Butter Chicken
Tender chicken pieces in a rich, creamy tomato-butter sauce. The most iconic North Indian dish, perfected at home.
मुर्ग मखनी
Butter chicken is the dish that has introduced millions of people around the world to the warmth of Indian cooking. Beneath its velvety, sunset-orange sauce lies a careful balance of smoky tandoori-spiced chicken, sweet tomatoes, and the gentle richness of butter and cream. It is not a fiery dish — instead, it wins you over with depth, with layers of flavor that unfold slowly across each bite. This recipe walks you through building those layers at home, from a proper yogurt marinade all the way to a silky, restaurant-worthy sauce you will want to make again and again.
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Ingredients
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Ingredients
Method
Marinate chicken
Cut chicken thighs into 5 cm pieces. Mix with yogurt, lemon juice, Kashmiri chili powder, garam masala, cumin, turmeric, salt, ginger and garlic paste. Refrigerate 2 hours minimum, overnight is best.
Bring to room temp
Remove chicken from fridge 15 minutes before cooking. Heat a large skillet over high heat with oil.
Sear the chicken
Sear chicken in batches for 2-3 minutes per side until charred but not fully cooked. Set aside.
Bloom whole spices
In a heavy pot, melt butter with oil over medium heat. Add cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, and bay leaf. Stir 30 seconds until fragrant.
Cook the base
Add diced onion and cook 6-8 minutes until soft and light golden. Add ginger and garlic paste, cook 1-2 minutes.
Build the sauce
Add Kashmiri chili powder, ground coriander, cumin, and turmeric. Stir 30 seconds. Pour in tomato puree, add sugar and salt. Simmer 15-18 minutes until oil separates.
Blend smooth
Remove from heat. Discard whole spices. Blend sauce until completely smooth with an immersion blender. Strain for ultra-silky texture if desired.
Add cream
Return sauce to pot over medium-low heat. Stir in heavy cream until fully incorporated.
Simmer with chicken
Add seared chicken. Simmer on low 8-10 minutes until chicken is cooked through. Crush kasuri methi between palms and add with finishing garam masala. Simmer 2 more minutes.
Serve
Transfer to serving bowl. Drizzle with extra cream in a swirl pattern. Garnish with fresh cilantro.
Tips for Success
Do not skip the marinade
The yogurt and acid work together to break down the proteins on the surface of the chicken, resulting in tender meat that holds onto flavor. Two hours is the minimum; overnight is ideal.
Char the chicken properly
The smoky, slightly blackened edges are not just visual — they are the flavor foundation that distinguishes butter chicken from a generic tomato-cream curry.
Blend and strain the sauce
Restaurants achieve that impossibly smooth texture by blending and then pushing the sauce through a sieve. It takes an extra 5 minutes but elevates the dish dramatically.
Balance your seasoning
Butter chicken should taste rich but balanced. If the sauce is too tangy, add a pinch more sugar. If it feels flat, a squeeze of lemon juice will bring it back to life.
Use kasuri methi generously
Crushing the dried fenugreek leaves between your palms before adding them releases their essential oils. This single ingredient is what makes people say "this tastes like it came from a restaurant."
Nutrition
Per serving (approximate)
Nutrition values are approximate and may vary based on ingredients and portion sizes.
Butter Chicken
Tender chicken pieces in a rich, creamy tomato-butter sauce. The most iconic North Indian dish, perfected at home.
Nutrition values are approximate and may vary based on ingredients and portion sizes.
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