Indian cooking
Indian cooking / Dishes / Tandoori Kathal Tikka
Tandoori Kathal Tikka (Tandoori Spiced Jackfruit with Garlic, Chilli & Coriander)

Tandoori Kathal Tikka

Tandoori Spiced Jackfruit with Garlic, Chilli & Coriander
Vegetarian

Tandoori kathal tikka is jackfruit chunks coated in a tangy yoghurt marinade, then grilled until browned and tender. It tastes garlicky, warmly spiced and tangy, with a fresh coriander note.

Marinade masala

10 gStirred into the yoghurt marinade (step 2)
02
2.6 g1 teaspoon
spice blend
03
6 g2 teaspoons
spice
Stir into the yoghurt mixture until evenly mixed.

Everything else

01
Canned jackfruit · Kathaldrained and rinsed
450 g
vegetable
02
Gheemelted, for basting
to taste
oil/fat
03
Lime · Nimbujuice of, to garnish
50 g1 lime
fruit
04
60 g4 tablespoons
dairy
05
4 g2 teaspoons
flour
06
Garlic · Lehsungrated (shredded)
12 g4 cloves
aromatic
07
to taste
salt
08
2 g2 tablespoons
herb

Method

  1. Drain and rinse 450 g canned jackfruit; cut into bite-sized chunks.
  2. Mix 60 g greek yoghurt, 4 g chickpea flour, 12 g garlic, the marinade masala and salt to taste in a bowl until smooth.
  3. Stir 2 g coriander leaf through the marinade.
  4. Add the jackfruit and turn until every piece is coated.
  5. Heat the grill to medium-high.
  6. Line a baking tray with foil and set a wire rack over it.
  7. Soak wooden skewers in water.
  8. Thread the coated jackfruit onto the soaked skewers.
  9. Set the skewers on the rack and spoon over any marinade left in the bowl.
  10. Grill for 6 minutes, turn the skewers, brush with melted ghee and grill for another 6 minutes.
  11. Squeeze the juice from 50 g lime over the skewers.

Don't have something?

Canned jackfruit
  • Raw jackfruit

    Use the same drained weight; peel, core and simmer until tender, 20–30 minutes longer. Texture is close but less briney.

  • Jackfruit

    Use the same drained weight if cooked young jackfruit; if ripe it will be sweet and unsuitable for savoury dishes.

  • Mushroom

    Use the same weight, thickly sliced and sautéed; gives a meaty texture but a mushroom flavour, not neutral.

Ghee
  • Unsalted butter

    Use 120% of the weight; melt gently over low heat to avoid burning the milk solids, which will yield a softer, creamier richness rather than a nutty aroma.

  • Vegetable oil

    Use 85% of the weight; holds high cooking temperatures without smoking, but the final dish will lack traditional dairy depth.

  • Mustard oil

    Use equal weight; heat to smoking point and cool slightly before cooking, bearing in mind it introduces an assertive, pungent edge.

Lime
  • Lemon

    Use the same weight; sharper and less floral, so reduce any extra souring slightly.

  • Lemon juice

    Use about 30 g juice per lime (2 tbsp), strain pips; add at the end for fresh sourness.

  • Dried mango powder

    Use 1 g amchoor for about 15 g lime juice; add early with spices; gives dry mango sourness, not citrus aroma.

Greek yoghurt
Chickpea flour
  • Yellow split pea flour

    Use 100% of the weight. Many commercial gram flours are milled from split peas; performs identically in pakora batters and kadhi.

  • Cornstarch

    For crisping batters or binding cutlets: use 50% to 60% of the weight. Produces a very crisp shell but lacks the earthy, roasted nutty flavour of besan.

Garlic
  • Garlic paste

    Use equal weight. Fry gently in oil or ghee with the ginger; incorporates smoothly into curries without visible minced bits.

  • Garlic powder

    Use 15% to 20% of the weight (about 1 g for every 5 to 6 g fresh cloves). Whisk into sauces; gives a savoury, toasted garlic flavour without raw pungency.

  • Shallot

    Use 1.5 times the weight, very finely minced. Sauté until golden; provides savoury allium sweetness, though it lacks garlic's pungent sulphur bite.

Kashmiri chilli powder
  • Dried kashmiri chilli

    Grind deseeded dried pods to an equal weight of powder; gives identical vivid red colour and gentle warmth.

  • Red chilli powder

    Use 25% of the weight mixed with sweet paprika for colour; straight red chilli powder is substantially hotter and will make the dish fiery.

  • Chilli powder

    Use one-third of the weight; the sauce will be less intensely red and notably sharper in heat.

Garam masala
  • Ground cumin

    Use 50% of the weight mixed with equal parts ground coriander and a pinch of ground cinnamon, ground cloves, and ground green cardamom. Sprinkle near the end for a warming finish.

  • Lentil stew spice mix

    Use 75% of the weight. Simmer briefly in the gravy; imparts roasted warmth and complexity, though it adds a slight tang and earthy lentil undertone.

Amchoor powder
  • Ground dried mango powder

    Use the same weight; same sour mango flavour. Add early so it can soften into the dish.

  • Dried mango powder

    Grind to a powder and use the same weight. Slightly coarser unless finely ground.

  • Lemon juice

    Use 5–6 times the weight, e.g. 1 tsp powder to about 5 tsp juice; add off the heat. Wetter and fresher-tasting.

Coriander leaf
  • Coriander

    Use equal weight finely chopped; this is the exact same fresh herb.

  • Mint

    Use half the weight finely chopped; provides vibrant green freshness, though the flavour profile becomes noticeably cooler and sharper.

Similar dishes

Kathhal ki Subzi
Braised Jackfruit with Yoghurt Sauce
It tastes earthy from cumin and asafoetida with a fuller yoghurt gravy, and is less garlicky, lime-bright and fresh-coriander-forward than this dish.
  • Same: Kathhal ki Subzi shares jackfruit, yoghurt, garam masala, amchoor tang, chilli powder and salt with this dish.
  • Different: It braises the jackfruit in a large plain-yoghurt gravy with cumin seed, asafoetida, turmeric and ground coriander, and it lacks this dish's garlic, lime, chickpea flour and fresh coriander.
Dum Kathhal
Spicy Baked Jackfruit
Dum Kathhal tastes of pungent mustard oil, warm fenugreek and garam masala with soft potato and jackfruit, while this dish is garlicky, tangy and grilled.
  • Same: Dum Kathhal shares jackfruit, garam masala, chilli powder, coriander leaf and salt with this dish.
  • Different: Dum Kathhal adds potato, mustard oil, ghee or vegetable oil, asafoetida, cumin seed, fenugreek seed and ginger, and it lacks this dish's yoghurt, lime, chickpea flour, dried mango powder and garlic.
Haraa Bharaa Fish Tikka
Salmon Tikka Skewers Marinated in Green Chilli, Basil & Coriander
Haraa Bharaa Fish Tikka tastes smoky, herby and lightly spicy from basil and green chilli, while this dish tastes garlicky, warmly spiced and tangy with coriander.
  • Same: Haraa Bharaa Fish Tikka shares with this dish a yoghurt marinade, lime, dried mango powder, garam masala, garlic and coriander, and both are grilled as tikka.
  • Different: Haraa Bharaa Fish Tikka uses salmon instead of jackfruit, vegetable oil instead of ghee, and adds ginger, basil, green bird's-eye chilli and black pepper; it lacks chickpea flour and Kashmiri chilli powder.
Kurma Pulussu
Raw Jackfruit Curry
Kurma Pulussu tastes gently spiced and creamy-tangy from yoghurt, with whole-spice and coconut notes, rather than garlicky, tangy and grilled like this dish.
  • Same: Kurma Pulussu shares jackfruit, yoghurt, garlic, chilli powder, coriander leaf and salt with this dish.
  • Different: Kurma Pulussu is a simmered curry of raw jackfruit, onion, poppy seed, coconut, vegetable oil and whole cardamom, clove, cinnamon and bay leaf, while this dish is a grilled canned-jackfruit tikka marinated in Greek yoghurt, ghee, lime and dried mango powder.