This Tandoori Chicken Wings recipe, using your blazing hot charcoal grill in lieu of a traditional tandoor clay oven, is the latest creation to come out of the BA Test Kitchen, because nothing screams summer like a charred piece of grilled chicken. (Okay, maybe lobsters scream it louder.) Smoky and supremely juicy, grilled chicken is one of life’s greatest pleasures. So what happens when you take the chicken and the smoke, and add a marinade of yogurt, garlic, ginger, cilantro, and garam masala to this whole scenario? Things get even TASTIER.
For those of you who have never before marinated your chicken in yogurt, may I encourage you to do so immediately? If not sooner. Time is of the essence, people. Yogurt serves two very important purposes when combined with meat. One: it tenderizes the chicken and fends off dry overcooked meat, guaranteeing juicy wangs. Two: the naturally occurring sugars in the yogurt gently caramelize as these babies cook, creating a crust of flavor that’s tangy and slightly sweet.
But there’s more than just yogurt at play here. The marinade gets heat from Fresno chiles and fresh ginger, and brightness from lemon juice. There’s a generous helping of garam masala, giving it that iconic tandoori-spiced flavor. Don’t expect to find day-glow orange tandoori chicken here (Red Dye #40 is often used to suggest a fiery heat). The rust-red color of these wings comes from lots of paprika and fresh red chiles.
The best part of the marinade is that it all gets blended in a food processor and then dumped into a resealable Ziplock bag along with the chicken wings—easiest clean up ever. Let the wings sit as long as you can (overnight is ideal, but you can do 2 hours) in the marinade so the flavor and texture will only get better and better. If you throw these ingredients together on a Tuesday night, let ‘em marinate til Wednesday and have yourself a satisfying and necessary hump-day wing party.
