Butter Chicken, Easy Murgh Makhni Recipe for Home
Butter Chicken or Murgh Makhni is one of the most popular curries at any Indian restaurant around the world. Aromatic golden chicken pieces are simmered in an incredible creamy & rich sauce. This Butter Chicken recipe is one of the easiest you can try.
Ingredients
Ingredients for the marinade
- 2 Piece Chicken without skin Cut into a total of 24 pieces
- 4 tablespoon Lime Juice
- 2 tablespoon Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder
- 1 tablespoon Garam Masala Powder
- 2 tablespoon [Ginger] Paste
- 1 tablespoon Garlic Paste
- 1 Cup Yoghurt or Curd Hung to drain whey
- 4 tablespoon Olive Oil Pomace or Extra Virgin
- 1 teaspoon Salt
Ingredients for the gravy
- 50 grams Butter Makhan
- 5 tablespoon Olive Oil
- 2 Inch Cinnamon Dal Chini
- 7 Piece Cardamom Green
- 12 Piece Black Peppercorns Kali Mirch
- 7 Piece Cloves Laung
- 2 Piece Bay Leaf Tej Patta
- 1 tablespoon Ginger Paste Adrak
- 1 tablespoon Garlic Paste Lehsun
- 400 grams Tomato Puree Homemade will do
- 6 Piece Fresh Tomatoes Medium sized; Blended
- 4 Piece Fresh Green Chillies Whole and split into two
- 2 tablespoon Red Chilli Powder Kashmiri
- 1 tablespoon Garam Masala Powder
- 1 tablespoon Crushed Kasoori Methi Dried fenugreek leaves
- 2 tablespoon Honey or Sugar Brown Sugar
- 1 Cup Fresh Cream
- 1 teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- Start with cleaning the chicken and then make small incisions on the chicken pieces.
- Mix salt, 2 tablespoons of Kashmiri Red chilli powder and 4 tablespoons of lime juice into a paste and smear it nicely on the cleaned chicken. Let it rest for 30 minutes or so.
- Prepare a mixture with ginger, garlic paste, hung curd, Garam masala powder, olive oil and add the chicken pieces to it. Refrigerate for around 2 hours or so.
- Remove the chicken and Combi Grill on a high rack on medium settings for 12 minutes and your chicken is done. Preserve the remaining marinade.
- Baste the chicken with butter once after 7 minutes or so. Recover the juices collected in the browning dish below and keep aside.
- Debone the chicken, cut it into small strips and keep aside.
- Add olive oil and butter to the pan. As the butter melts add cinnamon, cardamom, pepper corns, cloves and bay leaves. Fry till they start giving out their aroma. Add ginger and garlic paste to it and fry for 2 minutes.
- Add tomato puree, freshly blended tomatoes, fresh green chillies, Kashmiri chilli powder, Garam Masala powder, salt, preserved marinade and the juices recovered from the browning dish. Add two cups of water to this and bring it to boil.
- Let the mixture simmer till the oil separates from the gravy. Add honey (or brown sugar if preferred) and kasoori methi.
- Add the chicken pieces and simmer for about 10 minutes till the gravy thickens and the chicken has absorbed the flavours.
- Add the fresh cream. In case fresh cream is not available as was the case with us, we reduced two cups of full cream milk to half the quantity and added the same while the gravy was still simmering.
- Check and correct the salt as desired.
- Smack your lips and enjoy your butter chicken with naans or parathas.
Notes
- replace the cubed chicken breasts with cubed boneless, skinless chicken thighs for more added flavour.
- Marinating chicken helps to make it soft and tasty. Make sure there is no excess water in the chicken.
- Instead of cream, you can also use cashew paste – It is a good alternative for dairy-free cream.