Indian inspired marinades
Our top 5 marinades that we use for grilling and barbequing.
Marinades are a great way of adding flavour to your meat, fish or vegetables. They work especially well with meat as marinades help with tenderising and retaining moisture.
Marinades are incredibly popular in Indian cuisine. They are usually used with natural yoghurt and a blend of key spices then worked into the meat and left to rest. Lemon juice works as a great alternative to yoghurt. This alternative gives ingredients a fresher taste and lighter coating. Once the meat has marinated and soaked up all the flavours, it would then be placed in a tandoor oven.
Tandoori ovens are one of the most popular cooking methods to cook naan breads, kebabs and dishes like tandoori chicken. Also known as tandoors, these ovens use a dry heat that gives dishes a unique smoky, charred flavour that is hard to replicate with other cooking methods.
Using a BBQ or grill will give you a similar smoky flavour and is a great way to replicate the tandoori experience at home. These cooking methods will still add a crispy and caramelised texture to meat or fish while also infusing them with smoky flavours.
You can also use paneer or vegetables as a vegetarian alternative and cook them as you would with meat or fish.
Here’s our top 5 Indian inspired marinades that we use for grilling and barbequing.
Our Tandoori Marinade was designed to try and replicate the flavours that a tandoori oven creates and be a simpler alternative to this traditional cooking method. Use chicken thighs, breast or drumsticks to recreate this recipe at home for your family and friends.
Chicken skewers are notorious at BBQs, but now you can make them with a Rafi’s twist and get the crowd talking. Tikka marinades are traditionally used for smaller pieces of meat or vegetables which makes this marinade perfect for making chicken skewers.
Cut up your marinated chicken breast and thread onto skewers. You could also add an array of vegetables like peppers, onions and mushrooms to add some colour to your skewers. These kebabs can be prepared ahead of time then cooked on a grill or barbeque when you fancy.
If you like the sound of the Chicken Tikka Kebabs but want a vegetarian option, these Tandoori Skewers are the perfect choice. Enjoy the flavours of tandoori marinated with lemon juice/yoghurt and added to paneer and your choice of vegetables.
These skewers can also be prepared ahead of time, which makes them perfect for hosting BBQs.
4. Lime Chutney Chicken Drumsticks
Our sweet, sour and spicy Lime Chutney works brilliantly with yoghurt as a marinade. We like to use chicken drumsticks for this marinade as it adds a mouth-watering glaze and is super simple to make.
This recipe uses our Tamarind Chutney, which is a sour, sweet and fruity chutney that complements recipes like this salmon dish.
This recipe adds a delicious sticky marinade to salmon, which is perfect for serving as an easy mid-week meal.
We’d love to hear if these tips have helped you in the kitchen. Let us know your feedback on our Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. We love to see your curry creations, so please send us your foodie photos across.
