BETTER THAN RESTAURANT BUTTER CHICKEN RECIPE

BETTER THAN RESTAURANT BUTTER CHICKEN RECIPE

Butter Chicken is one of my absolute favorite Indian dishes. I know a lot of people love Chicken Tikka, but I love Butter Chicken. Marinated chicken simmered in a rich and creamy buttery tomato sauce with lots of Indian spices. Absolutely perfect with naan and rice. 

Dark meat works best for this butter chicken recipe, although you could absolutely use white meat. I also prefer to use meat with bones, but you could use boneless. The dark orange color often comes from adding either kashmiri red chili powder, or red food coloring. I prefer to use kashmiri chili powder. It adds just a wee bit of heat while giving the dish a beautiful color. You don’t have to use either if you don’t want. The taste will not change, and the color will still be lovely. 

A favorite Indian dish for many people, butter chicken is rich and creamy, and oh so delicious.

INGREDIENTS

• 1.5 lb chicken thighs
• Butter, ½ stick
• cinnamon, one 1 inch stick
• cloves, 2
• cardamom, 2 pods
• onion, 1 large, chopped
• ginger garlic paste, 2tbsp
• green chilis, 1 chopped
• tomatoes, 2 chopped, or ½ large can of tomato puree or diced tomatoes
• cumin seeds, 1 tsp
• coriander seeds, 1 tsp
• cashews/almonds, 5, broken into pieces
• kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves), 1 tbsp
• coriander powder, 1 heaping tsp+1 tsp
• cumin powder, 1 tsp
• kashmiri red chili powder, ¾ tsp+1/4 tsp
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste
• sugar, 1 tsp
• tomato paste, 2 tsp, optional
• cream, ¼ cup
• garam masala, ½ tsp
• oil, 3 tbsp
• water, 1 cup plus more for thinning

INSTRUCTIONS

For the Marinade

1. Slice some of the meat away from the bones. Then cut the thighs in the middle of the bones into two pieces.
2. In a bowl, add the chicken along with ¾ tsp red chili powder, 1 tsp coriander powder, salt, pepper, and 1 tsp ginger garlic paste. Mix together. Set aside for 15 minutes.

To Make

1. In a pan, add the oil and pan fry chicken till golden, but not completely cooked. Remove chicken from pan leaving oil, and set chicken in another bowl. Add extra oil if needed.
2. In the same pan, add the cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom. Once they start to pop, add coriander seeds and cumin seeds.
3. Once those crackle add onions and ginger garlic paste and stir.
4. Add tomatoes, cashews and green chilis, cover and simmer on low for 10 minutes.
5. Add tomato mixture to a blender, and puree until smooth. Return to pan.
6. Heat the pan back on low, and add the butter. Once melted, add the blended mixture.
7. Add the coriander powder, cumin powder, red chili powder, salt, sugar, and kasoori methi. Stir and cover. Simmer on low for 15 minutes.
8. Add the chicken back to the pan. If the sauce is thick, add a little water to thin it out. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat and simmer until chicken is cooked. Around 15-20 minutes.
9. Stir in the cream and garam masala.

NOTES

When you cook with a tomato sauce, the acidity from the tomatoes will make white meat have a rubbery texture. This is why I advise using dark meat. If you still want to use white meat, try brining the chicken breast in salted water for an hour before cooking.

Recipe Source:whitbitskitchen.com