Super Simple Butter Chicken Recipe!
anjala farahath .
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The world of food has three kinds of people. Those who have no idea what butter chicken is, those who think butter chicken is unnecessarily overrated, and those who, at the sight of butter chicken, drop everything they are doing and run with all their might to get their hands on this delicious, creamy Indian curry. After all, butter chicken isn’t just food; it is an emotion, isn’t it?
While this popular non-vegetarian dish is love at first sight for most foodies, little do these butter chicken fans know about its geographic origin. Before we jump into a super simple recipe for you to gorge on, let’s take you through a little history lesson of this iconic dish. Read through to know the seldom said story of the birth of one of India’s most loved chicken preparations – the creamy, buttery yet sumptuous butter chicken!
Tracing The Roots
If one got into a debate to moniker just one city as the culinary capital of India, it would take an entire lifetime to settle the debate. But, we cannot forego the fact that Northern India owes a large part of its heritage of flavors to the Mughals (irrespective of what our politicians say, history can’t be altered). Cut to the pre-partition era, and the story unfolds at a sweet-shop, named Mukhey da Dhaba, in Peshawar (now Pakistan). The then owner, Mokha Singh, was the first to serve yet another delicacy — tandoori chicken (yes, bonus fact). With time, the ownership changed and the new owner often encountered wastage of unsold dry chicken. Like fate would have it, he used his gut feeling and culinary skills, and tossed these pieces in a thick gravy made with butter, fresh cream, tomatoes, and a generous amount of grounded spices, helping them retain moisture and become palatable again. And what came about was the glorious butter chicken! Post partition, this dhaba, now known as Moti Mahal, found solace in the heart of India, Delhi. And that was how we were introduced to this legendarily creamy, lip-smacking curry.
Since we’re done beating around the bush and brushing up a little on our history, we can now jump straight into the recipe of this appetizing dish!
Here’s All You Need To Get Started:
- 5 tbsp. of olive oil
- 2 bird’s-eye chili or dhani
- 5 garlic cloves
- 2 red chilies
- 2 medium-sized onions
- 3 thumbs peeled ginger
- 2-4 tbsp. of tomato paste
- 2 tbsp. of turmeric powder
- 1½ tbsp. of chili powder
- 1½ tbsp. of garam masala
- 1½ tbsp. of coriander powder
- 1½ tbsp. of ground cumin
- 3½ cups tomato puree
- 3 tbsp. of dried fenugreek leaves
- 1kg boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into small chunks
- 2 cups (500 ml) of heavy cream
- 113g of unsalted butter
- Fresh coriander
How To Make Butter Chicken:
- Let us begin by making the purée that creates the foundation for the curry. Add olive oil, cloves of garlic, a mix of the chilies, chopped onion, and ginger in a blender and purée until smooth.
- An important thing to note is that the curry is rich in ghee and butter. If you want it to taste authentic, there’s no other way around it (you may have to say bye-bye to the health freak in you for a while). In a cooking pot, heat ghee over a medium-high flame. Add the onion and chili puree and cook for about 15 minutes. You will notice that the mixture will turn slightly dark in color and becomes soft.
- To this mixture, add all the spices — turmeric powder, chili powder, cumin, gram masala, coriander, and the tomato puree. Let it cook for 5 minutes till the mixture reduces and the color looks densified.
- Using a wooden spoon, mix the ingredients well, such that no residue sticks to the bottom of the pan. To this add 1½ cups of water and stir well.
- Further, add some fenugreek leaves and increase the heat. As the gravy starts to boil, reduce the heat. Cover the pan and cook for about an hour, till the consistency thickens. Stir it occasionally to prevent it from sticking to the pan.
- Once the curry has attained a thick consistency, add the chicken chunks and cook for approximately 15 minutes. Make sure you don’t over-cook the chicken.
- The final step is what gives butter chicken its intrinsic value. Generously add dollops of cream and butter and mix well. Add salt to taste, and garnish the dish with some cilantro. Serve with some rice or naan.
And voilà! You have the perfect blend of tangy and saccharine, a combination that makes butter chicken so palatable. When it comes to food, one’s culinary skills cannot be limited by a hard and fast rule. Innovation is inevitable. It would only be just to not let innovation hamper the authenticity of the dish and its flavors. Butter chicken is undeniably a part of the legacy that we have inherited. Therefore, it is best to not hamper it much with innovation.
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