This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Delicious restaurant-style butter chicken made right at home with simple ingredients. This recipe is exactly how they make butter chicken in restaurants – and I’ve had people tell me it’s actually better! Trust me when I say it’s finger-lickin’ good!
Finger-Lickin’ butter chicken! That’s a little too much fun to say.
Sharing one of my all time favorite Indian food recipes today.
Last week I had this intense craving for creamy and spicy homemade butter chicken. I mean, it was so crazy that I could practically taste the butter chicken in my mouth as I thought about it. My heart started racing, my hands started shaking — okay, it wasn’t quite that dramatic; but you get the idea. I dug down deep into the LSJ files (this is actually one of the first recipes I ever posted on the blog!) It was time to retake some of the pictures and reintroduce you to my finger-lickin’ butter chicken recipe.
Not only am I replacing some of my old (read: not so great) photography. But I also reworked the recipe to make the ingredient list a little shorter without compromising any of the flavors. I also took the liberty of making the instructions easier to follow I am sharing my tried and true tips on how you can get this on the table even quicker on weeknights!
I can’t say I take all the credit for this recipe. This recipe comes from my mom, who got it from her sister, who once upon a time worked at a very popular Indian restaurant. So there. It’s authentic, restaurant-style butter chicken, for reals. <– I just took the liberty of tweaking a few things to make this recipe attainable for us everyday people. I promise you all tweaks are simple and don’t compromise the flavor!
Trust me when I say this, I took my job very seriously and strive to provide you with the best restaurant-style butter chicken you’ve ever had!
Made this for my boyfriend and he absolutely LOVED it! He thought it is only possible to eat such in an Indian restaurant….bravo, well done and thank you for sharing! 🙂
Recipe Video
So about that BUTTER chicken. Ironically enough my recipe doesn’t contain that much butter. Butter chicken is also called ‘Murgh Makani’ and when translated to English, it means Butter Chicken. And in fact, the butter in this recipe is actually clarified butter or ghee.
Nowadays, ghee is readily available in most mainstream grocery stores. You can definitely find it at Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods. And if you live in an area where your supermarket doesn’t stock it, you can always purchase it online here.
Ingredients for Homemade Butter Chicken:
- Chicken: Feel free to use boneless skinless chicken breasts or boneless skinless chicken thighs for this recipe. I typically cut the chicken into 1½ inch pieces and then toss it in a marinade made with yogurt and spices.
- Seasonings: Butter chicken calls for an array of spices. To help curb the ingredient list, I use a sachet of tandoori masala. It’s usually available in powder/paste form in the international aisle. The one I use and LOVE can be found here. This helps cut down on the number of spices you’ll need. Don’t get me wrong, you’ll still need a little garam masala, cumin powder, coriander powder, and some red chili powder. You can also swap the red chili powder for cayenne but the flavor will be slightly different. I also find cayenne pepper to be hotter so I would suggest using slightly less than what’s called for. But you won’t need ground turmeric and a few others as the tandoori masala already contains these. Garam masala is South Asian spice mix that contains ingredients like cloves, black pepper, black cardamom, cinnamon, green cardamom, and several other spices.
- Fenugreek Leaves: In Urdu and Hindi fenugreek leaves are called kasuri methi. This is an ingredient you can easily find in almost any South Asian grocery store as it is used in many dishes. If your mainstream grocery store has an international aisle, they may carry it there as well.
- Fresh Ginger and Garlic: A lot of traditional Pakistani and Indian recipe call for freshly prepared ginger and garlic paste. Essentially, it’s just a combination of peeled knobs of ginger and a handful of cloves garlic broken down in a food processor with a little vinegar to help keep these ingredients fresh and some water. Some people also add a little oil for preservation, but this is optional. Nowadays, most South Asian grocery stores (as well as mainstream stores) sell prepared garlic and ginger paste. Feel free to make your own or purchase it for this recipe.
- Oil: You’ll need some oil to saute the onions and cook the butter chicken recipe. Feel free to use avocado oil, canola or even coconut oil for this.
- Yogurt: I like to use plain yogurt for this recipe. My mom has always taught me to beat the yogurt with the seasonings before adding the chicken pieces to ensure that the flavor disperses evenly throughout the chicken pieces.
- Ghee: We’ll use ghee (also called clarified butter) to prepare the butter chicken sauce for this recipe.
- Crushed Tomatoes: I use a can of crushed tomatoes for my butter chicken recipe. We’ll saute the onions season them with lots of spices and cook them with the tomatoes. The tomato puree will then be the base of the butter chicken sauce.
- Onions: You’ll need a large yellow onion that is sliced down the middle, peeled and then cut into thin slices. Like most south Asian recipes, this one too starts with sauteing the onions in a little ghee until they’re soft. A lot of recipes call for golden brown onions which add add sweetness to the dish when the onions are caramelized. My butter chicken recipe doesn’t take the onions that far. You want the onions to soften and turn translucent, but not brown.
- Heavy Cream: My family has always used heavy cream or heavy whipping cream for our homemade butter chicken recipe. If you are dairy-free full-fat coconut milk would make a good substitution as this is what many of my readers have mentioned using.
- Prepared Rice or Naan Bread: You’ll want to serve this up with my restaurant-style fluffy basmati rice or homemade naan. I’ve got a couple of different naan recipes that I’ve shared. You can make my high protein2-ingredient flatbread or my traditional naan recipe for this. I’ll even rub it down with a little garlic butter and garnish with chopped cilantro. Trust me, these naans are fantastic!
How to make the best butter chicken recipe
- Marinate the chicken for maximum flavor. Whisk the ginger garlic paste, yogurt, and seasoning together until the yogurt is smooth. Add the chicken piece and let this hang out. The longer you marinate the more flavorful the chicken. The yogurt, ginger, and garlic really help make the chicken more tender.
- Make the butter chicken curry. To a Dutch oven or any heavy bottom pan, add the ghee and saute the onions over medium high heat until they are soft and translucent. Add the ginger and garlic paste and give it a few seconds to bloom in the oil. Add the seasonings – chili powder, cumin, and coriander and let the spices cook in the oil. Stir often to keep them from sticking and burning. Blend the sauce in a traditional blender or use an immersion blender to make this quick and easy.
- Make ahead option. At this point, you can refrigerate the butter chicken sauce once it’s cooled down in an airtight container. You can also add it to a freezer-safe container or zippable bag and freeze it.
- Get it out. Remove the marinated chicken from the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking. This is so that the yogurt has a chance to come to room temperature. I find that if you add it cold from the fridge the temperature difference sometimes causes the yogurt to curdle. To another clean pot or if you used a traditional blender, to the same pot add the remaining oil and heat it over medium heat. Add the marinated chicken. You want to discard any additional marinade.
- Saute the chicken until it’s golden on all sides. Add the prepared butter chicken sauce to the pot and stir to combine. You want to let the chicken finish cooking before you and the heavy cream and 1/2 teaspoon garam masala. Once the sauce reaches a simmer, taste and adjust the salt as needed. Then crush the fenugreek leaves between the palms of your hands to release their flavor and add them to the butter chicken. Butter chicken over fluffy basmati rice, it’s what my dreams are made of. If you’re looking for an authentic murgh makhani recipe, I’ve got you!
FAQs about Murgh Makani:
Butter chicken sauce is made of sauteed onions, tomato puree, and lots of spices. It’s finished at the end with a smattering of heavy cream and some fenugreek leaves.
Butter chicken and Murgh Makani are the same thing. Literally translated ‘murgh’ means chicken, and ‘makhani’ means buttery (or butter.) It always makes me laugh when people argue that a recipe tasted more like murgh makhani than butter chicken.
Chicken tikka masala packs more of a punch when it comes to spices, and may or may not contain any butter. I reserve the ghee for my butter chicken and opt for oil when I’m making chicken tikka masala. Butter chicken also is a tad bit sweeter (because of the sauteed onions or the addition of sugar in many recipes) and milder when it comes to spices than chicken tikka masala.
You can make the of this recipe, blend it, and allow it to cool completely before popping it in the refrigerator for 24-48 hours. Like most Indian food, leftovers (or sauces prepared ahead) actually make the dish more flavorful. Many readers have also mentioned that they like to prepare the sauce and freeze it (without the heavy cream) to make butter chicken quicker on weeknights. This is something my family does as well!
Serving Suggestions
Rice & Pasta
How to Make Perfect Basmati Rice
Fish & Seafood
30-Minute Spicy Shrimp Masala
Vegetarian
Garlicky Palak Paneer
Fruit & Pies
Pakistani Fruit Chaat
Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani)
Equipment
Ingredients
Chicken Marinade:
- 1 lb. boneless chicken breast cut into 1 ½ inch cubes (see notes)
- 2 tablespoons tandoori masala see notes
- 1 teaspoon ginger paste
- 1 teaspoon garlic paste
- ½ cup yogurt
- 1 tablespoon oil
Butter Chicken Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons ghee clarified butter (see note)
- 1 large onion thinly sliced
- 1½ teaspoon ginger paste
- 1½ garlic paste
- 1 14.5 ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 1 teaspoon chili powder see notes
- 1 1/2 teaspoon coriander powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
- ¼ teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves crushed between fingers
Instructions
Chicken:
- In a medium bowl, combine the tandoori masala, ginger, garlic, and yogurt. Whisk until smooth, adjust seasonings to preference. Add the chicken and allow to marinate for at least 20 minutes and ideally for 12-24 hours, covered in the refrigerator.
Butter Chicken Sauce:
- Heat the ghee in a dutch oven or heavy bottom pot over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté until they turn translucent and start to sweat, about 5-7 minutes, don’t allow the onions to brown. Add ginger and garlic paste and let cook for 30 seconds, stirring so it doesn’t burn. Add the can of crushed tomatoes along with the chili powder, coriander powder, and cumin powder and continue to cook for 5 minutes, if the mixture starts bubbling rapidly, add about ¼ cup of water and continue to cook.
- Remove from heat, add the mixture to a blender and blend until smooth, you may need to add a couple water to help it blend (up to ¼ cup). Depending on how powerful your blender is, you may want to blend the mixture in two batches. Remember to hold the lid of the blender down with a kitchen towel when blending, to avoid accidents.
- MAKE AHEAD OPTION: At this point you can cool and refrigerate the sauce for 24-48 hours (or freeze it for up to 3 months), it will help blend the flavors even more, just remember to bring the sauce back to room temperature (use the microwave) before proceeding with the recipe OR you can continue on with the recipe immediately.
Assembly:
- Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in the dutch oven over medium heat. Add the marinated chicken (discard any excess marinade) and cook for about 5-6 minutes, stirring as required to brown all sides. Add the butter chicken sauce to the pot and heat everything through. Once it starts to bubble, add the cream and garam masala. When the sauce regains a simmer, add the crushed fenugreek leaves. Serve over basmati rice or with naan.
Notes
- Want to use boneless thighs? You can replace the cubed chicken breasts with cubed boneless, skinless chicken thighs for more added flavor.
- Ghee: If you can’t find it you replace it with 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil.
- Tandoori masala: is available in powder/ paste form. I prefer the powder but some of my readers recommended Patak’s brand tandoori paste. You’ll need about 2-4 tablespoons of the paste (to preference).
- Chili powder: optional! If you prefer milder food, you may want to leave it out as the tandoori masala already has heat. Traditionally, a spicy pepper similar to cayenne is used. If you can’t find Kashmiri chili powder (usually sold at Indian stores), replace it with cayenne. 1 teaspoon can be a lot so if you prefer a milder flavor, replace with ¼-½ teaspoon.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like This? Leave a comment & rating below!
This was a hit in our Texas household. I adapted the recipe for the Instant Pot (as I was fairly disappointed with some of the more popular current Butter Chicken recipes out there for the IP), and it worked perfectly.
For ingredients, I followed what you listed, and substituted ghee for butter, coconut milk for the heavy cream (as we wanted a Whole30 compatible dish). I added 1/2 bunch of finely chopped cilantro and a slurry of 1 tsp potato starch and a small amount of hot water to thicken.
I did it pretty much as you listed in your recipe, doing the cooking and sauteing in the Instant Pot on the Saute setting. After sauteing the chicken, I added the butter chicken sauce (plus a few green cardamom, because I love the flavor of them) to the IP, set it to Manual and covered it. I cooked it for 8 minutes on high pressure and did a quick release after 5 minutes. I then set it to Saute again and added the coconut milk, garam masala and 1/2 bunch of finely chopped fresh cilantro (plus 1 tsp of potato starch mixed in a small amount of hot water to thicken). From there, I added the fenugreek leaves and simmered for 10 minutes per your recipe.
Best butter chicken I’ve had in recent memory, and my new favorite dish. Thanks for posting, Marzia!
Can you let me know what steps you took to adapt for the Instant Pot? I’m looking to do the same and would appreciate any pointers!
I was recently on the hunt for a butter chicken recipe and had no idea where to start. There are so many recipes out there and they’re all so different! I eventually settled on this one because it sounded the most interesting and because I already had the proper amount of cream in my fridge. This recipe did not disappoint! It was delicious. I don’t have an immersion blender so instead of crushed tomatoes I used a can of tomoato sauce as some other recipes had called for sauce. It worked as a great substitute and I will definitely making this again and soon!
Hello!
I am so excited to make this dish! we don’t have any indian restaurants close and i am 6 months pregnant and have been CRAVING Indian food, particularly my favorite, butter chicken! I was wondering if you could make this in the slow cooker? If so, how would you recommend doing so? I was thinking this would also make the flavors nice and developed slowly cooking all day.
Thanks!!
Haven’t tried this in the slow cooker, so not sure on how that would go, sorry!
Hi there. I’m about to try this recipe, but I can’t find whole fenugreek leaves ANYWHERE. I can only find the powdered spice. Can I use that, and what would you estimate the measurement I should use?
Thank you!
Fenugreek powder will work, you’ll want to start with 1/8 teaspoon. Give it a taste, if it needs it, you can add an additional 1/8 teaspoon of the powder.
Can you use fenugreek powder instead of leaves? If so, how much powder?
Sure, I think that should work just fine. I’d start with 1/8 teaspoon and adjust with a little more if necessary.
Oh my goodness, thank you so much!! I’ve been going crazy trying to make butter chicken and after 2 failed attempts (because of BAD recipes! Well, they resulted in a tasty chicken curry, but it was certainly nothing like restaurant style butter chicken) I have found success with yours. Phew! I was about to lose heart! I’m currently living in Mexico and there is not a single Indian restaurant in my city! Nor do they sell any of the spices I need, but those are easy enough to bring in my suitcase. I knew I would have to master butter chicken, or face the unbearable reality of living without it! One question, did you really intend for it to be 1.5 tablespoons of coriander powder instead of teaspoons? It seemed a little odd when I saw the amount – I don’t think I’ve seen a curry recipe call for such a large amount. But I hadn’t seen anyone else comment on this, and all the reviews here were positive after having followed your recipe to a T, so I just held my breath and dumped in 1.5 tablespoons of coriander powder into the curry. Honestly, while I’m thrilled with the final result, I’m a serious perfectionist about my cooking and baking, and it did taste a little unbalanced in the direction of coriander…so I think next time I’ll try 1.5 teaspoons, and add in some fresh coriander garnish if I find it lacking… Oh! One final note! It’s become a pet peeve of mine when recipes call for “chilli powder”. There a zillions of different chillies and powders which can be made from them. Both paprika and cayenne are chilli powder. Just looking at paprika alone, there is sweet paprika, smoked paprika, hot paprika, spanish or hungarian, etc etc etc. My research in my obsessive quest of the perfect butter chicken recipe lead me to the suggestion that ideally, one would use Kashmiri Mirch or Deggi Mirch (I then fell down an internet rabbit hole of what exactly the difference was between these chillies, and the fact that Kashmiri chillies are relatively scarce, and so suppliers often use different, more readily available chillies and falsely label them as Kashmiri, etc etc. Sheesh!) But yes, please do specify what type of chilli powder you find works best – as Deggi Mirch is mild with regard to heat, but still lends a rich color and additional flavor, it would probably be the best choice for those who don’t wish to add any more heat to the dish. Cheers!
I was wondering the same thing about the coriander! You answered my question. Thank you!
Hi, made this recipe today. Came out fabulous. I made a few variations to cut calories. I added cashew nuts during the gravy grinding stage. I mixed in thick yogurt while bringing it all together. Didn’t heat it much so the yogurt didn’t split. Both of these added richness and creaminess to the dish. Finally could get away with adding just a spoon of cream at the end.
Hi Marzia thank you for the amazing recipe. I was wondering if this could be made by baking the marinated chicken pieces? Thanks
Tina
Hi Tina! I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe! Yes, you should be able to marinate and bake the chicken pieces. I haven’t done this before so can’t really suggest baking temp or times though. Let me know how it goes if you decide to try it!
Hey…. I made butter chicken exactly the way you have shown….. It comes out the best dish I have ever made…. Other day I have invited few guest they are from IHM… They all just loved my butter chicken…. Even ask for the recipe….. Butter chicken was the star dish of the day… Thank you, thank you so much for sharing such a wonderful recipe with us….
Awesome finger-licking recipe truly.. made it for friends and when my family tasted it, they demanded it to be made again for them.. just yummy..!
P.s. I used fresh tomatoes without boiling or peeling the skin .. it still tasted good to devour.. wondering how good it would have been if I followed it with can crushed tomatoes
Hi Marzia!
I tried this recipe tonight and it was fantastic! I made a few changes. I used fresh garlic and ginger instead of the paste, and used cauliflower, potato, and peas as I am vegetarian. I also have been making my own naan which is an absolutely necessary companion to Butter Chicken in my opinion. (https://www.onceuponachef.com/recipes/homemade-naan.html)
Thanks so much for the recipe! It’s the best!
Ryan
Help! I love this recipe and make it all the time. However, my guests are vegetarian so would like to substitute the chicken for butternut squash. Should I cube the butternut squash and perhaps dust with tandoori masala powder then fry first before adding to the curry sauce or just add as they are. Any advice would be really helpful.
Hmm. That’s a tough one. Not too sure how you’d go about adding butternut squash in place of the chicken. I think paneer or tofu would work well, but squash has me stumped. Worried the tandoori masala might burn when you fry the squash. I’ve got a recipe for Butternut Squash Red Curry where I add red curry paste to the sauce, maybe you can do that with the tandoori masala. It may taste a little different, but I think that may be the way to do it. Hope that helps!
This was an incredible recipe. I used Chicken Tikka (leftovers from takeout), instead of marinating the chicken. The sauce is extremely creamy and delicious. I’m so glad to come across your blog.
This recipe was absolutely amazing, it just melts in your mouth. I was caught off-guard with the somewhat spiciness since most of Butter Chicken does not have an ounce of spiciness, but this butter chicken has a very pleasant spicy, which made enjoy and love this dish so much more.
Hiya I want to have a go at making this . I saw you mentioned that you removed some spices and replaced it with tandoori masala. What were those spices and what amount of each do I use ? I don’t mine if it takes longer.
It would be helpful if you could still keep a post about the long way of making it with all the individual spices please.
Thanks so much
Hi Kam, the post states that I’ve reduced the ingredient list, however this isn’t referring to the spices. The tandoori masala is what I used in my previously posted recipe as well. The only thing i’ve removed is how to make your own ginger and garlic paste as you can easily find this in most grocery stores now. If you’d like to do that, it’s ¼ cup each ginger and garlic + 1-2 tablespoons vinegar. Pulse it all in a blender or food processor. Hope that helps!
I have made this recipe several times and it is my favorite. Since I live in a remote location in Northern Canada I have a hard time getting the right ingredients. The FenuGreek leaves are impossible to get up here.?
I served this to a coworker who has traveled the world and spent a considerable amount of time in India. She said it brought her back to her time in India and claimed this recipe was as good as any she has had.
In a pinch I substituted Sour Cream for the yogurt and heavy cream. It added a nice tang and still maintained the texture.
Any suggestion for a traditional Indian vegetable dish that could be served with this?
I’ve ordered mine through Silk Road Spices. They are based out of Calgary and their spices are about as fresh as you can get short of growing them yourself!
Thank you so much for this awesome recipe!
It tasted Devine!
I was just wanting to tweak my finished product a bit. It ended up very runny (very liquid like in consustency), how could I go about preventing this?
Also, it is a tad bit more tomato flavoured than I am used to in my butter chicken, what would help to tone down this flavour without making it too spicy?
Tamarind paste… adds a nice tangy sourness. I’ve used it to bring back overly sweet chili, that also seemed to be missing something, from the brink. Adds just the right tang that is missing from some dishes.
You also may want to add less tomato and more cream next time.
This sounds absolutely yummy!! My boss took me to and Indian restaurant and let me tell you shed had me obsessed ever since! Also, I have ginger garlic paste combined. What measurements should I use for this mixture? Thanks in advance!
You’ll need 2 teaspoons of the ginger garlic paste for the marinade and 1 tablespoon for the butter chicken sauce. Hope you enjoy it! 🙂
I am definately making this!!!
Can I use bay leaves in stead of fenugreek leaves? Or what will be a suitable substitute?
Bay leaves have a different flavor profile than fenugreek so unfortunately, I don’t think it makes for a good substitute. You can simply omit the fenugreek if you’d like but it does add that ‘authentic’ indian food flavor to the butter chicken recipe. Really not sure of any other substitutes for it.
There is only one word for this recipe….LOVE LOVE LOVE it. Woohoooo