Healthy Chicken Tikka Masala Rice Bowls

1/24/17

These Healthy Chicken Tikka Masala Rice Bowls are a delicious, easy version of your fave Indian-inspired dish with red pepper, green beans and cilantro. Talk about a vibrant one pot dinner!

OMG I am all about that bowl life right now, apparently! Be prepared for lots and lots of healthy bowls coming to the blog this year. They are literally the best kind of meal.?

And yes, I have *healthified* Chicken Tikka Masala thank you very much.

All I've really done is add some extra veg to one of my fave Indian-inspired one pot meals. But come on, it's much healthier.

Less butter.

Less cream.

Your waistline and your tastebuds will surely thank me in unison. And maybe your wallet too, especially if you really love Indian food but you don't know how to make it yourself.

You could technically also make this recipe in a slow cooker. My mom makes this incredible slow cooker butter chicken recipe by Canadian Living and it really is the ultimate comfort food.

We pair it with a savoury curried cauliflower and potato scramble called Aloo Gobi and then sometimes, on special occasions, we also pick up some fried vegetable fritters called Pakoras from our local Indian takeout place or the health foods store Goodness Me.

We literally make a night of it, sipping wine and binge watching The Good Wife or Bloodline on Netflix. They're the kind of weeknights you actually look forward to and try to end work early for.

Me, end work early??Okay, that's a lie. I swear I always have good intentions though.

So what else do you need to know about this Chicken Tikka Masala recipe? Well, for one, Chicken Tikka Masala was largely made popular by the British as a play on Indian cuisine. You may see this recipe plastered all over Indian restaurant menus but it's not actually an authentically Indian dish like butter chicken is.

It's fairly similar in taste, however, and you get more tender, yogurt-marinated chicken along with a pop in flavour thanks to the garam masala (you can also sub in cardamom for the garam masala in this recipe).

What I find kinda funny about Indian food though is that there aren't as many vegetables included in the curries themselves like you find in Thai curries and other Asian-inspired stir fries. Or maybe it's just the things I tend to order, like your traditional butter chicken. I do like a sizzling platter of tandoori chicken with peppers and onions though, so I guess maybe there are some veggies in there.

But I digress…

These Chicken Tikka Masala Rice Bowls are the perfect excuse to unload all the veggies from your fridge, much like many of my other bowl recipes. I swear, they really aren't just dumping grounds for veggies. Is it weird that I get excited by vegetables? Okay, fine, I admit, it's weird.?

And I know this recipe may seem like it's complicated and that there are a lot of steps, but it's really quite simple. And did I mention all the leftovers you'll have?! This makes one giant pot of Chicken Tikka Masala!

Here are the basic steps to Tikka Masala perfection:

• Make tikka masala spice mix
• Marinate chicken in yogurt and spices
• Blend and cook onions, spices and tomatoes
• Add chicken
• Add cream and veggies
• SERVE THAT ISH!??????????(with a bit of cilantro of course!)

I need more takeout and cozy movie nights, stat. Maybe with homemade vegetable soup. Or chili cheese fries. Really, whatever the heart desires. I know I might seem high maintenance but as long as you gimme food, I'm a happy girl.

Will you be making these Healthy Chicken Tikka Masala Rice Bowls?

I'd love to hear ALL ABOUT what you are making for lunch and dinner lately on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook or in the comments – seriously, I can never switch up my meal prep enough.

Gimme more ideas please!?

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Healthy Chicken Tikka Masala Rice Bowls

These Healthy Chicken Tikka Masala Rice Bowls are a delicious, easy version of your fave Indian-inspired dish with red pepper, green beans and cilantro. Talk about a vibrant one pot dinner!

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Total Time1 hr 10 mins

Course: Chicken

Cuisine: Indian

Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 796mL (28oz) can tomatoes
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 1 cup green beans
• 1/4 cup Greek yogurt or sour cream
• 2 cups cooked basmati rice

Chicken marinade

• 3/4 cup plain or Greek yogurt
• 4 chicken breasts, cubed
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp ginger, minced
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Tikka Masala spice

• 1 tbsp turmeric
• 2 tsp garam masala (can sub in 1 tsp cardamom instead)
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp coriander
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon

Instructions

• Mix Tikka Masala spices together. In a large plastic bag, toss chicken with yogurt, salt, garlic, ginger, lemon juice and half of the tikka spice mix. Let marinade at least 20-30 min, and start cooking rice according to package directions.
• Meanwhile, melt butter in a large skillet. Add onions and cook for 2-3 min. Add tomatoes, salt and broth and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 min. Puree mixture with an immersion blender, or pour into a regular blender and let cool a bit before blending (so it doesn't explode everywhere!)
• Add chicken to tomato mixture, and let simmer on med-low heat, covered, for 15-20 min until chicken is cooked through. Add red pepper and green beans within the last 5 min of cooking time. Stir in whipping cream and serve with basmati rice and cilantro. This meal also freezes well!