Butter Chicken

Yield
6
Cooking Time
2 hours

Ingredients

  • 1 lb chicken breast cubed
  • 1 lb chicken thighs cubed
  • 1/2 C plain yogurt
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • 1 Tbsp lemon juice
  • 3 Tbsp butter
  • 1 large onion very thinly sliced
  • 1 small red chili seeded and diced
  • 1 Tbsp grated ginger
  • 1 Tbsp grated garlic
  • 3 whole cloves
  • 1 large can whole tomatoes
  • 1 lb fresh tomatoes
  • 2 tsp garam masala
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon to taste
  • 1/2 tsp Fenugreek seeds to taste
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp salt to taste
  • 2 C chicken stock
  • 1 C half and half

Instructions

  1. Marinate chicken in a mixture of plain yogurt, turmeric, garlic powder, garam masala, and lemon juice for an hour or up to a day ahead.
  2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
  3. Bake marinated chicken for about 15 minutes. It will be just barely cooked through and the exterior should brown a bit. They will look bright yellow-orange.
  4. Heat the butter in a large heavy pot (I used a Dutch oven) and add the thinly sliced onion. I took a long time with this—basically melted the onion and got it to a nice nut brown color. Now add the ground spices and keep cooking another 5-10 minutes until everything is super fragrant.
  5. Add the ginger, garlic, and chili and keep cooking another 5 minutes. Add fresh tomatoes, and the can of whole tomatoes with the juice. Add the stock and simmer for a while until the tomatoes are soft.
  6. Use an immersion blender to puree tomatoes and thicken the sauce.
  7. Add the chicken and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the cream and reduce heat to lowest setting and simmer for another 5 minutes. Serve with rice or naan.