Tandoori Chicken without the Tandoor Oven

I flipped open my new copy of Cook's Illustrated yesterday and came upon a recipe for tandoori chicken, which is traditionally made in a tandoor oven that can get up to 900 degrees! I wanted to try it and thought it would be a nice dish to bring to the birthday party later on that night. Well, it was good and the partygoers seemed to enjoy it but my finished product varied vastly from what I imagine came out of the test kitchen at Cook's Illustrated! First of all, I am not used to working with chicken thighs so when I opened the package to wash and clean them, I was shocked by how much fat was on them! I immediately attacked them, trimming and stripping the poor birds of any modicum of fat. Until I realized I was removing skin. Oops. Who needs it? Then I thought that if this was supposed to be appetizer-sized bites, I would need to remove the chicken from the bone. Have you ever boned chicken thighs? I don't recommend it. I spent an hour and a half engaged in the slippery, salmonella dream of a task. Once I got that done though, it was easy enough to put together. My little chicken pieces were so small that I opted to thread them on toothpicks to make chicken tandoori skewers, which worked out quite well. Finally, I baked them at 325 degrees as indicated and finished them off in the broiler. I ran into some more issues here, namely that the chicken started releasing juices so they were steam-baking. I probably didn't remove enough of the yogurt marinade. Anyway, I poured off the juices and put them back in the oven. I don't know how necessary the bake-then-broil process was for my version of the dish because the chicken pieces were so small but it turned out just fine. I stacked the skewers on pretty plates with little dishes of mango chutney and away they went! This did not evoke any tandoori chicken I've ever eaten but it was very tasty nonetheless.

2 T. vegetable oil
6 cloves garlic
2 T. grated ginger
1 T. garam masala
2 t. cumin
2 t. chili powder
4 T. lime juice, divided
1 c. yogurt
1 t. salt
4-5 lbs bone-in chicken thighs

Heat the oil in a skillet, add ginger and garlic, cook for one minute. Add the spices and cook for 30-60 more seconds. Cool. Add half this mixture to the chicken, along with salt and 2 tablespoons of lime juice. Mix in well and let sit for 30 minutes. Add the other half of the garlic-ginger-spice mixture to 1 cup of yogurt and add the remaining 2 tablespoons of lime juice. After the chicken has marinated in its spices, pour the yogurt mixture over it and mix well. Bake whole chicken pieces or thread smaller pieces on skewers at 325 degrees (Put on a foil-lined, rimmed baking sheet with wire rack to let juices fall away from the chicken. I didn't do this but I will next time!). Bake 12-15 minutes, then finish in a hot broiler for 3 minutes on each side. This time could vary greatly depending on the size of the chicken. Also, don't make the mistake I often have and let the chicken hang out in the yogurt; its enzymes break down the meat and make it mushy. Marinate in spices only and then dip quickly in the yogurt for that distinctive tang!