Atul Kochhar’s Chicken Tikka Pie recipe

Atul Kochhar, star of our second Spotlight podcast, shares the recipe for the delicious pie he cooked up for Angela Walker

Watch the podcast episode -> https://bit.ly/3WwheIF

Chicken Tikka Masala Pie

For the first marinade:
• One garlic clove, peeled
• 1cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled
• One teaspoon chilli powder
• Juice of ½ lemon

For the second marinade:
• 250g Greek-style yoghurt
• One teaspoon each garam masala and ground coriander
• 50ml vegetable oil
• Half a teaspoon each ground cinnamon, chilli powder and dried fenugreek leaves
• Two teaspoons gram flour

For brushing:
• Small knob of butter
• Two teaspoons lime juice
• One teaspoon chaat masala or garam masala

For the pastry:
• 250g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
• One teaspoon sea salt
• 250g cold unsalted butter

For the masala:
• One small onion, peeled
• 10 garlic cloves, peeled
• Vegetable oil
• 6cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled
• Three level teaspoons each ground coriander, chilli powder, turmeric and garam masala
• Two large bunches of fresh coriander, leaves picked
• Three ripe tomatoes

Method:
1. For the first marinade, finely grate the garlic and ginger and place in a bowl. Add the chilli powder, lemon juice and chicken, then set aside to marinate for 30 minutes.
2. For the second marinade, add all of the ingredients to the chicken, mix together well, then leave to marinate for a further four to six hours.
3. Skewer the marinated chicken pieces and cook over a barbecue, or in a hot oven at 200ºC/400ºF/gas 6, for 15 minutes, or until cooked through. Brush with a mixture of butter, lime juice and chaat masala and set aside.
4. For the pastry, sieve the flour and salt into a bowl. Cube the butter, then rub in with your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add 105ml of cold water and gently mix into dough. Dust the dough with flour, wrap in cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
5. Preheat the oven to 160ºC/325ºF/ gas 3. For the masala, chop the onion and garlic, then add with a little vegetable oil to a pan over medium heat and sauté for five minutes until soft. Finely grate the ginger into the pan and cook for two minutes until golden.

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