North Indian · Dinner

Butter chicken

Name: Butter chicken
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 7 h 5 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: North Indian
Ingredients: 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 2-inch pieces; 3/4 cup plain whole-milk yogurt; 2 tablespoons lemon juice; 2 tablespoons grated garlic, divided; 2 tablespoons grated ginger, divided; 2 teaspoons garam masala, divided; 2 teaspoons Kashmiri chile powder, divided; 1 teaspoon ground cumin; 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided; 3 tablespoons ghee, divided; 1 tablespoon neutral oil; 1 1/2 pounds ripe tomatoes, chopped, or canned whole tomatoes; 1/3 cup raw cashews, soaked 20 minutes and drained; 1 teaspoon sugar, plus more if needed; 1/2 cup heavy cream; 2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter; 1 tablespoon crushed kasuri methi dried fenugreek leaves; 6 cups steamed basmati rice

Charred yogurt-marinated chicken folded into a silken Delhi-style tomato, butter, cream, and kasuri methi sauce with gentle chile warmth.

About 7 hr 5 minTotal

About 1 hr 5 minActive

$$$Cost

AdvancedDifficulty

Makes 6 servings

Equipment

Skip straining only if the whites are fully blended; the texture may be less even.
Best single workhorse
Winco 8-inch Fine Mesh Strainer · MS3A-8S
View at Amazon
Best useful size set
Cuisinart Fine Mesh Strainer Set · CTG-00-3MS
View at Amazon
Another workable path: Skip straining only if the whites are fully blended; the texture may be less even.
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How we chose
Research-backed · reviewed Aug 2026
We compared mesh fineness, bowl size, handle and bowl-rest construction, versatility, cleaning, and stable model identity. Editorial and kitchen testing informed the use cases; manufacturer specifications established materials and dimensions. Kwilt has not strained this egg mixture with these tools.
Winco 8-inch Fine Mesh Strainer · MS3A-8S: The broad mesh lets a full egg mixture pass quickly and remains useful for rice, vegetables, pasta, and sifting. Trade-off: An 8-inch basket is larger than this Recipe strictly needs and asks for more drawer or hanging space.
Cuisinart Fine Mesh Strainer Set · CTG-00-3MS: The medium strainer suits this egg mixture while the smaller and larger sizes make the set useful beyond one Recipe. Trade-off: The lighter construction is easier to bend and less reassuring for heavy daily use than a single restaurant strainer.
Another workable path: You can skip straining if the whites are fully blended and you accept a slightly less even texture. A smaller tea strainer is too slow for this batch.
Sources
Epicurious Winco use review
Food Network tested comparison
Winco product details

Ingredients

1× recipe · Makes 6 servings

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 2-inch pieces
3/4 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons grated garlic, divided
2 tablespoons grated ginger, divided
2 teaspoons garam masala, divided
2 teaspoons Kashmiri chile powder, divided
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
3 tablespoons ghee, divided
1 tablespoon neutral oil
1 1/2 pounds ripe tomatoes, chopped, or canned whole tomatoes
1/3 cup raw cashews, soaked 20 minutes and drained
1 teaspoon sugar, plus more if needed
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
1 tablespoon crushed kasuri methi dried fenugreek leaves
6 cups steamed basmati rice

Instructions

Mix chicken with yogurt, lemon, half the garlic and ginger, half the garam masala and chile powder, cumin, 1 teaspoon salt, and oil. Refrigerate 6 to 24 hours.
Heat broiler with a rack 6 inches from the element. Thread chicken on skewers over a foil-lined rack and broil, turning once, until charred in spots and 165°F, 10 to 14 minutes; reserve juices.
Heat 2 tablespoons ghee in a saucepan. Fry remaining garlic and ginger 30 seconds, add tomatoes, cashews, remaining chile powder, sugar, and salt, and simmer 20 minutes until concentrated.
Blend the sauce completely smooth, then pass through a for the Delhi restaurant texture. Return to low heat with reserved chicken juices, cream, remaining garam masala, and kasuri methi.
Fold in chicken and simmer 5 minutes. Turn off heat and swirl in cold butter and remaining ghee; adjust salt, sugar, and lemon balance and serve with basmati rice.

Delhi, IndiaNorth Indian restaurant cooking

From the table

About this recipe

Butter chicken, murgh makhani, emerged in mid-twentieth-century Delhi restaurant culture, commonly linked to the Moti Mahal lineage and the reuse of tandoori chicken in a tomato-butter gravy. Attribution details remain contested among descendant businesses.

Murgh makhani was developed in Delhi's restaurant tradition to revive tandoori chicken in a buttery tomato gravy. Its sauce is smooth, gently spiced, fenugreek-fragrant, and richer in butter than onion. This recipe chars fresh tikka at home and does not collapse butter chicken into the onion-forward British–South Asian tikka masala that follows. This Kwilt version follows the reviewed household adaptation: Anchor the accessible recipe in an exceptionally strong rating pattern, then restore Delhi-specific smoothness, char, and kasuri methi so popularity does not flatten it into generic creamy tomato curry.

Sources

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