Kathi roll - a super delicious Indian street style wrap made with different fillings. Here we have marinated chicken as the filling. To make the recipe, we oven roast the marinated chicken pieces making it super easy to prepare the sheet pan kathi rolls at home. Your weeknight meal is sorted!
Chicken Kathi rolls are very popular in India and for a good reason - they have chatpata, masaledaar chicken, topped with fresh vegetables and a dash of lime juice, and chaat masala all wrapped in a soft roti. Absolute flavor explosion.
I have tried to simplify the process to make it easier to get most of the flavors in and make it hassle-free so that you can enjoy these sheet pan chicken kathi rolls even for a weeknight dinner.
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Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 20-25 minutes
Additional Time: 15-30 minutes
Ingredient List & Substitutions
Chicken - You can use boneless, skinless chicken - chicken thighs as well chicken breast will work in this recipe.
Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder - You can substitute this with Sweet paprika. If you like it spicier, use a combination of Paprika and Cayenne. You can also use any Indian Style Red Chili Powder.
Ginger & Garlic - Use minced garlic and ginger for the recipe.
Green Chillies - You can use Thai Pepper, Indian green chillies, or Serrano.
Garam Masala
Cumin Powder
Vegetables like onion, bell peppers, carrots etc.
Salt to taste
Oil
To Serve
Lemon Juice
Chaat Masala/Chat Masala
Flour Tortillas
If you are looking for more information about the spices used, check out the post where I have detailed the most essential Indian Spices.
Equipment
Bowl
Chopping board & knife (use seperate ones for chicken and vegetables to avoid cross contamination)
Measuring cups/spoons
Baking tray
Aluminum foil
Cooking spoons
Parchment paper (see other serving suggestions)
Oven 🙂
Oven mittens
Full recipe + measurements + video can be found in the recipe card below.
Step By Step Instructions
Prep work
Cut chicken into thin strips. Trim excess fat if required.
To a large non-reactive bowl, add chicken,, Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder, Ginger & Garlic, Green Chillies, Garam Masala, Cumin Powder, lime/lemon juice and salt. Mix well using a spatula. Let it marinate for 15-30 minutes.
Wash, peel and julienne carrots. Julienne bell pepper and thinly slice onions.
Line a baking tray with aluminum foil.
Cooking
Preheat the oven to 425o degrees Fahrenheit (220o degrees Celsius. ).
Drizzle oil on the baking tray. Place marinated chicken pieces in a single layer on the tray.
Bake at 425o degrees Fahrenheit. Remove from heat.
Assembling
Warm a flour tortilla. Spread 1-2 teaspoons of mint chutney on the tortilla. Place a few pieces of chicken on the tortilla. Top with julienned vegetables. Drizzle a little bit of lime/lemon juice. Sprinkle generous amounts of chaat masala. Roll it tight. Wrap in parchment paper. Serve Immediately.
Read More about the safe handling of Poultry at the FDA website.
More Details About The Accompaniments
Kathi rolls are usually wrapped and served. The roti (made with all-purpose flour/maida) is topped with mint chutney. Mint chutney is a versatile dip/sauce that can be served with Pakodas, sandwiches, etc. You can make it at home easily. There are various brands of pre-made mint chutney (available online or at your local Indian grocer). Some are really spicy, so taste and make sure you are okay with the spice level for the mint chutney.
Chat masala is a spice mix popular in India. It is a spice mix concoction made with cumin, coriander, peppercorns, hing (Asafoetida), amchoor powder (dry mango powder), and black salt (kala Namak) and has a very unique salty, tangy, spicy kick to it. It elevates most of the North Indian-style street foods. You can make this at home or use store-bought.
Should You Line The Baking Tray?
One of the main advantages of a sheet-pan-style dinner is the minimal cleaning up you have at the end of cooking. Most of everything needed for the dinner is prepared using the sheet pan. And of course, the reduced number of dishes.
So, to answer your question about whether you line the baking tray, I would say it is a personal preference. I line my baking tray with Aluminum foil to make cleaning up easier.
You can also use parchment paper if it can stand 425 degrees F in temperature.
How Is This Recipe Different?
Kathi Rolls are very popular form street-style food especially. History says this originated in Kolkatta and is named because of the bamboo skewers (called Kati in local language) used to thread the meat pieces together to grill. They have a unique smokey flavor associated with them.
I have tried to simplify the kathi roll recipe to make it easier to get most of the flavors in and make it hassle-free so that you can enjoy it even for a weeknight dinner.
And instead of making the roti at home, you can use store-bought tortillas to keep the dinner time simple.
Street food typically is full of flavors, spicy kick, and greasy too. We have ticked all those boxes with this recipe. :).
Serving Ideas
Usually, Kathi Rolls are served as ROLLS. :). The chicken (aor any other filling used) is rolled in a roti (made with all-purpose flour/maida) and the roti would be at least 6-8 inches in diameter.
You can serve them wrapped in a roti/large tortilla just like the traditional way.
Yet another fun way to serve them is like tacos/fajitas - especially when you are using smaller rotis or tortillas.
Serve them immediately as you make them. Else the mint chutney seeps into the tortilla or roti and makes them soggy.
Recipe Variations
Though not shown in the video, you can add 2-3 teaspoons of lime/lemon juice along with the other spices and aromatics while marinating the chicken.
As mentioned above, roll them up if your roti’s or tortillas are big and serve them as Indian-style tacos/fajitas if you are using smaller rotis/tortillas. Both are fun to eat.
Insteads of using fresh vegetables, you can saute the vegetables with a little oil and spices (same as the ones used to marinate the chicken) for a different topping idea.
When you cook the tortilla, top one side with a lightly beaten egg and cook out the egg. (This will be done on the stovetop). Proceed with the assembly as detailed in the recipe.
Want to cut down on All-purpose flour/Maida from your diet? Use wheat flour rotis or tortillas.
Infuse some smokey flavor into your chicken while marinating.
Useful Tips
Marinate the chicken for at least 15 minutes.
Do not overcrowd the baking tray with chicken pieces. Make sure to lay them in a single layer.
If the baking tray is small to hold the entire quantity of the chicken, work in batches.
If you have a large quantity of chicken on the tray, it may leave water while cooking. This will result in steam and the chicken will not be cooked to perfection. If that is the case you can do one of the following:
- Drain the water from the tray halfway through cooking or as required.
- Use a baking tray with a rack, to separate the chicken pieces. Liquid from the chicken will drain onto and collect in the baking tray. It is still a good idea to drain the liquid if there is too much of it.
Assemble just before you are ready to serve.
Don't want to heat the tortillas on the stove top? Warp the tortillas in an aluminum foil and place them in the oven during the last 5 minutes of cooking the chicken.
Before you remove the chicken from the oven, use a food thermometer to make sure that most of the pieced have an internal temperature of at least 165° F (74° C).
Meal Prep Tips:
Prepare the mint chutney in advance and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Leftover mint chutney can be refrigerated. Use up in 2-3 days.
Cut the vegetables ahead of time and store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Marinate the chicken ahead of time - if planning to make it for dinner, marinate in the morning. Keep refrigerated until ready to use. Freeze the marinated chicken if you are not going to use it in a day.
Leftovers?
The assembled Kathi rolls do not store well. But the individual components - chicken, mint chutney, vegetables, tortillas, etc - can be stored in the refrigerator.
Warm up the tortillas and reheat the chicken before serving.
Chat masala can be stored in an airtight container in the pantry.
**TIP**
A Quick Note About Salt - Start with ¾ teaspoon salt while marinating the chicken. If you find ¾ teaspoon salt is not sufficient after cooking, you can sprinkle a little bit of salt on the chicken while assembling. Remember, mint chutney has salt and the chaat masala you sprinkle on top also has salty, tangy & spicy flavors. So, they will contribute to the overall salty taste.
More Chicken Recipes
Spicy, creamy, coconut-y chicken curry
A quick wrap made with green chutney chicken and pita bread
Recipe + Video
Sheet Pan Kathi Rolls
Equipment
- Bowl
- Measuring Spoons/Cups
- Chopping board & knife (use seperate ones for chicken and vegetables to avoid cross contamination)
- Baking Tray
- Aluminum Foil
- Parchment Paper (see other serving suggestions)
- Oven 🙂
- Oven Mittens
- cooking spoons
Ingredients
- 1 lb (approx. 500 grams) Chicken cut into thin strips; trim excess fat if required.
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder or to taste
- 1 teaspoon Garam Masala or to taste
- 1 teaspoon Cumin Powder
- 1-2 teaspoon Minced Green Chilles or to taste
- ½ tablespoon (5 grams) Ginger
- ½ tablespoon (5 grams) Garlic
- 2 teaspoon Lemon Juice
- Salt to taste
To Serve
- Flour Tortiallas
- Mint Chutney
- Lime/Lemon Juice
- Chaat Masala
Instructions
Prep Work
- Cut chicken into thin strips. Trim excess fat if required.
- To a large non-reactive bowl, add chicken,, Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder, Ginger & Garlic, Green Chillies, Garam Masala, Cumin Powder, lime/lemon juice and salt. Mix well using a spatula. Let it marinate for 15-30 minutes. [Note: Use about ¾ teaspoon of salt or to taste.]
- Wash, peel and julienne carrots. Julienne bell pepper and thinly slice onions.
- Line a baking tray with aluminum foil.
Cooking
- Preheat the oven to 425o degrees Fahrenheit (220o degrees Celsius).
- Drizzle oil on the baking tray. Place marinated chicken pieces in a single layer on the tray.
- Bake at 425o degrees Fahrenheit (220o degrees Celsius) for about 20-25 minutes. Remove from heat. [Note: Check at 20 minutes mark. Cook longer if required]
Assembling
- Warm a flour tortilla. Spread 1-2 teaspoons of mint chutney on the tortilla. Place a few pieces of chicken on the tortilla. Top with julienned vegetables. Drizzle a little bit of lime/lemon juice. Sprinkle generous amounts of chaat masala. Roll it tight. Wrap in parchment paper. Serve Immediately.
Video
Notes
- 1 CUP = 250 ML. (US cups are typically 240 ml. You can use US cups with no significant change to the dish). 1 TEASPOON = 5ML; 1 TABLESPOON=15 ML.
- Grams to cups measurements – we strive to provide these conversions as accurately as possible. There might be some slight variations depending on the brand, weighing scale, etc.
- Serving size – This serves 3-4 people. Adjust the serving size to fit your dietary needs.
- Actual cooking time will vary depending on the size of the chicken strips. Before you remove the chicken from the oven, use a food thermometer to ensure that most pieces have an internal temperature of at least 165° F (74° C).
- If you find ¾ teaspoon salt is not sufficient after cooking, you can sprinkle a little bit of salt on the chicken while assembling. Remember, mint chutney has salt and the chaat masala you sprinkle on top has salty, tangy, spicy flavors. So, they will contribute to the overall salty taste.
- Marinate the chicken for at least 15 minutes.
- Do not overcrowd the baking tray with chicken pieces. Make sure to lay them in a single layer.
- If the baking tray is small to hold the entire quantity of the chicken, work in batches.
- If you have a large quantity of chicken on the tray, it may leave water while cooking. This will result in steam and the chicken will not be cooked to perfection. If that is the case you can do one of the following:
- Drain the water from the tray halfway through cooking or as required.
- Use a baking tray with a rack, to separate the chicken pieces. Liquid from the chicken will drain onto and collect in the baking tray. It is still a good idea to drain the liquid if there is too much of it.
- Assemble just before you are ready to serve.
- Don't want to heat the tortillas on the stovetop? Warp the tortillas in an aluminum foil and place them in the oven during the last 5 minutes of cooking the chicken.
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