Indian Curry Chicken Recipe - Butter Chicken (Murgh Kari)

Seriously tasty, this super easy Indian curry chicken recipe consists of deeply marinated chicken in an incredibly creamy tomato-based curry sauce. This is Butter Chicken at its best and its I-Can't-Stop-Tasting-It Good!

What is Butter Chicken?

Butter Chicken is a fragrant Indian curry chicken consisting of juicy, deeply marinated pieces of chicken in a creamy, sweet and mildly spicy tomato based sauce. Similar to Chicken Tikka Masala, Butter Chicken is one of the most popular curries ordered in Indian restaurants all over the world.

Why make this Butter Chicken recipe?

• Very easy to make
• Ready in under an hour
• Easy to find ingredients
• BIG FLAVORS

Why is this dish called Butter Chicken?

Butter Chicken or Mugh Makahani in Hindi, is one of the most popular dishes in Indian cuisine. Its creamy, mildly spicy tomato based sauce is ridiculously addictive making it an internationally loved delicacy. This is one of the best chicken curry recipes ever invented!

Butter Chicken is said to have originated in Delhi in the 1950s. During this time, Kundan Lal Gurjal, operated a restaurant called Moti Mahal. According to the story, the cooks of Moti Mahal combined the leftover marinade juices with butter and tomato and then stewed tandoor cooked chicken in it. Over the years, the dish became was a cross-continental hit.

Ingredients for this Indian Chicken Curry Recipe

This dish gets its unique flavor through a unique combination of ingredients which once cooked, results in an incredibly tender chicken combined with an addictive, hard-to-resist sauce. There are two parts to the ingredients - the first is the ingredients of the marinade, the second the ingredients for the sauce. All the ingredients should be easily available at your local grocery store.

Marinade

The ingredients for the marinade include full fat yoghurt, lemon juice, crushed or minced garlic and ginger, powdered spices like turmeric, cumin, red chilli and garam masala and melted ghee.

• Yoghurt is traditionally used to marinate chicken in India. Yoghurt infuses meat with a delicious, tangy flavor, and also tenderizes it more gently and effectively than regular acidic vinegar or citrus based marinades.
• I like using a little lemon juice to help loosen the yoghurt and also infuse the meat with a subtle citrusy flavor.
• In addition to adding flavor, fresh ginger also acts as a meat tenderizer. Ginger is full of a powerful enzyme called zingibain which breaks down protein and really helps make the meat fork tender.
• Garlic is probably one of the most prominent ingredients in Indian curries and in addition to adding its signature flavor it also has several medicinal benefits.
• Traditional Indian spices like turmeric, ground cumin and red chili powder are used in this recipe. The turmeric can be omitted if you prefer not to use it. The turmeric does not really add to the taste - however it does add a golden color to the chicken and also has many health benefits. Reduce the red chili powder to ½ teaspoon or substitute with paprika for less heat.
• Garam Masala is a blend of ground spices which is widely used in Indian cuisine. Garam masala is made first by toasting whole spices like cinnamon, cardamom, peppercorns, cloves, cumin seeds and coriander seeds to release their aromatic flavors. The toasted whole spices are then ground into a powder. In a pinch, you can use cinnamon powder instead of garam masala.
• Adding the ghee to the marinade helps carry fat soluble flavors to the meat. If you don't have ghee don't worry - it is very easy to make. Just take a stick of butter and simmer until all the moisture has evaporated and fat proteins form at the bottom of the pan - about 20 minutes If you are looking for a non-dairy option, you can easily substitute the ghee with vegetable oil (e.g., corn, canola), olive oil or coconut oil.
• You can use either chicken breast or skinless chicken thighs for this recipe. The chicken needs to be cut into small bite size pieces.

Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani) Sauce

Several ingredients in the marinade are repeated in the sauce with the exception of heavy cream and pureed tomato sauce, onion, sugar and cilantro

• The tomato puree is the primary base for the sauce. If you decide to substitute whole tomatoes, chop them into the small pieces before simmering it in the spices.
• Heavy cream is traditionally used in this recipe but if you are looking for a non-dairy option, use coconut milk instead. I often substitute coconut milk for the heavy cream because I love the taste of the resulting creamy coconut chicken curry. You can also use evaporated milk or half and half as a lower calorie option.
• In this recipe, a little fresh cilantro is used for garnish. Cilantro is traditionally used in Indian curry chicken dishes like this, however chopped parsley or scallion will work as well.
• If you do not have garam masala for the sauce you can substitute 1-2 one inch cinnamon sticks instead.
• You can increase or decrease the spice level of this dish by adjusting the amount of red chili powder.
• A little sugar and acid like lemon juice helps really round up and brighten the flavors. I use white sugar in this recipe but you can easily substitute with brown sugar or your favorite sweetener.

How to make Homemade Butter Chicken

You can make Butter Chicken in literally 3 simple steps:

Step One: Marinate the chicken

• In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients for the chicken marinade except the chicken and mix well. Add the chicken and miss, making sure the chicken is well covered. If time permits, cover the bowl and put in the fridge to marinade for at least a half hour. For optimal results marinate the chicken overnight.

Step Two: Fry the marinated chicken

• Heat the ghee over moderate heat in a large skillet. When the oil is hot, take the chicken out of the marinade, shake off any excess marinade and fry the chicken in small batches so that the chicken is cooked about 80% through (about 3 minutes). Put the fried chicken pieces into a bowl for later. While frying, do not wipe off the marinade. Also, discard the leftover marinade in the bowl.

Step Three: Create the Sauce & Cook the Butter Chicken

• Continuing on medium heat, add the vegetable oil to the same frying pan that the chicken was fried in. Add the onions and sauté until transparent. Add the garlic, ginger, red chili powder, cumin, coriander, garam masala, salt and sugar and a cup of water. Fry until you see the spices separate from the oil 2-3 minutes. If the spices look too dry while cooking feel free to add up to a cup of water.

• Add the fried chicken (including any juices in the bowl), pureed tomatoes and cream. Turn down the heat to low and let simmer for about 20 minutes. Taste for seasoning and add salt, sugar or lemon juice as needed.

• Garnish with chopped cilantro, ghee and a little cream. Enjoy!

How do I make the sauce even more smooth?

This recipe will contain bits of onion which I love because it really adds to the texture. However if you prefer a very smooth sauce, simply blend the sauce before adding the chicken.

How do I make this Indian Curry Chicken more buttery and fragrant?

This recipe has been simplified to reduce the ingredients and make it less caloric. If you wanted to make this chicken very fragrant use ghee instead of vegetable oil. Instead of garam masala, fry 1 stick of cinnamon, 5 smashed cardamom pods, 5 cloves and 5 peppercorns in the ghee with the onion. If blending the sauce, do not blend these - add them in later when simmering with the chicken. Remove these spices prior to serving.

Make ahead tips

The dish can be made up to two days ahead. Allow it to cool completely then store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Leftovers

One of the best things about this delicious recipe which is actually better the next day. The additional time helps the flavors deepen and intensify.

How many calories are in Butter Chicken?

This Butter Chicken recipe has 367 calories with 10.1g of carbohydrates, 20.2g of fat and 35.2g of protein.

This recipe yields approximately 8 servings. The nutrition information has been calculated using an online recipe nutrition calculator and is intended for informational purposes only and should be used as a general guideline. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should independently verify it using your preferred tool.

What to serve with Indian Curry Chicken

This Indian curry chicken is perfect over piping hot white rice, plain basmati rice and of course naan bread. The Butter Chicken also works very well with plain fresh salads as a dressing is not really required because of the delicious curry gravy! This is also a great recipe that works really well with Roti, Quick Homemade Bread, tandoori roti and naan.