Indian Food Crime Scene: Aloo Gobi and Chicken Tikika Masala

I tried two new recipes from Next Food Network Star Aarti's collection last night. There was a lot going on and a lot of prep work. At times my kitchen looked like a crime scene out of CSI but when I was finished the result was spectacular.

The list of ingredients is pretty extensive for the Tikka Masala. I found it best to get all the prep work done before I started. I had all my spices ready and it made things easier although I was still doing a lot of running around. A;so it helps to have an immersion blender although I used my glass one. If using a regular blender be sure to take the little round middle cap off and cover with a clean towel. Hold the towel down so you don't have Tikka colored walls. Also a good investment to make is a rice cooker. I use it at least 3 times a week.

                                                                        Tikka Masala

 For this recipe check out the Food network site. The only things I changed out of the recipe were I could not find fenugreek leaves but did find the seeds. I made a bouquet with some cheese cloth and the seeds and let that soak in my sauce. I looked everywhere for it but found the seeds at my local Outpost which is like a Whole Foods store.

Also a thing to be aware of is the heat. I only used one little Serrano seeded. It still had some kick to it. I didn't add the Serrano to the Gobi. The fresh Roma tomatoes in the Tikka gave it a awesome flavor. I did have to add about a half cup of water to the sauce but she said that would be dependant on how juicy the tomatoes you are using are.

I have a Hamilton Beach indoor grill and love it! I used it to grill the chicken. You are using about a four inch bulb of ginger and a lot of garlic. I purchased my garlic preminced to save on time. I served pita bread with mine but she also suggests some crusty bread. I had extra sauce so I froze it in a zip loc so I can pull it out when I need it.

The Aloo Gobi was very easy to prepare and my only complaint is I didn't make more! I omitted the pepper in this one. All in all we liked these recipes and would make them again.