Things I Eat Tikka Marsala (Crockpot Style)

It's been a while since I have been foodcited. You know, excited about food. Then, I took FaceBook advice.

Thanks, FB friend!

This is the recipe for Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala that she had posted and I thought - I like Indian food. I don't like to really say "Indian food" because India is made up of many types and styles of food in different regions. I'm sure I don't like them all. But, let's face it. .curry.

Curry is the paprika of India.

Also, I suck at using a crockpot. So, extra victory.

To the details! By the way, this is how I made it because. . you know, I got issues.

What You Need

• Olive oil: For sauteing
• Onion: Delicious, delicious onion. I used one GIANT onion. 
• Ginger: I used Gourmet Gardens Ginger because it's delicious and easy. Use a couple inches.
• Garlic: I used my pre-chopped garlic which is in a giant jar in the 'fridge.
• Tomatoe puree or crushed tomatoes: 1.5 cups-ish of  or about half a 28 oz can - I skipped the diced tomatoes and tomato paste because it wasn't worth open a whole giant can.
• 3 Tablespoons Cornstarch: You could use flour
• Half tablespoon cinnamon
• Half tablespoon cardamon
• 1 teaspoon and some of cumin
• 1 Hungarian tablespoon of sweet paprika
• 1 tablespoon of basil
• Hint of oregano
• .5 jar of 1 oz container of curry or maybe more. A lot. I used like 1 ounce. My favorite is McCormick.
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 family sized back of chicken thighs - maybe 2lbs.I used boneless because I wanted it to fall apart. You could use bone-in.
• Coconut cooking spray
• 1 cup light coconut milk - If you do dairy, you could use cream or yogurt. 
• 1/2 a jar of dried cilantro (and then some)
• Spinach: I chopped up some to put into the crockpot at the end and to eat with it.

What You Do

The night before, you cut up your onion and saute it with the garlic and ginger. Don't be shy. Cook this until the edges of the onion start to brown a little AT MOST. Or just keep it transparent. 

Stir in crushed tomato and simmer everything for about 3 minutes. Add the cornstarch in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk until smooth. Add paprika, curry powder, salt, cinnamon,  cardamon, cumin, oregano, basil - Cook for about a minute. 

TASTE TASTE TASTE - add a little more of whatever! Don't be shy!

Take out your chicken thighs - dark meat is the best! Anyhow, spray those mo-fos with the coconut oil spray and stack them in your crockpot. Add the tomato mixture over the chicken. Maybe adjust some of the meat to make sure that sauce gets all over. 

Now, I did all this the night before and stored the pot in my fridge. Then in the morning, I put it in the base. Live as you would like, folks. You could probably make the sauce like a few days in advance, really. Mmm. 

Cook the awesome at love. . I mean. . low for 7 hours. It will look like this when you come back. It will also smell very, very delicious. Give it a stir!

Then, add the coconut milk, curry power and cilantro and put that pot on high. Give it a healthy stir. It's super nice if the chicken falls apart. It should maybe look like this. I used boneless thighs, might I add - so it fell apart and became all thick and meldy in the. . .*drool*

Make up some white, long-grain rice. I used a dash of chicken bullion in mine and a base of sauted onions. Spoon this joy over the rice, add some spinach. Top with a sprinkle of dried cilantro. 

Don't overeat and convince your husband there is nothing left.