tikka

Meanings

1. 1noununcountable

   An Indian dish of small pieces of marinated meat, fish or vegetables, usually cooked on skewers in a very hot clay oven.

   Grammar: Often follows the main ingredient: chicken tikka; paneer tikka.

   Patterns

   • chicken tikka
   • tikka with something

   We ordered chicken tikka as a starter and shared it.

   The paneer tikka had a smoky taste and a bright red coating.

   She grilled lamb tikka on the barbecue.

2. 2noununcountableinformalBritish

   Short for tikka masala, a mild spiced curry in a creamy tomato sauce.

   Grammar: Used informally in restaurant talk: a chicken tikka with rice.

   Patterns

   • a tikka with rice

   I'll have the tikka and a garlic naan, please.

   His favorite takeaway is a chicken tikka with pilau rice.

   The tikka was creamy but not too hot.

Word forms

Common combinations

chicken tikka

Chicken tikka is often served in a wrap.

paneer tikka

Paneer tikka suits vegetarians well.

tikka masala

Tikka masala is popular in many countries.

lamb tikka

We marinated the lamb tikka overnight.

tikka sauce

The tikka sauce is made with cream and tomato.

Synonyms and how they differ

kebab

A kebab is a broader term for grilled meat, often on a skewer and not always marinated with Indian spices.

tandoori

Tandoori refers to the clay oven cooking style, while tikka refers to the bite-sized pieces.

curry

Curry is a general word for dishes in sauce, and tikka itself is typically drier.

Word family

tandoori adjective

cooked in a clay oven

masala noun

a mix of ground spices

naan noun

soft flatbread eaten with curry

Commonly confused: tikka or tika?

Practice

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