Chicken Tikka Masala isn’t an authentic Indian dish, so I’ve been told. It actually a “British national dish” because so many restaurants in the UK serve it. In fact, according to the BBC, it came from a Pakistani chef in Glasgow.

Thank god it’s made it’s way to this side of the pond. I still haven’t found the perfect Indian place in New York. I tried Jackson Heights Diner and some of the joints on 3rd Ave. I even tried Tamarind (pricey) which was very good…but still not mind-blowing. I certainly haven’t exhausted all my options…but I’m seriously missing the amazingly fresh tandoori and gorgeously green saag paneers of Los Angeles. God damn Gate of Indian is good.

So I endeavor to make my own Tikka Masala and decided to try a very different looking recipe from the men’s lifestyle website Short List. I’ve made Tikka Masala before and it was really good. But it’s super labor intensive and requires a ton of heavy cream. In an effort to save time and calories, I decided to try this one that uses coconut milk instead of cream.

In the end, it was delicious. I wouldn’t necessarily call this a tikka masala since it was super cardamon heavy and was lacking in the creamy department. It was insanely flavorful, almost too flavorful.

I really didn’t change much at all, so follow this link for the recipe. Don’t forget to serve with basmati rice.