America's Test Kitchen LogoCook's Country LogoCook's Illustrated LogoAmerica's Test Kitchen LogoCook's Country LogoCook's Illustrated Logo

Air-Fryer Tandoori Chicken Thighs

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on January 6, 2020

Time

55 minutes (20 minutes cook time)

Yield

Serves 2

Air-Fryer Tandoori Chicken Thighs

Ingredients

3 garlic cloves, minced1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger 1½ teaspoons garam masala 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon chili powder 1 teaspoon vegetable oil Salt and pepper ½ cup plain whole-milk yogurt 4 teaspoons lime juice 4 (5-ounce) bone-in chicken thighs, trimmed

Before You Begin

We prefer this dish with whole-milk yogurt, but low-fat yogurt can be substituted.

Instructions

  1. Combine garlic, ginger, garam masala, cumin, chili powder, oil, ¼ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper in large bowl and microwave until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Set aside to cool slightly, then stir in ¼ cup yogurt and 1 tablespoon lime juice.
  2. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Using metal skewer, poke skin side of chicken 10 to 15 times. Add to bowl with yogurt-spice mixture and toss to coat; set aside to marinate for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, combine remaining ¼ cup yogurt and remaining 1 teaspoon lime juice in clean bowl; season with salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
  3. Remove chicken from marinade, letting excess drip off, and arrange skin side up in air-fryer basket, spaced evenly apart. Place basket in air fryer and set temperature to 400 degrees. Cook until chicken is well browned and crisp and registers 195 degrees, 20 to 30 minutes, rotating chicken halfway through cooking (do not flip).
  4. Transfer chicken to serving platter, tent loosely with aluminum foil, and let rest for 5 minutes. Serve with reserved yogurt-lime sauce.
Air-Fryer Tandoori Chicken Thighs
Photography by Carl Tremblay. Styling by Catrine Kelty.

Air-Fryer Tandoori Chicken Thighs

Headshot of America's Test Kitchen
By America's Test Kitchen
Save

Time

55 minutes (20 minutes cook time)

Yield

Serves 2

Ingredients

3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1½ teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
Salt and pepper
½ cup plain whole-milk yogurt
4 teaspoons lime juice
4 (5-ounce) bone-in chicken thighs, trimmed

Ingredients

3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1½ teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
Salt and pepper
½ cup plain whole-milk yogurt
4 teaspoons lime juice
4 (5-ounce) bone-in chicken thighs, trimmed

Ingredients

3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1½ teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
Salt and pepper
½ cup plain whole-milk yogurt
4 teaspoons lime juice
4 (5-ounce) bone-in chicken thighs, trimmed

Why This Recipe Works

Tandoori chicken typically features bone-in pieces marinated in yogurt and spices and cooked in a tandoor until tender and lightly charred. Most recipes using conventional ovens involve multiple cooking stages, but we found the air fryer worked well at producing great-tasting tandoori chicken in fewer steps. Bone-in chicken thighs gave us moist, rich meat. To create a nuanced flavor, we mixed up a spiced yogurt marinade that incorporated garlic, fresh ginger, garam marsala, cumin, and chili powder. Blooming the seasonings first in the microwave released their flavors and tamed the garlic's raw edge. Poking holes in the chicken skin allowed the marinade to penetrate more deeply and helped render fat, and keeping the thighs skin side up throughout cooking developed some nice charring. To complement the chicken, we combined more yogurt with lime juice for a simple, cooling sauce.

Before You Begin

We prefer this dish with whole-milk yogurt, but low-fat yogurt can be substituted.

Instructions

  1. Combine garlic, ginger, garam masala, cumin, chili powder, oil, ¼ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper in large bowl and microwave until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Set aside to cool slightly, then stir in ¼ cup yogurt and 1 tablespoon lime juice.
  2. Pat chicken dry with paper towels. Using metal skewer, poke skin side of chicken 10 to 15 times. Add to bowl with yogurt-spice mixture and toss to coat; set aside to marinate for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, combine remaining ¼ cup yogurt and remaining 1 teaspoon lime juice in clean bowl; season with salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
  3. Remove chicken from marinade, letting excess drip off, and arrange skin side up in air-fryer basket, spaced evenly apart. Place basket in air fryer and set temperature to 400 degrees. Cook until chicken is well browned and crisp and registers 195 degrees, 20 to 30 minutes, rotating chicken halfway through cooking (do not flip).
  4. Transfer chicken to serving platter, tent loosely with aluminum foil, and let rest for 5 minutes. Serve with reserved yogurt-lime sauce.

Gift This Recipe

Enjoyed this dish? Let others know by sharing it as a gift recipe.

This is a members' feature.