Butter Chicken

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The Golden Temple

📍 Where this dish comes from: Amritsar, Punjab · The Golden Temple
Discover the history of this region →
Butter Chicken, plated and ready to serve

Butter chicken was reportedly invented at Moti Mahal restaurant in Delhi in the 1950s when a cook mixed leftover tandoori chicken into a tomato, butter, and cream sauce. It conquered the world not because it was authentic but because it was irresistible — mild enough for any palate, rich enough to satisfy anyone. Surrender to the silkiest, most intoxicating sauce in the world: a slow-cooked reduction of charred tomato, sweet caramelized onion, and fragrant spices finished with cold butter and cream until it gleams like molten bronze around each piece of tender, smoky chicken.

What You’ll Need

Ingredients for Butter Chicken

Butter Chicken

A slow-cooked reduction of charred tomato, sweet caramelized onion, and fragrant spices finished with cold butter and cream.
Print Recipe
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 465kcal

Ingredients

  • 600 g chicken thighs grilled and roughly chopped
  • 3 tbsp ghee Sauce
  • 1 onion Sauce; roughly chopped
  • 4 tomatoes Sauce; roughly chopped
  • 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste Sauce
  • 1 tsp red chili powder Sauce
  • 1 tsp coriander powder Sauce
  • 1/2 tsp turmeric Sauce
  • 1 tsp garam masala Sauce
  • 150 ml full-fat cream Sauce
  • 2 tbsp cold butter Sauce
  • 1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi) Sauce
  • Salt and sugar substitute Sauce

Instructions

  • Heat ghee; cook onion until deep golden, 12 minutes.
  • Add ginger-garlic paste; cook 2 minutes.
  • Add tomatoes and all spices except garam masala and kasuri methi.
  • Cook until tomatoes break down and oil surfaces, 15 minutes.
  • Blend sauce until completely smooth; strain through a sieve.
  • Return sauce to pan; add cream and simmer 5 minutes.
  • Add grilled chicken and kasuri methi; simmer 5 minutes.
  • Finish with cold butter and garam masala.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 465kcal | Protein: 34g | Fat: 35g | Fiber: 1g
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Cooking Butter Chicken in the kitchen

Health Benefits

  • Heavy cream provides conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), a compound studied for its relationship to body fat.
  • Kasuri methi (dried fenugreek) is studied for its potential role in supporting healthy blood sugar and insulin sensitivity.
  • The tomato-based sauce provides lycopene, a carotenoid associated with heart health.

Pairs Well With

  • Cauliflower Pulao
  • Almond Flour Roti
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