Chicken Makhani (Butter Chicken)

Submitted by grapefruit

"This is a really labour intensive recipe but really worth all the effort you make. great for dinner parties. cooking time doesnt include marinating time."

 

• Ready In: 1hr
• Ingredients: 25
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 400 g whole chickens, cut in portions (bone on, tikka cut)
• 1 teaspoon red chili powder
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• salt

• Marinade

• 1⁄2 cup yogurt
• 1 tablespoon ginger paste
• 1 tablespoon garlic paste
• 1⁄4 teaspoon garam masala
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 teaspoons mustard oil (optional) or 2 teaspoons any oil (optional)
• salt

• Makhani Sauce

• 1 tablespoon garam masala
• 400 g tomato puree
• 2 tablespoons honey (or less, depending on taste)
• 1 tablespoon ginger
• 1 tablespoon garlic
• 1 tablespoon red chili powder
• 1⁄2 teaspoon garam masala powder
• 1⁄2 cup cream
• 1⁄2 - 1 teaspoon kasuri methi (dried and powdered fenugreek leaves)
• 1 teaspoon chopped green chili
• 50 g butter
• salt

directions

1. Make incisions in chicken.
2. Apply the first 3 ingredients to chicken and leave ½ hour.
3. apply marinade to chicken.
4. Leave, covered, in fridge - at least 5 hours. Overnight is best.
5. Bake on skewers in oven 10 - 12 minutes.
6. Brush with butter, bake another 2-5 minutes.

7. makhani Sauce:

8. Heat butter in pan.
9. Add whole garam masala. When it crackles, add garlic, ginger and chillies. Cook 2 minutes.
10. Add puree, chilli powder, garam masala, salt.
11. Sauté.
12. add 1 cup water and boil.
13. Simmer 10 mins, covered, then a few mins uncovered.
14. Add honey and fenugreek + baked chicken.
15. Cook 5 minutes Simmer 5 minutes Add cream and serve.
16. Note: cream is always added just before serving.

Reviews

[norby678]

I'd give it 5 stars if I hadn't had to guess on a few things. Otherwise, it is great! My sweetie can't stop raving about it. Certainly will make this again, maybe for my next dinner party. I served it with basmati rice and naan (aka. paan, Indian flat bread).<br/><br/>I adjusted the "heat" by using less red chili powder (cayenne). I also had to substitute a few things due to allergies, what I could find, and budget. Yeah, I get annoyed too when people post rave reviews on recipes they butchered. But I did my best to stay as close to the original as possible. Hopefully my rating will inspire someone else to give this recipe a try.<br/><br/>Here is what I did: My wife is allergic to chicken, so I used 2 turkey breast tenders, cut into 8 strips. In the marinade I used 1 small container of Greek plain yogurt (what I could afford). I refrigerated the whole thing overnight. Then I baked the turkey on a broiler pan @ 350 F degrees for 18 min, then brushed w/ butter & baked another 4 min. <br/><br/>I cooked the sauce at just above medium heat, then simmered on low. In the sauce I used 2 teaspoon red chili powder (cayenne) rather than 1 Tablespoon. I assumed the garlic, ginger, and chilies were supposed to be fresh. I minced them before adding to the butter and garam masala. I couldn't find the powdered fenugreek leaves, so I bought dried and powdered them myself w/ a mortar and pestle.