How to Make Butter Chicken

This is a from-scratch recipe for Butter Chicken. If you have bought a prepared Providoor dish, use its product instructions instead; the raw ingredients and cooking times below do not apply to reheating it.

Recipe yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 800g chicken thigh, skin off, bone in if possible
• 200g full-fat plain yoghurt
• 400g tin of good tomatoes
• 1 large onion
• 60g raw unsalted cashews, soaked
• 2 tbsp ghee
• 100ml cream
• 50g butter
• 2 tsp kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
• 2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
• 2 tsp garam masala
• 2 tbsp ginger and garlic paste
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt, to taste
• 1 tsp sugar or honey

Method

1. Marinate twice. First rub the chicken with lemon juice, salt and Kashmiri chilli for thirty minutes. Then add yoghurt, ginger and garlic paste, garam masala and a pinch of kasoori methi. Overnight in the fridge is best; twenty minutes will do.
2. Soak the cashews. Soak the raw cashews in hot water while the chicken marinates so they blend to a completely smooth cream.
3. Char the chicken. Cook the chicken in batches on screaming hot cast iron with a little ghee, or under a grill at full heat, three to four minutes a side, until the edges genuinely blacken and the chicken reaches 75C. Set aside.
4. Build the base. Soften the onion in ghee, add the tomatoes, then blend with the drained cashews until completely smooth. Pass through a sieve for restaurant texture.
5. Bloom the spices. Heat fresh ghee, add Kashmiri chilli and garam masala for thirty seconds until fragrant, then return the puree and simmer fifteen minutes until it darkens and thickens.
6. Season the balance. Add a little sugar or honey to balance the acidity of the tomatoes, and salt to taste. Adjust here rather than at the end.
7. Finish off the heat. Take the pan off the burner. Add butter, then cream, then the charred chicken and its resting juices, then the kasoori methi crushed between your palms.
8. Rest before serving. Rest five minutes before serving, which is when the fenugreek comes forward. Serve with rice or naan.

Serving and preparation notes

Cooking times depend on your equipment and ingredient size. Keep raw-food preparation separate from ready-to-eat food and follow appropriate storage directions. This recipe is distinct from the product sold below.

Prefer a prepared dish?

Butter Chicken is a separate product with its own ingredients, serving count and preparation. Check the current page and latest packaging before use.

For prepared meals, use the reheating guide. Explore the current menu and postcode delivery.