butter chicken – Spice Aromas by Manisha

Butter chicken, traditionally known as ‘murgh makhani’, originated from North India. When making this dish, many restaurants use sugar, butter, and cream which makes the dish unhealthy. However, my recipe has more nutritional value as it doesn’t contain these ingredients.

Blissful Butter Chicken: Authentic Curries

So here’s what you need to make this delicious curry.

Ingredients for Butter Chicken

800g chicken (boneless or with bones)
4 tbsp tandoori masala
1/2 cup Yogurt
4 tsp kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
1/2 cup cashews
2 tbsp garlic paste.
400g chopped tomatoes
Fresh coriander
Lemon juice (to taste)
Salt (to taste)
Cooking oil
Charcoal and Ghee for dum

Prep time: 25 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4

Special notes: the charcoal and ghee infuses extra flavour into the curry but is not a necessary step to completing the dish.

Step-by-Step recipe

Firstly, marinate the chicken with yogurt, tandoori masala, salt, kasoori methi, lemon juice and oil. Once marinated, wait 10 mins or directly grill for 15 minutes.

Ensure all of the chicken is covered in the marinade

Let’s move onto the makhani sauce. Heat some oil on a saucepan and add the garlic paste.

Then add the tomato paste and leave until the oil oozes out. After that, add the kasoori methi ,one tablespoon tandoori masala and add some salt according to your test. Fry for 2-3 minutes.

Take the chicken out of the grill and place it in the sauce.

Place the grilled chicken in the saucepan

Pour in the cashew nut paste and mix well. Add some water to change the thickness of the sauce. Allow to cook for around 5 minutes and make sure to check that the chicken is cooked.

This is now the optional step that adds a flavourful charcoal zing to the butter chicken. Place charcoal on an open flame so that it begins to burn. Next, take it of the heat and place it in a small bowl. Put 1/2 a teaspoon of ghee or butter on the charcoal so that smoke starts to appear. Quickly place the small bowl inside the saucepan and cover it with a lid immediately. 2 minutes should be enough for the curry to be infused with the flavour.