Easy Indian Butter Chicken

Hello and welcome! Today’s recipe for Easy Indian Butter Chicken will surprise you with its restaurant-quality flavor. Butter Chicken is an Indian dish; featuring a smooth tomato-based sauce, spiced with coriander, cumin, and garam masala. Butter Chicken is finished with a common Indian herb called Kasuri Methi, which really does make this dish. While I did include butter in this recipe, I left out the cream in favor of using raw cashews to create a silky, creamy, tomato-based sauce. Let’s get to it!

A little more on this mysterious sounding herb, Kasuri Methi…Kasuri Methi is dried fenugreek leaves. A hallmark of Indian cooking, Kasuri Methi has a slightly bitter, yet aromatic flavor. I would not have known what this dish was missing, until I tasted this Butter Chicken after I added the Kasuri Methi. The sauce was great, but then after letting the finished dish meld with the Kasuri Methi, it became something more. It was the missing flavor I didn’t know was missing. Know what I mean? Anyway, I really recommend buying some, it really does raise this dish to another, more authentic level.

Chicken Marinade

For the chicken marinade, we are going to make a paste with ginger and garlic to start. Ultimately, we need two tablespoons of this ginger garlic paste (1 tablespoon for the marinade and 1 for the sauce). Use a rasp grater to grate 6-8 cloves of garlic and a 2-3-inch piece of fresh ginger.

Then, fully mix the grated ginger and garlic together to form a paste. Use a mortar and pestle if you want. The grated aromatics should be fine enough to simply mix together with a spatula.

Combine the cubed chicken, 1/4 cup plain yogurt, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 tablespoon of the ginger garlic paste and the spices; 1 teaspoon each: ground coriander, paprika, cumin, kosher salt. Use your hands to massage and coat the chicken with the marinade. Cover and let sit at room temp for an hour, or refrigerate overnight.

After at least 1 hour of marinating, we are ready to cook the chicken. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat a tablespoon of grapeseed oil. When it’s shimmering, add the chicken to the skillet. Spread it out into a single layer and let the chicken cook undisturbed for about 3-4 minutes. We want to get some good color on the chicken pieces. Go in with a spatula and flip the chicken pieces over. Let cook on the other side for another 3 minutes or so. When the chicken is golden and cooked through, transfer to a plate or sheet tray, tent with foil and set aside.

Butter Chicken Sauce

On to the sauce. First, soak 1/3 cup of raw cashews in just enough boiling water to cover the cashews. Set that aside. Let the cashews soak for at least 10 minutes.

In a separate, or cleaned pan, over medium-low heat, melt 1.5 tablespoons of unsalted butter. When the butter is melted add 1 tablespoon of the ginger garlic paste, stir and sauté until very fragrant, about 1 minute. Don’t let it brown. Then add the sugar. Stir and sauté for one more minute.

Stir in the can of diced tomatoes, juice and all. Increase the heat to medium-high; stir occasionally and cook until most of the liquid is cooked off. Then add the spices: coriander seeds, garam masala, paprika and kosher salt. Stir the spices into the tomatoes and continue cooking until all the liquid is cooked off. Then cut the heat.

Transfer the chunky tomato mixture to a blender. Drain the cashews and add them to the blender. Blend the mixture to a smooth sauce.

Pour the thick sauce back into the pan we used to cook the tomatoes. Pour 1.5 cups of water into the blender and blend the water with the sauce that stuck to the sides of the blender (basically cleaning out the blender with the water). Then pour that watery mixture into the pan with the thick sauce.

Turn the heat up to medium and stir the watery sauce into the thicker sauce until emulsified. Bring the sauce up to a light simmer.

Once the sauce is lightly bubbling, add the cooked chicken to the sauce. Stir the chicken pieces into the sauce and cover the pan. Let the sauce and chicken simmer for 5-7 minutes.

After simmering covered for 5-7 minutes, uncover the Butter Chicken and cut the heat. Stir in the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of butter and the Kasuri Methi. Re-cover the pan and let the Easy Indian Butter Chicken sit for 10 minutes.

After the Butter chicken has rested with the Kasuri Methi for 10 minutes, we are ready to serve. Serve with Basmati rice, naan (or roti, chapati, or paratha), plain yogurt and your favorite chutneys.

I went with Basmati Rice, paratha (a flaky flatbread), plain yogurt, coriander mint chutney and a few cilantro leaves.

Such an amazing combination of flavors; tomatoey, rich and creamy. All of the aromatic richness you want in an Indian dish is here; the Kasuri Methi finishes the dish off beautifully. I do hope you give this Easy Indian Butter Chicken a try. It’s simple to make and tastes like restaurant-ordered Butter Chicken. So good! If you want to try another rich Indian dish (without the cream!) try Turmeric Cashew Chicken. Take care and be well! xo Kelly

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Easy Indian Butter Chicken

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Dinner, Main Course – Indian

By Kelly Djalali Adapted from Simply Recipes – Serves: 2-4

Prep Time: 20 Minutes – Cooking Time: 40 Minutes – Total Time: ~1 Hour

Better-than-restaurant Easy Indian Butter Chicken is simple to make and I have omitted the cream, using cashews to make a creamy, rich sauce.

Ingredients

• Marinade and Chicken
• 6-8 Garlic Cloves
• 2-3-inch Piece of Fresh Ginger
• 1/4 cup Plain Yogurt
• 1 tbsp. Olive Oil
• 1 tsp. Ground Coriander
• 1 tsp. Paprika
• 1 tsp. Cumin
• 1 tsp. Kosher Salt
• 1.5-2 lbs. Boneless, Skinless Chicken Thighs, cut into 1-inch cubes
• Butter Chicken Sauce
• 1/3 cup Raw Cashews
• 2 tbsp. Unsalted Butter, divided
• 1 tbsp. Ginger Garlic Paste
• 1 tsp. Sugar
• 1 15-oz. Can Diced Tomatoes
• 2 tbsp. Whole Coriander Seeds
• 1.5 tsp. Garam Masala
• 1/2 tsp. Paprika
• 1 tsp. Kosher Salt
• 1.5 cups Water
• 1 tbsp. Kasuri Methi

Instructions

Marinade and Chicken

1

Use a rasp grater to grate 6-8 cloves of garlic and a 2-3-inch piece of fresh ginger into a small bowl. Then, fully mix the grated ginger and garlic together to form a paste.

2

Combine the cubed chicken, 1/4 cup plain yogurt, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 tablespoon of the ginger garlic paste and the spices; 1 teaspoon each: ground coriander, paprika, cumin, kosher salt. Use your hands to massage and coat the chicken with the marinade. Cover and let sit at room temp for an hour, or refrigerate overnight.

3

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat a tablespoon of grapeseed oil. When it's shimmering, add the chicken to the skillet. Spread it out into a single layer and let the chicken cook undisturbed for about 3-4 minutes. We want to get some good color on the chicken pieces. Go in with a spatula and flip the chicken pieces over. Let cook on the other side for another 3 minutes or so. When the chicken is golden and cooked through, transfer to a plate or sheet tray, tent with foil and set aside.

Butter Chicken Sauce

4

Soak 1/3 cup of raw cashews in just enough boiling water to cover the cashews. Set that aside. Let the cashews soak for at least 10 minutes.

5

In a separate, or cleaned pan, over medium-low heat, melt 1.5 tablespoons of unsalted butter. When the butter is melted add 1 tablespoon of the ginger garlic paste, stir and sauté until very fragrant, about 1 minute. Don't let it brown. Then add the sugar. Stir and sauté for one more minute.

6

Stir in the can of diced tomatoes, juice and all. Increase the heat to medium-high; stir occasionally and cook until most of the liquid is cooked off. Then add the spices: coriander seeds, garam masala, paprika and kosher salt. Stir the spices into the tomatoes and continue cooking until all the liquid is cooked off. Then cut the heat.

7

Transfer the chunky tomato mixture to a blender. Drain the cashews and add them to the blender. Blend the mixture to a smooth sauce.

8

Pour the thick sauce back into the pan we used to cook the tomatoes. Pour 1.5 cups of water into the blender and blend the water with the sauce that stuck to the sides of the blender (basically cleaning out the blender with the water). Then pour that watery mixture into the pan with the thick sauce.

9

Turn the heat up to medium and stir the watery sauce into the thicker sauce until emulsified. Bring the sauce up to a light simmer.

10

Once the sauce is lightly bubbling, add the cooked chicken to the sauce. Stir the chicken pieces into the sauce and cover the pan. Let the sauce and chicken simmer for 5-7 minutes.

11

After simmering covered for 5-7 minutes, uncover the Butter Chicken and cut the heat. Stir in the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of butter and the Kasuri Methi. Re-cover the pan and let the Easy Indian Butter Chicken sit for 10 minutes.

12

After the Butter chicken has rested with the Kasuri Methi for 10 minutes, we are ready to serve. Serve with Basmati rice, naan (or roti, chapati, or paratha), plain yogurt and your favorite chutneys.

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