Simple Butter Chicken
This butter chicken recipe has all the bold Indian-inspired flavors you crave, and it's really easy to make! There's tons of the creamy, aromatic, and irresistible curry sauce.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
Marinade:
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt full fat
- 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons curry powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-size pieces
Sauce ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/4 cup butter divided
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce see note
- 1 cup heavy/whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon salt see note
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste
For serving:
- Chopped fresh cilantro
- Cooked rice (try basmati or jasmine)
- Naan
Instructions
- In a medium prep bowl, stir together the marinade ingredients until smooth, then add the chicken and stir it in so it's nicely coated. Cover and refrigerate overnight (you could for a minimum of 1 hour, but longer is better!).
- Heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter over medium-high heat in a large (I use a 12" one) skillet. Once the skillet is hot, use tongs to take the chicken out of the bowl and add it to the skillet (don’t just pour it all in the pan). Discard the rest of the marinade. Cook the chicken for about 3 minutes and flip and cook it for another 2-3 minutes. Transfer it to a plate.
- Add the remaining butter and the onions to the skillet. Reduce the heat to medium and sauté until softened and lightly browned (about 5-7 minutes). As they're cooking, use your spoon to loosen any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
- Add in the tomato sauce, cream, sugar, garam masala, salt, and cayenne pepper. Give it a good stir.
- Add the chicken back in (along with any plate juices), and increase the heat so it's bubbling, then reduce the heat and gently simmer for another 10 minutes or until it's cooked through and the sauce has thickened up a bit. Serve with fresh cilantro sprinkled over top, rice, and naan.
Notes
- Tomato sauce in USA/Canada can be replaced with tomato puree or passata in other countries.
- Spice level: It has a little kick, so you can up the cayenne pepper if you want more heat or eliminate it if you want it mild (but ensure the curry powder you're using is mild if that's a concern).
- You can swap the chicken breasts with boneless skinless chicken thighs if desired. They're less likely to dry out.
- If you're not using sea salt or kosher salt, you may want to start with half the suggested salt amount.
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