Tikka Masala Amendment

Improve bad store-bought tikka masala sauce
30m sauce vegetarian

We have a few containers of store-bought tikka masala that isn’t very good. It’s too much like tomato sauce. I want to try to amend it with a proper tikka masala recipe to give it better flavor. To do that, I’ve replaced the wet ingredients from Serious Eats with the store-bought sauce.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. of paneer, cut into 1/4" cubes
  • 1 tablespoons toasted ground cumin
  • 1 tablespoons toasted paprika
  • 4 teaspoons toasted ground coriander seed
  • 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 4 cloves garlic, grated on the medium holes of a box grater, divided
  • 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated on the medium holes of a box grater, divided
  • Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use about half as much by volume
  • 4 tablespoons butter or ghee
  • 1 large onion, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup roughly chopped cilantro leaves and tender stems
  • 1 (28-ounc) container of store-bought tikka masala sauce

If needed (wet ingredients replaced by store-bought sauce)

  • 1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, roughly mashed
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 1 cup heavy cream

Process

  1. Combine cumin, paprika, coriander, turmeric, and cayenne in a small bowl and mix well. Set aside.

  2. Develop a light brown crust on paneer by frying in a pan with a little bit of oil on medium heat. Turn occasionally to brown a couple sides on each cube.

  3. Meanwhile, heat butter or ghee in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until melted and foaming subsides. Add onions, grated garlic, and ginger. Cook, stirring frequently, until dark and beginning to char in spots, about 10 minutes.

  4. Add spice mixture and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add store-bought sauce, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pan with a spoon. Simmer for 15 minutes, then puree using a hand blender or by transferring to a tabletop blender in batches.

  5. If needed, stir in cream and remaining quarter cup lemon juice.

  6. Season to taste with salt, add fried paneer. Serve immediately with rice and/or Naan.