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Spicy Grilled Chicken in Tomato-Garlic-Ginger Sauce

A Nepali grilled chicken dish served in a tomato, garlic, ginger, and pepper sauce.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 23 ingredients
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Why it works: Cumin and coriander match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,866 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

Spicy Grilled Chicken in Tomato-Garlic-Ginger Sauce

Timeabout 7 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Marinate and grill

  1. Combine all marinating ingredients in a blender to form a smooth paste.

  2. Pour the marinating paste over the chicken in a large bowl.

  3. Mix well, cover, and let marinate for at least four hours.

  4. Grill the marinated chicken on a charcoal grill, turning occasionally until cooked through, about 7 minutes.

  5. Cut the grilled chicken into 1-inch pieces.

Make the sauce

  1. In a saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of mustard oil.

  2. Fry the dry whole red peppers until dark.

  3. Add turmeric and stir for 15 seconds.

  4. Add onions and sauté over medium heat until brown.

  5. Add garlic, ginger, red chilies, cumin, coriander, black pepper, and salt to the onion mixture.

  6. Fry for 30 seconds, then add tomatoes and chicken broth.

  7. Lower the heat and let the tomato-onion mixture simmer for 10 minutes until it thickens.

Finish and serve

  1. Transfer the grilled chicken strips to the sauce and stir well.

  2. Cook for another 10 minutes to evaporate excess liquid so the chicken pieces are coated with the sauce.

  3. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.

  4. Garnish with green onions.

  5. Serve with rice.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

548Calories
55 gProtein
18 gFat
45 gCarbs

Counts 14 of 16 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 14 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Chicken100g cooked165
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Yogurt170g plain Greek100
Corn1/2 cup kernels (82g)77
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Turmeric1 tsp ground (3g)9
Cumin1 tsp ground (2.1g)8
Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Mustard Oil1 tsp (5g) yellow3
Ginger1 tsp grated fresh (2g)2
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Coriandernot in our table0
Seednot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Cumin + coriandertop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together3,866 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  2. Garlic + oniontop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together29,058 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  3. Ginger + coriandertop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together3,505 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).

  4. Garlic + cumintop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together5,082 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  5. Tomato + coriandertop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,967 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Chicken breasts
Provides the main protein; the long marinade lets the paste flavour the meat.
Nepali yogurt
Its acidity and moisture tenderise the chicken during marinating.
Onions
Browning them builds sweetness and body into the sauce.
Tomatoes
Add acidity and moisture that form the base of the sauce.
Mustard oil
Carries the spices and adds fat for a rounded flavour.
Garlic
Adds pungent aroma that deepens as it cooks in the oil.

The step that matters

Reducing the sauce after adding the chicken. Simmering evaporates excess liquid so the sauce thickens and clings to the chicken; too little reduction leaves it watery and thin.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, pepper, garlic, ginger, tomato, cumin, coriander):

  1. Capsicumfits better
  2. Spinachfits better
  3. Carrotfits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, pepper, garlic, ginger, tomato, cumin, coriander. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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