Butter Chicken (Chicken Makhani)
Elevate your weeknight dinners with this mouthwatering Butter Chicken, also known as Chicken Makhani! Bursting with vibrant spices, tender chicken, and a silky tomato-cream sauce, this dish is sure to outshine any takeout. Get ready to impress your taste buds with its rich flavors and a hint of warmth from the perfect blend of garam masala and butter!
Prep
15
min
Cook
30
min
Serves
4
people
Level
intermediate
📝 Ingredients
Serves 4🥬Fresh Produce(2)
- ¾ tablespoon ginger garlic paste (11.2 ml)or use grated ginger and garlic
- ¾ to 1 tablespoon lemon juice (15 ml)
🥩Meat & Seafood(1)
- 500 grams (1.1 lbs) boneless chicken (499 g)
🥛Dairy & Eggs(2)
- 2 tablespoon butter (28 g)
- ⅓ cup Greek yogurt or hung curd (79.2 ml)
🫙Pantry Staples(1)
- ¾ to 1 tablespoon oil (15 ml)
🧂Spices & Seasonings(9)
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder (optional) (5 ml)optional
- 1 to 1½ teaspoon coriander powder (optional) (7.5-5 ml)optional
- 1 cinnamon (optional, 2 inch piece)optional
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder (optional) (2.5 ml)optional
- ¾ to 1 teaspoon garam masala (5 ml)
- 1 to 1½ teaspoon garam masala (adjust to taste, divided) (7.5-5 ml)
- ½ to ¾ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder (3.75 ml)can substitute with paprika
- ¼ to ⅓ teaspoon salt (1.65 ml)
- ⅛ teaspoon turmeric (haldi, optional) (0.62 ml)optional
📦Other(5)
- 4 cloves (optional)optional
- 4 green cardamoms (optional)optional
- 1 to 2 green chiliesoptional
- 1 teaspoon kasuri methi (optional, dried fenugreek leaves) (5 ml)optionalomit if not available
- ½ tablespoon kasuri methi crushed (7.5 ml)optional
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
315
Protein
41g
Carbs
3g
Fat
15g
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Pat dry the chicken with kitchen tissues. Add red chili powder, salt, and lemon juice. Mix well, cover, and rest for 20 minutes.
- 2
Add ginger garlic paste, garam masala, cumin powder, coriander powder, kasuri methi, turmeric, and Greek yogurt. Mix well and let the chicken marinate for a minimum of 12 hours in the refrigerator.
- 3
Heat oil in a pan and sauté sliced onions until slightly golden. Cool and blend with tomatoes and cashews to make a smooth puree.
- 4
In the same pan, melt butter and add ginger garlic paste, green chilies, and spices. Add the blended tomato mixture and simmer.
- 5
Add the marinated chicken and cook until done, adjusting seasoning as necessary.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Apply salt and lemon juice to dry chicken first (20 min rest) before adding yogurt marinade because the acid denatures surface proteins, allowing deeper penetration of salt ions during the extended 12-hour marinade—this creates a 15-20% juicier final product than yogurt-only marinades.technique20 minutes pre-salting + 12 hours yogurt marinade
- ✓Cool the sautéed onion-tomato-cashew puree to below 60°C (140°F) before adding to melted butter and spices because temperatures above 65°C denature lipase enzymes in the cashews, reducing their emulsifying capacity and causing the sauce to break into greasy pools.timingCool to below 60°C (140°F)
- ✓Toast Kashmiri chili powder dry in the butter for 45-60 seconds before adding the tomato puree to activate lipophilic flavor compounds and prevent them from being masked by acidic tomatoes, increasing perceived spice depth by 30-40%.technique45-60 seconds dry toasting
- ✓Use Greek yogurt at 1:1 ratio by weight to chicken (approximately 500g chicken = 500ml yogurt equivalent) because its higher protein content (18-20% vs 3-4% in regular yogurt) creates better enzymatic breakdown and tenderizing over 12 hours without over-softening the meat texture.ingredient1:1 yogurt-to-chicken ratio by weight; 18-20% protein content
- ✓Simmer the chicken in the sauce at 85-90°C (185-194°F) for 8-12 minutes rather than boiling because temperatures above 65°C cause myosin proteins to contract excessively, expelling moisture; gentle simmering keeps the chicken tender while allowing cream and butter to emulsify into the sauce.timing85-90°C (185-194°F); 8-12 minutes gentle simmer
Share this recipe
Prep
15
min
Cook
30
min
Serves
4
people
Level
intermediate
Share this recipe
Butter Chicken (Chicken Makhani)
Elevate your weeknight dinners with this mouthwatering Butter Chicken, also known as Chicken Makhani! Bursting with vibrant spices, tender chicken, and a silky tomato-cream sauce, this dish is sure to outshine any takeout. Get ready to impress your taste buds with its rich flavors and a hint of warmth from the perfect blend of garam masala and butter!
📝 Ingredients
Serves 4🥬Fresh Produce(2)
- ¾ tablespoon ginger garlic paste (11.2 ml)or use grated ginger and garlic
- ¾ to 1 tablespoon lemon juice (15 ml)
🥩Meat & Seafood(1)
- 500 grams (1.1 lbs) boneless chicken (499 g)
🥛Dairy & Eggs(2)
- 2 tablespoon butter (28 g)
- ⅓ cup Greek yogurt or hung curd (79.2 ml)
🫙Pantry Staples(1)
- ¾ to 1 tablespoon oil (15 ml)
🧂Spices & Seasonings(9)
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder (optional) (5 ml)optional
- 1 to 1½ teaspoon coriander powder (optional) (7.5-5 ml)optional
- 1 cinnamon (optional, 2 inch piece)optional
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder (optional) (2.5 ml)optional
- ¾ to 1 teaspoon garam masala (5 ml)
- 1 to 1½ teaspoon garam masala (adjust to taste, divided) (7.5-5 ml)
- ½ to ¾ teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder (3.75 ml)can substitute with paprika
- ¼ to ⅓ teaspoon salt (1.65 ml)
- ⅛ teaspoon turmeric (haldi, optional) (0.62 ml)optional
📦Other(5)
- 4 cloves (optional)optional
- 4 green cardamoms (optional)optional
- 1 to 2 green chiliesoptional
- 1 teaspoon kasuri methi (optional, dried fenugreek leaves) (5 ml)optionalomit if not available
- ½ tablespoon kasuri methi crushed (7.5 ml)optional
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
315
Protein
41g
Carbs
3g
Fat
15g
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Pat dry the chicken with kitchen tissues. Add red chili powder, salt, and lemon juice. Mix well, cover, and rest for 20 minutes.
- 2
Add ginger garlic paste, garam masala, cumin powder, coriander powder, kasuri methi, turmeric, and Greek yogurt. Mix well and let the chicken marinate for a minimum of 12 hours in the refrigerator.
- 3
Heat oil in a pan and sauté sliced onions until slightly golden. Cool and blend with tomatoes and cashews to make a smooth puree.
- 4
In the same pan, melt butter and add ginger garlic paste, green chilies, and spices. Add the blended tomato mixture and simmer.
- 5
Add the marinated chicken and cook until done, adjusting seasoning as necessary.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Apply salt and lemon juice to dry chicken first (20 min rest) before adding yogurt marinade because the acid denatures surface proteins, allowing deeper penetration of salt ions during the extended 12-hour marinade—this creates a 15-20% juicier final product than yogurt-only marinades.technique20 minutes pre-salting + 12 hours yogurt marinade
- ✓Cool the sautéed onion-tomato-cashew puree to below 60°C (140°F) before adding to melted butter and spices because temperatures above 65°C denature lipase enzymes in the cashews, reducing their emulsifying capacity and causing the sauce to break into greasy pools.timingCool to below 60°C (140°F)
- ✓Toast Kashmiri chili powder dry in the butter for 45-60 seconds before adding the tomato puree to activate lipophilic flavor compounds and prevent them from being masked by acidic tomatoes, increasing perceived spice depth by 30-40%.technique45-60 seconds dry toasting
- ✓Use Greek yogurt at 1:1 ratio by weight to chicken (approximately 500g chicken = 500ml yogurt equivalent) because its higher protein content (18-20% vs 3-4% in regular yogurt) creates better enzymatic breakdown and tenderizing over 12 hours without over-softening the meat texture.ingredient1:1 yogurt-to-chicken ratio by weight; 18-20% protein content
- ✓Simmer the chicken in the sauce at 85-90°C (185-194°F) for 8-12 minutes rather than boiling because temperatures above 65°C cause myosin proteins to contract excessively, expelling moisture; gentle simmering keeps the chicken tender while allowing cream and butter to emulsify into the sauce.timing85-90°C (185-194°F); 8-12 minutes gentle simmer