Butter Chicken - Murgh Makhani

[Andy M.]

I am really enjoying the fact that I have Indian neighbors on both sides of me. It's really expanding my cooking horizons!

A few weeks ago my neighbor brought over some butter chicken for us to try. It was out of this world and I asked him for the recipe.

You may remember that his wife taught me how to make tandoori chicken earlier and we had to redo the recipe several times to get the measurements right since she cooks without measuring.

Well, he sent me the recipe and I made it last night and it was excellent. As good as the original sample he gave us.

Here is his recipe for Butter Chicken. He makes it with tandoori chicken so it's a double recipe. First you make tandoori chicken then add it to the curry recipe below and it becomes butter chicken.

BUTTER CHICKEN

3 Tb Oil
2 Ea Black Cardamom Pods
1 Ea Green Cardamom Pod
2 tsp Black Peppercorns
2-3 Ea Cloves
1 tsp Ginger, chopped
2 Cl Garlic, smashed
1 Pc Cinnamon-1cm
2 Ea Onion, diced
4-5 Ea Tomatoes, chopped
2 Tb Butter
1 Ea Bay Leaf
1 tsp Cumin Powder
1 tsp Coriander powder
1 Ea Tandoori Chicken Recipe
1 Tb Tandoori Masala
1 C Water (more or less)
2 Tb Dry Fenugreek Leaves
½ C Heavy Cream
TT Salt
TT Red Chile Powder

This recipe calls for a recipe of Tandoori chicken that is then added to the following curry recipe. The combination is Butter Chicken. Start by preparing the Tandoori marinade (See Tandoori Chicken recipe) and begin the marinating of the chicken. Use boneless skinless chicken for this application. While the chicken is marinating, proceed to make the butter chicken curry up to the point of adding the cooked Tandoori chicken.

Butter Chicken Preparation:
Heat the oil in a 5½-quart sauté pan then add the cardamoms, peppercorns, cloves, ginger, garlic and cinnamon. Sauté, stirring for two minutes then add the onions, reserving a half-cup for later use. Continue to sauté until the onions begin to brown.

Add the tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat and allow it to cool for 30-60 minutes. Transfer to a blender and puree thoroughly. Set aside.

At this point the Tandoori chicken should be cooked and cut into 1-inch pieces.

Reheat the sauté pan and add the butter. When hot, add the reserved onion, the bay leaf, cumin and coriander. Sauté for a couple of minutes then add the chicken, the sauce from the blender and the Tandoori masala.

Bring to a simmer and add the water to thin the sauce. Continue to simmer then add the fenugreek leaves, rubbing them between your palms to crush the leaves.

Add the cream and simmer for 4-5 minutes.

Adjust the salt and heat levels at this time, simmering 2-3 minutes after the final addition.

Serve over basmati rice.

In case you missed it, here is the link to his wife's tandoori chicken recipe.

http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/f80/yogurt-marinades-65613.html#post913104

This is really worth the effort

 

[qmax]

One of my favorite Indian dishes.

 

[Linux]

Mine, too. Its richness and depth of flavour is memorable.

 

[bakechef]

I love this dish. Restaurants here seem to call it different things, but it is usually a very similar dish. I recently had the best version so far, the spices were perfect. Maybe I will get the ambition to try this recipe.

 

[LPBeier]

Thanks, Andy, I will definitely try this.

 

[buckytom]

oh man, andy, i'm so jealous. i'm intimidated by indian cooking because of the complexity of the balance of spices. you're quite lucky to have teachers like that.

this looks really good, thanks, copied and saved.

 

[Linux]

oh man, andy, i'm so jealous. i'm intimidated by indian cooking because of the complexity of the balance of spices. you're quite lucky to have teachers like that.

this looks really good, thanks, copied and saved.

There's no need to be 'intimidated' with Indian cooking, Bucky. All you need do, if I can be of any help, is line up the ingredients exactly according to the recipe. Put everything in little bowls, and the spices as well, and tip them into the pan as you follow the recipe through.

And that, m'dear, was how I came to learn to cook Indian food.

 

[buckytom]

lol, thanks linux.

it's that "follow the recipe" thing that tends to get me.

 

[Linux]

lol, thanks linux.

it's that "follow the recipe" thing that tends to get me.

Yes, I understand it's the almost schoolmarmish way some recipes are written. But some sort of order has to be followed in the kitchen. Or, we'd be in a right old bu$$er's muddle. Especially if one is nursing a mother and a father of a hangover.

Back to topic, this butter chicken recipe is as good as Indian home cooking gets. Might just make it today.

 

[Andy M.]

oh man, andy, i'm so jealous. i'm intimidated by indian cooking because of the complexity of the balance of spices. you're quite lucky to have teachers like that.

this looks really good, thanks, copied and saved.

BT, the process is really not complex, just tossing a bunch of stuff together and cooking it. It's no more difficult than making a big pot of Sunday ragu with meatballs, sausages and braciole. The ingredients are just a little different.

 

[gabagoo]

Making butter chicken is one of my favoritesand my wife absoulutely loves it. My recipe is a little different.
The one thing I changed inmine was instead of using ground cumin, I bought the seeds and I toast them, then grind them and the flavour is absoulutely devine.

Man I need to make a batch now that I am thinking of it lol

 

[Andy M.]

Making butter chicken is one of my favoritesand my wife absoulutely loves it. My recipe is a little different.
The one thing I changed inmine was instead of using ground cumin, I bought the seeds and I toast them, then grind them and the flavour is absoulutely devine.

Man I need to make a batch now that I am thinking of it lol

That's not a difference as we both put ground cumin in the recipe.

I agree you should make a batch right away. It's too tasty to put off!

 

[msmofet]

Thank you Andy

 

[Rascal]

I made tandoori chicken last night.

Russ