was not even close to enough roasting time.I was hoping this would be good but it wasn’t 🙁
Jaime, I’m so sorry this recipe didn’t work for you. Your chicken must’ve been very large if it wasn’t cooked in that amount of time. The teaspoon measurements I use is a 5ml spoon and it is normally just perfect. Perhaps next time you should adjust to your own taste?
what camera did you use to take these pics? i really need to know. food looks mouthwatering tasty!
I used my Canon 50D with a 100mm macro lens. 🙂
Your photography is simply beautiful – the best food photography I think I’ve ever seen!
Thank you so much Gaynor. What a compliment!
Hi Alida
WOW WOW WOW! I love your new design on the blog!
Thanks Lorraine. I’m so pleased you like it!
Hello – I can’t wait for your new website!! this is my daily getting into work routine… reading through your blog… will pop in later to see if the new site is launched yet!
this is what we always make for Sunday roast very yummy and the chicken comes out tender every time…I just make my own curry paste but yummy non the less….ur pics look delicious as always.