HOME COOKED BUTTER CHICKEN- need i say more?

Like I promised in my previous post that I will soon be sharing the recipe of butter chicken, here I am with the post revolving around the most popular North-Indian, non-vegetarian main dish. 

In all these years I have still not come across one person who has meat and doesn’t like butter chicken. It usually tops the list when you are ordering something for dinner at a restaurant or setting the menu for an occasion or ordering food in. It was a favourite and it remains to be the same way even now. 

While this recipe fetched me a lot of compliments and made all the efforts worthwhile, I am hoping that you too become the star for the day when you cook this luxurious dish for your loved ones. Why I call it luxurious? You’ll know when you will go through the ingredients.

A word of CAUTION: If you are on a diet I would ask you to have this on a cheat day. 

This recipe is slightly different from the traditional recipe. For starters it uses onions, while the traditional recipe uses only tomatoes for gravy. Also the traditional recipe does not use chicken masala but I have included it in my recipe. Earlier, I too used to cook this popular dish the conventional way, however I realised that a few changes in the traditional recipe does wonders and only enhance the taste. 

the kingly treat! yummmyyy!!!

Follow the following steps to give your taste buds a kingly treat.

Ingredients:

For the marinade

1 cup hung curd

1.5 tbsp ginger-garlic paste

½ tbsp red chilli powder

2 tbsp chicken masala (available in the market)

Salt to taste

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp oil

For the gravy

1 kg chicken

2 small onions (pureed)

4 tomatoes (boiled and pureed)

1 box of tomato puree (available in the market)

¾ cup water

1 green chilli

1 tbsp cumin seeds

2-3 tbsp chicken masala

½ tbsp red chilli powder

1 tbsp roasted cumin powder

1 tbsp coriander powder

100ml full cream

Salt as per taste

½ tbsp sugar

A fistful of cashews (ground into a paste with some milk)

2 tbsp of dried fenugreek leaves

8-10 tbsp Ghee/Clarified Butter (the more the better)

For the garnish

1 tbsp full cream

1 tbsp garam masala

1 slit green chilli

Recipe

Wash the chicken pieces properly. Prick them at various places with a fork or a knife and keep aside.

Mix together all the ingredients of the marinade. Add chicken pieces to it. Cover the pieces properly with marinade. Seal the bowl with cling foil and refrigerate overnight. If you are in a hurry marinate the chicken for atleast two hours.

Sauté the cashew-milk paste a little till it becomes slightly golden in colour. Keep aside.

Put a tbsp of ghee in a non-stick pan and grill the chicken pieces till they are three-fourth done. Take off the flame and keep aside.

Put ghee in a wok, add cumin seeds to it. Add pureed onions and cook till onion becomes golden brown.

Add boiled tomato puree and chopped green chilli to it and let it cook for a few minutes.

Add red chilli powder, chicken masala, coriander powder, roasted cumin powder and salt to the tomatoes and cook till the tomatoes begin to show ghee from the sides.

Add a pinch of sugar, boxed tomato puree and water and cook for a few minutes.

Put in the grilled chicken pieces, the left over marinade and some more ghee. Cook for 10  minutes on medium flame till all the flavours come together.

Add cream and cashew paste to the gravy and cook for a few more minutes.

For the final flavour, crush dried fenugreek leaves and add to the gravy. Cook for two minutes and take off the flame.

Garnish the dish with a sprinkle of garam masala, a dollop of cream and a slit green chilli.

Enjoy it with the bread of your choice or with rice with pickled onions on the side.

NOTE:

If the gravy seems too thick add a little more water and salt to the gravy and cook.

If you choose to have the leftover chicken the next day, put ghee in a pan, add some cumin seeds to it. Add last night’s butter chicken, some boxed tomato puree and a little bit of all the masalas you used earlier. Add water and some sugar. Give it all a good boil and the butter chicken will be as good as new.

If you do not wish to use the whole of marinated chicken for the dish, grill some and serve as tikka with drinks.

Traditionally the chicken is grilled in a tandoor, however I chose to grill it on a pan. The choice is absolutely yours. You can also roast it in an oven at 200 degree Celsius.

P.S.: Thank you Ruby di for your recipe helped me to make this dish so yummy!