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Saffron malai chicken with garlic naan

October 9, 2026

Journal

I’d been craving something I don’t think I’ve actually had before. It was just an idea, a notion, an image, a feeling. I wanted a malai saffron creamy gravy with fresh garlic naan. So I made it. Turned out okay, too much ginger garlic paste. But captured the saffron well and the almond cream was luxurious.

The garlic naan? An absolute disaster. More like a crispy pizza base. No idea why, did not troubleshoot, won’t fix.

Grilled malai chicken tikka pieces, charred at the edges, on a dark roasting tray
Malai tikka off the grill
Chicken pieces in a pale yellow saffron and almond cream gravy in a steel pan on the hob
In the saffron gravy
Flat, crisp-looking garlic naan topped with seeds, cut into pieces on a chopping board
The garlic naan
Three garlic naan with nigella seeds on a wooden board
More like a crispy pizza base

Recipe

Ingredients

Malai tikka

  • Ginger garlic paste
  • Green chili
  • Cardamom
  • Yogurt
  • Single cream

Gravy

  • Ginger garlic paste
  • Saffron
  • Green chili
  • Cardamom
  • Touch of sugar
  • Almonds (soaked, peeled, pureed)
  • Bit of onion pureed
  • Single cream (less than you think)

Garlic naan

  • We won’t talk about it

Method

  1. Marinate and grill malai tikka
  2. Saute gg paste with a few whole spices
  3. Add onion paste
  4. Simmer with almond paste and a bit of cream
  5. At the end stir in chicken and bloomed saffron

Tags:

indianchickencurrygrilledgarlic