Butter chicken: so rich, so comforting, so wonderfully delicious. If time isn’t on your side though and chargrilling the meat isn’t an option, this shortcut version will be your saviour on any day of the week.
WATCH THIS RECIPE
Easy Butter Chicken From Scratch
PREP TIME
10 minutes
COOK TIME
15 minutes
SERVES
4
Ingredients
50g (1.7 oz) butter
3 green cardamom pods, lightly crushed
1 cinnamon stick
1 tbsp finely grated ginger
2 garlic cloves, finely grated
250ml (9 oz) tomato puree or tomato passata
½ tbsp Kashmiri red chilli powder*
1 tsp sweet paprika
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp sea salt
1 x rotisserie chicken, breast meat cut into 3cm (just over 1 inch) chunks*
½ cup cream
2 tbsp natural yoghurt mixed with 2 tsp water, to serve
dried mint or kasoori methi*, to serve
naan or roti bread and/or rice, to serve
finely sliced red onion, to serve
finely sliced green chilli, to serve
lime wedges, to serve
Steps
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Heat the butter in a deep frying pan over medium-high heat. When the butter is foaming, add the cardamom and cinnamon. Cook for a minute or until fragrant. Then add the ginger and garlic. Cook for another minute or until fragrant.
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Pour in the tomato puree, and add the Kashmiri red chilli powder, paprika, sugar and salt. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring every so often, to allow the flavours to make friends.
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While the sauce is simmering, add the chicken and gently toss it through the sauce, then stir through the cream. To serve, drizzle over the yoghurt and sprinkle with dried mint leaves. Serve with the bread and/or rice, red onion, chillies and lime.
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Notes:
– I’m a big believer in minimising food waste. Once you’ve used the breast meat of your rotisserie chicken for this recipe, use the carcass and leg meat for another recipe such as my rotisserie chicken pho.
– This ground chilli powder is made from Kashmiri chillies, a variety known for its lower heat rating and intense red colour. It’s widely used in Indian cuisine, especially in tandoori and butter chicken. It’s well worth seeking out online or at an Asian grocer to give this dish its colour and smoky flavour. Substitute regular chilli powder and a little sweet paprika if you can’t find this particular variety.
– Kasoori methi is also known as dried fenugreek leaves. Find it online or at an Indian grocer.
Amazing
Tried this today and it turned out amazing ! Tastes even better than restaraunt version with hints of delicious spices
Easy butter chicken made from scratch
I made this for dinner tonight and what a winner. We all loved it and it was so easy to make. Highly recommend.