Cooked to perfection in the air fryer, it's so delicious it'll convert even the biggest sceptics. Plus, with the goodness of chicken, it's a protein-packed delight!
Finely slice the red onions. Add half of the sliced onions to a bowl with the juice of a quarter of a lemon and season with salt. Set aside to pickle. Cut a third of the remaining lemon into wedges for garnish. Slice the chicken thigh into three pieces. In a separate bowl, combine the chicken with the juice of half of the remaining lemon, 2 tablespoons of Greek yoghurt, and the tikka paste. Season generously with salt and black pepper, mix well, cover, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Halve the cucumber lengthways and scoop out the seeds, then finely dice. Finely chop 15g of the fresh mint. In a bowl, combine 150g of Greek yoghurt with the juice of the remaining lemon, the diced cucumber, and chopped mint. Season with salt and black pepper and set aside.
Preheat your air fryer to 2000C. Add the remaining sliced onions to the air fryer basket, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, and top with the marinated chicken pieces. Drizzle a little more extra virgin olive oil over the chicken. Cook for 16 minutes, or until the chicken is charred and the juices run clear.
While the chicken cooks, finely slice the green chilli and cut the vine tomatoes into wedges. In a bowl, combine the tomatoes with the nigella seeds, and season with salt and black pepper.
Cook the microwave rice according to the package instructions.
Remove the chicken from the air fryer. Toss the cooked onions with the prepared rice and season with salt and black pepper. Divide the rice between two plates, add the spiced tomatoes, then top with the chicken tikka and pickled onions. Garnish with the green chilli, lemon wedges, and the remaining fresh mint, if desired.
For an extra burst of flavour, marinate the chicken overnight. This allows the spices to deeply penetrate the meat, resulting in a more tender and flavourful tikka.
If you don't have an air fryer, you can cook the chicken and onions in a preheated oven at 2000C (1800C fan) for 20-25 minutes, or until cooked through and slightly charred.
Adjust the amount of green chilli to your preferred spice level. For less heat, remove the seeds before slicing, or omit it entirely.