Butter Chicken Recipe

Recipe for butter chicken masala. Recipe adapted from Moti Mahal Cookbook – On the Butter Chicken Trail by Monish Gujral

I have never been to New Delhi. So I have never tasted the butter chicken from Moti Mahal. The closest I have come to it is to try the butter chicken recipe from the Moti Mahal cookbook written by Monish Gujral. I had picked up this book years back but finally made the legendary butter chicken from the book.

The original recipe comes in two parts. First is to make the Tandoori chicken and then to make a gravy and finally incorporating the chicken in the gravy. Since at home, we do not have a tandoor, I have adapted the recipe to make it home style. Here is how to do Butter Chicken, Moti Mahal style.

I have used boneless chicken for this recipe. If you are using a tandoor, then you can use chicken thighs on the bone. First, we will be marinating the chicken.
Take a small mixie jar and add in the ginger, garlic and the yogurt. Grind to a fine paste. Set aside.

Take a bowl and add in the chicken pieces. Add in the red chilli powder, salt and the lime juice. Mix well. Add in the yogurt mixture.

Add in all the ingredients listed under “marinade” (Scroll to the bottom of the page). Mix well and allow the chicken to marinate for 3 hours.

Take a pan and add in a tablespoon of butter. Add in the marinated chicken along with the liquid to the pan. Cook the chicken for about 10-12 minutes.

Cook until the chicken is dry and starting to char here and there. Remove from heat and set aside.

Now we will deglaze the pan. Remove the chicken to a plate and add in half a cup of water to the pan. Bring to a boil. The bits and pieces sticking in the pan is where all the flavour is. Once the water is boiling and all the masalas sticking to the pan is released, remove from the pan and reserve this liquid. We will use later.

For the Butter Chicken Gravy
Prep Work: We will need tomato puree. Boil the tomatoes in water till the skin starts to fall apart. About 3-4 minutes. Remove the skin from the tomatoes and cut into half. Remove the seeds. Check this post to know how to deseed the tomatoes. If you are in a hurry, use canned tomatoes or ready made tomato puree.

Puree the tomatoes in a mixie without adding any water. Set aside.

Heat oil in a pan and add in the onions. Saute for a couple of minutes. Add in the tomato puree and the salt.

Add in the red chilli powder, garam masala powder and cumin powder. Cook for about 10-12 minutes till the tomatoes are cooked and streaks of oil starts to appear.

Add in the reserved liquid (deglazed liquid) and the cooked chicken. Simmer the gravy along with the chicken on a low flame for 10 minutes. If the gravy is too thick, add a little water.

Add in the fresh cream and the butter. Let it simmer for a couple of minutes more.

Remove from heat and serve with chopped green chillies, coriander leaves and drizzle a little cream on top.

Butter chicken is ready!!

Butter Chicken Recipe

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Recipe for butter chicken masala. Recipe adapted from Moti Mahal Cookbook – On the Butter Chicken Trail by Monish Gujral

• Total Time: 3 hours 30 mins
• Yield: 4-5 servings 1x

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

For the marinade

• 500 grams chicken (I have used boneless chicken)
• 1/4 cup yogurt
• 7–8 cloves garlic
• 1/2 inch piece ginger
• Juice of a small lime
• 1/2 teaspoon red chilli powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon kala namak (black salt)
• 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
• 1/2 teaspoon kasuri methi (dried fenugreek powder)
• 1 tablespoon butter

For the gravy

• 2 tablespoon peanut oil
• 5 tomatoes (deseeded and pureed) (canned tomatoes also works fine)
• 1/2 cup chopped onions
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon red chilli powder
• 1 teaspoon garam masala powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin powder
• 1/3 cup cream
• 2 tablespoon butter

For garnish

• 2 green chillies, chopped
• 1 tablespoon coriander leaves
• 1 tablespoon cream

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Instructions

1. Take a small mixie jar and add in the ginger, garlic and the yogurt. Grind to a fine paste. Set aside.
2. Take a bowl and add in the chicken pieces. Add in the red chilli powder, salt and the lime juice. Mix well. Add in the yogurt mixture. Add in all the ingredients listed under “marinade”. Mix well and allow the chicken to marinate for 3 hours.
3. Take a pan and add in a tablespoon of butter. Add in the marinated chicken along with the liquid to the pan. Cook the chicken for about 10-12 minutes. Cook until the chicken is dry and starting to char here and there. Remove from heat and set aside. Now we will deglaze the pan. Remove the chicken to a plate and add in half a cup of water to the pan. Bring to a boil. The bits and pieces sticking in the pan is where all the flavour is. Once the water is boiling and all the masalas sticking to the pan is released, remove from the pan and reserve this liquid. We will use later.
4. Heat oil in a pan and add in the onions. Saute for a couple of minutes. Add in the tomato puree and the salt.
5. Add in the red chilli powder, garam masala powder and cumin powder. Cook for about 10-12 minutes till the tomatoes are cooked and streaks of oil starts to appear.
6. Add in the reserved liquid (deglazed liquid) and the cooked chicken. Simmer the gravy along with the chicken on a low flame for 10 minutes. If the gravy is too thick, add a little water.
7. Add in the fresh cream and the butter. Let it simmer for a couple of minutes more.
8. Remove from heat and serve with chopped green chillies, coriander leaves and drizzle a little cream on top.
9. Butter chicken is ready!!

• Author: Kannamma - Suguna Vinodh
• Prep Time: 3 hours
• Cook Time: 30 mins
• Category: Curry
• Cuisine: North Indian