Chicken Tikka Masala is pretty much already a low-carb, keto-friendly Indian dish. With just a few substitutions your masala will soon become this Creamy Keto Chicken Tikka Masala. Perfect if you’re looking to impress your friends with a keto dinner party, or you’re just wanting some comfort food in front of the TV.
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One of my favorite dishes is chicken tikka masala.
Tikka masala is something that pre-keto I would eat regularly, either cooking at home, from the takeaway, or in a restaurant.
Therefore, it was a no-brainer that when transferring to a keto lifestyle I had to make my homemade chicken tikka masala keto-friendly.
This wasn’t that difficult as it just meant that I had to substitute the low-fat, high-sugar yogurt I was using for full-fat Greek yogurt or double cream and brown sugar for Sukrin gold – let’s face it, neither of those things is a sacrifice!
Chicken Breasts vs Chicken Thighs
Pre-keto I used to use chicken breast in everything for fear of adding the extra calories in chicken thighs, clearly, I never factored in the taste I was sacrificing by doing this!
I love, love, love using chicken thighs in this recipe, they have so much more flavor to add to the sauce. ???
You will find when you leave the thighs to rest on a plate halfway through the recipe that juices will be collected on the plate; please, please, please, do not throw these away– add them all back into the sauce to add that flavor back in – trust me you won’t regret it!
Now, having revealed my love for chicken thighs please don’t be put off using chicken breast in this recipe.
I buy my meat in bulk and often this will be all I have left in the freezer so I will often make this with chicken breast and it tastes delicious.
Masala Spicy
Kashmiri Chillis are beautiful and mild but with a depth of flavor – they will also add deep red color to your sauce, so if you can use them please do.
Living in a sleepy hollow finding less mainstream ingredients is not easy in the local shops – so I order mine online.
If you can’t find this try and substitute for cayenne powder – you will get the depth of flavor and the coloring in the sauce to make it a deep rich color.
You can always up the amount of chili if you want a spicier tikka.
What To Serve Your Keto Chicken Tikka Masala With
Why not try masala with a side of Cauliflower Rice or with a Keto Naan Bread?
Make In Advance
If this is a regular dish for you at home – bulk buy on spices and store them in a dry cupboard – they will last months. Instead of using fresh ginger and garlic use powdered.
Store in an airtight container – if you like glass these are great or if you prefer reusable plastic you can’t beat Lock & Lock for keeping everything fresh.
When storing spices I wouldn’t scrimp on cheap storage as if they do not have a good seal air and moisture will get in and your spices will clump and go off.
Also, make sure you label what is stored in the jar and you can’t go wrong. Depending on the size of your storage jar and how many you regularly cook for, I would multiply the below by 4. When using shake well to ensure that all of the ingredients are well combined and then use.
For the marinade – 8.5 teaspoons (2.8 tablespoons)
For the sauce – 10.75 teaspoons (3.5 tablespoons)
…….would be the serving size as per below (for 4 people)
Freezing Your Tikka Off…
Freezing your creamy keto chicken tikka masala is simple.
Just add a portion to a freezable (and microwavable if necessary) container. Allow it to cool and then put the airtight lid on and freeze for up to a month.
This dish reheats perfectly and I will often take it to work and reheat in the microwave for an easy meal or if I get in late unexpectedly and can’t be bothered to cook, I will take it out, defrost and then cook it in the microwave – in the time that takes I can have my dressing gown on and Netflix loaded on the TV ready to go!
The ULTIMATE Creamy Keto Chicken Tikka Masala
Course: Guidance4
servings30
minutes40
minutes300
kcalIngredients
For the chicken marinade:
800g boneless chicken thighs (6-8) or breast (4) cut into bite-sized pieces
60 g greek yoghurt (full fat, not reduced fat)
1 1/2 tablespoons grated garlic (3 cloves) or ½ tablespoon of garlic powder
1 tablespoon grated ginger or ¼ tablespoon of ground ginger
2 teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli or 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
1 teaspoon of Himalayan salt
1 teaspoon of Himalayan saltFor the sauce:
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion sliced
1 1/2 tablespoons grated garlic or ½ tablespoon of garlic powder
1 tablespoon grated ginger or ¼ tablespoon of ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
400g passata
1 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli
1 teaspoon ground red chilli powder (you can add more if you like it hot!)
1 teaspoon Himalayan sea salt
1 1/4 cups of fresh double cream (do not use long-life cream as this is full of carbs!)
1/2 teaspoon Sukrin Gold
4 tablespoons coriander to garnish (only to make it look fancy!)
Directions
- For the marinade – in a bowl combine the yogurt with all of the spices
- Dice the chicken into bite-size pieces and add to the yogurt mixture. Cover and leave in the fridge for a minimum of 30 mins – ideally overnight if you can so all of the flavors develop.
- Heat oil in a heavy-based pan, add the chicken to the pan (don’t overcrowd the pan). Fry chicken on every size until it is browned – it doesn’t need to be cooked through as this will be done later in the sauce to ensure the flavor gets into the chicken. When done remove from heat and set aside on a plate
- Add butter to the pan and fry off the onions until they are soft – on medium heat this will take around 4 minutes.
- Add the garlic and ginger (fresh or dry) and fry off for a further minute
- Add coriander, turmeric, garam masala, and cumin to the pan and keep the spices moving so they don’t burn to the bottom of the pan.
Have you tried this Keto Cream Chicken Tikka recipe? If so, let us know what you thought in the comments below.
Do you have a favorite Indian dish that you would like to see as a keto-friendly recipe? Let us know in the comments below and we will get our amazing keto recipe creators onto it!
