Butter chicken offers a perfect blend of creamy tomato sauce, tender chicken, and aromatic spices in this quick and easy 30-minute version. Bring those traditional flavors into your kitchen without sacrificing your entire evening hovering over the stove, and sit down to this dish – loved for generations and now ready in just half an hour – that wraps you in warmth and spice.
Butter chicken is absolutely amazing with homemade garam masala. If you love butter chicken, you have to try chicken tikka masala as well!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Ready in just 30 minutes, fitting perfectly into busy schedules.
- Offers chicken, paneer, and mixed veggie options for various diets.
- Spice level is customizable to your liking.
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Greek yogurt: Tenderizes the chicken, ensuring it’s soft and juicy. Substitute dairy-free yogurt for a plant-based option.
- Lemon juice: Adds a bright, acidic note to balance the spices. Freshly squeezed is always best.
- Heavy cream: Gives the sauce its luxurious texture. Substitution: Full-fat canned coconut milk for a plant-based or lighter option.
- Butter or ghee: Adds richness and flavor to the sauce. Substitution: Any neutral oil for a lighter or plant-based version.
- Vegetarian option: Replace chicken with 2 to 3 cups of mixed vegetables like peas, green beans, carrots, cauliflower, and green bell pepper. Skip the marinating process.
- Paneer Makhani variation: Use one pound of paneer instead of chicken. Brown the paneer with onions before adding it to the sauce.
Butter Chicken Recipe
The secret to an amazing butter chicken is the sauce. Butter Chicken is also known as Murgh Makhani. Makhani sauce is what makes this dish so addicting with its combination of aromatic spices, tomato sauce and cream. You can even find makhani in a few other Indian dishes, dal or paneer makhani; but nothing is quite like traditional chicken makhani (butter chicken). Historically, butter chicken was an accidental concoction, using leftover chicken in a tomato-based sauce, heavy with cream and butter.
Spiciness
- Mild: Reduce or omit jalapeno and paprika.
- Medium: Follow the recipe as is for a balanced flavor.
- Spicy: Add extra jalapeño or a dash of cayenne pepper.
Vegetarian Options
Adding Vegetables: You can easily make this into a vegetarian dish using 2 to 3 cups of fresh or frozen vegetables in place of the chicken. Skip steps 1 and 2 (including the marinade ingredients and instructions) and sauté your chosen vegetables with the onion in Step 3 until tender. We love this dish with peas, green beans, carrots, cauliflower, and green bell pepper.
Paneer Makhani: If you would like a bit more substance, use one pound of paneer – a specialty cheese from India. Paneer should be cut into bite-sized cubes and then cooked in butter or ghee until browned on all sides. Just like the vegetarian option, you’ll skip steps 1 and 2 and brown your paneer with the onions in step 3.
How to Serve Butter Chicken
Would you like naan or rice with your butter chicken? The correct answer is both, please! Really, I love rice with my butter chicken, but naan just can’t be missed! Grill some naan and serve up your sauce and a good-sized helping of Basmati rice in authentic Karahi serving bowls, and you’ll have guests wondering if you secretly got take-out!
Troubleshooting
- Sauce Too Thin: Allow the sauce to simmer for a few extra minutes until it thickens to your desired consistency.
- Chicken Overcooking: Reduce the cooking time slightly if using smaller pieces of chicken to avoid dryness.
Tips From the Chef
- Marinate the chicken for at least 10 to 15 minutes to enhance its flavor and tenderness.
- Use fresh spices for the best flavor profile.
- Garnish with cilantro to add a fresh touch to the dish.
When is butter chicken done cooking?
- Chicken: Fully cooked when it’s no longer pink inside and reaches an internal temperature of 165°F.
- Sauce: Should be thick, creamy, and able to coat the back of a spoon evenly.
Storage, Freezer & Reheating Instructions
- Refrigerate: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Reheat: Warm over low heat, adding a little water or cream if the sauce has thickened too much.
Freezing is not recommended due to the heavy cream in this recipe.
More South Asian Inspired Cuisine
Homemade Naan
2 hrs
Chicken Tikka Masala
20 mins
Watch the video below where Rachel will walk you through every step of this recipe. Sometimes it helps to have a visual, and we’ve always got you covered with our cooking show. You can find the complete collection of recipes on YouTube, Facebook Watch, or our Facebook Page, or right here on our website with their corresponding recipes.
This is absolutely delicious and so easy! We have friends from Nepal who make amazing butter chicken, so we thought we’d give it a shot. Everyone devoured it! Thank you Rachel!
By FAR the most requested dish by my family! Thank you. This one is ALWAYS a hit. I’ve also used shrimp instead of chicken and that gets equally requested. A winner every single time. Hands down.
Thank you Rachel! This is fabulous. I will make it again with your naan! I splurged and bought some high quality Garam masala, it makes a big difference. Like others, I used cayenne since that is what I had on hand. This came out perfectly.
Oh my, Rachel, you made this so easy to follow. Keep making yummy videos 🙂
I made this for my husband and daughter the other night and they RAVED about it! It was delicious! Made great leftovers too. Thanks for a keeper.
My daughter & I LOVED this Indian Butter Chicken THANK YOU❤️
I made this last night. It was great and really easy. The leftovers made for a very nice lunch today too. I will definitely make this again.
Just made this and it was so delicious! I followed the recipe exactly and it was so easy to make. Definitely will be on our menu again soon!
This is the 3rd butter chicken recipe I’ve made, and it turned out the best which is no surprise since it came from Rachel. I don’t know how she does it, but I’m never disappointed when it comes to her recipes! I actually started marinating the chicken in the afternoon which I knew you didn’t have to do, but I wanted to get it out of the way for a easier clean up at dinnertime. The pieces came out so juicy and tender. I have to admit that I questioned the jalapeno since I’ve never seen that listed in a butter chicken recipe, but it didn’t make it too spicy at all. If you want extra heat though, you could even add 2 but I don’t like when food is too spicy. The sauce came out with great flavour from the spices, and don’t skimp on using a white onion. I don’t typically keep white onions on hand, I usually have a bag of yellow but decided to pick up a white one for the recipe and it truly made a difference. I find that yellow onions sometimes get lost in a recipe, where a white one gave it a nice crisp texture with some sweetness. It was very easy to throw together, and I plan to double this next time for freezing. If you have a family of 4 or more, I would suggest doubling it as well.
This is SO good. I made this two weeks ago. I used thighs instead of breasts, partly because I like em and partly because they were on sale.