Slow Cooker Indian Butter Chicken
Slow Cooker Indian Butter Chicken made with spices you already have in your cabinet with all the creamy deep flavors you’d expect from your favorite restaurant.
Slow Cooker Indian Butter Chicken is one of my favorite meals to make when I’m feeling nostalgic about culinary school. The recipe is a slow cooker version of one of the first ethnic dishes I learned to cook in culinary school.
One thing I’ve learned when it came learning to cook different cuisines in client’s homes was that you try to pack light and use as much as possible in the client’s home. If they have great cookware that means you don’t have to bring in pots and pans (score one for your back!) and if they have spices that are fresh you use them (my clients pay for groceries so using existing spices was always preferable). 
There are some tweaks you can add if you’d like to take this recipe to the next level:
- Brown the chicken quickly on a high heat before cutting into chunks (don’t worry about it cooking through, that is the slow cooker’s job)
- Saute the jalapeno and garlic in the butter in a saucepan before adding the sauce ingredients into it. Yes, a second pan – but it will make an even more awesome flavor if you’d like to take the extra step.
- If you want to skip the cornstarch, scoop out the sauce and reduce it in a saucepan while you’re setting the table before dinner. Again, second pan but another trick for an additional layer of flavor.
When cooking Asian or Indian cuisines you’ll often find that the spices you need are unique, expensive and not readily available. This of course is the chef’s problem since your clients only need to be thinking “oh my goodness this is amazing!”
MY OTHER RECIPESThis Slow Cooker Indian Butter Chicken is the perfect set of spices and flavors that rivals your favorite Indian restaurant with none of the hunting down spices.
And if you’re looking for an amazing Naan to go with it, check out this Homemade Naan from Domestic Superhero.
Tools Used in the making of this Slow Cooker Indian Butter Chicken:
Slow Cooker: This is the smaller version of my normal slow cooker, but if you’d like to make it in a larger slow cooker make a double recipe. Don’t skimp on the sauce, it thickens if you have leftovers too and it is SO good you won’t want to have to ration!
AllSpice Spice Rack: I use this spice rack and fill up the bottles with freshly purchased spices. It’s basically one of the most beautiful things in my kitchen and when you’re working with a large quantity of spices, not having to hunt and peck through your cupboards makes everything go at warp speed.
Indian Butter Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 cup yogurt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 3/4 teaspoons black pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (cut into 1 inch cubes)
- SAUCE
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
- 1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
In a large ziploc bag the night before cooking add the yogurt, lemon juice, cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, ginger, salt and chicken (leave the chicken breasts whole here).
Zip the bag closed and work the mixture into the chicken until all incorporated. Refrigerate overnight.
Scrape off a majority of the marinade that is on the chicken and discard it. You'll have plenty of the second sauce to keep the food moist and provide enough sauce.
Cut the chicken into two inch chunks.
When you're ready to cook the chicken, add the butter, garlic and jalapeno into the bottom of the slow cooker.
- In a small bowl add the 2 teaspoons cumin, 2 teaspoons paprika, 1 teaspoon salt, tomato sauce and heavy cream and stir to combine.
- Pour the sauce over the chicken, cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours.
- Stir the cornstarch into the one tablespoon of water and add to the slow cooker and stir (stir and pour quickly since you're using more cornstarch than water it will settle quickly).
- Cook an additional 20 minutes on high.
- Top with cilantro before serving.
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I assumed that when you typed: “1 8-ounce can tomato sauce 8”, that meant multiplied by 8, or 64oz. Please check for typos before publishing, I wasted a lot of money and was left embarrassed on NYE. This is the biggest cooking fail I could have fathomed.
Total amateur hour on this site.
My apologies for your embarrassment and cooking fail, it is certainly not what the site strives to be or the experience I’d hope a reader would have, especially as a professional chef.
The recipes are getting converted to a new program which has been causing glitches but I don’t see that glitch, so I am hoping it isn’t something anyone else can see and that if they do they see this comment correcting it. Either way it was there when you read it, my apologies. The amount is in fact a single can of tomato sauce.
Not sure why Anthony had such a difficult time. The recipe is written correctly as 1 8-ounce can tomato sauce. If, for example, 64 ounces of tomato sauce were required, (as Anthony interpreted,) the recipe would indicate 8 8-ounce cans or 4 16-ounce cans or 2 32-ounce cans. Perhaps Anthony misread the recipe, is a new cook, or maybe he was nervous or pressed for time considering he was preparing this dish for a party. It is really unfortunate, but in reality, Anthony created his own embarrassment. The fault lies with you, Anthony. To call this blog “amateur hour” is both unkind and unjustified. I found this recipe tasty and easy to prepare. Thanks, Sabrina, for a great ethnic slow cooker option!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it and came back to let me know!
Haha why would anyone use 8 cans of tomato sauce? It’s called common sense also!
This could easily be avoided by just saying “8 oz -tomato sauce”. As a professional chef myself, that lesson is the first one I learned in culinary school; standardized recipes.We’d never have an 8oz. can of anything.
I totally agree except that the recipes are written for the home cook, not for chefs who would have hospitality sized cans of ingredients. Most of them go by the size of the can so I try and specify it as the size of the can. When I used to mention it as ounces alone I would get comments/emails/facebook comments saying “how many cans is xx ounces?” Even when I tried to say things like 8 ounces of cream cheese I would get, “How many blocks is that?”
I am not sure why he would read it that way. I am an amateur cook and understood so…
Regardless, the recipe was awesome! Thanks so much!
So glad you loved it!
Don’t blame the author of the recipe for your complete lack of comprehension skills. A second grader would know what she meant.
i have found it’s always best to try a new recipe first; before making it for a dinner party.
Anthony, that one star you gave is a scathing indictment of your own idiocy. You fool! My and my co-work have been laughing at your expense for 20 mins now.
Thank you for providing such great times!
I mean, you used HALF A GALLON of tomato sauce!! WTH Anthony! HAHAHAHAHA Amazing! Then you had the gumption to get on and flame thrower the author ~ such grace Anthony, such grace!
This is practically the best Friday I have had in a long time.
SO MANY LULZ!!!!!!
Bless your soul, sir 🙂
Hello! This looks amazing. I just wanted to be sure, when I use yogurt, it would be plain yogurt, right? And if I don’t have a slow cooker, can I still make this on the regular stovetop?
Thank you so much!
Plain greek yogurt, yes. I use a brand called Mountain High.
When you say scraping the marinade off in step 4- are you saying to discard or to add to the slow cooker
Discarding. You’ll have plenty of sauce with the rest of the ingredients. I’ll update the recipe for more clarity 🙂
It would be helpful if you specified that it be greek yogurt. I used regular, plain yogurt. Maybe its not a big deal? I will be cooking it today.
regular plain yogurt is totally fine too. I just like the flavor of greek yogurt and the kids eat it so it is what is on hand. As long as you didn’t use vanilla flavored since sometimes that is the “flavor” of regular yogurt.
Made this today, and served it with sides of Carrot/Lemon Rice and Garlic Roasted Green Beans. It was ambrosial. Outstanding recipe, and thank you for it!
Thanks for dropping by to let me know! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Just clarifying that you would brown the chicken after marinating if you wanted to add that extra flavour? Will be trying this recipe this week, looks amazing!
Yes, brown it after scraping off the marinade. Then cut it into chunks. Any time you can brown the protein before it goes into the slow cooker you’ll end up with a much more flavorful meal.
I made this tonight and the chicken was rather dry. The flavors were ok but not enough like butter chicken. This was a real disappointment and I won’t be making it again.
Hi Melly, sorry you didn’t enjoy the chicken. Can I ask where the flavors didn’t live up to what you were expecting? Did you change anything along the way about how you cooked it or the amounts of spices? Would love to troubleshoot as this recipe has been a client favorite for years.
Did you use white meat or dark meat? I’m going to use chicken legs for this recipe and dark meat can stand up to a lot of cooking more than breasts. I’m very sensitive to dry chicken (meaning I dislike it very much) but my husband is not so picky just as a lot of other Americans who only eat white meat mostly. I spent most of my life where most eat thighs which is my favorite. So if I were you I would try boneless thighs and see how you like it.
Perhaps:
1 small can tomato sauce(8-oz) would be more clear? I do think side by side numbers can be confusing, but the hyphen should have been the
Clarifier. Other than that, added parentheses?
I think this could be a joke-hoax. Who would pour a half gallon of liquid into these other measurements?
Cannot wait to smell the fragrant essence!
Great recipe! I love Butter Chicken! While it was cooking, I couldn’t help but check and smells just right!
I also used my remaining Turmeric in the marinade which may have been a teaspoon, just because I hade it and thought it made sense to use with this.
So I’ve used jalapeños in the past and ended up burning the inside of my nose (blowing my nose) and my hands for days by chopping them… use gloves! I used a plastic bag because I was so afraid of the pepper!
I sautéed the garlic and pepper in double the butter (just bc I like butter), but I cooked it nice before I put it in the slow cooker.
The whole “take the sauce off the chicken” thing most confused me! I thought about rinsing it in water but was like nahhhh and then tried wiping the chunks, then just threw it all in… I don’t know how it is supposed to be done, it came out delicious by just throwing the chicken in with whatever was on it, leaving whatever residue in the bowl I used(i used tupperwear rather than a ziplock bag, maybe that would have been easier but I don’t know why yogurt sauce needs to come off).
I wanted to cook the outside of the chicken like the tips say but didn’t realize until after that it meant before marinading. So may try that next time.
Next time I will use more chicken.
I may have used less chicken but not too sure because it was just leftover chicken breast, but maybe needed 3 hours and then I added the cornstarch but I dont know if that was even necessary, when I make this again (which I will because it was delicious!) I will try with no cornstarch.
Great flavor.
So glad you enjoyed the recipe. The yogurt sauce is just a marinade, you don’t have to scrape it all off by any means it is just that the second sauce makes plenty so it isn’t needed. Also, with cooking the chicken if you want to brown you do it after you marinade and before the second sauce is poured on. 🙂
I think this person cut the chicken into chunks before marinating. You might clarify better that it should be marinated whole, then the next day, remove marinate and cut into chunks. Please also expand on the bit about browning slightly- is that in a separate dish, and in the butter/jalapeño?
Good point, I will update the recipe to be clearer!
In the post I also noted how you could make the flavors a bit more developed by browning the chicken and the garlic and jalapeno. For the garlic and jalapeno you would cook it on medium heat in the butter until it just barely starts to take on any color, maybe 20-30 seconds.
With regards to browning the chicken, since it isn’t part of the recipe I don’t include oil as well. So add about a tablespoon of oil to your skillet (I’d do this before the garlic/jalapeno cooking) and cook the chicken (before cutting into chunks) on high heat until the outsides are browned. The inside can be raw it will cook through in the slow cooker.
Sorry for the confusion.
I noticed that you said you were going to clear up the confusion back in February, I’m still somewhat confused about the marinating you say put chicken and marinade in the bag (whole chicken) and then skip to scraping and cooking, because I have common sense I assume the missing step is to refrigerate it overnight and then cut and cook.
Yes, so sorry. You’ll want the chicken in the marinade overnight in the refrigerator. I’m not sure why any of my edits are saving properly. Just corrected it again. Thank you for letting me know.
I’m wanting to try this but can’t have jalapeños. Do you have any other suggestions that I can use as a substitute?
You can substitute with a serrano pepper but it’ll be spicer so I would recommend cutting the amount in half (unless you want more kick). There’s also the anaheim pepper which is a much milder pepper than the jalapeño.
I didn’t realize you meant to marinate the chicken breasts without cutting into chunks first. Oops 🙂 I cut the chicken breast in chunks and then marinated them overnight. So I didn’t scrape the chicken just discarded the marinade. I opted not to brown the chicken for this time. I also opted not to use the jalapeño because my husband didn’t want anything too spicy hot. Only taste tested and so far it is great! We’re having this for supper tonight. I made a double batch and froze a couple of mason jars without reducing the sauce. I figure I’ll reduce the sauce when I reheat it. I’m hoping it’ll still be great after thawing. Thanks for the recipe 🙂
Hope you loved it!
Great recipe!!! Just wondering how many lbs in breasts you use for a recipe. I had 2 thick ones that yielded a lot of extra sauce (which is a good thing, btw). So,maybe 3lb of chicken? Also. Aside from the jalapeno what additional spice can I add to give it a kick. I only used about 1/4 of the pepper bc I don’t like jalapeno so I’d rather substitute it. Nothing crazy spicy. My stomach can’t halndke crazy spice these days.
I believe it was around 2 1/2 lbs. Most packs I buy are right at about that amount. So glad you enjoyed the recipe! If you don’t like the heat I highly suggest leaving in the jalapeno but cooking it in the butter in a pan before adding it to the slow cooker as I mentioned in the comments and in the post. It mutes the heat but leaves the flavor. Also be sure to take the seeds and the ribs out of the jalapeno before cooking. 🙂
I absolutely love it. Made it once as recipie suggests. Second time I cut up chicken, Maranaded it overnight, threaded it on skewers with cutup onions for shiskabobs then served with rice and the sauce for dipping sauce. Everyone love it.
I love the skewer idea! Thanks for the suggestion! So glad everyone loved it!
I made this last night and it turned out great! I didn’t use jalapeño, but it still had a little kick to it. Great recipe!
Awesome! Thanks for taking the time to come back and let me know!
When you say “sauce” what sauce are you referring to, not sure what to buy to make this?
The 2 teaspoons cumin, 2 teaspoons paprika, 1 teaspoon salt, tomato sauce and heavy cream make up the sauce in this recipe. Sorry if that wasn’t clear.
Honestly not too impressed. Was hoping for something spicy and tasting of something similar to butter chicken but this is nothing like it. Nice approach but I just can’t wrap my brain around how curry dish didn’t include any type of curry in it.
Kylee, this recipe is a staple in my cooking for clients (not the slow cooker version) and was actually given to me by one first clients who is Indian almost 10 years ago. The idea behind it is that it is easy and has ingredients that most kitchens would have but not one person has ever told me they missed the curry flavor. I think perhaps adding more heat would’ve been what you were hoping for but for the purposes of a blog I try to avoid things that are “too” much of one thing whether that be spice, salt, pepper, oil, sugar, etc. If you like spice (and I do too) you can add more cayenne to it (I cut this from 1 tablespoon to 1 teaspoon for the purposes of the blog/clients because otherwise it does have a lot of heat) or perhaps use an additional jalapeno and cook it for less time. If you’d like to add curry I would also suggest 2 teaspoons of garam masala but even in side by side taste tests with a more classic take on this dish I can’t say the flavor suffers for it at all. If you want to trouble shoot I am always around here or you can email me at contact @ dinnerthendessert.com. 🙂
Sabrina, would you add the garam masala and extra cayenne to the chicken marinade or the final sauce?
I’d add it to the final sauce. Enjoy!
Hi Sabrina,
So far so good-actually have everything in the slow cooker now. Just curious, should I have it on low or high for the 4 – 5 hours?
You would want to cook it on low for 4-5 hours. Hope you enjoyed it!
Sabrina, do you think smoked paprika would be okay? I have regular but am wondering if smoked would give it a good depth or would throw it off. Thanks!
I find it makes the flavor a bit off for me. But there is such a distinct flavor in this that I love that I tend to stick to the spices as is. Are you generally fan of a smoky flavor? I love smoked paprika in bbq rubs and grill recipes, but for ethnic dishes I tend to avoid them unless it specifically calls for them. Plus depending on where you got it from the smokiness can be very pronounced, then yes it would throw the flavors off quite a bit. My smoked paprika from penzey’s is quite smoky, so I am very cautious in using it.
Okay great, that definitely makes sense! Yes, my smoked paprika is quite smoky, so I’ll stick with the regular. Thanks for the quick reply! I’ll leave a rating after I’ve made it tonight 😉
SUPER good!! I gave it 4 stars only because it turned out a little more “Mexicany” (as my boyfriend described it) than I had been expecting, probably because of the cumin. Regardless, it was DELICIOUS; the sauce was thick enough, the chicken was tender enough (I even browned it beforehand). Do you have the non-crockpot recipe available as well?
So happy to hear that you guys loved it!! The non-slow cooker recipe is coming soon so keep checking back on the site!
This turned out great my first Indian dish that was quite easy! I didn’t cook the meat before hand because I had zero time in the morning before work but it still turned out great!! I can’t wait to keep trying more Indian dishes! First one down more to try. Thanks!
Yay!! So happy to hear that you loved it! Thanks for coming back to let me know 🙂
Does it matter if I cut the chicken and then marinate overnight? I would think this would make it more flavorful.
And
How would using dark meat change the taste and/or recipe?
I have successfully used dark meat with no issue. And Sure go for it with the cutting. I just find that when I brown it, doing it in one big piece is easier to remove a bulk of the marinade, but honestly the more surface area you can marinade, the better.
Can you marinade this for 2-3 days before browning / slowcooking
I wouldn’t marinade for more than overnight, the texture may change in 2-3 days with the yogurt marinade.
Absolutely beautiful, made it a few weeks ago used pasata sauce I didn’t have ginger or jalapeno but making it again tomorrow for friends with both those items, really looking forward to making it and eating it, very easy to make. thank you Sabrina. Andy
Thank you for taking the time to come back and let me know how much you enjoyed it!
Hi Sabrina
Do you have a page with more recipes?
Of course! If you go to the main page //dinnerthendessert.com you’ll be able to either search for specific recipes or scroll through. Look forward to seeing you around the site!
I just put this in the crock pot and CANT WAIT to try it. Out of curiosity, did anyone else’s not look so orange like the pictures? Mine hasn’t cooked at all yet so maybe the color changes as it cooks but mine is more red/pink due to the tomato sauce and cream. Smells good though!
My husband has been begging me to make this and so I would like to give it a go next week for his birthday but wondering what to substitute for the heavy cream? Is plain Greek yogurt a good option? Or is the heavy cream a necessity? I’ve never had butter chicken ?
It’s not the same consistency so I’m not 100% certain, since I’ve never tried it. It certainly wouldn’t have the same richness. I would stick to heavy cream if possible. If you do decide to try it, I’d love for you to let me know how it turns out.
I stay away from dairy, so I just substituted plain almond milk. Almond milk isn’t nearly as thick as cream, but the sauce was still thick and creamy and it tasted great!
I don’t understand why people have so much trouble understanding amounts of products. Cans have the amount of product clearly listed on the label~8 OZ./ounces= 1 cup, so obviously NOT 64 ounces which would be 2 QUARTS or half gallon~an excessive amount of sauce for four servings. Cream cheese is also clearly marked, 8oz, the smaller blocks are usually 4 ounces. For recipes calling for unusual amounts like 3 or 6 ounces there are lines on the wrapper but I usually use half a block for less than 4 ounces and the whole block for more than 4ounces~who wants to save 1 oz. or roughly 1 TBS. Cream cheese? It’s common sense cooking not rocket science!!
I would like to make this butter chicken recipe but only a mild version. I do not like hot as in spicy hot. What should I do to ensure it turns out on the mild side
If you’re still looking for the same flavor but not the heat (less spicy), cook the jalapeño in butter in a pan before adding it to the slow cooker. It mutes the heat while keeping the flavor. Also, make sure to remove the seeds and ribs from the jalapeño as they carry the chemical (capsaicin) that gives them their heat.
Amazing flavor and great recipe, please don’t let the mean spirited nit pick, any one who cooks at all knows common sense and personal flair is or can be available ….was a excellent flavored recipe
I made this tonight. It was awesome! Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome! Thanks for letting me know how much you loved it!!
Hi Sabrina! I’m so happy that I came across this recipe. I have a new slow cooker and I can’t wait to try this recipe. I plan to double the recipe since my husband and I love this dish and we always order it when we go to our favorite Indian restaurant. Quick question, did you remove the seeds of the jalapeno? If not, did it make the dish spicy? Thank you!
I did, also the ribs. You can leave one or the other to add a bit more of a kick if you wanted. 🙂
i can’t wait to try this recipe! Nothing better then coming home to a crock pot full of deliciousness! Thanks for sharing!
You’re welcome Janette!
Thank you for sharing your recipe, Sabrina! I loved it! It was my first time eating Indian food and will not be my last. I will definitely make this recipe again.
So glad you enjoyed it!
I am very excited to know new things. like this one, i was unaware of SLOW COOKER INDIAN BUTTER CHICKEN Recipe So thank you for the blog.
Tried this yesterday. It is definitely a keeper. Husband even thought this was a good recipe.Thanks for sharing.
YUM! Made this tonight (including extra steps) and absolutely loved it. My partner is still raving (hours later!). Will try with thighs next time, though, as agree with another comment that it will probably take it next level. But still so, so good. Thank you!
Thanks Erin! I really appreciate you taking the time to come back and let me know how much you and your partner enjoyed it!
Hi – I came home tonight and prepped some rice and then served the butter chicken. It was very good – a brilliant slow cook receipe. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you Kim! I love when the slow cooker does most of the work, don’t you? Glad you enjoyed it!
Wonderful recipe! I just made this for myself and the amount of spice in the sauce is just perfect. The chicken turned out moist and tender. Perfect over a bowl of rice! Thanks!
I mistakenly diced the chicken before marinating and it didn’t turn out to be a problem. Still was delectable!
So glad you enjoyed it Pat!
Awesome! Thank you so much for the 5 star rating!!
Hi Sabrina,
Your dishes photograph beautifully!
I am planning on making this dish but have seen several comments (on Pinterest, not necessarily in this comment thread) about using garam masala and/or curry powder. I don’t have those on hand but am looking to achieve the typical Indian taste (I’m Punjabi). What would I need to leave out to use garam masala and curry powder? I’m assuming I’d add it in the step where you’re making the sauce?
I’m so sorry but I’m not really sure since the flavors can be so different. If you decide to play around with it, I’d love to know what worked for you though.
Great recipe… yummy! Thank you!
Thank you for the 5 stars, Mary! Glad you enjoyed it!