Indian Butter Chicken Recipe (2024)

This Indian Butter Chicken Recipe makes a delicious dish full of rich spices and flavors. The yogurt marinade and sauce will give your chicken an amazing flavor that you’re going to love.

This Indian butter chicken tastes great with some rustic bread and wild brown rice.

Best Indian butter chicken

Butter chicken is a well-known Indian dish that is very similar to chicken curry and chicken tikka masala. The chicken is marinated in a spiced Greek yogurt marinade, then added to a creamy tomato sauce that is mildly flavored with a few more spices, including curry, cumin, tandoori masala, and chili.

Everyone has their own version of how to make this dish. And I can guarantee everyone thinks their version is the best. I’m sure they are all good in their own ways. That’s the fun part about cooking. You can get really creative with just about any dish. If you enjoy Indian cuisine, this recipe is sure to become a favorite.

Is it spicy?

The short answer is no because Indian butter chicken uses a lot of spices, but is not spicy. However, if you want it to be spicy then you can make it so by increasing ingredients like cayenne pepper. But butter chicken is not typically spicy.

Why is it called butter chicken?

Indian butter chicken got its name because it is usually prepared in a makhani gravy, or butter gravy. It’s cooked in butter and cream, so the sauce has a buttery flavor – hence the name.

How to make butter chicken (marinade)

1. Combine spices and ingredients. In a bowl, mix together the yogurt, garlic, and ginger along with the other spices for the marinade. Make sure everything is well incorporated.
2. Marinate the chicken. Place the chicken thighs in the marinade and make sure that all sides are covered.
3. Let sit. Cover the bowl and place it in the refrigerator. Let it marinate for about 4 hours.
4. Bake the chicken. After the chicken has finished marinating, place the thighs on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes at 380 degrees Fahrenheit. Then, turn the oven to broil for 4-5 minutes.
5. Cool and cut. Once the chicken has cooled down, collect all the drippings and set them aside. Then, cut the chicken thighs into 1-inch cubes.

How to make butter chicken sauce

1. Dice the tomatoes and onions. Dice the onions and tomatoes then set aside.
2. Cook the cumin seeds. In a large skillet, melt the butter with the avocado oil over high heat. When the oil is hot, add the cumin seeds and stir for 1 minute.
3. Add the garlic, ginger, and onion. Add the garlic cloves, ginger, and diced onion to the oil and cook until the onion becomes translucent.
4. Then add the tomatoes. Add the diced tomatoes to the butter sauce and cook for 3 minutes. Then, add the tomato sauce.
5. Add the rest of the spices. Once the sauce has cooked for a few minutes, add in the rest of the spices on the ingredient list. Stir well.
6. Add the chicken. Place the cooked and cubed chicken into the butter sauce.
7. Add the heavy cream. Pour in the heavy cream and allow to cook for about 5 minutes before taking it off the heat.

What to serve it with

• Naan bread
• pilaf or basmati rice
• sauteed or stir-fried vegetables seasoned with Indian spices.

How long will this dish keep?

This Indian butter chicken will last up to 4 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. If you are just storing the sauce alone, then you can keep that in a lidded container for about 4 days in the fridge.

Butter chicken vs chicken tikka masala

Butter chicken has a lot of similarities to chicken tikka masala. The main differences are that butter chicken is more creamy, and not as tomato-ey. Also, because chicken tikka is cooked in a tandoor, it is drier than the moister and saucier butter chicken.

Full Recipe Instructions

This recipe was originally published on July 17, 2015, but it has been updated since.