Tandoori Chicken Tikka

Indian takeaway on a Sunday night has become too much of a frequent thing for me recently. It's not good for my bank balance, nor my 'diet'.

A few years back, my dad bought me a booked called, The Curry Bible. On Sunday, I decided it was about effin' time I put it to good use and made something- I decided on Tandoori Chicken Tikka, Coriander and Onion Salsa and Mint Yoghurt Dip.

It was ridiculously easy. And considering I served it with a salad rather than my usual takeaway favourite of rice AND naan bread, it was a hell of a lot healthier too. And cheaper.

Of course, nothing quite beats the real deal, especially when it takes as little effort as picking up the phone...walking to the door...emptying food on plate (I sometimes skip this step)...put food in mouth...BUT, there was something very satisfying about making it from scratch.

So, to feed two, you'll need:

2x chicken breasts cut into strips, longways

200 ml natural yoghurt

1x tbs ground cumin

1x tbs ground cinnamon

1x tbs ground coriander seeds

1x tbs ground cloves

1x tbs chilli

1x tbs paprika

1x tbs garlic puree

1x tbs ginger puree

For the Coriander & Onion Salsa:

1x red onion, diced

1x bunch coriander

1x green chilli, finely diced

juice and rind of 1 lemon

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

For the Mint Yoghurt Dip:

100 ml natural yoghurt

1x bunch fresh mint

1x tbs mint sauce

1x tsp sugar

1x bunch coriander

There are loads of ingredients, but making it is really just a matter of mixing everything.

1) In a bowl, mix your yoghurt, all the spices and the garlic and ginger. Give it a good old mix. Then take your chicken strips, whack them in the spicy yogurt and make sure they are good and drenched in the stuff. You then need to cover the bowl up, and put it in the fridge for at least three hours. That's the chicken done....for now.

For the Onion and Coriander Salsa, you need to chop up all your ingredients, teeny tiny, put in a bowl and mix. Put this in the fridge too as the flavours will develop and infuse and get even yummier.

After your chicken has been marinating for at least three hours, preheat the oven to 200 degrees, and place the chicken on a baking tray (or if you are lazy like me and don't want to do much washing up, cover the tray in foil first). As they are thin strips- they will only need 15-20 mins. Whilst these are in the oven, you can get on with the mint dip.

Put all the ingredients into a food processor and whiz until it is all blended. Taste- add more sugar or salt to your liking.

And, that's it! Serve your chicken with a wedge of lemon, fresh coriander and plenty of onion salsa and lashings of mint dip. (kind of healthy....)