Slow Cooker Butter Chicken is easy for any home chef and uses pantry spices to recreate a popular Indian restaurant dish. Try this today!
This is not your average Chicken Dinner recipe! Making Indian Butter Chicken is even easier in the slow cooker, and it will make you want to try Easy Tandoori Chicken or Slow Cooker Tikka Masala Chicken next.
Table of contents
Sabrina’s Slow Cooker Indian Butter Chicken Recipe
I love this recipe so much because it is so easy to make and can be made by any home cook, yet it tastes like something you’d order from a restaurant! It’s a regular recipe in my rotation of family-friendly recipes. It’s not too spicy so the little ones can enjoy it no problem. Add some Basmati rice and homemade Garlic Naan flatbread and enjoy a meal that’s just as good as takeout!
Chef’s Note: Accessible Indian Flavors
When cooking Indian cuisine outside of India, you’ll find that the spices and ingredients to make a dish truly authentic might not be readily available. Also, Indian cuisine is richly diverse with regional differences in flavor and ingredients. I created this Indian Butter Chicken recipe with common pantry spices along with easy-to-find ingredients so it is more universal and accessible for home cooks across the world to recreate. It is a simplified dish filled with most of the warm, rich flavors of Indian cuisine, but if you would like to share how you make it taste more authentic to you, please share your ideas in the comments!
Ingredients
- Chicken: Use a good quality boneless skinless chicken breast for Slow Cooker Butter Chicken. Usually, I don’t recommend chicken breasts for slow cooker recipes because they can become overcooked. However, the combination of the yogurt marinade and creamy butter sauce will keep your chicken tender and moist.
- Yogurt Marinade: You’ll let the chicken tenderize overnight in a mixture of yogurt, lemon juice, cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, ginger, and salt. This infuses tons of moisture and flavor into the chicken.
- Butter Sauce: After discarding the marinade, the chicken will cook slowly in a creamy sauce made with butter, garlic, jalapeño, cumin, paprika, salt, tomato sauce or tomato paste, and heavy cream. Towards the end of cooking, you’ll add a cornstarch slurry to thicken and finish the sauce, and garnish with bright fresh cilantro for serving.
Kitchen Tools and Equipment
- Slow Cooker: This is a smaller version perfect for couples or singles, 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!
- Spice Rack: You can buy a spice rack and fill up the bottles with freshly purchased spices. It’s a beautiful item to display in the 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.
- Sharp Knife: You’ll be cutting the chicken into 2-inch chunks and will need a good Sharp Knife to do so safely.
How to Make
Time needed: 5 hours and 20 minutes.
- Marinate the Chicken
The night before cooking, place yogurt, lemon juice, cumin, cinnamon, cayenne, black pepper, ginger, salt, and whole chicken breasts in a large Ziploc bag. Seal the bag and massage the mixture into the chicken until well coated. Refrigerate overnight, or at least an hour if possible.
- Prepare Chicken and Slow Cooker
Before cooking, scrape off most of the marinade from the chicken and discard it. Cut the chicken into two-inch chunks. In the slow cooker, add butter, garlic, and jalapeno to the bottom, then place the chicken pieces on top.
- Mix and Add the Sauce
In a small bowl, combine cumin, paprika, salt, tomato sauce, and heavy cream. Stir well, then pour the sauce over the chicken in the slow cooker.
- Slow Cook the Chicken
Cover the slow cooker and cook on low for 4-5 hours.
- Thicken the Sauce
Stir cornstarch into 1 tablespoon of water until smooth, then quickly stir the mixture into the slow cooker. Cook on high for an additional 20 minutes until the sauce thickens.
- Garnish and Serve
Stir in chopped cilantro, and serve the butter chicken hot with basmati rice or naan.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 3/4 teaspoons coarse ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 chicken breasts , boneless skinless
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 fresh cilantro , chopped
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. Add the chicken pieces on top.
- 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.
Video
Nutrition
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Can This Be Made Ahead?
Yes, this Slow Cooker Indian Butter Chicken can be made ahead. Marinate the chicken the night before and refrigerate it. You can also prepare the sauce a day in advance and store it separately from the chicken. When ready, just add everything to the slow cooker and cook on low for 5 hours.
Nutritional Facts
Pairing Ideas
This delicious Indian Recipe can be served over steamed rice as a main dish. Pair with Easy Vegetable Biryani, Saag Paneer, and Indian Raita for an easy and delicious Indian feast! And if you’re looking for an amazing and thick naan flatbread to go with it, check out my amazing homemade Garlic Naan.
How to Store
- Store: Do not leave Butter Chicken at room temperature longer than 2 hours. Keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- Reheat: Warm up leftovers in a saucepan over medium heat. You can also reheat it in the microwave in short intervals. If the sauce thickens too much during reheating, add a splash of water or cream.
- Freeze: Sealed tightly, Indian Butter Chicken can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
Alternative Cooking Methods
- Stovetop Indian Butter Chicken: Marinate overnight according to the recipe card. When you are ready to make it, 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. Then add in the tomato sauce and heavy cream, stir, and cook for 1 minute. Remove the sauce from your pan and keep it 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 it 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.
- Instant Pot Method: 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 Instant Pot lid, seal 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 aside. Blend sauce ingredients with an immersion blender. Add ½ cup 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 Instant Pot. If cooled, set the cooker on Saute until chicken is heated through.
Frequent Questions
This recipe does not include this extra step, however, it will always add more flavor if you take the time to do so. Brown the chicken quickly on high heat before cutting it 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.
Butter Chicken, also called Murgh Makhani, is an Indian dish made of chicken marinated and tenderized in yogurt and spices. It is then cooked and served with a creamy, slightly spicy tomato-based curry sauce. Butter Chicken is similar to Chicken Tikka Masala, which also uses a creamy sauce with tomatoes and spices. Butter Chicken does not include onions and diced tomatoes that are usually in Tikka Masala sauce.
Variations
- Meat: While chicken breast is perfect for absorbing all the delicious flavors of the creamy, buttery sauce, you can use another protein of your choice. Try making this recipe with cubed pork loin, beef roast, or boneless skinless chicken thighs.
- Spices: Feel free to play with the spice combinations in this recipe to suit your taste. If you like spicier Indian food, include cayenne pepper in the sauce as well as the marinade. You can also swap serrano peppers for the jalapenos to increase the heat.
- Dairy-Free: To make a delicious dairy-free Butter Chicken, swap out the butter for your favorite non-dairy margarine. Substitute the heavy cream for either non-dairy half and half, or you can use full-fat coconut milk. Coconut milk also adds a delicious layer of flavor that complements the Indian spices perfectly.
- Vegetables: To bulk up your Indian Butter Chicken and add some nutritious veggies. Include 1-2 cups of diced potatoes, carrots, broccoli, peas, onions, green beans, or bell peppers in the slow cooker mixture to cook and simmer along with the chicken.
More Indian Chicken Recipes
Photos used in a previous version of this post.
This is such a favorite of mine and others. I’ve had so many people ask me for the recipe and I’ve given them your link. So good! And once I substituted coconut milk and dairy free yogurt for a friend who’s dairy free. Still delish!
Is it ok to add the heavy cream in the crock pot and cook for the 4-5 hrs, last time I made a crock pot recipe with heavy cream it curdled?
I’ve made this so many times without any issue.
I’m so excited to try this tomorrow! If I double it, is the cook time the same? Thank you
You may need to add an additional 30 minutes of cook time. Enjoy!
This was sooo delicious!
I used cashew milk instead of heavy cream, and two thai peppers instead of a jalapeno.
I would like to try with the heavy cream next time, because it adds more of that smooth creaminess I really love. But, the cashew milk was an awesome sub.
Thanks for the suggestion, Ally.
It’s also great with coconut milk, the canned kind with the thick cream on it.?
Absolutely delish!! Sauteed the jalapeno and garlic in butter as suggested. Did add the cornflour/water to slow cooker as was feeling lazy. Also, I forgot to buy rice so made mashed potato instead. The flavors of this recipe were magnificent Sabrina! Thank you!
this sauce is to die for I love it will be making often thank you for sharing
My husband and I love this recipe and it’s become a staple in our household, thank you!
My question is..can you use this recipe in an Instant Pot? If so, how long would I cook it for and will the sauce be enough for it not to burn?
I haven’t tested it yet but I’m sure you could find a recipe online using similar ingredients and use that as a guideline. Good luck!
I made it in the instant pot tonight, and it was great. I was tripling the recipe so that I could freeze half and have enough for 2 dinners for my (hungry) family of 5. But the liquid to chicken recipe was still the same, so I think it would be fine with the regular recipe. Put it on “poultry” and let it depressurize naturally. I did realize after I put it in that the I Love my Instant Pot cook book has a butter chicken recipe in it. I didn’t bother to see how close it is to Sabrina’s recipe. I don’t even want to try another one at this point.
Can I use smoked paprika?
You can but it’ll give the dish a smokey flavor.
Would it be possible to use boneless skinless chicken thighs?
Yes 🙂
The cooked butter chicken recipe freezes very well!! I’ve had no issues with freezing it as I tend to make large batches of food so I can have meals for later.
Very good recipe!! I tried swapping out the tomato sauce with tomato soup so I could have a slightly sweeter taste. I also added an extra bit of butter in the bottom.
There’s something I’m struggling with however; everytime I add the water and cornstarch it creates cornstarch clumps. Any suggestions as to what I’m doing wrong? Thanks!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe. Next time you make a cornstarch slurry, make sure the water that you’re adding the cornstarch to is cold and then slowing add the cornstarch to create the slurry. This should help to avoid clumping. Hope this helps!
I’ve enjoyed this recipe very much, thank you! I was wondering, is there an easy way to stir the cornstarch and water and then pour it into the mix without it settling beforehand? It has appeared as clumps and in small amounts when I’ve reheated the chicken in the microwave, and I’m not bothered by it, but this process is probably the most frustrating parts and never know if I’m doing it right.
Of course.
So delicious!! Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed!
Used steamed and blended cauliflower to thicken the sauce instead of cornstarch for lower carbs. Mmmmmmm!
Delicious!
Hi I’m in the UK so not sure what you mean by tomato sauce as i know these things can mean sometihing different in US? is it passata ? Ketchup ? tomato concentrate ? help
Tomato sauce is unseasoned tomatoes that have been cooked and pureed down to a sauce. I will link to a sample so you can see a visual of what I’m referring to 🙂 Hope this helps: 365 Organic Tomato Sauce
I was going to ask the same question. Tomato sauce in New Zealand is ketchup and I was thinking, surely not! Tomato puree is what we call it. Thanks for asking and thank you Sabrina for answering.
About how many pounds of chicken would this come out to?
It’s about 1.5 – 2 lbs of chicken, depending on how big the chicken breasts are.
Love, love, love! This is an all time favorite and a staple in my meal prep rotation! We can’t seem to go three weeks without craving your butter chicken! So simple and delicious! Even the extra tweaks you suggest to take it to the next level (browning the chicken, sautéing the garlic and jalapeño and sauce reduction) are simple enough for weekly meal prep and well worth the effort! I do have a question tho…. I always double the sauce recipe as I love to drizzle the extra over steamed broccoli and cauliflower rice, topped with extra cilantro too!….. This week I had a rather large package of chicken thighs and wish I had tripled it! Can I make additional sauce after the fact? Would I just follow the usual steps without the chicken? Or should I try making it in a sauce pan stovetop? Thank you so much for this gem, Sabrina!!!
If you want the extra sauce, I would make it on the stovetop. You can always add a tsp of chicken Better than Bouillon if you want the sauce to have that chicken flavor 🙂
Also thanks so much for the review – I’m so happy to hear how much you love it!
Can I use nonfat plain yogurt in this recipe?
Certainly – just make sure to add it slowly.
My husband really enjoyed this; however, it did not taste like butter chicken we’ve had from many Indian restaurants. I was hoping for a similar taste. The only omission / change I made was not using jalapeño because I did not have one.
So sorry it wasn’t to your taste 🙁 Feel free to play around the with the spices to make it more to what you are looking for 🙂
Wait. So you didn’t follow the recipe and now you’re complaining about how it came out? Sounds like it was your fault lmao
Could I use whole pieces of chicken?
Certainly!
Wonderful!! I will be adding this often to my meal plans. I was only able to marinate the chicken for 4 hours and it was still delicious.
Made this yesterday – amazing. Didn’t bother to sear it – swapped out the cream for coconut milk. I did sauté the jalapeno and garlic in butter. Addictive.
Hi,
Did you swap 250ml of cream for 250 ml of coconut milk?
This was delicious!! Used coconut milk / rest as is – didn’t brown chicken before crockpot because I wanted to see how easy it could be. Just wow. Served with basmati.
Coconut milk makes adds a great level of flavor. Glad you enjoyed!!
I love your recipe and have made it several times. Instead of jalapeno, I sometimes use Serrano for it to be spicy and more true to the traditional dish.
I was wondering if you have a suggested time on making this in an instant pot. I just bought one not long ago and would love to make this in it.
I haven’t tried it in the Instant Pot yet. If you do, let me know how it goes!
Can you use flour instead of cornstarch? If so would you add it in earlier on? I’ve heard flour does better cooking slowly and I never buy cornstarch even though I probably should
You could use flour, you will need to use it at a 3:1 ratio (3tbsp of flour for every 1 tbsp cornstarch)
Wonderful recipe! I swapped out the heavy cream and used coconut milk but kept everything the same. The only trouble I had was the chicken turned out on the dry side. I realize this is the result of overcooking in the crockpot. Do you have any suggestions for this? Perhaps adding the chicken later in the cook cycle? Thanks!
It sounds like maybe your slow cooker might run a bit hot. I would suggest cutting back on the cooking time to adjust. I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
My family loved this recipe in the slow cooker- thank you!! How do you suggest cooking it if I used a Dutch oven on the stove?
You can cook it in a dutch oven for 3-4 hours at 325. Enjoy!
This turned out delicious! I didn’t marinade overnight, omitted the cream and added in a cup of yogurt right before serving. It was a hit!! Will be a go to recipe from now on. I’ve even sent this recipe on for a friend to use
I lightly browned the chicken on my George Foreman before cutting and placing in the crockpot. How much time should I reduce so as to not overcook it? I should mention that I also doubled the recipe.
Hi excited to try this recipe I wanted to ask I’m making this for 1 person serving so how would I do the measurements. Thank you ??
You can cut this recipe by half and use a smaller slow cooker but I wouldn’t go any smaller than that. The good news is you can have leftovers the next day. Enjoy!
Would it be possible to used diced canned tomatoes instead of tomato sauce?
I would suggest pureeing them for a smoother consistency in a pinch. Good luck!
Soo yummy better than shop takeaway. Have made several times now
Do I have to scrape the marinade off before putting the chicken in the slow cooker? Is there a con to keeping the original marinade?
Thanks for this recipe. I’m excited to try it!
Yes, you’ll want to scrape off the excess marinade before adding the chicken to the slow cooker.
But why do you have to scrape it all off?
Since you are putting it into a slow cooker, the marinade won’t reach a high enough temp to make it safe to eat. It’s better to be safe and scrape and re-sauce.
How many lbs of chicken? Weight can vary wildly for 3 chicken breasts depending on size.
Each chicken breast was around 6 ounces. Enjoy!
Do you need to brown the chicken before adding it to the slow cooker?
No but it adds a deeper flavor if you decide to add that step. Enjoy!
Do you brown the chicken after it had marinated overnight with the marinade on it?
You’ll want to scrape the excess marinade off the chicken before browning it the next day. Enjoy!
OMG!! This was the BEST!! My son and his wife absolutely loved it! (My wife isn’t big on spicy food). So good I’m making it again this weekend. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. It’s a real keeper!!
Can I cook this on high and if so how long for?
Yes, you can cook it on high for 2-3 hours. Enjoy!
Amazing – I get rave reviews when making this, one friend says her husband prefers it to any restaurant dish he’s ever had – a firm favourite in our household 🙂
How amazing! Thanks for coming back to let me know Julia.
How long will be in the Instant Pot?
I’ve not tested it using one so I don’t have a recommendation.
Could you substitute sour cream for yogurt? Plain yogurt isn’t something I would normally have on hand or have an additional use for.
Sure 🙂
This was really good. I only had two chicken breasts and decided that when I make this again I will do four pieces. We just found there was a lot of sauce left over (even if it had been three pieces) . This has A LOT of sodium so we used no salt added tomato sauce. I am not sure if I can do anything else to reduce sodium??
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! I don’t see any other place to reduce the sodium in this dish besides the tomato sauce though.
Is it possible to freeze this, after cooking, with decent results?
Sorry but the texture of the marinade with the yogurt will change when frozen.
After cooking? The marinade is no longer on after cooking it.
I’m not sure I understand your question. You remove the marinade before cooking, and then I have instructions to make a sauce when you cook the chicken.
What is the equivalent of the tomato sauce? Is it like tomato paste? I live in Australia
You can make tomato sauce from tomato paste by mixing ¾ cup tomato paste with 1 cup water and then season with salt, if needed. Hope this helps!
Claire passata is the equivalent of tomato sauce in this instance.
Can I substitute the cornstarch for arrowroot to lower the carbs?
Yes, that should be fine. Enjoy!
You can also remove the chicken and put the sauce into a sauce pan and reduce it on the stove… it’s an extra step but no additional carbs at all and the flavor intensifies because of the reduction in volume!
Can you make this a freezer meal? Would you be able to combine everything raw, freeze it, and then dump in it the slow-cooker?
No, I’m sorry but the texture of the marinade with the yogurt will change when frozen.
This was DELICIOUS AND SO EASY! Thank you so much!
I was trying to surprise my boyfriend with this recipe and didn’t realize until this morning that the chicken needs to marinate overnight. Would 6 hours be okay? 🙂
Shoot, I’m just now seeing this. You should still be ok. How did it turn out?
Could tofu be used in place of chicken? I’d like to make a dish with this sauce for some who are vegetarian.
I’ve never tried it before but would love to know how it turns out if you decide to try. Thanks!
Would chicken thighs be a straight swap for breasts?
Yes 🙂
What size slow cooker do you need to use?
I used a 3 qt 🙂
I’ve been living with my parents for the last couple years. This has become a family favorite. My dad says it’s one of the best dishes he can remember having in a long while.
How awesome! So glad you all love it.
Is it possible to freeze the remaining marinade defrost it and use it again?
No, once you use a marinade it needs to be discarded. Sorry.
Would you serve additional condiments like cashews, sultanas, sour cream etc.?
Sure 🙂
Can you substitute coconut milk for the heavy cream in this recipe? I’m looking forward to trying this.
Sure 🙂 Enjoy!