| What do you get when you cross hot Indian | | | | Britain when he served chicken tandoor to an |
| food with the English love of tomatoes and | | | | Englishman only to be asked, ?where?s my |
| all things creamy? Chicken Tikka Masala is a | | | | gravy?? The result? A mixture of cream of |
| famous combination of chicken tikka and | | | | tomato soup and spices, which he called |
| masala.Chicken tikka is a marinated piece of | | | | masala.And like that, chicken tikka masala |
| meat cooked in a tandoor, an Indian oven made | | | | was born, an early example of what we would |
| of clay and coal-fired. Masala is gravy | | | | now call fusion cooking.It is now so popular |
| commonly made out of some kind of tomato | | | | that British politician and Foreign Secretary |
| gravy or puree with cream and various Indian | | | | Robin Cook once described it as, ?a true |
| spices.It is technically a mild curry dish, | | | | British national dish,? citing its |
| though the addition of sometimes large | | | | combination of authentic Indian cooking with |
| amounts of tartrazine causes the dish to | | | | the British desire to have their meat served |
| often look orange.In other recipes, it can | | | | with gravy. |
| look anything from red to orange to green. | | | | |
| | | | What goes into a chicken tikka masala? Well, |
| Chicken Tikka Masala is possibly the most | | | | a 1998 survey indicated that of 48 versions, |
| popular Indian dish in the world, and has | | | | the only common ingredient was chicken.A |
| arguably replaced tandoori chicken as the | | | | common recipe includes chicken marinated |
| flagship of Indian food, including on the | | | | overnight in yogurt, ginger, garlic, cardamom |
| subcontinent itself; it even has a musical | | | | powder, cumin, white pepper, and other |
| written singing its praises.In the United | | | | spices.The chicken is cooked briefly in the |
| Kingdom alone, Marks & Spencer, the | | | | hot tandoor, and is then served with a sauce |
| famous English retailer, claims to sell 18 | | | | made of tomato, ginger, garlic, cream, green |
| tons a week of the chicken in Tikka Masala | | | | and red pepper, and an assortment of |
| Sandwiches, while 23 million servings a year | | | | spices.The sauce is poured over the chicken |
| are sold at Indian restaurants. Sainsbury?s, | | | | after it is cooked. In contrast to tandoori |
| another retailer, sells 1.6 million dishes | | | | chicken, on which it is based, the taste is |
| every year, and stocks 16 different products | | | | mild and creamy, rather than spicy. |
| containing what is affectionately known as | | | | |
| CTM.10 tons a day are manufactured by Noon | | | | Is chicken tikka masala an English or an |
| Products to later be sold at supermarkets. | | | | Indian dish? The answer is unclear, as it has |
| | | | been adopted so readily that it is served in |
| The chicken, though widely considered an | | | | almost every Indian restaurant, an indication |
| Indian dish, does not hail from India. | | | | that Indians have accepted it as their |
| Kitchens from London to Glasgow claim to have | | | | own.Several English firms now specialize in |
| originated the dish, which was first seen in | | | | exporting the dish back to India.Whatever its |
| the late 1960s.According to urban legend, the | | | | origins, however, it is now enjoyed by |
| dish was created by a Bangladeshi chef in | | | | millions each year. |