Butter Chicken Recipe
This is my recipe of all recipes. I cook this once a week, and I never tire of it. Where I used to live, there was this amazing Indian restaurant that Michael and I would go to constantly. We were in love with their Coconut Chicken Curry and their Butter Chicken. When we moved, we couldn't find a restaurant with similar taste, and so I decided to try something on my own. This dish is very buttery, very tomato-y, and very flavorful. Much of it can be altered to your taste.
Served over basmati rice and a side of naan, this dish is perfection. Not healthy perfection, but when something sinful is this delicious, nothing else matters. Much.
Chicken Makhani
* 2 skinless, boneless breast halves, cubed
* 1 tsp chili powder
* 1 tsp coriander powder
* 2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
* salt to taste
In a bowl, mix together all the above ingredients well.
Heat wok (or similar large pan) on stove over medium heat, add some oil to cover the bottom on your pan. When oil is hot, add chicken mixture and cook until chicken is no longer pink inside. Remove from pan and set aside.
* 1/2 tsp cumin
* 1/2 onion, diced
* 2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
* 1 tsp coriander leaves
* 1/2 tsp curry powder
* 1/2 tsp fenugreek
* 1 tsp chili powder
* 1/4 cup cashews
* 1 serrano pepper, diced
* 4 tomatoes, cubed (or 1 can whole peeled tomatoes)
Add cumin, onion, and ginger-garlic paste to remaining oil in pan. Add water if necessary to remove any excess chicken drippings stuck to pan. Mix well.
Add coriander leaves, chili powder, curry powder, fenugreek, cashews, serrano pepper, and tomatoes. Cover and simmer ~10 minutes.
Let cool briefly, then pour mixture into a blender and blend well.
* 3/4 stick butter
* 1/3 cup plus 3 tsp cream
* 1/2 tsp sugar
* 3/4 tsp garam masala
* 2 squirts ketchup
* Salt to taste
Add butter to pan on medium-low heat. Melt and add blended mixture. Add cream, sugar, masala, salt, and ketchup, mixing well.
Add cooked chicken and serve with basmati rice, and naan!
Notes:
-You can use fresh tomatoes or canned, but I prefer fresh, vine ripened tomatoes. If you do use canned, because its a lot simpler, be sure to alter your added salt accordingly. I find that using canned tomatoes with my normal salt makes this too salty, so if you want, you may want to add the salt last, tasting as you add it :)
- The cashews are meant to be a thickening agent, so you shouldn't need to add any cornstarch or flour to this. Sometimes I do anyway because I like my sauces a bit thick sometimes, but hopefully you won't need to!
-To make this spicier, I add 2 serrano peppers.
-If you can't find some of these ingredients, don't fret. I generally replace the coriander leaves with the coriander powder, as I can never find the leaves anywhere. I also can't find ginger-garlic paste so I make my own. I use about 3 tsp of fresh garlic, diced, and 1.5 tsp ginger. I add olive oil and blend it into a paste that way.
-This recipe is very versatile. You can add more curry powder or less if you like, and can substitute the chicken for shrimp. If you don't want to use all that butter, you can substitute light margarine instead (but it doesn't have that same yummy, smooth buttery taste ;D)
Garlic Naan
* 1 tsp yeast
* 1/2 cup warm water
* 1/2 tsp sugar
* 2 cups flour
* 1/2 cup milk
* 2 cloves garlic, diced - plus extra for topping
* 1/2 tsp cumin
* 1/4 c. coriander leaves (cilantro)
* 1/2 egg
* salt to taste
* ghee to spread on top
Mix yeast, sugar, and water. Let sit ~10 minutes or until bubbly.
Mix flour, cumin, garlic, and salt.
Add yeast mixture and egg. Gradually mix in milk. If too sticky, add more flour until you reach desired consistency. Let sit ~20 minutes at least (preferably an hour)
Turn oven on broil.
Mix coriander leaves in dough.
Pour 1 tsp oil over dough. Break dough in 4-6 pieces, place on well floured surface. Flatten each pieces very thinly and place on round, nonstick or sprayed baking pan. Top with diced garlic.
Let cook in oven about ~3 minutes per side, watching closely. Once the top of the bread starts turning brown, flip.
Remove from oven and brush tops with ghee (or buttter). Makes 4-6.
Dip in makhani sauce and enjoy ;)
Notes:
-Naan is considered a very thin bread, so try to flatten it out as much as possible to avoid it turning into a pita bread.
-Naan should be cooked at a very high temperature, as it isn't meant to cook long. So it is crucial to wait until your oven is very, very hot. I find that broiling is usually the best method to achieve this temperature.
-I LOVE garlic, so therefore I love garlic naan. If you love garlic, you may want to up the garlic in this recipe as I do. If you don't like garlic, you can always remove it or substitute it for any other fresh ingredient. Parsley is a good addition to it as well.
Served over basmati rice and a side of naan, this dish is perfection. Not healthy perfection, but when something sinful is this delicious, nothing else matters. Much.
Chicken Makhani
* 2 skinless, boneless breast halves, cubed
* 1 tsp chili powder
* 1 tsp coriander powder
* 2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
* salt to taste
* 1/2 tsp cumin
* 1/2 onion, diced
* 2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
* 1 tsp coriander leaves
* 1/2 tsp curry powder
* 1/2 tsp fenugreek
* 1 tsp chili powder
* 1/4 cup cashews
* 1 serrano pepper, diced
* 4 tomatoes, cubed (or 1 can whole peeled tomatoes)
* 3/4 stick butter
* 1/3 cup plus 3 tsp cream
* 1/2 tsp sugar
* 3/4 tsp garam masala
* 2 squirts ketchup
* Salt to taste
Notes:
-You can use fresh tomatoes or canned, but I prefer fresh, vine ripened tomatoes. If you do use canned, because its a lot simpler, be sure to alter your added salt accordingly. I find that using canned tomatoes with my normal salt makes this too salty, so if you want, you may want to add the salt last, tasting as you add it :)
- The cashews are meant to be a thickening agent, so you shouldn't need to add any cornstarch or flour to this. Sometimes I do anyway because I like my sauces a bit thick sometimes, but hopefully you won't need to!
-To make this spicier, I add 2 serrano peppers.
-If you can't find some of these ingredients, don't fret. I generally replace the coriander leaves with the coriander powder, as I can never find the leaves anywhere. I also can't find ginger-garlic paste so I make my own. I use about 3 tsp of fresh garlic, diced, and 1.5 tsp ginger. I add olive oil and blend it into a paste that way.
-This recipe is very versatile. You can add more curry powder or less if you like, and can substitute the chicken for shrimp. If you don't want to use all that butter, you can substitute light margarine instead (but it doesn't have that same yummy, smooth buttery taste ;D)
Garlic Naan
* 1 tsp yeast
* 1/2 cup warm water
* 1/2 tsp sugar
* 2 cups flour
* 1/2 cup milk
* 2 cloves garlic, diced - plus extra for topping
* 1/2 tsp cumin
* 1/4 c. coriander leaves (cilantro)
* 1/2 egg
* salt to taste
* ghee to spread on top
Dip in makhani sauce and enjoy ;)
Notes:
-Naan is considered a very thin bread, so try to flatten it out as much as possible to avoid it turning into a pita bread.
-Naan should be cooked at a very high temperature, as it isn't meant to cook long. So it is crucial to wait until your oven is very, very hot. I find that broiling is usually the best method to achieve this temperature.
-I LOVE garlic, so therefore I love garlic naan. If you love garlic, you may want to up the garlic in this recipe as I do. If you don't like garlic, you can always remove it or substitute it for any other fresh ingredient. Parsley is a good addition to it as well.