I enrolled into a neighborhood gym to burn those extra pounds and even registered for a Personal training with an instructor who was no good (which I found later). To add to my frustration I didn't see any difference in me. This is when I read about the South Beach Diet in Sig's 'Live to Eat' Blog. I was little hesitant to join this programme until I read about the success stories of Sig and fellow South Beach dieters. It was intriguing, then I asked myself. Can I keep up this commitment? Can I follow all the rules? Can I adapt Indian food to my diet? Then I remembered the quote above (first line of this post). So I decided to go on a South beach diet. After registering on SBD website and reading all their articles I fairly had an idea what I should do.
To me, the most important aspect of the diet is to eat what we enjoy. So I am trying to create meals that will suite my Indian tastebuds at the same time I ensure that they are healthy and meet the SBD norms. Indian style Baked Chicken is one such improvisation to the Chicken fry. Hope you enjoy this as we did.
How it tasted?
The aroma of Indian spices filled my home and I couldn't wait to take them out of the oven. Remember I am on diet so ate a small chunk to suppress my cravings. For TH, I sauteed the onions and tomatoes with little indian spices and added the diced chicken to make a simple and quick curry for the roti. I added the small chunks to my salad and savored it as a Indian style Chicken Salad for my lunch. YUMM.
To me, the most important aspect of the diet is to eat what we enjoy. So I am trying to create meals that will suite my Indian tastebuds at the same time I ensure that they are healthy and meet the SBD norms. Indian style Baked Chicken is one such improvisation to the Chicken fry. Hope you enjoy this as we did.
The aroma of Indian spices filled my home and I couldn't wait to take them out of the oven. Remember I am on diet so ate a small chunk to suppress my cravings. For TH, I sauteed the onions and tomatoes with little indian spices and added the diced chicken to make a simple and quick curry for the roti. I added the small chunks to my salad and savored it as a Indian style Chicken Salad for my lunch. YUMM.
Ingredients
Chicken Breast - 1.4 lb (approx 600 grams) or 3 large breast
Lemon - 1 1/2 tbsp
Cumin Powder - 1/2 tsp
Pepper Powder - 1/2 tsp
Ginger Garlic paste - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1/2 tsp
Paprika - 1/2 tsp
Chili Powder - 1/2 tsp (If you do not have paprika then make it 1tsp)
Salt to taste
Yogurt - 3 tsp
Canola/Olive Oil - 1-2 tsp (Optional)
Method
1. Cleaning
Clean the chicken breast thoroughly with vinegar or turmeric powder. Pat dry to remove the excess water.
1. Cleaning
Clean the chicken breast thoroughly with vinegar or turmeric powder. Pat dry to remove the excess water.
I had 3 huge chicken breasts, so I cut them in to halves. Also It was little thick so I created a small slit in the center(along the breadth). So the chicken breast looked like a (pita) pocket. This will ensure that the marinade gets in to the center of the chicken. If your chicken breast are thin, then I wouldn't suggest you to make a slit along the breadth. Instead you can create couple of .5 cm slit along the length.
2. Marinade
Add the above ingredients except chicken and mix it to a thick paste.
Take a baking tray/cookie tray and line it with a Aluminium foil. If you want you can drizzle some oil/cooking spray on the foil.
Using a brush or your hand spread the marinade to coat the chicken well. If you are creating a slit do spread the marinade inside the pocket.
Place the chicken breast in the freezer and let it marinate for atleast 2 hours or longer.
3. Baking
Bake the chicken for 10 minutes. Remove it from oven, using a spatula flip it. Baste it with the excess liquid if any. Bake it for another 10-15 minutes or untill the chicken is cooked.
Using a spatula carefully remove them and place it on a plate. Garnish it with cilantro and serve it lemon wedges and onion (sliced into full moon). Serve it immediately as an appetizer with Green chutney or Yogurt dip.
If you are refrigerating the chicken for later use, then ensure that you reheat them on a Tawa drizzling some oil. Microwaving makes the chicken little hard and chewy.
