In the last few years I have really grown to love Indian food.  I am still a bit of a novice but I find that I enjoy almost all of the Indian flavors and dishes and am enthusiastic to try cooking them at home. Some friends and I went to a vegetarian Indian buffet a few years ago and I recall loving almost everything that was offered….even the tofu dishes.  Tandori chicken is one of India’s most recognizable dishes and one of the most popular at Indian restaurants.  In addition to wanting to create a Tandori marinade this week, I also wanted to experiment with bone-in chicken (bone-in meat is something that I have typically avoided in the past but am trying to tackle recently; to be honest, I don’t mind touching raw meat at all but touching bones gives me the creeps).  This marinade was inspired in part by one that I saw in a Cuisine at Home issue.  I marinated the chicken on a Wednesday during the day and didn’t get around to cooking it until Friday night and it was great — easy dish to make during the day and throw together quickly at night with some green beans and curried rice or cous-cous.

Tandori Chicken Drumsticks with Sesame Green Beans (Serves 4)

Ingredients:

10 chicken drumsticks/legs (to keep it “Clean,” I’d opt for boneless, skinless chicken breasts)

3/4 cup plain yogurt

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

1 Tbsp minced fresh or jarred garlic

1 tsp dry ginger (or 1 Tbsp fresh ginger if you have it)

1 tsp each paprika, cumin, ground coriander, ground tumeric (if you are missing any one of these, it won’t matter much)

1 Tbsp curry powder

2 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Directions:

Whisk together all ingredients (except chicken) in a bowl.  If you don’t prefer skin on your chicken, use kitchen scissors to cut off the skin around the meaty part of the drumstick (many people do not care but I like the marinade to coat the chicken as opposed to the skin).  In a zip lock freezer bag add chicken drumsticks and marinade.  Toss to coat and refrigerate 12-24 hours (I did 48 hours and had no problem).  Preheat grill to medium-high heat.  Brush grill grate with oil.  Cook chicken drumsticks for about 30 minutes turning every 10 minutes or so.  30 minutes may seem long for little drumsticks but they need some time to cook evenly.  Let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

For the green beans, boil water and cook beans until desired consistency (appx 5-7 minutes).  Drain and put back in pan.  Mix with 1 tsp sesame oil and juice of 1/2 of a lime and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and kosher salt.