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Oven Grilled Chicken Tikka Drumettes

A white square plate of chicken tikka drumettes over a bed of chargrilled onion rings. Garnished with freshly chopped coriander. Lime wedges in the corners of the plate and in the center is a small dipping dish with cucumber and mint yogurt dip.
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These Oven Grilled Chicken Tikka Drumettes are the perfect snack for game day or appetizer for house parties. They’re easy to make, healthier than your average chicken wings, and incredibly flavorful!

Ingredients

Scale
  • 710g Chicken Drumettes (about 12 – 16 pieces, you can use the wing part too if you like) – cleaned thoroughly, skin removed and discarded, excess fat trimmed if needed, and pat dried with paper towels.
  • 7 Garlic gloves – chopped into small chunks
  • 1.5 inch knob of Ginger – chopped into small chunks
  • 5–8 Red Chilies – to taste – chopped into three to four 1 cm pieces each 1-2 Green Chilies, to taste – chopped into three to four 1 cm pieces each
  • 5 TBLS Greek Yogurt
  • 1/8 TSP (a pinch) Black Pepper, to taste
  • ¾ TSP Kosher Salt, to taste
  • 1 TSP Garam Masala
  • ½ – 1 TSP ground Cayenne or Kashmiri Red Chili Powder, to taste
  • 1 TBLS freshly squeezed Lemon juice, to taste
  • ½ TSP Tandoori color powder (or 1–2 drops red/orange food color)
  • 1/8 cup Water
  • 1 TBLS Olive Oil (or any other cooking oil or nonstick cooking spray)
  • Garnish:
  • 1–2 TBLS freshly chopped Coriander (Cilantro)
  • 1 TSP freshly chopped Mint Leaves
  • To Serve:
  • Lime wedges (optional)
  • 5 small (or 1 large) White Onion – sliced into rings (charring under the broiler for 7–8 minutes is optional)
  • Cooling Cucumber & Mint Yogurt Dip (see notes)

Instructions

  1. Marinate: In a blender jug, combine the garlic, ginger, red & green chilies, Greek yogurt, black pepper, kosher salt, garam masala, ground cayenne (or Kashmiri red chili powder), lemon juice, tandoori color powder, and water. Blend until smooth. Place the chicken drumettes in a large bowl and pour the marinade over them. Mix with a spoon to ensure the chicken is coated properly with the marinade. Cover with cling wrap and set aside for 30-45 minutes or overnight in the fridge for best results.
  2. Prep to Cook: Preheat the oven to 180°C/356°F/Gas mark 4. Cover a baking sheet with baking paper or aluminum foil and place a wire rack on top. Oil the rack with a brush or spray it with nonstick cooking spray, then line up the chicken drumettes on top of the rack. (You will still have some marinade leftover but you’ll be using it in the next step.)
  3. Cook/Grill: Pop the tray in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until cooked through. Remove the tray from the oven and use tongs to turn over the chicken drumettes. Baste them with the remaining marinade before popping the tray back into the oven to cook under the broiler/grill setting for 5-6 minutes or until the drumettes’ edges have blackened slightly. Then remove the tray from the oven. (Note: Time may vary due to variations in heating abilities in different ovens. Just don’t walk away from the oven when it’s under the broiler or you’ll end up burning them!).
  4. To Serve: Plate the Chicken Tikka Drumettes on a bed of sliced onion rings (you can char them first under the broiler for 7-8 minutes if desired), and garnish with freshly chopped coriander and mint leaves. Serve with some Cooling Cucumber & Mint Yogurt Dip and lime wedges.

Notes

  1. Feel free to make this milder or hotter according to your preference by reducing/increasing the amount of fresh red and green chilies as well as Kashmiri red chili powder/ground cayenne.
  2. To make ahead, you can marinate the chicken drumettes a day in advance and store in a bowl covered with cling wrap in the fridge. Just take them out of the fridge about 40 minutes to an hour before you cook them in the oven so they can come to room temperature first. Then just cook them as indicated in steps 2 through 4.
  3. You can serve them with either red or white onion. Both taste great, and you can use whichever type of onion you have on hand or prefer.
  4. To make the Cooling Cucumber & Mint Yogurt Dip: In a medium sized bowl, combine 1 cup of Greek yogurt, 1 TBLS chopped coriander, 1 TBLS mint leaves, 1 TBLS finely minced cucumber, 1 TSP lemon juice, 1/4 TSP Kosher salt (use 1/2 TSP if using table salt) and a pinch of black pepper. Mix with a spoon until fully combined. Garnish with extra coriander and mint leaves if desired.
  5. To make this vegetarian, use paneer (Indian cottage cheese) cubes in place of the chicken. Dice the paneer block into 1 inch pieces and pre-heat the oven to 180°C/356°F/Gas mark 4. Marinate the paneer for 30-45 minutes or overnight for best results. Thread the paneer cubes on skewers (soak for 30 minutes first if using wooden skewers) along with some diced onion and bell pepper if desired – I like using red, yellow, and green bell peppers since it makes it more colorful and tasty! Cook for 15-20 minutes, turning once and basting with additional marinade. Then switch on the broiler and broil for 2-5 minutes (while keeping a close watch to ensure that the paneer doesn’t burn) until slightly charred. Garnish with freshly chopped coriander and mint leaves, and serve with the yogurt dip and lime wedges!

Nutrition

Find it online: https://thatspicychick.com/oven-grilled-chicken-tikka-drumettes/