I love simplifying recipes and making them accessible for the average everyday American cook, with simple ingredients and simple prep, but I think went too far with the original version of this Slow Cooker Tikka Masala recipe. When I made it again recently I thought, “yeah, I can do better than this.” So I got back in the kitchen and started tweaking and testing. I’m happy to say that this new and improved version is richer, has more spices, a more complex flavor, and is far less “tomato-y.” But don’t worry, if you’re a fan of the original, there is a link to download the old version of the Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala below. ;)
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Recipe Updates
So what did I do to improve this chicken tikka masala recipe? A few very important things…
The spice mix: I beefed up the spice mix a bit to make the flavors more complex, adding some cumin, turmeric, and smoked paprika to give extra smoky flavor that mimics the fire licked flavor of traditional chicken tikka masala.
Searing: I decided to add an extra step to this process, which might seem fussy to some, but it totally changes the flavor. Searing the seasoned meat before it goes into the slow cooker adds a ton of flavor from the maillard reaction and from toasting the spices. Likewise, sautéing the onions also changes their flavor and soaks up any bits of spices and chicken flavor left over in the skillet. Do NOT skip this step. It goes fast, I promise.
Less Tomato Sauce: One of the most common criticisms of the old recipe is that it tasted way too tomato-y. Upon remaking the recipe, I agreed so I reduced the tomato sauce by half, and the result was PERFECT. 👍Good call, everyone!
And if you love the old recipe, click here to download the pdf.
Recipe Substitutions and Options:
Chicken: You can use chicken breast in place of the chicken thighs, although it tends to not be as tender or juicy. I suggest cutting it into cubes before seasoning with the spices to maximize the flavor.
Cream: You can use full-fat yogurt or full-fat coconut milk in place of the cream.
Tomato Sauce: Tomato sauce is a common product in the U.S., but I know it’s not readily available in other countries. The closest product would probably be passata. You may need to add a bit more salt at the end if using passata, as tomato sauce contains salt.
Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala
Servings 6Ingredients
- 1.5 Tbsp garam masala ($0.45)
- 1/2 tsp cumin ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp turmeric ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne (optional) ($0.02)
- Freshly cracked pepper ($0.02)
- 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken thighs ($5.78)
- 1 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.04)
- 1 yellow onion, diced ($0.32)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced ($0.24)
- 1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger ($0.11)
- 1 15oz. can tomato sauce ($0.50)
- 1/3 cup heavy cream ($0.32)
For Serving
- 4 cups cooked rice ($0.70)
- 1/4 bunch fresh cilantro ($0.17)
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the garam masala, cumin, turmeric, smoked paprika, salt, cayenne, and some freshly cracked pepper (about 10 cranks of a pepper mill). Sprinkle the spice mix over both sides of the chicken thighs, coating them liberally.
- Heat the cooking oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the seasoned chicken and cook for about 3 minutes on each side, or until well browned (the chicken does not need to be cooked through). Transfer the seared chicken to the slow cooker.
- Add the diced onion to the skillet and continue to cook until the onions are soft and slightly browned on the edges. Remove the skillet from the heat. Add the onions to the slow cooker, then add 1/4 cup of water to the skillet and stir to dissolve the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Pour the water into the slow cooker.
- Add the minced garlic, grated ginger, and tomato sauce to the slow cooker with the chicken and onion. Briefly stir, then place the lid on top, and turn the slow cooker on. Cook on high for 3 hours or low for 6 hours.
- After 3 hours on high or 6 hours on low, the chicken should be fall-apart tender. Turn the slow cooker off, then add the heavy cream. Stir gently to combine the cream with the tomato sauce. Taste the sauce and add salt if needed.
- To serve, spoon the chicken and tomato sauce over cooked rice and top with fresh cilantro.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Slow Cooker
Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala – Step by Step Photos
Start by preparing the spice mix. In a small bowl, combine 1.5 Tbsp garam masala, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (leave out if you want it mild), and some freshly cracked pepper (about 10 cranks of a pepper mill).
Sprinkle the seasoning mix over both sides of 2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken thighs. Make sure they are liberally coated.
Heat 1 Tbsp cooking oil in a large skillet, over medium-high heat. When the skillet is hot, add the seasoned chicken, and cook for about 3 minutes on each side, or until well browned. The chicken does not need to be cooked through. Transfer the chicken to the slow cooker.
Add the diced onion to the hot skillet and sautée for a few minutes more, or just until the onions are soft and a little browned on the edges. The onions will pick up some of the spices left behind by the chicken, which is a good thing, but we want to get ALL the flavor left behind. So, transfer the onions to the slow cooker, remove the skillet from the heat, add 1/4 cup water, and stir to dissolve all the browned bits off the bottom of the skillet. Pour that water into the slow cooker.
Also add 3 cloves of minced garlic and about 1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger to the slow cooker.
Finally, pour 15 oz. tomato sauce into the slow cooker and give everything a brief stir.
Close the slow cooker and cook on high for 3 hours or low for 6 hours.
The chicken should be fall-apart tender after cooking.
Add 1/3 cup heavy cream to the slow cooker and give everything a gentle stir.
Give the sauce a taste and add salt, if needed. Remember, salt can magnify flavors, sometimes adding just a pinch can be a game changer.
To serve your Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala, spoon over cooked rice and top with fresh cilantro. Or, serve with naan bread on the side. Creamy and delicious!!
Can I give this negative stars? Even with doubling the spices, this just tastes like tomato sauce. Don’t make this unless you want to waste 2 pounds of chicken
Doubled the spices as others recommended. It came out amazing!!!! Would probably double the sauce next time too, but that’s cause I could only find 2.5lb packages of chicken thighs, so the chicken to sauce ratio is a little skewed.
2.5-3 stars simply because it’s not inedible. This tastes “okay” but certainly nothing like Indian food. It’s bordering on Mexican-esque. I definitely would not have made this had I known. It’s unfortunate that I used 5lbs of chicken meal prepping this…
I would like to add some vegetables to this. I’m wondering if carrots would work?
I think carrots or sweet potato would be great!
Literally the best thing ever. So easy to make and so delicious, I just add a tiny bit extra cream and a lot more cayenne. I can never have too much cayenne. Also refrigerates and reheats super well, so a great meal to meal prep. I’ve never written a recipe review before, but this is just so good I have to give it 5 stars.
First time making this and it was delicious!
This was sooo good! My husband and I gobbled it up. Definitely a repeat meal.
Doubled the spices as recommended in several comments, and it came out delicious. The searing of the chicken does make this a weekend meal for me since god knows I wouldn’t have the wherewithal to do it on a weekday morning, but I think that step could possibly be omitted to save time with the increase in spices.
Really yummy with a few minor changes to suit our tastes and pantry. For the sauce I used light coconut milk and tomato paste (and a little extra salt), which made for great harmony of flavors. We also went heavier on the cayenne, with lots of cilantro and lime juice to serve. A keeper!
The new & improved version of the recipe is great! I was a big fan of the old one, but I prefer this one. I make it with the Budget Bytes Coconut Rice and some air fryer okra. 🤌
Delicious! I licked my bowl clean! Even my toddler ate a few bites which is a win for me. I did double the amount of spices and added thawed frozen cauliflower, peas and carrots, and chopped spinach. Delicious with some seasoned salt per bowl to taste. Cilantro is a must, too.
While the overall flavor was good, I’d say it probably needs 1.5x of each spice. I know that browning the chicken adds flavor, but next time I’d skip that step because it’s more work (and creates more dirty dishes and pans). I made this for company and it was well-received.
Wow! This was AMAZING! I used nonfat plain yogurt instead of cream, as it is what I had on hand. So good! Almost as easy as my favorite Indian restaurant and I could make it how spicy I like it! Thank you for sharing!
Can I use canned coconut milk in place of the heavy cream?
Yes :)
Disappointing. I normally LOVE all of Budget Bytes’ recipes, but this one had absolutely no flavor. It smelled fragrant throughout cooking process so I was hopeful, but even after adding loads of salt after cooking it did not taste like much. Will not be making again.
I make this for my husband at least 2 times a month. He adores the mixture of spices! I actually double the spices (personally preference and my husband LOVES spice). Make this! He eats this for 3 days and he’s a blue collar guy with a big appetite! Very cost effective and delicious!
Yummy!!! Made as is, turned out super delicious. The fam liked it too!
This is so easy and so tasty!! It makes amazing leftovers. My husband and I make this at least once a month. I think it is THE MOST common meal we make :) Thank you! Sometimes if we want to make it a tad healthier, we switch out the heavy cream for coconut milk
I followed the recipe to a T, and it came out perfect. This will definitely be in my Sunday crockpot rotations!
So disappointed with this recipe. I think 100% of all the other dishes we have tried from Budgetbytes have been fantastic, so this was a surprising miss. With the spices measured precisely and the dish cooked exactly as the recipe says, it produced a very tomatoey and bland flavor instead of the creamy tangy tomato flavor that might be expected. Adding salt did not bring it home, unfortunately. We will be looking at other recipes to fill our tikka masala needs.
Flavour is so good and intense!!
Made this for dinner and followed the recipe in the crockpot exactly, except for substituting half of the cream with plain yogurt. While the flavor was really great, my husband and I wished the sauce was thicker and there was more of it to use on top of rice or with naan. I’d make again in the future but try to add more liquid and simmer to thicken it.
This is so unbelievably delicious! I scraped out the corners of the crock pot to eat over the sink with a wooden spoon!
I substituted the canned tomato sauce for a can of strained tomato, a 1/2 tsp MSG, and some garlic powder to keep the sodium down.
Hi. I made this with chicken breast and it’s so delicious! Would I be able to substitute cubed tofu and follow the recipe as is?
Thanks for all your work!
I love your recipes.
Summer
Hi Summer, we have not tested it with cubed tofu and can’t comment. xoxo Monti
I loved this! I’ve never had this type of dish before but I loved the flavor and thought it was perfect. My kids weren’t crazy about it unfortunately but that’s ok, they’ll be seeing it again!!!
I modified slightly to use my instapot instead because I timed my cooking poorly and couldn’t wait. Oh my GOD this was so delicious. It’s taking everything in me not to eat the whole thing in one sitting.
How long did you cook it for in your instapot?
How well do the leftovers hold up in the freezer? I’m cooking for one nowadays and thinking this might be a good make-ahead recipe.
Sadly, stews with any kind of cream or milk base tend to separate after freezing. This leads to a grainy textured stew that isn’t very pleasant to eat. Try freezing the stew before adding in the dairy, and when it comes time to reheat, you can mix it in on the stovetop. XOXO -Monti
Made this tonight! Soooo good! Both my 9yo daughter and husband loved it. I had steamed veggies on the side, and also did a babaganoush (sp?!) with eggplant from my garden, and homemade naan bread (not BB’s recipe). Best dinner ever. Next time I think I’ll add some cornstarch to thicken things up a bit, otherwise it was fantastic!
I did it in the InstantPot. Sauteed the onion first. Pulled that out and did the chicken in two batches on the Saute setting.
Added a little water to scrape the bottom of the pan, kept all the grilled drippings in there.
Added the onions back, put in the garlic and ginger and remaining spices to sautee for a few minutes. Added the tomato sauce and chicken.
Cooked on Poultry setting for 9 minutes. Quick released. Added the heavy cream. And served with Basmati rice.
Yum?
Haha, that was supposed to say, “Yum!”
This recipe was way easier to make than I thought it would be. It was full of flavor and my husband now says this is his favorite meal!
We have made this about 20 times now in our household over the last 2 years. It’s such an easy and tasty recipe. The only thing I do differently is double the spice.
Absolutely perfect!
This was delicious! I will definitely make it again!
Thank you!
Delicious! Thanks for a great recipe!
Is this suitable for the freezer?
This one would probably freeze well! You might want to do a test with one serving just to see if any flavor or texture changes are okay with you. :)
Made for the first time last night. Didn’t have thighs, so used breasts, but this was fine. Not enough heat, so added a bunch more cayenne. Still pretty mild. Was a little watery, but this might be because we used our home canned tomato sauce. It worked out. Just had to let it simmer uncovered for a bit. Will definitely be a staple when having Indian dinner. We served alongside rice, saag paneer, baingan bharta, dal, and naan. This is solid.
Oooh I really want to try this recipe but I am lactose intolerant. Do I need to add the heavy cream or do you have a lacto e free alternative to replace the Heavy Cream? Thank you.
You can use full-fat coconut milk instead (the kind in a can). :)
This was great. Tonight I only had a cup or two of leftover chicken/sauce (not enough for 2 for a whole meal), so I added a few cups of chicken broth, a diced potato, and sweet potato cubes to make a creamy soup. I served it with a little more cream and cilantro. So good! Thanks for a great recipe.
Can I substitute 1/2 and 1/2 for the heavy cream?
Thanks!
Half and half curdles easier than heavy cream, so if you’re adding it to a hot liquid that is acidic like that tomato mixture, it might curdle. But I’d have to try it to know for sure!
Hello Beth! I have this in the slow cooker now and accidentally added the cream with the tomato sauce in the beginning. :-( Did I ruin it?
Hmmm, I don’t think I’ve ever used heavy cream in a slow cooker for the entire cook time, so I’m not sure.> BUt I think you posted this yesterday, so you probably already found out the hard way. 😬 Let me know what happened!
We’ve been using this recipie for the last couple of years. It’s a family favorite! We always double the sauce because we like it extra saucy for dipping naan.
Absolutely incredible. Searing the chicken and onion beforehand is slightly annoying as it basically doubles the prep time but it is definitely worth it. Added this one to my slow cooker recipe rotation!
This turned out super well. I used chicken breast because I had bought it in bulk for another recipe this week. Instead of searing the whole chicken breast, I cut it up into chunks, seared it, and threw the seared chunks into the slow cooker to let it do its work. The sauce smelled heavenly while cooking. It also reheated very well. The chicken was so tender. The browned edges survived the slow cooker too. I supplemented the Tupperware meals with brown rice and a frozen veggie blend. I can’t speak to authenticity, but as far as quality meal prep goes, this was an A+.
This dish is so delicious! It is definitely a go to for me and a crowd pleaser (used half and half and works great) Thank you
Very good recipe and will likely be inserted into my bi-weekly rotation. I used chicken thighs and substituted 1/2 cup whole milk yogurt for the cream based on some of the comments I read. The yogurt gave a nice creamy texture for the sauce. Next time I may add more Cayenne pepper, but that is all personal preference.
Kuddos
Do you think it would be okay to double this recipe to feed a larger group? Would I need to take any special precautions or would it be bad to fill the crock pot up more?
Thanks
I think that would work just fine without any extra adjustments. :)
Absolutely one of my favorite recipes from Beth. I tried the old recipe a few years ago and it was good, but I definitely like the new version better. I’m made it several times and believe me when I say Beth knows what she’s talking about when it comes to searing the chicken before putting it in the slow cooker. It’s a bit of a pain when you’re rushing in the morning trying to get it in the crock pot before you head out for work, but you absolutely MUST sear your chicken if you want the full flavor potential of this recipe. I have subbed in chicken breasts for the thighs and it turned out well, though not quite as good as with the thighs. All things considered honestly I just recommend following the recipe on this one LOL.
I would absolutely LOVE to see an instant pot version of this recipe as an alternative for days I can’t get the searing done before I leave for work in the morning!
YUM! i used a red onion because i didn’t have any yellow on hand, really couldn’t tell a difference. i enjoyed the seasonings, wasn’t crazy spicy, filling, and my fiancé didn’t even find it spicy surprisingly!
Ohhh any chance of an IP version of this recipe? It’s a standby for me and I’d love to make it even quicker since I’m a busy mom and grad student!
Unfortunately, I haven’t tried this in an IP yet!
The nutrition data does not include the side of rice, correct?
Can’t wait to try it!
I’m sorry, I misread your comment. It DOES include the rice. The nutrition info on the recipes include everything listed in the ingredient list. :)
Hmmm ok. I was mostly asking due to protein content at the time cus I’ve been trying to lift weights recently, but I also count carbs due to being diabetic (type1) and the carb count just seemed low for that. I guess I just ate A LOT more rice than the recipe assumed 😜
But what I really came back for was just to comment that if anyone does like I did, and used a lot more of the spices than the recipe called for (I wasn’t confident in my spices quality) and it turned out to be a tad “too much”, a tablespoon or two (depending on how much you overdid it and how sweet you like it) of brown sugar added to the pot at the end, mellows it back down nicely. I think I tend to like a background of sweetness to my spicy dishes anyway, so even if I don’t use too much spice, I think the brown sugar addition will be something I keep in future… just less of it.
It was awesome!
Just forgot a rating.
Any thoughts on substituting sweet potato and chickpeas for the chicken? Same cook time? I just spent a lot of money moving and have a preponderance of garam masala, chickpeas, and sweet potatoes I’d like to use up before hitting the grocery store again.
I probably wouldn’t use this method for chickpeas and sweet potatoes. I’d just do a quick skillet method instead, like this version with chickpeas and cauliflower. Just sub sweet potatoes for the cauliflower and you’re good. :)
Great, thank you!! :)
I was wondering how many cups a serving would be?
I love this recipe. Have been making this every three weeks since the beginning of last year. It’s my go to favorite dinner. At first I was intimidated because I never cooked more than macaroni cheese since before the pandemic. This dish makes me feel like a real chef and have gotten many compliments on it. I pair it with coconut rice and or garlic naan. Thank you!
It was our first time making the dish. We did not use a slow cooker we have a cast iron pot we cooked it slow on stovetop. We put coconut milk instead of cream. Very good
I have made this recipe twice, using bone in thighs and then breast meat. Both came out AMAZING. I added baby spinach at the end and I doubled the cayenne , which gave it a nice kick!
Very good, does not taste like traditional tikka masala though. This tastes more like garam masala and the chicken is pulled instead of chunked.
Well, Beth, here comes a double compliment: Just had this for dinner and it was absolutely wonderful, and …my adult son made it. So, now my grown kids are into Budget Bytes and turning me on to good things. The Budget Bytes web site has helped us all cook delicious and healthy meals, inexpensively, and during a pandemic. Thanks so much, you are very much appreciated.
Thank you! That means a lot to me. :)
I meal prep/write down what I’m making throughout the week. Once again I failed to put “slow cooker” down so at 4:00 I started to panic. Sautéed the chicken and then onions in the pressure cooker and then cooked for 15 mins for no other reason than it was the preset for chicken on the IP. I used full-fat coconut milk bc I had it and didn’t want to run to the store for heavy cream. Once again Beth has provided a fantastic dinner that even I couldn’t mess up. Thank you Beth! Your recipes are not only budget-friendly but also versatile.
This was amazing! To add nutrients and bulk it out I added a box of frozen spinach to it. Was an easy way to get some veggies in.
The recipes look delicious!! I use the microwave and slow cooker a lot to cut costs. The news is telling us everything is going up in 2021, , especially food so low cost meal recipes would be great!! Do I have to pay to subscribe? Thanks.
Hello! No, you don’t have to pay to subscribe to our newsletter. :)
This is excellent! I may make it every week. My picky eater calls it his “favorite chicken!” I make it with the naan bread, which is excellent as well
It was good but definitely did not taste anything like authentic tikka masala that you’d get at an Indian restaurant. Authentic tikka masala is a lot of spices and prep though so for an easy version it was tasty. I paired it with the yellow jasmine rice which was also “blah” in my opinion but at the same time the fluffiest rice I’ve ever made in my life.
Any suggestions on how I could adapt this to be prepped and frozen before cooking? I have a friend whose mother passed and I wanted to make him “slow cooker freezer meals” – pre-prepped meals stored in a gallon ziplock baggie in the freezer that can be thawed and thrown in a crockpot without any extra effort. Any suggestions for adapting? Can I still sautee the onions? Should I skip browning the chicken? Thanks!
Hmm, that might be tricky. Unfortunately I’m not very good with that type of pre-prepped meal because I don’t really ever do that, so it’s hard for me to guess what the best method would be. Browning the chicken is a really important step, so I definitely wouldn’t skip that.
Could we use bone-in, skin on thighs?
Bone-in would work, but the skin will probably get kind of soggy in the slow cooker (it’s a wet cooking environment). So if that bothers you, you may want to remove the skin first.
Has anyone tried making this in an instant pot? What settings/time frame if so?
What I do is cut up chicken thighs, then let that sit overnight in greek yogurt. Put the chicken in the instant for 10 minutes on high pressure. While it’s cooking I just cook the onions and then follow the recipe. It’s amazing!
This has become a staple dish for me during lockdown! I add a bag of frozen veggies (usually stir fry mix) when I add the cream and then leave it on the warm setting while I make the rice. I swear it tastes just like like the tikka masala from my local take away! Now if Beth could magic up a recipe for samosas that was this easy…
Love this recipe. The sauce was amazing. Definitely brown the seasoned chicken first. Can’t wait to try more recipes from this site😊
Wow, this one knocked it out of the park! I made the recipe exactly as written and it was absolutely delicious, easy to prepare, and my kitchen smelled amazing all day while this was cooking! Thanks for another winner, Beth!
This is hands down my husband’s favorite meal. He’s thrilled every time I make it and asks for it for his birthday dinner.
I happen to be making it today… When he came through the kitchen on his way out to work and saw my setup, he exclaimed, “it’s happening!” He’s at work now and literally just texted as I’m writing this review, “I’m so excited for dinner.” This recipe never gets old. We enjoy it with jasmine rice and naan.
I make it as is with just a few tweaks for personal preference that doesn’t really stray from the recipe. I throw in more garlic because we love garlic, use prepared ginger in the tube because I’m lazy, and Greek yogurt instead of heavy cream because I use Greek yogurt in almost everything, especially instead of sour cream. Also I get tomato sauce in 8 oz cans from Aldi so it’s slightly more than the recipe calls for and I leave out the cilantro because I’m still lazy.
I’m a huge fan, love Beth to death, and cook pretty much exclusively with Budget Bytes recipes.
Loved the recipe! Will add it to our rotation. Hubby said – looks and tastes better than in Indian restaurant. The only tweak I made – in the very end I added 1 table spoon of flour. Thank you!
Just kinda meh in my opinion. Made this and felt like it needed something more… thicker sauce? Richer flavor? Spicier blend? It definitely wasn’t bad but I wasn’t blown away by it and probably won’t make it again.
Just curious if you happen to know how old your garam masala and turmeric were? If they were expired, or something you’ve had in the back of your shelf for awhile they will lose flavor. Garam Masala especially needs to be a very good brand and pretty fresh. Just a thought. Then again we all have different tastes. :)
What size Slow Cooker should I use. I have a 3qt. Frownie Face
That should work. I believe mine is a 5 qt. and it wasn’t even half way full. :)
What I make this with tofu instead of chicken?
Tofu would likely fall apart in a slow cooker. If you’re looking for something with similar flavors but vegetarian, check out my Easy Cauliflower and Chickpea Masala. :)
Holy crap. I will make this again and soon. I did add three homegrown tomatoes that were sitting in my kitchen and I like it. The extra work of frying the chicken thighs is worth it. It was wonderful.
Serve with an IPA to really enjoy the food coma.
I’ve made this twice and would recommend using real cream if you have it. The flavor was totally different when I subbed coconut milk, nothing like the classic tikka masala.
Good lord… I don’t think I’ve had Indian food this good that wasn’t take-out. I’m in shock. The chicken was delectable and fall-apart good, almost like pulled pork. And the spices… everything was just perfect. I’m in shock!!! Thank you, Beth!
I admit I messed with this. I’m not fond of people who review recipes and say “I replaced the chicken with styrofoam and it was awful.” I think BudgetBytes will forgive me.
We don’t keep heavy cream and in fact don’t use a lot of liquid dairy. I keep UHT milk in quarts and cups (sippy boxes). So milk it was. I deglazed the pan with Chardonnay instead of water because, well, it was in my hand. *grin* I used big dices of chicken breast instead of thighs because 1. that’s what I remember from British pubs when I lived in Yatling and 2. that’s what we had in the freezer. My subs put me down on fat (milk v. cream and breasts v. thighs) so I pitched in about 1 Tbsp of butter.
Despite my liberties the solid foundations of Beth’s recipe shone through. Nicely done and in our keeper file.
Made this tonight and it was amazing! Spiced to perfection. We decided to have it over roasted cauliflower but can’t wait to have the leftovers with rice!
Great recipe! Was out of Garam Masala & heavy cream so used Tikka masala and cashew paste instead.
I didn’t have garam masala, so along with the help of wikipedia I “made” my own. Even with my spice blend this dish was delicious! I’d highly reccomend it to anyone who’s willing to do a little bit of work, but boy does it pay off. I’ll be eating leftovers of this until it’s all gone!
Like other comments had mentioned, the end result was still a little “tomato-y” for my taste. Doubling the spices and adding a whole (13.77 oz) can of coconut cream did the trick! Otherwise, great recipe!
Am I going crazy or did this recipe change? I had made this recipe a ton over the years but haven’t in quite a while and it seems more complicated now with searing and more ingredients. Do you still have the original version somewhere? I remember it being so easy and delicious (although I am sure this is equally as delicious) :)
Hi Rachel, yes I did update this recipe because it wasn’t turning out well for a lot of people. You can see the changes that I made in the “recipe updates” section right above the recipe. There’s also a link in that section where you can download the original recipe, if you prefer that one. :)
Made it tonight and it was fabulous! I did add slightly more spices to the mix about halfway through cooking. This is a new staple in my house and a must for work lunches. Thank you!
This was an awesome recipe–super easy and flavorful! During quarantine, I’ve been craving takeout, and this hit the spot!
Mind blowing! Excellent dish.
Can you freeze half
Yes definitely!
Could you adjust this to be used in an Instant Pot?
Hi Monica! We haven’t but a few previous commenters have “I moved recently and don’t have a stove, but I was able to make this in my instant pot using the sauté setting and then slow cooking it. It worked out great, in fact I think the chicken turned out better than it has when Ive made this before, but maybe I just got better chicken this time. Our grocery store didn’t have garam masala this time so I made my own and it still tasted great!”
Wow, this recipe turned out delicious! I left out the cayenne because I’m feeding small children, but it was still flavorful and satisfying.
I came here to say that I’m living in Quito, Ecuador and I wasn’t able to find tomato sauce like you get in the states. They only had this thing called “tomato pasta” which was somewhere in between tomato sauce and tomato paste. So I added one jar (which is a little over half what this recipe calls for) and then added some water. It worked perfectly.
Thanks for the great recipe, Beth! It was just what we needed to “spice” up our meals routine. :)
Can’t go wrong with boneless skinless thighs. I did 3 hours on high and just eyeballed all the measurements and it turned out amazing! Totally worth the initial investment in spices, this is definitely a recipe you’ll want to make again!
Any suggestions for cooking on low for longer than 6 hours? This sounds delicious but usually I am gone for a period of 10 hours during the day for work so not conducive for 3-6 hour slow cooker time frame.
Chicken thighs don’t dry out easily so you may be able to stretch it to 8 hours, but honestly I don’t know how it would turn out if left longer than that. You might want to just save this recipe for a weekend or a day when you’ll be around, but still not wanting to tend to something cooking on the stove. :)
I’d suggest getting a slow cooker that has a “Warm” setting so you can set the actual cook time and then it just switches to keeping the food warm. I have the same issue of being away and buying one like this has really changed the taste of chicken dishes made in the slow cooker!
10 hours isn’t a big deal. You’ll want a little more fat and some more liquid. A tablespoon of butter and 1/2 cup of water should do. What I do is try it on a weekend when I can keep an eye on things and keep track of adding water.
Just made this for dinner and it was so good!! I will definitely be making it again but I’m planning to try it with coconut milk and yogurt next time instead of heavy cream. It wasn’t as creamy as the kind I’m used to having at our local Indian restaurant, but it was still better than I imagined for my first time cooking this dish, especially considering I rarely cook period. My boyfriend and I both loved it!
Wish I could give this a 4.5 star rating! Really good-tasting/warming (and complex as promised) slow cooker recipe. If I’d never had Canadian Tikka Masala (not that the local version is any more authentic) I’d be completely satisfied. My biggest hesitation in giving this five stars is that doesn’t taste like the Tikka Masala we get here. If you’re not expecting that (ie you’ve never had this dish before), it’s exceptionally delicious … I suspect that adding more spice, as suggested by multiple posts, would bring it closer to the mark. But still really good as is … especially if you have spice-averse eaters in your party <3
Yum, yum, yum! My husband and I loved it, my 5 year old tasted it and didn’t gag it up (that’s a win in our house). I used canned coconut cream for the cream, and doubled it, and thought it was perfect for my tastes. It wasn’t as creamy as my local Indian take out, but that was fine by me. Now I realize how much cream they actually use. Maybe I’ll get crazy with the cream another time, as I’m sure to make this again. My package of chicken thighs was only 1 lb, dang it! Next time I’ll check the weight better and double it for more leftovers. Thanks for another winner.
Hi, I really want to make this but I don’t have a slow cooker. Would this be easy to make in the oven? Any advice would be appreciated!
I’d suggest the stove top. A previous commenter said, “I marinated the chicken for about an hour in the same spice blend used and some cayenne pepper, added some fresh tumeric to the recipe, cooked it on low heat on a stove.”
This recipe has become a staple in our house hold after trying it on a whim. Living in Maine, chili and soups are well loved, but get old quickly during our long winter months. We were looking for a new, warming dish, and thanks to you, Beth, we got just what what we needed. In fact, my car is heating as I type this, so I can run to the store for chicken thighs.
Your recipes have never let us down, while being so kind to tour wallets. Thank you for keeping us well feed while feeling fiscally responsible.
All the very best to you.
Elizabeth
This makes us so happy to hear! Thanks for sharing Elizabeth.
This was so good. Even my young kids ate it! :) Definitely making this again. Thanks so much!
I made it as written, (but cooked it in my InstantPot).
Hooray! Great work Lauren!
Great! I made this tonight and it came out amazing. I did follow some suggestions from other reviews, and cut the chicken into cubes before sauteing for max flavor and also doubled the amount of spices. Doubling the spices I think was key, for it came out really tasty and I’m not sure it would have tasted as good with the original amount of spices. I also used a can of full fat coconut milk instead of heavy cream, that I added at the end. I paired this with jasmine rice and BudgetByte’s homemade naan and it was a great dinner! Can’t wait to make this a staple.
Oh! I also added some cubed sweet potato and carrots to the crock pot to give it some more substance, 5/5 would recommend!!
Love hearing how this all came together for you Bianca! Thank you for sharing.
I made it for a second time. Cut the chicken into chunks to make it better and more seasoned. Added extra spices for all the ingredients in the middle of cooking instead of having to cook it extra after adding more. You 100% need to almost double everything or else it will be bland & taste like tomatoes.
Great tips Andrew!
I’m not sure in what world it is okay to use 1/2 tsp of salt for 2 pounds of chicken.
You can always salt to your liking!
Thank you for this! I substituted the heavy cream for coconut milk and it was very very good! The chicken was so tender. I thought it needed a bit more heat but that’s pretty easy to add afterward. This was the first slow cooker recipe i’ve tried in a long time and i am wondering why i ever stopped using it.
Thanks so much for sharing Serena!
VERY BLAND. had to add more of all spices (probably close to doubling it directly into the gravy! Used the spices direct on the chicken when searing it.) once adding more spices, it tastes like Tikka Masala. Before, it was tomato sauce. Was bland af. Add another set of of the spices into the sauce before you start cooking it or maybe half way through. It will pay off! I used it at high for 3 hours. Not sure if that messed it up but it was so bland and nothing close to a restaurant dish. Needs much more spice! Also it’s not spicy AT ALL. Not even Mild or medium heat from Indian restaurants
Sorry to hear this Andy! Let me know if I can help you trouble shoot the recipe.
If I make this in my instant pit, do I need to include extra liquid?
Hi Courtney! We haven’t but a few previous commenters have “I moved recently and don’t have a stove, but I was able to make this in my instant pot using the saute setting and then slow cooking it. It worked out great, in fact I think the chicken turned out better than it has when Ive made this before, but maybe I just got better chicken this time. Our grocery store didn’t have garam masala this time so I made my own and it still tasted great!”
I’ve made this a bunch over the last couple of years–love the updates! And tonight I did it in the pressure cooker–sautéed the chicken in the insert, removed, then sautéed the onion, deglazed the bottom and mixed everything else (except cream) back in, hit the “chicken” button and it turned out great! Mixed in some peas and baby spinach, along with the cream, after I released the pressure. Delicious!
Great recipe super easy and very yummy. Please edit the method though as in step 4 u write “add 1/4 of water” The first time I made this I thought u must mean add one quart so I added 950mls of water instead of a quarter cup…. It was very watery… I noticed afterwards in the pictures it says 1/4 cup it explained a lot.
Thanks Linton! We’ll get that fixed.
Great recipe. 1 tip find a local Indian grocer for the spices. I read some reviews that skipped grama marsala because they didn’t have it. It is really expensive in the big name brand grocery stores if you can find it. At a Indian grocer you can get a huge bag of it for under $3.
Great tip Markus!
Really want to try this! I have some leftover tikka masala curry paste I need to use up, any ideas for incorporating it into this recipe? I thought maybe halve the spices and add a tablespoon of the paste?
Thanks!
I haven’t used tikka masala paste before, so I don’t know exactly what’s in it, but I’m guessing it’s a combo of the spices, garlic, and ginger. So you might be able to just use that in place of all three in this recipe! But it’s hard to say without tasting it or knowing what’s in it.
This was delicious! I used the saute function on my instant pot for the onions and chicken. Coconut milk in place of the heavy cream. And we threw in a little can of peas and a ton of steamed cauliflower at the end to stretch the delicious sauce as far as it would go.
Great idea!
I moved recently and don’t have a stove, but I was able to make this in my instant pot using the saute setting and then slow cooking it. It worked out great, in fact I think the chicken turned out better than it has when Ive made this before, but maybe I just got better chicken this time. Our grocery store didn’t have garam masala this time so I made my own and it still tasted great!
That’s great!
Good to know!
Great starter recipe! Definitely going to use yogurt next time and up the spices.
Tried this today and everyone loved it, even the toddler. l followed it exactly as written.
Toddler approved adds an extra star!
Any suggestion on more sauce? I love my sauce with this dish. Didn’t know if adding more canned tomatoes would throw off the spices or add too much acid to the dish?
Also the prep time for this dish is much longer than 15 minutes for me. Maybe almost an hour. Do cubed chicken breast in 3 bashes was about 20 minutes alone. Plus everything else that needed done. Could maybe decrease the time next time.
But overall- wonderful dish. Highly recommend
If you want to do more sauce, I would suggest doubling everything except the chicken. You’ll definitely get more spices stuck in the pan, but that’s okay. :)
I only have greek yogurt, will that work?
Maybe if it’s full fat Greek yogurt, but you still have to consider that Greek yogurt very tangy, whereas heavy cream is not, so it will change the flavor.
Thanks, Beth! Just tried this recipe after wanting to explore more Indian ingredients (a pretty decent coconut curry has been in my back pocket for a while, but I’ve been wanting to expand my knowledge and go-to recipes) and this was a great one to try. Great flavor! I’ll probably adjust it next time for some preferences, but this was fantastic!
This was very whatever. Was not creamy. Pretty bland actually. Stick to take out.
Very good! Tasted delicious! I added another quarter tsp of cayenne pepper and I could only slightly taste any spice. I think the cream really counteracts the spice of the initial amount. Next time, I’ll probably add a full tsp. I used chicken breasts instead of thighs just cuz that’s what we had on hand but it still tasted really good. It needed a few pinches of salt after to really boring out the taste and I added some extra garam masala since mine was just Walmart bought so I assumed it was low quality. Great basis for a delicious recipe though. Incrediblely easy to make, I’ll definitely be using this again! Thank you SO MUCH!
Delicious! I’m not one to often use a slow cooker, but this might change that.
Loved making this dish!! My first time with tikka masala, but have tried other curries before, love the heat and spice all the way! Adapted from slow cooker to my cast iron and worked out great!! Going to vary up the proteins and veggies to try them out. Thank you!!
I used to think of making curry from scratch as super hard and intimidating. This recipie has changed my mind, it was so easy and so delicious! This will be a regular meal in our house!
This was a wonderful dish! I used chicken breast that I cut into large chunks and followed the recipe. For the spices I used the measurements in the recipe with a little more garam masala as suggested until I was satisfied with how the mixture smelled. I will definitely be making this recipe again!
Could be slightly more flavorful, but I did enjoy it! And very easy to make.
Hello Beth! I’d just purchased garam masala, but hadn’t tried a recipe with it yet. I love my crock pot. So I was delighted when I found your receipe for chicken tikka masala. So glad to report, it was a big hit!! THANKS!!!
Made this for dinner and meal prep, turned out really well (at least for the first time, we will see how it holds up for meal prep). I made the mistake of not making proper garam masala, but if you have the rest of the spices you can fudge it a little bit. Also used that tubed fresh ginger to make it easier. I will definitely get or make proper garam masala for the next time I make this though!
Seriously, this appears to be a great budget way to make and eat indian food. I will be trying the saag and naan recipies next to complete the perfect trifecta, but I just bought some naan at the store for this go around.
Seriously so good! I’ve made this recipe several times and it always hits the spot. I substituted the heavy cream for the whole coconut milk and it worked great.
I also make this in the instant pot I follow the recipe exactly just instead of 3 hours in the slow cooker I do 25 minutes on high pressure and 10 minutes natural release and then quick release. The chicken just falls apart, I love it!
This recipe is going to my favorites. Budget and flavor wrapped in one. Spice was a simmer, I will probably up the spicy level next time but other than that no complaints. Great recipe!
Delicious! I made this in my instant pot and it turned out great! My entire family loved it! Thank you!
How long did you cook it for in the IP?
I’m not a fan of plain white rice, so how much sauce should I make to coat the rice as well as the chicken? Would doubling the sauce be enough, or would tripling it be better?
I feel like if I had mixed the rice on that plate into the chicken and sauce it would have coated it completely, but I suppose you could double the sauce just to be safe.
Spicy and delicious! Served with brown rice and steamed broccoli. Thanks for a great recipe!
This dish was amazing. We followed all the directions and used every ingredient and it came out delicious. I will define making this dish more often.
Finally tried this a few weeks ago and so glad I did. Delicious! Followed the recipe to a T and it came out great. I was lazy and didn’t trim the chicken thighs like I normally do, and it didn’t matter. I also froze the leftovers in bags and they have reheated perfectly, with no loss of flavor. It’s now part of my freezer cooking session—the first dish I get going in the crockpot while I make other things on the stove. It’s the easiest one to make!
This recipe is better than sex. Literally. My husband and I were having adult fun when the scent of the tikka masala wafted up to the bedroom…we decided we were more interested in dinner than other activities. We increased the heat a bit since we like our food spicy, but overall the base recipe is really wonderful. This is not the first time we have made it and it certainly will not be the last!
Sounds so good. I want to make this but will need to do it the conventional stovetop way since I need to make for a huge crowd of 24-36. How long would I need to cook this on the stove?
Not long. After browning the chicken I would add the rest of the ingredients (minus the cream) and let it simmer for about 20 minutes, then stir in the cream and serve. You can check out this vegetarian version of the same recipe that I cooked on the stove top: Cauliflower and Chickpea Masala to see the technique.
Has anyone adapted this recipe for the Instant Pot? If so, could you please share your success story?
Thanks!
The Instant Pot has a slow cooker feature, no need to adapt!
I think it needs more flavor so next time I’d probably double or triple the spices. It looked delicious but was a bit tasteless
This was delicious and not that much work (even with the stove top steps for the chicken and onions). This will be a regular for me! It smelled amazing as it cooked. I doubled the recipe and doubled up on all of the spices except for the cayenne. I had to leave out a couple of spices because I was out (turmeric and ginger), and I used regular paprika instead of smoked. Even with those adjustments, it was still delicious and tasted so much like the dish at my favorite restaurant. Thank you so much for this affordable, relatively easy, and very tasty recipe!
i am trying to eat gluten and dairy free. i hope that I can use some of your recipes. thanks
Really nice recipe! Thank you Beth! I used homemade passata and this recipe gives a great batch of sauce. It is perfect on rice. Lots of flavors!
Beth, I love how you make this dish accessible to the typical household. I am blessed to live in an area with dozens of Indian grocery stores and authentic Indian restaurants. Tikki Masala is one of my favorites. I prefer a spicier version of the recipe though. Try adding 6 to 10 chopped thai peppers. (emoji with fire coming off the head)
General question for slow cooking — how do I adjust the cooking time if I double the recipe?
I think you should be fine with the original cook times. Best bet is to check the internal temperature of the chicken.
I have been cooking recipes from budget bytes for several years and many of our family favorites are from here. This recipe motivated me to post my first review bc 1) I love tikka masala and 2) I love how easy this recipe is and 3) this recipe has so much flavor! If you love tikka masala you need this recipe in your life. I cooked it exactly as directed (seriously, don’t skip the skillet) but added coconut milk instead of heavy cream bc it was already in my pantry. The whole family loved it. For a family of 3 we all had 2nds (and some 3rds) we had barely one serving for leftover lunches. This was amazing the next day too (I should have doubled the recipe). Thanks as always for doing what you do. We love your blog and all it’s recipes. You are truly gifted!
Thank you, Sue! I’m so glad you and your family enjoyed it so much. :)
Made this today, and another flavor packed, easy recipe from Beth. I added packaged samosas and a jar of chutney from Trader Joe’s and had a delicious full Indian meal at home for a fraction of the cost.
Hi Beth, love your site. It’s so budget friendly and creative. could you add more insta pot recipes? i’ve been trying ones in some cook books and they did not turn out right. but i do trust your recipe testing! thanks
Hi Lee, I’ve actually decided not to do more Instant Pot recipes because I don’t feel like it’s an affordable or essential appliance. I feel like I would recommend someone buying a slow cooker and/or a rice cooker before investing in an Instant Pot. While it is a fun and versatile appliance, it’s definitely more of a luxury or convenience item. I’m sorry to disappoint! I do however suggest checking out hippressurecooking.com They have done an extensive amount of testing and research on cooking with the IP and I trust their recipes and advice. :)
superb recipe. i used a little more of the spices since i didnt have enough, and i also used some more turmeric. Tasted extremely good. Oh, also I didnt use a slow cooker. I just had a pot on the stove and kept it on low for an hour. Turned out great.
Made this for dinner tonight and it was tasty! The best part about it was I had almost every ingredient in my pantry already. Had some fresh steamed broccoli on the side.
Made this tonight and it was terrific! Really tasty and not hard to put together. I actually didn’t make it in the slow cooker (forgot about doing it earlier in the day!) but it turned out just fine. Took about 30 min.
Only differences I made: cooked the chicken all the way through (about 4 min per side instead of 3) and adding a little water to pan first to deglaze before adding onions.
Simmered the sauce for about 10 min, added the cream, then put chicken back in. So good! Served with basmati rice and cauliflower. The sauce was really nice on cauliflower.
How would you adjust this for an Instant Pot? I made it as written with chicken breast chunks and had way too much sauce. It tastes amazing, but I hate to have so much sauce leftover.
I’m not sure how easy this one would be to translate to the IP because you need at least one cup of liquid for the IP to generate enough steam pressure to cook correctly.
Thank you for updating this one! It didn’t taste too tomato-y at all, and I finally have a recipe for Indian food I can make at home (yay!) I left out the cayenne because I don’t like too much heat, and there was just enough spice from the garam masala to make it perfect for me. My husband was also a huge fan, so this one will likely be making it into the semi-regular rotation at our house. :)
One note on the recipe, though, as I think there may be an error: In the list of ingredients, it says 15 ounces of tomato sauce, but under the photo for that step it says to add in 8 ounces of tomato sauce. I had a minor “oh no!” moment after adding the 15 ounces and thinking I may have accidentally used double what I was meant to. That turned out not to be the case, though, and the dish was great. Thanks again!
Thank you! Fixing right now!!
We just tried the updated version last night with sauteed squash and broccoli. IT WAS A HIT! Everyone had seconds, some even had thirds. Soo much better!
Yay! Thank you!!
I just made the updated recipe today, and the outcome was wonderful – made the house smell amazing! I paired it with farro for dinner. After it was finished cooking, I removed the chicken and blended the onion into the tomato sauce to create a smoother sauce.
I used only 3-4 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream (just my taste level) and eyeballed 8oz of some basic (Ragu type), tomato sauce, for 1.7lbs of chicken thighs. I used regular paprika instead of smoked, but next time I’ll try the latter! As is usual for slow cooker dishes, some salt was needed at the end to brighten it all up.
Thanks so much for the update!
This recipe is a hands-down success for us. I proceeded with caution based on some of the reviews, knowing to pay attention to the spices–critical in any at-home Indian cooking! My family of 6 (2 adults, 4 littles) loves Indian food and would happily have takeout as often as we could manage…Alas! This keeps it in the budget, eh? I followed measurements and directions for the most part, adding about 2T tomato paste and some water to stretch the sauce a bit. I browned nearly 2 lb trimmed chicken thighs in the spices, which included fresh, wonderful Garam Masala. Don’t skimp on that, nor the smoked paprika. I did fail to add the cream at the end–would’ve been milk for us, anyway–and we didn’t miss it, though I’m sure it would’ve been a heavenly addition. Plain basmati rice, green beans, and naan rounded it out. I’ve cooked countless mediocre Indian meals at home; this wasn’t one of them. What I LOVE is that this didn’t take me forever and a day. Thanks, Beth!
I adapted this for the instant pot/ pressure cooker and it worked beautifully! I also made a couple substitutions:
– 1 part cumin+1/4 part all spice mix instead of garam masala
– coconut milk instead of cream
Follow instructions as written, add everything to your pressure cooker, put on high pressure (or stew setting) for 15 minutes, release pressure manually, shred chicken, put on saute to reduce sauce to your preference.
I will say this is a verrry mild recipe (not that I have had tons of tikka masala to compare to, so maybe this is spot on!). The flavors are delicious, but once i served on rice, I wished I had more sauce and more spice. I will probably double the sauce to chicken ratio next time and maybe increase the spice/tomato. Over all this was very easy and delicious!
The garam masala is such a big part of this dish’s flavour, so I’m not surprised that your version with the substitution was pretty mild.
Thank you for the great instant pot conversion though! :)
I didnt have the garam masala and wasnt sure if i wanted to invest on it. I upped the spices a bit to add a bit more spice to it and it was perfect. It shredded so easily! Delicious. This is gonna be a regular one.
I made this as a lunch meal prep this week. The new spice blend takes the this version up a level from the original, which I have made many times. I did skip the browning of the chicken and onions because for me the slow cooker is a way to bypass a lot of the fuss of making a meal. I prefer the set it and forget it method, so I’m willing to compromise on any extra flavor from the browning. I also find that a lot of the flavor from the spices gets “cooked out” in the slow cooker, so I just add more to taste at the end.
A trick I learned from an Indian friend of mine the first time I tried to make the real thing: Tikka is basically just tandoori with ghee/cream.
If you don’t have all the spices listed and don’t want to drop a lot of money if you don’t think you’ll use them a lot just use a packet of pre-mixed tandoori spices. It’s pretty much the same thing.
This recipe sounds absolutely delicious. Got to give it a try.
Being a fan of Indian food, I also got my hands on this heat and eat version of chicken tikka masala. We all have those lazy/tiring days when we want comfort food without having to spend an hour in the kitchen. This entree came to my rescue. Thought I’d share: https://sukhis.com/product/chicken-tikka-masala-4/
Made this last night for dinner. Hubby and I LOVED it! We used cilantro lime rice instead of plain white rice + cilantro, and it was perfect. Plenty of leftovers, too — we even froze some for a future meal. We basically love all of your recipes. Thanks for giving us something new and different to add to the rotation!
Funny you should post this right now, as I was craving something like Tikka Masala. I was also a little underwhelmed with the previous recipe, so I’m quite excited about trying this new one.
I have a question though: I dredged my chicken pieces in the spice blend, so they got as coated as they could be. However, I have quite a bit of spice blend left. I know you won’t see this in time for my current batch (I just put it all in the slow cooker) but in the future, should we dump any remaining spice blend in? If so, that might be good to mention. Otherwise, I love your recipes and your site. Thanks for all you do!
Yes, your intuition is good. :) I’d probably dump those extra spices in, too.
Is the amount of chicken still correct? It was 2lbs of bone-in chicken thighs and now it’s 2lbs boneless? Seems like alot of chicken by comparison and more than is shown in the pictures.
Yep, my chicken (shown in the photos) was just slightly under 2 lbs. You can do either bone-in or bonless, it will just be more saucy with the bone-in (after removing the bones, of course).
I am not sure what the deal is with the other commenters and the flavors, but the flavors on this revised version are definitely ON. It tasted exactly like I would expect tikka masala to taste, except I will say that there wasn’t nearly enough sauce to go around. Mine was barely enough to cover the chicken with just 8 oz of tomato sauce, as the recipe calls for.
If there is a way to double the sauce (or triple, honestly) without affecting the taste, it would be a 5-star recipe to me.
I personally don’t like slow cooker recipes that require cooking something beforehand, but that is not contributing to my review score, more just a preference.
OMG, I just realized there was a typo in the recipe!! It was a 15oz. can of tomato sauce. Thank you SO MUCH for posting your comment. I may not have noticed otherwise. 🤦♀️
I am so glad you revamped this!! I have eyed it for years, debating making it. On one hand, I trust your food judgement and love my slow cooker. On the other hand, all these bad comments made me fearful it was a bad bet (but again, I trust your food judgement so I continued to think about making it anyway and saying to hell with the haters haha).
Putting this on the grocery list to make this week. :) I’ll comment with the results!
I cannot believe you just posted this! I’ve been craving Tikka Masala for weeks but all the recipes had too many ingredients. Finally thought of your blog yesterday, was lucky enough that you had a recipe, and printed it for dinner tomorrow. Then today you post an even better recipe?! Too great. Thanks for this, very excited to try it.
Dear Beth, I love your recipes. I haven’t tried this one but I have seen the instructions and read some comments, and I know it doesn’t taste “right” because the spices are added all together. Indian cuisine is very hard and so much of the flavor depends on how and when the spices are used. I would have used an initial tadka wiith cumin seeds (blooming cumin seeds in hot oil) at least. Also garam masala is used more of an enhancement spice than a foundational spice, because on its own it is very powerful.
She changed the recipe. The comments were from the original recipe she posted. So disregard them. :)
Could you substitute chickpeas in this recipe?
I suppose you could, but you might want to try my one of my fast stove top versions instead. They’re a little better and formulated for use with chickpeas: Curried Chickpeas with Spinach or Quick Curried Chickpeas. THey’re literally so fast that you can make it in the time it would take just to add the stuff to the slow cooker, so there is no advantage to using a cooker for those recipes.
I’m so sorry but I have to agree with those who rated this fairly low……at first tasting, it tasted very much like tomato soup (Campbell’s). So I added salt and more garam masala. It wasn’t ‘awful’ but it also wasn’t fabulous. It really doesn’t taste much like any tikka I”ve had before. I”m afraid I won’t be doing this one again, I know I can do much better following another recipe. So sorry! I will say, my kids did still eat and they’re taking the leftovers for lunch. I made homemade naan to go with it, so I think that helped a wee bit.
This is the first recipe I tried off of thiz site and I loved it! I marinated the chicken for about an hour in the same spice blend used and some cayenne pepper, added some fresh tumeric to the recipe, cooked it on low heat on a stove top (I don’t own a slow cooker) and used half the alloted tomato sauce and it still came out divine!
I love this and have made it before just a couple times. Super easy! I wonder if sour cream would work, since I find that I have a lot on hand?
Yes, that would probably taste quite good. A little different, since it has a different flavor, but you’ll still get that creamy-tangy element.
I tried this in an instant pot, but before it came up to pressure it stopped with a burn warning, and sure enough some of the sauce was burnt on the bottom of the pot. From what I could find, it seems like instant pots don’t work so well with nothing but tomato sauce since there isn’t enough moisture to build up enough steam for the pressure. How’d you get it to work in yours without burning?
I did some reading on this, and it looks like my mistake was mixing everything together in the instant pot. I just did that without even thinking about it, and I didn’t really notice in your directions the ingredients were decidedly not mixed. Apparently there’s not enough moisture in tomato sauces to create steam and if it’s in contact with the bottom of the pot it burns easily. Looks like any recipe that uses tomato sauce recommends pouring it on top of all the other ingredients and not stirring it.
Did you add extra liquid to the bottom of yours? Or did the liquid released from the chicken and onions suffice?
Anyway, if any other Instant Pot newbies like myself come into this recipe and wonder why their attempt burned, that’s likely why. Don’t mix thick tomato sauces in an instant pot if you’re pressure cooking, just pour them on top.
I didn’t add any extra water to my pot, but I’ve heard that the newer models of the IP have a “burn” warning that the older models do not have. I wonder if I would have gotten that warning due to low moisture in the pot, had I had a newer machine.
It looks like older models used a different warning, Overheat (displayed as Ovrht, I think?) but they were also a bit less touchy when it came to displaying it. The redesign in the newer models probably made them a bit more sensitive.
For this attempt the recipe still came out fine, I just dumped the contents into a large pot and cooked it the old fashioned way, but I want to give this another shot the next time I get a craving for Tikka Masala. What I’ll probably do is layer the ingredients properly without mixing, but also add a splash of water to the very bottom to be safe. I can simmer it for a bit in saute mode at the end to reduce if it comes out too thin.
I think I’m going to try to rework this recipe as well. People seem to get mixed results.
We have made this a couple times now, and it is a hit every time! We did end up adding more garam masala every time, but not a ton. Love how easy it is, and it tastes great!
I’m not sure what Matthew made, becuase my family LOVED this recipe. De-Lish!
I completely agree with Rikki and wish I had read her comment before I wasted my time and money on this.
Tastes disgusting made exactly as described and literally made me sick.
I think you’ve misused the word literally. Maybe you don’t like Indian food?
It tastes absolutely nothing like genuine indian food. I had the same experience as Matthew. Bland, tasteless, and I had to throw it out, because I couldn’t eat more than a couple bites. Which is a shame, because chicken tikka masala is my favorite food. I should have known this wouldn’t taste anything like the genuine product since it uses around a quarter of the necessary spices. More fool am I.
I’ve made a bunch of Beth’s recipes and usually they’re awesome, but this one was truly awful. It was little more than bland tomato sauce on rice that tasted nothing like Tikka Masala, plus the taste/smell it did have made me feel sick to my stomach! I’m still trying to get it out of my home. :'(
Stumbled on this site while looking how to make more use of our Wisconsin Foundry cookers. Absolutely sold without having used a single recipe.
Can milk be used instead of cream or half and half? I end up wasting so much when I buy cream for a recipe.
No, unfortunately it won’t be creamy enough. You can use yogurt, though.
Thanks, that worked great!
Instead of cream, I used the same amount of non-fat Greek yogurt I already had on hand (didn’t have cream), and added in 2 tsp each of turmeric and cumin since I like those spices. Came out really good, thank you!
If you have the time, would you recommend marinating the chicken with the spices and ginger for a few hours/overnight, or would that not really change much?
I think that would be beneficial.
Which buttons should I push to cook this in the instant pot? I’m new to it and don’t always know how long. Thanks!
I would follow the instructions given in the manual for boneless chicken breasts.
does this freeze well?
This should freeze very well.
Best slow cooker recipe I ever made! I just substituted regular cream with coconut cream – delicious! Thanks for sharing!
Has anyone experimented with non-dairy “milk” in this recipe? I am tempted to use coconut milk, but I don’t want to give it to much of a Thai twist. Would almond or soy milk work?
What do you think about the idea of adding fresh spinach towards the end of cooking? I realize this wouldn’t be authentic tikka masala but I’ve been trying to eat more veggies and this seems like an especially inoffensive way to do so :)
I’m all about adding spinach to things, so it’s worth a shot!
Alert alert! This was amazing! I added half a bag of fresh spinach AND some frozen peas to just really maximize the veggie factor. I wanted it a little sweeter so I added in some sweetened coconut (kinda weird I know but what I had lol) and it’s really yummy! Thanks for another great recipe!
Yay! Thanks for the update, too! :D
Another great way to up the veggie count is serve it with riced cauliflower instead of rice. It’s wonderful!!!
Everything I’ve made for my family from your site has been an absolute win. Time saving AND delicious? Can it be? YES and I want to thank you for taking the time to create and share these recipes with the world. But the Tikka Masala is so easy and tasty that even my finicky toddler loves it.
I made this yesterday and i love the flavor, but my sauce was VERY runny. Any suggestions on how to thicken this up like you see in traditional curry? I also used Coconut Milk instead of cream, tasted great!
Hmm, I would try letting it simmer (high setting on the slow cooker) without the lid for 10 minutes or so before adding the coconut milk?
I was searching your site for instant pot-friendly recipes and came upon this so I gave it a go, since I had everything I needed. I used almost two tbsp of garam masala and, following some comments, I reduced the tomato sauce to about 23 oz. Otherwise, I followed the recipe, and used the poultry setting on my ip (I pressed “more” and set it for 30 min, mainly because my chicken thighs were partly frozen. Everything turned out perfectly. The chicken fell off the bone and shredded easily, and the sauce was tasty over jasmine rice (also made in my ip). I also followed (sort of) another commenter’s recommendation: instead of warming the garam masala, which can be fiddly and easy to burn, I used the sauté feature to warm the tomato sauce with the garam masala added; it warmed it up nicely while I diced the onion.
This is a great recipe for bone-in chicken thigh, which I buy because they’re cheap but hate using because trimming them raw is a pain. So this will be added to my regular rotation!
Is there a reason you used chicken thighs instead of boneless breasts? What do you think about substituting?
I really like thighs because the meat stays nice and juicy and has more flavor. Breasts can sometimes dry out because they don’t have much fat, so that’s the only trouble you might run into.
I couldn’t find garam masala anywhere around me so I used 2tsp cumin and added in half a can of full-fat coconut milk instead of the half and half. It still came out amazing!
Hi Beth! I’m very excited to try this out in my electric pressure cooker. May I ask — did you do a quick release at the end of the 45 minutes, or a natural pressure release. Thanks!
You could do a quick release with this. :)
This was awful! Terribly bland and I was so disappointed. It was very easy to make though. It seemed to taste mildly palatable after I added some sour cream and a lot of garlic salt
OMG eating this right now and it is So Good!!! Not a fan of rice and had way too many carbs this week to justify the naan so I combined it with your spiced chick peas recipe and it is amazing…thanks!!!
I accidentally added the half and half with the sauce at the beginning. Will it ruin if it’s cooked on high for 4 hrs?
It might curdle and or it could scorch around the edges. :(
I read some of the comments warning that the recipe was bland so I sauteed my onions and garlic before adding them, added some extra garam masala and deglazed with wine. Still turned out a bit bland for my tastes, but perhaps there’s just no such thing as convenience Indian food! It was definitely not bad, though, and the guys I fed lapped it up.
I just made this last night. It smelled really good when cooking, but the 2 cans of tomato was too much, it came out really watery, so I had to add flour to thicken it. Also, the 1 TBspoon of garam masala isn’t enough. You need way more! Like 3-4 TBspoons. There’s A LOT that needed to be doctored up. Salt. Lots of salt. The garam masala I have doesn’t have any salt, and nothing in this recipe said anything about salt. Also marinade the chicken in the spices and garlic/ginger for a few hours so the chicken isn’t bland. I’ll do this next time, because the chicken itself turned out tasteless.
This recipe looks beautiful, but lacks flavor in all areas.
Made this and followed the recipe pretty carefully, and this pretty much tastes nothing like Chicken Tikka Masala. It tastes like spiced up tomato juice on rice. I would go for a more authentic recipe next time – or at least one that uses yogurt.
I agree! I had to add ALOT of extra seasoning, salt and garlic to mine, and finally got it to taste like Tikka Masala. The recipe as is is very bland =(
Delicious! Can this be made in a pressure cooker? Thank you!
Nevermind! Just reread the directions and answered my own question. Can’t wait to try it tonight!
Is there anything I could use instead of cream? Unfortunately my digestive system doesn’t handle cream well.
Full fat coconut milk would also be really good in this. :)
I just made this tonight with my instant pot on slow cooker mode low for 8 hrs. I used skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cause that’s what I had. Really good! I will be making this again. I often make your recipes but this is my first time commenting. Thanks!!!
This was so tasty! I modified slightly and it was still delicious, also has been great re-heated in microwave. These were my subs;
-I can of strained tomatoes and one can of fire roasted tomatoes + 2tbs tomato paste (instead of the 2 cans of sauce)
-2 tbs of garam masala instead of one
-1 tbs of turmeric added
-used full fat coconut milk instead of cream
-served over steamed broccoli and basmati rice
Was so tasty, will for sure make again!
What would the cook time difference be for using chicken breasts w/out the bone?
It should be about the same for this method.
This was very bland and did not taste right. Very different from any restaurant chicken tikka masala I’ve ever had. I used high quality ingredients and followed the recipe exactly.
I accidentally put the half and half in so it’ll be in there during the slow cooking for 4 hours! Did I just ruin the dish? Any advice? 😖
I’m curious as to how your dish turned out. I haven’t added the cream before I should have, but others may be curious too
Perfect weeknight recipe for our family! When I made this for the first time 2 weeks ago, my 12 year old called it “magical” and my very picky 9 year old called it “pretty good”, so that puts it into regular rotation in our house.
I just assembled it again in the slow cooker for tonight’s dinner, and I’m looking forward to having something delicious waiting for us when we get home this evening.
This was very good, but a bit sweet for me–probably the tomato sauce I bought. I added some chili powder to combat the sweetness, and it was great.
I’m a newby to the IP. Did you set it on manual for 45 minutes? Thank you!
I actually used the “meat/stew” button and adjusted to “more” as the instruction booklet notes that setting for “bone stripping effect”. :) I just went back and looked at it, though, and noticed that there is a “poultry” button and the booklet says that its there because poultry is easier to cook than red meat. Oops! :)
Thank you, Beth!
Hello Beth!
Am I able to use chicken drumsticks instead of thighs?
Thank you!
You could, but there usually isn’t quite as much meat on the drumsticks, so just take that into consideration. :)
I was so looking forward to eating this for dinner, with all of the raving reviews, and I LOVE Chicken Tikka Masala – this didn’t taste anything like what you get in an Indian restaurant, tho… The sauce was too thin, and the flavor is very bland and “off” – I’m sad because I do not know how to rescue it :(
My opinion is, you get something closer to the restaurant flavor by using coconut milk instead of other creams, you use very high quality garam masala (must be fresh), and you add some kind of chili (thinly diced jalapeños could work).
This was nice recipe made just as set forth, wasn’t spicy enough for my taste, but overall a pretty good recipe.
This was as good as the Indian restaurant. I can’t wait to make it again!
I made this yesterday. Smelled & tasted fantastic. Thank you!
Just a note. 1 15zz can & 1 8z can of tomato sauce will probably be good if, like me, you don’t want the sauce too thin.
This was SUCH a great cold weather comfort food!
Pro tip: my local whole foods has garam masala in a large glass jar and you can buy a little baggie w/ just enough for the recipe.
That’s exactly what I used! :D It’s very potent and delicious.
This dish was a HUGE success! We had 1 serving of left overs and I’m pretty sure there was a fight between the husband and the teenager about who got to finish it off 😜
This was a family favorite!! Kids couldn’t get enough of it! I used coconut milk instead of half/half and added some frozen peas at the end. This will definitely be added to our meal rotation. Beth, I can’t say enough about your site. Your recipes are healthy and delicious, I have yet to be disappointed. You are my “go to” when planning meals for the week (or any time).
This turned out amazing! I couldn’t find garam masala so I bought a can of pre made Indian simmering sauce and subbed that for for a tomato sauce. I’ll definitely be adding this to the rotation.
Hi! I want to try this recipe but don’t have a slow cooker. How would I make this on the stove? (If that’s even possible)
Yes, you can just combine the ingredients in a pot and let it simmer on low until the chicken is tender enough to shred. :)
This tasted amazing and the kitchen smelled great while it was cooking. Made some of your naan to go with it – perfect!!
:/ I used 2 15 oz cans of Contadina tomato sauce with Italian herbs and my sauce was far too thin. Next time, I think I will cut the sauce by 25% or so and add some tomato paste. I might want to increase the spices as well. I have fairly new garam masala from Penzey’s, but I think the sauce could have used a bit more oomph.
For those with lactose intolerance, coconut milk works fine as a replacement for cream.
This was easy, tasty, and a hit with the fam! Definitely going into our rotation… I used boneless chicken thighs though instead of bone-in, and added the cream by mistake into the crock pot, but it still came out excellent! I feel fortunate to live very close to a large Indian market where I bought the garam masala… this was not easy to find elsewhere.
Great recipe, I added 3 diced jalapenos as well as some cumin and turmeric to spice it up a bit. Would definitely make again.
Can’t wait to try this tonight. I am using up leftover turkey.
how did it turn out
Winner Winner Cbicken Dinner! (ha!) Made this today and we LOVED it! It may be inauthentic (and good for you for owning that), but it’s delicious, cheap, easy to make, and different. I love that it is tomato sauce, which is really good for you, but it isn’t too acidic or “tomato-y.” We are definitely putting this on rotation for a regular go-to dish.
We made this last week in the slow cooker and it was AMAZING!!! I don’t keep cream on hand so when we used it each night I’d reheat it in the skillet and add a bit of cream cheese to it as well as a bit more garam masala and ginger. It also goes really well over pasta (for me everything goes really well over pasta), and I think you could make some kind of pizza out of it (or maybe Naan pizzas).
I’ve made a few Moroccan dishes which call for cinnamon and did not like them at all. Decided to try this since I didn’t think the cinnamon would be too pronounced in the garam masala, but unfortunately to me it is. Couldn’t eat more than a couple bites :( I love how easy the recipe was to make, though. Going to try your chicken and peppers recipe. Seems more to my tastes.
Do you use the Manual or Meat setting on the IP? Does 45 minutes include the time it takes for the IP to come to pressure or is it what it seems – the amount of time programmed? I cook tons of stuff in my IP – I really hate cooking and using my IP has made “cooking” fun again. SOOOOO glad you got one as I’ve been trying to convert some of your recipes to the IP…Lentil Bolognese is fabulous in the IP, by the way.
I just used the meat setting and selected “more” because the manual said that gives the fall off the bone effect. But in the recipe booklet that it comes with, the chart said that cut up chicken on the bone only needs 10-15 minutes. I did the longer option anyway because I figured it couldn’t hurt. :P The “more” setting set the timer to 45 minutes, which I assume was 45 minutes after it came up to pressure. It came up to pressure really fast, though.
This sounds absolutely divine! Chicken Tikka Masala is one of our favorite dishes as the local Indian restaurant. To come home a house smelling of it, hot and ready for dinner?! Yes, please!
This was so very good and simple! My husband has already requested a repeat. Also, I’m getting an Instant Pot 7-1 for Christmas! Excited! I’d love to hear what you do with the yogurt function.
A little tip for this kind of dishes when you’re using a stovepot cooker: Preheat, use a little oil, and actually fry the garam massala for a little while (30-60 seconds) before adding all the other ingredients and covering it.
Aside from it smelling crazy, it’ll also really revive the massala if you don’t have freshly made.
Thanks for the recipe! I used the slow cooker and it came out great. When I removed the chicken after cooking, I noticed the onions were still mostly intact so I used an immersion blender to make the sauce silky smooth before adding the chicken back in.
I love cooking chicken in the slow cooker, and this chicken looks amazing! I usually cook the chicken with the skin on. Then, I chill the chicken overnight so I can skim off the fat. This looks so much more convenient though.
No Curry? Would I use Curry in replacement of the ” garam masala”? I don’t have it in front of me, but I recall curry in chicken tikka?
“Curry” is not a spice, it is a mixture of spices. Garam masala is the main ingredient in curry powder. I know this isn’t intended to be super legit authentic but authentic Indian recipes usually call for garam masala and a mix of other signature spices, not curry powder.
Thanks Nicole.
Just looked up Curry, it basically the same thing. Except the Garam has Nutmeg and Cinnamon with it. Thanks again.
It was really an easy cooking according to your step by step procedure, thanks, I tried it and it worked to an excellent taste. To me it was bit tangy may be due to tomato sauce anyway I liked it.
I had to add a bit of sugar and some extra Garam Masala to mine as I also experienced a but of a tangy taste but once that was mixed in, it tasted delicious!
How different does this recipe taste from the (Not) Butter Chicken recipe? It has similar ingredients. I’m not complaining, I LOVE the butter chicken. Just curious. Also curious if the butter chicken recipe would work in the slow cooker if I followed these instructions to prepare it….
I think the butter chicken would work in the slow cooker, but you wouldn’t get the browning action on the chicken with the butter in the first step. :) I find that this (the tikka masala) was a little sweeter and the sauce had a bit more depth (hard to explain), probably from the caramelized sugars in the slow cooked tomato sauce. Also, the cream at the end of this recipe is more rich than the yogurt stirred into the butter chicken.
Thanks for the reply, I’m excited to try them both this way!
Mmmmmmmmm!!!! My mouth is watering right now!!!! :-)
If I don’t have tomato sauce on hand do you think passata would work? If I used your recommendation and added some tomato paste?
I’ve never used passata before, but from what I understand it’s pureed tomatoes, correct? I would probably add a tablespoon or two of tomato paste to that to thicken it just a bit and you may end up needing to add salt at the end if the passata doesn’t have any. :)
Do you think the “low” temp for an stove top pressure cooker would work?
for a* stove top
I’ve never used a stove top pressure cooker, so I’m not sure. :(
Oh, this sounds so yummy! I don’t eat meat so I’m very tempted to try this with tofu or a meat substitute :)
I LOVE cauliflower in Indian dishes. I wonder if that would work… :)
It might fall apart if cooked the entire time in the slow cooker. Perhaps if you add it closer to the end? Or roast it separately and stir it in after it cooks.
I was thinking maybe chickpeas to make a vegetarian version. I wonder if that would work well or not.
Yep, I’m sure it would be great. It would be a lot like my Quick Curried Chickpeas. :)
Could I use chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs?
Yes, but it won’t be quite as tender. Chicken thighs stay wonderfully moist and tender.
I am so glad to see how fast the instant pot is going to be! I heard about them from your post the other day and am going to get on around Christmas time=) So nice to know you will be posting recipes using yours. Excited to learn all I can before purchasing one.
Thanks for all the yummy recipes!
Sarah
YUM! I’ve been buying the Tikka Masala jarred simmer sauce from my local Kroger, but I’ve been wanting to make this from scratch. Going to try the coconut milk substitution and “try” to make your homemade Naan as well.
How would you modify the crock pot recipe if you used boneless chicken thighs?
I’d probably just cook it the same. It may cook faster than 4 hours on high or eight on low, but it won’t hurt if it gets a little extra time in the pot.
I used boneless thighs and cooked for 8 hours on low; dish came out great.
Oh, oops! I used boneless, as well. Must not have read it straight. Cooked it for 8 hours and it was just fine. YUMMMM!!
I like your site and recipes but jeez, next time you “crave the aromatic spices of Indian food” maybe try putting some whole spices in there. :)
I have a slow cooker recipe for this too that is similar but it uses yogurt instead of cream. Less expensive since you made your own?
Yep, except I used the last of my yogurt to make the naan that I ate with it. Hahaha :)
Can you link me to the yogurt alternative ? And/Or would using coconut milk work? I am trying to stay away from heavy dairy
Doesn’t matter to me if it’s a bit inauthentic, I love this set-and-forget slow cooker method :) Definitely going to be making this recipe in the near future!
WOW, that looks delicious! Hopefully I can find garam masala at the grocery store, because I DEFINITELY want to try this one.
I love that you mentioned that you can make this in your instant pot! We purchased one during s previous sale and I’m still trying to come up with a good list of recipes to cook in it. I hope you keep posting recipes you cook in yours.
I made this tonight! Delicious and warmed my tummy. So glad to hear you got an instant pot. We got one about 6 months ago after reading a recommendation on nomnompaleo.com Sometimes we use ours multiple times in a day or even multiple times for one meal! Best money I’ve spent on a kitchen appliance. Worth every penny:)
Yum! Thanks for sharing, I have been looking for a good slow cooker Indian dish to make! I think I might want to sub in coconut milk for the cream, do you think that would work?
I’ve used coconut milk in place of cream for other Tikka Masala recipes and it works beautifully. No reason why it shouldn’t work in this one too, though if you use an entire can it will turn out creamier than the pics here.
Yes, that should work fine. :)
I’m so glad you got an instant pot, becuase I have one too and I’m looking forward to all your IP recipes!
How do you think this one would freeze? I would add the cilantro after I reheat, of course. I’m not 100% sure about freezing the cream, but I think it would work to freeze it before adding the cream, and just add the cream when reheating. I think everything else would freeze great!
I think it would freeze great, probably even with the cream. My version wasn’t too cream heavy, so I don’t think it would matter much. If more cream were used you might have a problem, but I kept the cream kind of low.
This is going on my menu for next week, no doubt about it. Thank you for the inspiration!
Beyond thrilled that you’re now posting IP pressure cooker recipes!! This looks delicious.