In traditional cooking of Indian chicken, cochineal dye is used to impart a pink hue, or some ingredients in tandoori chicken spices, such as Kashmiri red chili powder and turmeric, are used in marinades. Furthermore, according to the USDA, oven gases in a hot gas or electric oven react with hemoglobin in meat tissue to produce a pinkish tinge. Even smaller birds often have thinner skins that allow oven gases to penetrate the meat,contributing to the pinkest appearance.