Summer time BBQ, Desi style!

It’s that time of the year! Pull out your bathing suits and BBQ grills, and indulge in the joys of summer! Every year I look forward to BBQ time not only because I love the smoky flavor and texture of BBQ meat and veggies, but also because it a wonderful time to spend with friends and family, sipping on a chilled beer or lemonade, on a lazy summer afternoon. But I must confess that I am a little disappointed with the lack of variety in the food cooked. You see the usual hot dogs and burgers being grilled, but it isn’t often you see a variation in the spices or the kind of meat grilled (and for the poor vegetarians in the group there isn’t much hope anyway). Being a spice lover (and not a heavy meat eater unless it is rich with spices), I feel obliged to make a post on the desi varieties of grilled meat and veggies we enjoy back in India.

Traditionally, meat is grilled in a Tandoor using charcoal. The flavor of the marinated meat combined with the smoky flavor of the coal gives tandoori food a unique flavor, almost impossible to replicate in an electric or gas oven. But, we here are lucky because we have our amazing bare bones charcoal grills that will give us the exact flavor (ok, almost) we are looking for  

So let’s get started with the basics and once you have that down, you’re well on your way to making some delectable tandoori meat/veggies. Let’s begin with a simple but popular chicken tikka. This dish is usually boneless, skinless chicken, marinated in yogurt and spices, and grilled in a tandoor. The marinade is made of yogurt, ginger and garlic paste, cumin powder, coriander powder, garam masala, salt, lemon, and red chilli powder or cayenne pepper. The chicken is marinated in this mixture (preferably overnight) and then you’re all set to grill it with a brush of butter for added flavor.

The fun part is that you can play with the kind of meat (lamb, beef, chicken, even fish tastes great tandoori style!), and the marinade, by changing the spice base to fresh herbs like mint and coriander, or adding some onion paste to the meat, etc. How you want your marinade to taste is entirely up to you. For instance, I use cream instead of yogurt for a malai kabab or fresh green herbs and green chillies (whatever I can get my hands on) for a haryali kabab. Kababs/tikkas are served hot with a dash of lemon and some sliced up onions on the side, or with a cool mint chutney. So, pick a day, pick a flavor, and get creative

Here is my recipe for chicken tikka:

1. 1 lb skinless, boneless chicken chunks
2. Yogurt- 1.5 cups
3. Ginger- garlic paste- 1.5 tbsp
4. Cumin powder- 1.5 tsp
5. Coriander powder- 1.5 tsp
6. Garam Masala- 1. 5 tsp
7. Red chilli powder – 2 tsp (more if you like it really spicy, less if you don’t)
8. Lemon juice- 2 tbsp
9. Salt- 1.5 tsp (or per your taste)

Mix the ingredients together and let sit overnight in the refrigerator, covered with plastic or aluminium wrap. Grill on a charcoal pit for best results until well done on all sides. Serve hot with a dash of lemon and mint chutney (store bought works great).

If you have a better recipe, I am all ears!

About the Author

Aditi Raghuram Has Written 17 Articles For Us!

Aditi was born and raised in Bangalore/Mysore, and moved to the U.S. 10 years ago for a doctoral degree in Psychology. Like all “good” desis, her focus was on getting that degree, getting a job, getting a Green Card, and making tons of money. Only two degrees, and a series of life circumstances later, did she truly recognize her passion for studying and understanding human behavior. She graduated in 2009 with her Ph.D in Industrial/Organizational Psychology. Today, Aditi is first and foremost, an eager student of human behavior, and will remain one for the rest of her life. Being a cook, a singer, and an aspiring “let’s change the world” agent, all come later. She is also the overworked lead editor of Desi Living.

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