Classic Butter Chicken
Delicious, homemade, and very easy Butter chicken, will let you wonder, why have you not make it sooner.
Servings: 6
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1 pound of chicken tights or 4 pieces
- 2 tbsp of lemon juice
- 2 tsp of garam masala
- 1 tsp of ground cumin
- 1 cup of plain yogurt (I like to use whole milk Icelandic yogurt)
Sauce
- 3 tbsp butter
- 1 onion (diced)
- 1 tbsp ginger (grated)
- 5 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 tsp of cumin
- 1 tsp of garam masala
- 1/2 tsp chili powder (omit if you do not want spicy)
- 1 tsp coriander
- 1/2 tsp Tumeric
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt or to taste
- 1/4 cup chicken broth (Optional)
- 14 oz crushed tomatoes
- 1 tsp sugar is in the original recipe, I do not use sugar
- 1 cup of Hal&half or Heavy cream
- cilantro or parsley to garnish
Instructions
Marinade
- The ideal time to marinate chicken is overnight. Meat gets more tender the longer you marinate. That goes for any marinate, not just Butter Chicken. The minimum for marinating your meat is at least 20-30 minutes. Longer the better!!!
- Mix together all ingredients for marinating. Trim your chicken from excess fat and cut it into bite-size. You can slip a step and just pour all ingredient over your chicken and mix all together.
Sauce
- Melt butter over medium heat and add diced onion into a skillet. Saute for a couple of minutes, until translucent. Add spices, ginger, garlic. Do not burn your spices.
- Add marinated chicken and if possible with your marinate.
- Toss your meat in a skillet with spices and onion mix. Cook for about 10 minutes while stirring occasionally to coat and cook evenly. You will love all the aroma coming from the skillet.
- Add the rest of your ingredients to the skillet. Simmer on medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes.The trick of making a great sauce is to let the tomatoes cook-off. The sauce will thicken as all juice will evaporate. You can add in a couple of tablespoons of water if it dries too early.
- Time to add cream or half&half. You choose what tastes better for your family. Both make the trick of a great sauce. Pour in and lower your heat on low. Simmer for 5-10 minutes. The sauce will thicken even more. Garnish with cilantro.
- Not everybody loves cilantro and you can use flat parsley instead.
- Serve over basmati rice and naan bread! Enjoy yhis delicious meal!
Notes
Cooking tips
- Marinate chicken for 20 minutes, or overnight if time allows. (The longer it marinates, the more tender your chicken will be.)
- Don’t use low-fat yogurt if you can. They do not have much flavor and they are not as thick. ( I do not believe to non-fat or low-fat products) In Czech, we say: “If my great-Grandma would not recognize it, it is not eatable”
- To store leftovers: Allow to cool completely, store it in an airtight glass jar or container and refrigerate for up to 48 hours.
- Cannot find whole milk plain yogurt? Nevermind, saur cream will work as well.
- If you like ghee better over butter, do use ghee