Tasty Tikka Masala

Chicken Tikka Masala. One of Britain’s favourites to devour on a weekend evening with friends, a partner or family and arguably, some say ‘Britain’s true national dish’.

The origin of this well-loved dish isn’t fully known. Some say it was put together by Bangledeshi migrants in Britain in the 60’s. Other accounts say the dish was conjured up by Pakistani chef, Ali Ahmed Aslam in Glasgow in the 1971.

Wikipedia sources tell of the story of the dishes invention. In 2013, the Glasgow Indian restaurant owners son, Asif Ali told the story of the Masala’s invention in 1971 to the BBC's Hairy Bikers TV cookery programme.

“On a typical dark, wet Glasgow night, a bus driver coming off shift came in and ordered a chicken curry. He sent it back to the waiter saying it's dry. At the time, Dad had an ulcer and was enjoying a plate of tomato soup. So, he said why not put some tomato soup into the curry with some spices. They sent it back to the table and the bus driver absolutely loved it. He and his friends came back again and again, and we put it on the menu.”

Whatever the true story, it is certain that the Masala dish did in fact originate in Britain and there have been many variations of the recipe created over the years.

Famous chefs, local takeaways and sauce manufacturers boast tasty versions of this firm favourite, including ourselves at Spicy Towers.

We wanted to compare some of the best known ad consumed variations of the Tikka Masala to give our loyal fans some insight on how best to enjoy the dish depending on their goals and preferences.

Our newest comparison is slightly different to the other tests we’ve conducted. We wanted our customers to have a real-life view of the calorie comparison. So, rather than using calories per gram or comparing the same weights, we’ve looked at the portions we’re likely to consume in different scenarios. Here’s what we found.

Jamie Oliver’s Tikka Masala

This is a recipe for you to cook at home. Found on the Jamie Oliver website, it uses an array of spices, coconut milk and almonds within its ingredients.

The recipe takes around 1 and a half hours to make.

Total Calories (for the Masala) = 458

Here’s the tricky bit.

These calories are taken directly from the Jamie Oliver website information. It unfortunately doesn’t state the weight of this serving however the whole recipe states it serves 4.

The website also doesn’t state whether that calorie count includes rice. Assuming it doesn’t as the method guidance doesn’t mention how much rice is needed or how to cook it, so you will likely be adding an extra 171 calories for a 100g cooked portion to accompany your curry.

Patak’s Tikka Masala Sauce (plus other ingredients)

Another cook at home favourite, Patak’s sauce is a well-known brand, sold nationally in most supermarkets.

Our comparison and findings use JUST chicken breast and 50g of the pre mad masala sauce plus 100g of cooked rice per serving, averaging out at around 250g altogether.

Total Calories including rice = 422

***Watch out for*** The Patak’s website recipe. This uses their spice paste plus chopped tomatoes and double cream. Sounds very tasty but watch out for those sneaky additional calories!

The Indian Takeaway Tikka Masala

For this comparison we looked at several websites giving calorie information about meals or recipes included on calorie calculators.

Most of these sites mentioned calories as a ‘half large container’ portion. We saw this as a fair use of data as it’s likely you will share a container with another person when enjoying a takeaway at home.

At an average of 358 calories, the Masala itself doesn’t look to come in too high in comparison to some other home cooked versions. We’ve added the same calories for rice as the other dishes here at 171 calories to give you an idea of what a full meal includes.

Total Calories including rice = 529

What about the Naan bread??

A medium plain naan bread is around 250 calories and if you’re a lover of the sweet peshwari naan, that will be another 250 calories to add to your meal.

THE SPICENTICE MASALA

A clear winner again, the Spicentice chicken tikka masala uses yoghurt, spices and our special tikka spices mix (link to spices) to create a low calorie, delicious meal for you to enjoy at home or with friends.

Total Calories including rice = 377

We wanted to create something our customers could enjoy without worrying. Keeping the recipe simple means, you can enjoy this meal with a naan bread and maybe even a glass of wine without going over budget on your daily intake of calories.

To buy our Masala spices click Here

 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spicentice work hard to provide our customers with delicious recipes to accompany our spices. Our spice kits can be used for various recipes, just see our recipe section for more ideas on how to use your favourite spices.

Do you have an article suggestion? Contact with your ideas and it might make our blog pages.