Traditionally served to royalty in Ancient India, but now known across the world, butter chicken is one of the most popular dishes from Indian cuisine. Every time I visit an Indian restaurant, I don’t even have to glance at the menu because I have already planned my order in advance -butter chicken! However, I decided to master this recipe at home as I often crave that spicy and flavorful tandoori chicken, which is coated with a silky, smooth, sweet, and tangy sauce. This dish has two parts to it: the marinated chicken and the sauce. The charred flavorful chicken is soaked in yogurt based marinade containing a multitude of spices and then drenched in that perfect buttery, sweet sauce. If you are a stickler for making things from scratch, I have provided my grandmother’s tandoori marinade recipe. However, if you are short on time (as I often am!), you could just as easily use premade tandoori masala for the marinade, which is available in most Indian ethnic grocery stores.
Ingredients (Butter Chicken)
Marinade
- 1 and ½ pounds of cubed chicken breast
- 2 tsp of tandoori masala**
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- ½ cup Greek unflavored yogurt
- Salt/Pepper to taste
- 2 tsp ginger paste
- 2tsp garlic paste
Sauce
- 3 tbsp. unsalted butter
- 2-4 green cardamom pods lightly crushed
- 2-4 cloves
- 1 large onion finely chopped
- 1 tbsp. ginger paste
- 1 tbsp. garlic paste
- 2-3 green chilies slit
- 1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder
- ½ tsp garam masala powder
- 6 tbsp. tomato puree
- 1 15 oz. can of tomato sauce
- 150 mls double cream
- 2 tbsp. sugar
- 1 tbsp. Kasoori methi/ fenugreek leaf powder
- Salt to taste
- Chopped coriander for garnish
- 1 tsp lemon juice
**Homemade tandoori masala powder
- 1 tbsp red chili powder
- ½ tsp coriander powder
- 1 tsp zeera powder
Method
Prep Time: 30 min
Cook Time: 60 min
(Serves 6)
- Mix all the marinade ingredients in a large bowl. Then add the chicken and coat pieces evenly. Leave in the fridge for a minimum of 30 minutes (best overnight). Then cook at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for an hour.
- Heat a heavy bottom sauce pan and add all of the butter. Add green cardamom and cloves. Fry for 20-50 seconds, add the onions and sauté for 5-7 mins on medium heat until a brown color is received.
- Add the grated ginger and slit green chilies. Fry and add the chilli powder, garam masala powder along with the tomato puree and tomato sauce. Stir well and cook for a couple of minutes. Now, gradually add the double cream stirring continuously to combine all components. Simmer and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- If necessary, add a splash of water if the curry is too thick. Stir in the sugar, the fenugreek powder, and lemon juice. Now add the cooked chicken pieces and simmer the curry on a low heat for 8-10 minutes. Season to taste. Garnish with coriander and serve with desired breads.
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