Indian Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani) is a rich, tomato-based curry that comes together in 30 minutes! Your favorite restaurant dish at home.
There’s no question that Slow Cooker Indian Butter Chicken is one of our fan favorite recipes. This stovetop Indian Butter Chicken is a great recipe when you are craving Indian Food in less than an hour.
Sabrina’s Indian Butter Chicken Recipe
Butter Chicken is similar to the well-known Tikka Masala. In fact, Tikka Masala was created because people wanted the flavors of Indian Butter Chicken, and restaurants wanted a recipe that didn’t rely on leftovers. If you like Chicken Tikka Masala, this is a great recipe to try the next time you are craving a classic Indian dish.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
Butter Chicken Marinade
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 3/4 teaspoons coarse ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 chicken breasts (boneless, skinless)
Butter Chicken Sauce
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 clove garlic , minced
- 1 jalapeno pepper , finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 8 ounces tomato sauce , canned
- 1 cup heavy cream
To Finish
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup cilantro , chopped fresh
Instructions
Overnight Marinade
- In a large ziplock bag the night before cooking add the yogurt, lemon juice, cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, pepper, ginger, salt, and chicken and mix well.
- If you don't want to marinate overnight, you can either marinate for 15 minutes or simply add the lemon juice and half the spices to your sauce (when you add in the cumin). Skip the yogurt.
Butter Chicken Sauce
- Add the butter, garlic, and jalapeño to a large skillet on medium heat until you can smell the garlic, about 1 minute.
- Add the 2 teaspoons cumin, 2 teaspoons paprika, 1 teaspoon salt and cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly until the spices darken in color.
- Add in the tomato sauce and heavy cream, stir, and cook for 1 minute.
- Remove the sauce from your pan and keep to the side then wipe the skillet clean.
- Add in 2 tablespoons of butter and vegetable oil to your large skillet on medium high heat.
- Remove most of the marinade (and discard this marinade) from your chicken and add it to the skillet (you can keep the chicken whole or cut into large chunks).
- Cook for 5-6 minutes on each side until cooked through.
- Top with sauce and bring to a simmer, then top with cilantro.
Nutrition
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Table of Contents
About this Recipe
Also known as Chicken Makhani, authentic Indian Butter Chicken is a flavorful Indian dish that braises leftover Tandoori chicken in a rich tomato puree flavored with garam masala, butter, and heavy cream. The heavily spiced leftover chicken adds layers of flavor to the sauce.
Chef’s Note: Marinating
Unlike traditional Indian Butter Chicken, this butter chicken recipe uses boneless chicken breasts instead of tandoori chicken. You still get the tandoori flavors thanks to the overnight marinade of a yogurt and spice mixture, without the extra cooking.
If you want to skip the overnight marinade (please don’t, though), you can skip the yogurt and add the lemon juice and half the amount of spices to your sauce mixture when you add in the cumin.
Frequently Asked Questions
Despite the name, Butter Chicken doesn’t have that much butter in it. It’s the heavy cream, or other thick cream, that gives the sauce a buttery, silky texture. This tomato puree recipe has heavy seasonings with cumin, paprika, and garlic cloves, with just a bit of heat from diced jalapeños, but you’ll notice there is no garam masala.
Garam masala is a traditional spice blend that you will find in many Indian and Southeast Asian recipes. While it gives so much warm, spicy flavor, it can be hard for home cooks to find and keep on hand. This homemade butter chicken spice blend brings all the flavor of garam masala with pantry spices you already have on hand.
What to Pair With
Serve this slightly spicy Indian Butter Chicken with a cool cucumber Indian Raita, a tasty sauce that is similar to a Greek yogurt tzatziki. Butter Chicken is usually served with basmati rice and naan, but it also goes great with light coconut rice, roasted broccoli, or roasted potatoes. You can also serve it with other Indian favorites, like Massaman Curry and Chicken Biryani.
Tips & Tricks
- If using your marinade, don’t marinate your chicken for more than 24 hours. The lemon and acid in the yogurt will start to break down the chicken’s texture after a day.
- Make the butter chicken sauce ahead of time and freeze it for up to 6 months! Simply cook the sauce without the chicken and store in plastic bags. Thaw overnight in the fridge and cook the marinated chicken in the sauce as usual.
How to Store
- Serve: Butter Chicken can be at room temperature for up to 2 hours before it should be cooled and stored.
- Store: Place cooled Butter Chicken in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
- Freeze: Cool Butter Chicken completely before storing in a sealed container and freezing for up to 3 months.
Alternative Cooking Technique
Instant Pot Indian Butter Chicken
- Marinate the chicken overnight as usual. This step is optional but adds a lot of flavor.
- Add all the Butter Sauce ingredients to the pressure cooker except the heavy cream.
- Close the Instant Pot lid, seal the valve, and set to Manual High Pressure for 10 minutes.
- Naturally release pressure for 10 minutes, then release pressure.
- Carefully remove the chicken and set it aside.
- Blend the sauce ingredients with an immersion blender. Add ½ cup of sauce to room-temperature heavy cream.
- Add heavy cream mixture, butter, cilantro, and oil to the pressure cooker and stir to combine.
- Return chicken to the Instant Pot. Set the cooker on Soup until the chicken is heated through.
Variations
- Meat: You can use any kind of chicken in this recipe, like chicken thighs and bone-in chicken legs.
- Spices: If you have it on hand, add 1 tablespoon garam masala to your marinade and another tablespoon to your butter sauce for more classic flavors.
- Spicy: Add more or fewer jalapeños to make this dish spicier or milder. You could also use really spicy peppers like Thai bird peppers or Serrano peppers if you are a fan of heat!
- Dairy: Instead of heavy cream, you can substitute full-fat coconut milk or half-and-half. If you use non-fat milk, the sauce won’t be as rich and creamy.
- Yogurt: You can use any full-fat or non-fat yogurt in the marinade. If you want a tangier marinade, use Greek yogurt.
Related Recipes
More Delicious Chicken Dishes
These photos were used in a previous version of this post
So I am a little torn on this one. I liked it and it was good but there was still a cumin taste. I’m not sure if that’s normal since I have never been able to successfully make any of our favorite Indian dishes. If you have any input I would surely appreciate it! We love butter chicken and would love to be able to make it!
Feel free to minimize or even remove the cumin from this recipe if it is a taste you do not prefer.
lol……. :):):):):):):)
This is a wonderful recipe! My husband who doesn’t love Indian food as much as I do, went back for a 2nd serving. It has a nice flavor but isn’t too bold (not that I mind bold, but he does). And sharing a meal with someone who thoroughly enjoys eating it, is half the fun!!
This recipe did not work for me. It was bland and really unappealing. Sad because I just made her lamb curry and it was delicious!
That’s a bummer. You can definitely play around with the spices to adjust more to your liking for next time.
This butter chicken is so delicious! Definitely recommended getting the chicken in the marinade the night before you’re making it – makes a difference! I cubed the chicken breasts in about 1” chunks. The flavor is spectacular. Served it with basmati rice and garlic naan heated on the grill. This was seriously AS GOOD as our favorite Indian restaurant in Houston.
That’s amazing so hear, Kate. Thanks for the 5 star rating.
We have tried a few different Indian recipes and we keep coming back to this one. It’s closest to the one we get at the restaraunt we usually go to. It’s awesome and easy and the only thing we changed is dialing back the ammount of Indian chilli powder, unless you like a bit of heat. Mow all we need is how to make the basmati rice and the spinach that comes with it 🙂
I’m glad you all enjoy it so much, Kathleen.
This was delicious! All we were missing was some garlic nan bread. My husband kept saying that it tasted like I had gotten it from a restaurant.
That’s such a great compliment! Thank yo so much for coming back to let me know, Erin.
This recipe was incredible. Absolutely delicious. Even my husband who hates Indian food, licked his plate clean!!!
Haha, I’d call that a winner then!
This recipe feels like eating at my favorite restaurant at home! Just amazing and very easy.
So glad you enjoyed it!
Yummy! This is so so good. I’ve had it at a local restaurant before and think that this recipe tasted just as delicious!
So easy to make at home too!
Thank you for this amazing, easy to follow, and flavored chicken recipe. I made it tonight: it turned out great. Well, it looks like yours. I hope that I created the same taste as yours as well 🙂
So glad you decided to give it a try. Thanks for the 5 stars, Irina.
I love everything about this butter chicken! It is so creamy and flavorful and a great meal to make again and again.
Thanks, Emily!
This looks amazing, and the sauce sounds so flavorful. Looking forward to giving it a try.
Amazing flavors, will make again for sure.
Yum! So flavorful and delicious! Loved it!
Love butter chicken. I am wondering if I could substitute the heavy cream with coconut milk? Or would that make it an entirely different Indian dish?
That would work but will adjust the flavor a bit, just make sure to use full fat coconut milk. Enjoy!