Sunday Dinner: Chicken Tikka Masala Edition

It's been awhile since I flexed my Sunday Dinner muscles and made something new and interesting to close out the weekend. So today I decided to get back into the game with a recipe for chicken tikka masala. The recipe comes from Tasty Kitchen-- a website run by Pioneer Woman that is equal parts blog and cooking community. Basically anyone can join and upload recipes and pictures that others can view, download, cook and rate. This marks my first non-Pioneer Woman recipe from Tasty Kitchen and I have to say I was pretty pleased. The recipe was pretty simple and definitely delicious. The only thing I'd change is the amount of spice-- we thought it could have benefited from a little more heat. Otherwise we'll definitely be eating this again soon.

Chicken Tikka Masala
Adapted slightly from Tasty Kitchen

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground corriander
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
1 cup plain yogurt
5 TBL vegetable oil, divided
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 TBL plus 2 teaspoon fresh ginger (either fresh ground or grated)
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1/2-1 whole jalapeno, diced
2 TBL tomato paste
1 TBL garam masala
28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Rice (for serving)
Naan (for serving)--optional

1. Combine cumin, coriander, cayenne, and salt in a small bowl. Sprinkle both sides of chicken with spice mixture. Cover and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes.
2. In another bowl mix yogurt, 2 cloves of minced garlic, 1 TBL ground/grated ginger, and 2 TBL vegetable oil. Set aside.
3. In a large/deep skillet or dutch oven, heat remaining vegetable oil. Add onion and cook, stirring often, until it starts to brown. Add remaining garlic, ginger, jalapeno, tomato paste, and garam masala. Cook, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes, salt and sugar. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, loosely covered, for 15 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, preheat broiler. Place chicken on a broiler pan (or aluminum foil covered baking sheet). Brush both sides of chicken in yogurt mixture (discard leftover mixture). Broil chicken for about 13 minutes or until done, flipping halfway through. Let stand for 5 minutes and then cut into bite size pieces.
5. Add cream to sauce, stir, and return to simmer. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm. Add cilantro and chicken pieces and stir. Check for seasonings. Serve over rice with naan or other flatbread.