Chicken Tikka Masala

I love Indian food. Whenever I go out to an Indian restaurant with friends, someone orders chicken tikka masala. People eat a lot of it in Britain, I'm given to understand. Interesting. Also interestingly, it is, seemingly, not very Indian at all. Some restaurateur in the UK made it up by putting masala sauce onto chicken tikka. Anyway, this recipe comes from Cook's Illustrated Magazine. I made it with friends last semester. It did turn out deliciously, and every step of preparation smelled heavenly. (No step looked heavenly, however. This is not an attractive dish.)

Chicken Tikka Masala (4 to 6)

Chicken Tikka

½ t cumin
½ t coriander
¼ t cayenne
1 t salt
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of fat
1 c plain whole-milk yogurt
2 T oil
2 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed (2 t)
1 T grated fresh ginger

Masala Sauce

3 T oil
1 medium onion, diced fine (1 ¼ c)
2 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed (2 t)
2 t grated fresh ginger
1 serrano chile, ribs and seeds removed, flesh minced
1 T tomato paste
1 T garam masala
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
2 t sugar
½ t salt
2/3 c heavy cream

1. Stir together spices for chicken. Sprinkle both sides of chicken with mix, pressing gently to adhere. Place on plate, cover with plastic, fridge 30-60 min. In large bowl, whisk yogurt, oil, garlic, ginger. Set aside.
2. Heat oil in large dutch oven over medium heat till simmering. Add onion and cook, stirring frequently, until light golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, chile, tomato paste, garam masala, and cook, stirring frequently, till fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, sugar, salt; bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover, simmer 15 min, stirring occasionally. Stir in cream, return to simmer. Remove pan from heat and cover to keep warm.
3. While sauce simmers, adjust rack to upper middle (6 in from top) and heat broiler. Using tongs, dip chicken in yogurt to coat thickly. Arrange on wire rack set in foil lined, rimmed baking sheet. Broil until thickest parts are 160 and exterior is lightly charred in spots, 10 to 18 min, flipping halfway through.
4. Let chicken rest 5 min, cut into 1 inch chunks and stir into warm sauce (don't simmer chicken in sauce.) Adjust with salt, serve with basmati rice.