Chicken tikka masala is composed of chicken tikka, boneless chunks of chicken marinated in spices, and yogurt that are roasted in an oven served in a creamy curry sauce. A tomato and coriander sauce is common, but no recipe for chicken tikka masala is standard; a survey found that of 48 different recipes, the only common ingredient was chicken. The sauce usually includes tomatoes (frequently as purée), cream, coconut cream, and a masala spice mix. The sauce and chicken pieces may be colored orange using foodstuffs such as turmeric, paprika, tomato purée.

The dish shares some similarities with butter chicken, both in the method of creation and appearance. The main difference is that chicken tikka masala uses tomato gravy rather than a non-gravy sauce.

Ingredients:
chicken breast pieces - salt - red chili powder - garam masala - ginger - garlic - tomato purée - plain yogurt - lemon juice - cooking oil - onion - turmeric powder - cumin powder - coriander powder - Kasuri methi (fenugreek leaves) - cooking cream