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5 from 1 vote

Easy Butter Chicken

A curry of chicken in a sauce of spiced tomatoes, butter and cream.
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time35 mins
Total Time45 mins
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Indian
Servings: 4

Ingredients

For the Chicken

  • 1 pound chicken breast
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
  • 1 tablespoon butter

For the Sauce

  • 14 oz tomato sauce
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • 2 inch piece of ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
  • 2 teaspoons garam masala
  • 1/4 teaspoon coriander
  • 1/4 teaspoon cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon butter

Instructions

  • Preheat your pan (I like to use a dutch oven, but you could use whatever you have). Cut the chicken into fairly large chunks and then mix with the spices. On medium heat, cook the chicken for four minutes on each side.
  • While that's cooking, chop the onion, garlic and ginger.* Remove the chicken and place on a plate for later. Then add the onion, garlic and ginger and let cook until the onion is transluscent.
  • Add the spices to the onion before adding any of the liquid and let it cook for 30 seconds. Then add the heavy cream, water and cinnamon stick. Give it a good stir before placing the lid on the pan and simmering on low-medium heat for 5-6 minutes.
  • Take the lid off, stir once again and turn the heat up to medium and simmer a further 4 minutes before adding the remaining tablespoon of butter and the chicken. Simmer this all together for a further 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through. The larger your chicken chunks are the longer it will need.
  • Remove the cinnnamon stick before serving and then serve over rice and garnish with cilantro.

Notes

*I like to use a zester/microplane to grate my ginger. I find it's quicker than peeling and chopping.