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Restaurant-style Indian Butter Chicken Recipe

This Indian Butter Chicken recipe combines tender chicken pieces marinated in a rich blend of aromatic spices, simmered in a luscious tomato-based sauce, and finished off with a velvety touch of butter and cream.
Prep Time30 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian
Keyword: Indian butter chicken recipe
Servings: 4

Ingredients

Chicken Marinade:

  • 300 g boneless chicken breasts
  • 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
  • 1 tbsp red chili powder
  • Salt to taste
  • Oil to pan fry

Butter Chicken Sauce:

  • 500 g chopped tomatoes
  • 100 g chopped onions
  • 1 tbsp garlic paste
  • 50 g cashews
  • 1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves
  • 1/2 tsp garam masala
  • 4 tbsp sugar
  • 2 tbsp Kashmiri chili powder
  • 5 tbsp butter
  • 3 tbsp heavy cream
  • 1 1/2 tbsp white vinegar
  • Salt to taste

Instructions

For the chicken:

  • Start by marinating the chicken. Cut the boneless chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces. In a bowl, mix together ginger garlic paste, red chili powder, and salt. Coat the chicken pieces with this marinade and let them marinate for 30 minutes to an hour.
  • In a pan, cook the marinated chicken pieces until they are fully cooked and tender. You can either grill, bake, or pan-fry the chicken as per your preference. Remove and set aside.

For the sauce:

  • In the same pan, heat oil and sauté the finely chopped onions until golden brown. Add garlic paste and cook for a few more minutes. Then, add the chopped tomatoes and cashews to the pan.
  • Sprinkle garam masala, sugar, Kashmiri chili powder, and white vinegar into the pan. Stir and let the sauce simmer on low heat until the tomatoes soften and release their juices.
  • Once the tomatoes are cooked, remove the sauce from the heat. Using a blender or food processor, puree the sauce until smooth. Return the sauce to the pan.
  • Over low heat, stir in the butter until melted. Then, add the heavy cream to the pan.
  • Add the cooked chicken to the sauce and heat through thoroughly.
  • Sprinkle crushed dried fenugreek leaves into the sauce and season with salt to taste. Simmer the sauce for a few more minutes to allow the flavors to meld together.
  • Serve the Indian Butter Chicken hot, garnished with an extra drizzle of cream and a sprinkle of dried fenugreek leaves.