Classic Butter Chicken Recipe
Make restaurant-style butter chicken at home with my easy, foolproof recipe without any shortcuts. A rich, buttery, and ultra-creamy makhani sauce made with fresh tomatoes coats tender and flavorful chicken. Simply irrestible!
Ingredients
For Making Tandoori Chicken Tikka
- 1 lb(454g) boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 3 tablespoon (45g) plain, whole milk greek yogurt or thick (non watery) curd, whisked
- ½ teaspoon ginger paste
- 1 teaspoon garlic paste
- ½ tablespoon mustard oil or melted ghee
- 1.5 teaspoon lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1 teaspoon kasuri methi (dry fenugreek leaves) crushed between palms, skip if not available
- ¼ teaspoon salt (if you are not using black salt, use ½ teaspoon salt)
- ½ teaspoon black salt (kala namak) skip if not available
Ground Spices For Tandoori Marinade
- ½ tablespoon kashmiri red chili powder
- ⅛ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder
- ½ teaspoon garam masala powder
To Make Makhani Sauce
- 2 tablespoon cooking oil any neutral oil, I use avocado oil
- 150 g onion sliced, I use red onion, yellow onions work as well
- ½ inch fresh ginger roughly chopped
- 5 garlic cloves if they are too big, use 3 or 4
- 8-10 raw whole cashews skip for nut free version
- 6 tablespoon butter divided (you can reduce, but hey its butter chicken!)
- 500 g fresh tomatoes sliced, I use fresh tomatoes on the vine. Substitute with canned whole tomatoes(weight the tomatoes without liquid in the can while measuring)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ¾ teaspoon salt or adjust to taste
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon kasuri methi
Spices Needed For Makhani Sauce
- ½ inch cinnamon stick
- 3 green cardamom pods
- 1 medium size whole dried kashmiri red chili deseeded (if yours are too long, use half) sub with ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper powder
- 1.5 teaspoon kashmiri red chili powder
- ⅛ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ½ teaspoon garam masala powder start with ¼ teaspoon and adjust after tasting depending on warmth of your garam masala
Instructions
Tandoori Chicken Marination
- Trim the fat around the chicken thighs and cut them into thirds, or into four pieces if they’re large. Using a sharp knife, slice each piece flat at an angle against the grain for maximun sear and even cooking. For a visual guide, please refer to the video.
- In a large bowl, place the cut chicken and add all the listed marinade ingredients along with spices.
- Toss everything together so that each chicken piece is well coated. For best results, use your hands (wear gloves to prevent staining and lingering spice aromas).
- Let the chicken marinate for at least one hour at room temperature. For maximum flavor and tenderness, refrigerate overnight—that’s my go-to method!
Make The Makhani Sauce
- While the chicken marinates (or the next morning), begin preparing the makhani sauce. If you marinated a night before, remove the marinated chicken from the fridge and let it sit on kitchen counter to bring it closer to room temperature.
- In a cooking pot (I use 4 qt), heat the oil over medium heat. Temper it with whole green cardamom pods and cinnamon stick.
- Add the onions and fry them for 3 to 4 minutes until softened with a slight hint of color. Avoid browning, as that would intensify the onion’s flavor and overpower the bright, fruity notes of the tomatoes. Butter Chicken is a mild dish and its flavors should be balanced, without any one aromatic or spice dominating the taste of sauce.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the deseeded whole Kashmiri red chili (if using), raw cashews, ginger, garlic, kashmiri red chili powder, turmeric powder, and butter. Sauté everything for 1–2 minutes taking care not to burn the chili powder. Adding butter at this stage (as compared to right in the beginning) prevents it from browning or burning.
- Stir in the tomatoes, salt, and sugar. Mix well and let cook over low-medium heat for 2–4 minutes or until the tomatoes begin to soften. Do not add water as tomatoes will naturally release their juices. This way we get intense tomato flavor.Tip - If you are using canned tomatoes, add ½ cup water before closing the lid.
- Sprinkle the garam masala and kasuri methi. Reduce the heat to low and cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid. Let the mixture simmer for 15–20 minutes. Check occasionally to ensure it doesn’t dry out; if needed, add a splash of water as needed. (this depends on how your tomatoes are). Once the tomatoes turn soft and jammy, turn off the heat and let the mixture cool down.
Cook The Tandoori Chicken
- Dhungar (Smoking The Chicken)- Just before cooking the marinated chicken, give it a smoky flavor. To do this, place a small bowl or a piece of foil in the center of the marinated chicken. Heat a small piece of charcoal until red hot using tongs over an open flame. Carefully place the hot charcoal in the bowl, add a few drops of ghee or oil, and immediately cover the bowl with a lid to trap the smoke. Let it sit for 1–2 minutes, then remove the charcoal. Avoid long smoking as it can lend an unpleasant bitterness.
- While the sauce mixture cools, heat a grill pan, griddle, or skillet over high heat. Lightly grease it with ghee or any high-smoke-point oil, then arrange the chicken in a single layer. Don’t overcrowd else the chicken will start steaming. Cook in batches.
- Let sear on both sides until golden brown and nicely charred. Check for doneness using a meat thermometer—the internal temperature of chicken should reach 165°F. Alternatively, bake in the oven at 400°F for 8 to 10 minutes, then broil for the 3 to 4 minutes for a charred finish.
- Let the chicken rest for a few minutes before shredding it into thin strips. Set aside.
Combine Makhani Sauce & Tandoori Chicken
- While the chicken cools, blend the makhani sauce. Remove and discard the cinnamon stick, then transfer the cooled sauce to a high-speed blender (I use Vitamix blender). Blend on medium until completely smooth. See? No extra prep needed for fresh tomatoes!Tip - I don’t recommend using an immersion blender, as the tomatoes & cashews need a powerful blend to achieve a velvety smooth sauce. If you aren’t using high speed blender, strain the blended sauce if necessary.
- Pour the blended sauce back into the cooking pot over low heat. Since the cashews make the sauce thick and are prone to sticking, keep the heat gentle.
- Add the shredded chicken and butter. Pour ½ cup of water into the blender jar to catch every last bit of that velvety sauce (no way we’re wasting it!) Swirl and pour it into the pot and stir everything together. Note - Heavy cream here in US is almost liquid like. When we add heavy cream, it thins out the makhani sauce quite a bit. Dont add lot of water right now, wait until you've added heavy cream and then adjust the consistency.
- Let the curry simmer on low heat until the butter melts, the sauce gently bubbles, and small buttery pools start to form on the surface.
- Stir in the heavy cream, then taste and adjust the salt and sugar if needed. Add ½ to 1 teaspoon of crushed kasuri methi for extra aroma. If you like, a dash of garam masala can be added at this stage.
- Simmer for 5–7 minutes, just until the cream is warmed through. Don’t let it boil.
- Your butter chicken is ready! Garnish with chopped cilantro if you like. While rich Indian sauces aren’t traditionally topped with fresh herbs, but there are no hard rules. Serve warm!
Video
Notes
- Don't skimp on Butter & Cream - Butter chicken gets its signature luxurious taste from? You guessed it—butter and cream! Don’t hold back on these two ingredients. It is an indulgent dish and is best enjoyed that way.
- Let The Sauce Shine - Butter Chicken is ALL about the sauce. So don’t overcrowd it with too much chicken. The makhani sauce is the star and it should generously coat the chicken while leaving plenty to scoop up with flatbreads or rice.
- Don't overly spice it - If you are a regular reader, you would know that I am very spice forward in my recipes. However for butter chicken, you don't need to use a ton of whole spices (I only use green cardamom & cinnamon). Let the taste of tomates shine! I also advise you to hold back especially the strong spices such as garam masala powder.
- Whole Kashmiri red chilies do add a considerable kick. Skip them for kids. If unavailable, use a dash of cayenne pepper powder to taste.
- For a melt-in-the-mouth butter chicken, marinate the chicken for up to 10-15 hours to tenderize it.
- When cooking in the oven, don't forget to broil at the end for a smoky char. Add chicken juices remaining in the baking dish to the makhani sauce for extra flavor.
- A tablespoon of sugar sounds a lot but trust me the tartness of tomatoes and the kick of whole kashmiri red chili offsets it. Don't worry your butter chicken won't be sweet.
- Add salted butter carefully. Adjust salt at the end once it’s melted into the sauce.
- For make-ahead preparation, marinate the chicken and prepare & blend the sauce a day in advance. Hold off on adding the cream until just before serving. When ready to cook, grill or bake the chicken, add to the sauce, then stir in the cream and butter. Let it simmer briefly, then serve!
Serving & Storage
Butter Chicken is best served with indian flatbreads such as my easy no yeast naan or plain paratha and jeera rice(cumin rice). You can make a fresh salad like kachumber salad on the side. If I am making it for a party, I would make a lentil dish such as yellow dal tadka as well. Store leftovers in the fridge for 2–3 days. Reheat on the stovetop for the best texture. Naturally, the sauce will thicken. Thin out with little water while reheating. Since this dish is quite rich in fat, I don’t recommend using the microwave, as it tends to cause significant fat separation. Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!