Easy Butter Chicken (30 minute recipe!)
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Since making this easy butter chicken recipe, I’ve stopped ordering takeout. My family likes this better than the murgh makhani we used to order, and dinner is on the table in only 30 minutes!
This easy butter chicken recipe has been my go-to for years. My family asks me to make it regularly, and when I serve it to friends, they always ask for the recipe.
My trick for making the smoothest, creamiest sauce is to pull out the blender. Bonus: you can roughly chop the onions and garlic rather than spending ages finely mincing them.
And if you love using your slow cooker, make sure to check out our crockpot butter chicken!
Key ingredients for butter chicken
- Onions, ginger, and garlic – This dynamic trio is the base of the masala.
- Tomatoes – Reach for a can of tomatoes unless it’s tomato season.
- Chicken – You can use breasts or thighs.
- Cream – Whipping cream will give you the most authentic taste, but yogurt and coconut milk make good substitutes.
- Almond butter – This thickens the curry and adds a wonderful flavor.
- Sugar—Butter chicken needs some sweetness, and I like to use coconut sugar as it has a slightly malty flavor that goes well with reicpe. You could use brown or granulated sugar instead if you’d like.
- Spices – I like garam masala, turmeric, coriander, cumin, chili powder, and cardamom. If you’re missing one, don’t fret; the curry will still taste delicious.
You’ll also want to put on a pot of basmati rice!
What makes this recipe easy?
I’ve been making versions of this recipe for many years, so I’ve had ample opportunities to refine the method. My butter chicken recipe is straightforward to make, but still every bit as delicious as what you’ll find at your favorite restaurant. I simplify the traditional recipe in two ways:
- Cook the chicken in the sauce. Rather than marinating and then sauteeing the chicken (which is unnecessary with such a flavorful sauce), I cook it right in the sauce. This allows the chicken to poach gently, keeping it very tender.
- Simmer the sauce. Since I cook the sauce and chicken together, you get to skip the time most recipes take to simmer the sauce by itself: two birds, one stone, same result.
How to make butter chicken
Over the years, I’ve refined the method for making this recipe to make it very simple. Here’s what to do:
- Cook the onions, garlic, and ginger until deliciously caramelized. You’re going for a dark brown and ultra-flavorful here.
- Add the spices and tomatoes, and let them cook for a moment to release their flavors. Then, blend the sauce until smooth.
- Now, cook the chicken in the sauce so it’s flavorful and tender.
That’s it! You’ve just made your favorite Indian curry!
Tips for making this easy butter chicken recipe
- Brown the onions well. They add the most amazing flavor and contribute to the sweetness of the curry.
- When the onions are browning, add all the spices to a small bowl. This will make it quick and easy for you to add the spices once the onions are brown.
- If you’re serving this with rice, you can start the rice first. It will finish cooking before the butter chicken is ready, but you can remove it from the heat and set it aside until everything else is done.
Store, freeze, and reheat
Store: Leftovers taste amazing, so you may want to make a double batch. Let them cool, then store them in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Freeze: Butter chicken freezes excellently, making it an excellent option for a freezer meal. I often make a double batch and put leftovers in the freezer. It’s better and easier than takeout. I love these big reusable Stasher Bags for freezing leftovers. It will keep for at least 3 months in the freezer.
Reheat: I like to reheat curry in a pot over medium-low heat, but you can also reheat it in the microwave.
Easy Butter Chicken (30 minute recipe!)
Ingredients
The Curry
- 2 tablespoons butter (see notes)
- 2 yellow onions (roughly chopped)
- 3 tablespoons chopped ginger
- 6 cloves garlic (crushed)
- 28 ounce can of crushed or diced tomatoes
- 1 lb chicken breasts or thighs (cut into bite-sized pieces)
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup whipping cream (plain yogurt or coconut milk)
- 2 tablespoons almond butter (see notes)
- 2-4 tablespoons coconut sugar (can sub brown sugar)
- Sea salt (to taste – I like about 2 teaspoons)
- Cilantro (to serve)
The Spices
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 4 cardamom pods (seeds only – discard the pods)
Instructions
- Heat the butter in a large-sized frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion, ginger, and garlic and cook for about 8-10 minutes, until well-browned, reducing the heat if necessary.2 tablespoons butter, 2 yellow onions, 3 tablespoons chopped ginger, 6 cloves garlic
- While the onion cooks, place the spices in a small bowl.1 tablespoon garam masala, 1 teaspoon ground turmeric, 1 teaspoon ground coriander, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon chili powder, 4 cardamom pods
- Add the spices to the pan and cook for 1 minute to remove their raw flavor. Pour the can of tomatoes into the pan and scrape the bottom to remove any bits that are stuck to the pan.28 ounce can of crushed or diced tomatoes
- Transfer the sauce to a blender and blend on high until smooth.
- Return the sauce to the pan, add the chicken and water, and bring the sauce to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pan, and let the chicken cook for 10 minutes, until it is fully cooked.1 lb chicken breasts or thighs, 1 cup water
- Stir in the cream, almond butter, and coconut sugar. Season to taste with sea salt.½ cup whipping cream, 2 tablespoons almond butter, 2-4 tablespoons coconut sugar, Sea salt
- Serve with rice (and if you have it, naan) with some cilantro on top.Cilantro
Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
Delicious recipe! I added 5 tbsp of coconut sugar to mine. It was a little watery for my liking so I’d probably do half a cup of water next time if I do it at all lol. Overall yummy.
Oh my goodness, this was so good. Made it because my son is allergic to milk, he loves it! Question for you….do you know if you can freeze it? I would like to make several batches for quick meals. Also, I like to provide freezer meals to those young moms who are moving, to busy to cook etc.
Thanks again for such an awesome recipe!
Yes, you can! It freezes excellently. I actually have some in my freezer right now. 🙂
Delicious. My husband liked so much he would eat over veggies, didn’t need chicken. Made ours with yogurt, almond butter and increased Garam Masala. Had leftovers for second night.
My blender had a problem so I couldn’t blend the sauce. But the taste was still delicious and not noticeably lumpy. I’d make this butter chicken again.
So so easy, tastes amazing
Perfect recipe.. Tasted exactly as an Indian restaurant
Good flavor – not overpowering spicy like some can be. I find most recipes, and this one included, grossly underestimate the time. Probably took me 30 minutes just to dice the vegetables and chicken. I think fresh ginger takes so long. I didn’t have almond butter on hand and didn’t want to try peanut butter – wanted to try the dish first to determine if wanted to add later or next time. I used boneless/skinless chicken thighs and simmered probably 30 minutes while I cleaned up and made side dishes of rice and roasted broccoli and carrots. Read comments afterwards that spoke of fenugreek but didn’t see it in recipe. Perhaps that was from a prior recipe version. But wish I had read since I do have fenugreek and didn’t even think about utilizing. Also didn’t have cardamom seeds on hand so just used cardamom powder. I really liked the recipe – and especially liked that there was lots of sauce for dipping. Just like the author said, I think I’d double next time so can freeze some for future meal since took so long to prepare – probably a total of 2 hours (granted we did have guests so there was some chatting involved but I’ve actually reduced the time by best guesstimate). Thanks for sharing!
If I don’t have a blender does that mess up a recipe If i don’t blend itt?
If you don’t have a blender, just make sure to mince the onion, garlic, and ginger as small as possible. 🙂
This looks delicious! I’m allergic to almonds. Is there something else I could substitute for the almond butter to help thicken it?
Can you have cashews? Cashew butter would also work. 🙂
I made a double batch of this last night and it was so good! Easy to make and was happily gobbled up by everyone, including my 11 year old (who also ate the leftovers for breakfast)!! I added a few kung pao peppers and some chilies because we all like things a bit extra hot. I will definitely be making this again.
Yay! So happy that you loved the recipe!!
Thanks for this tasty recipe
I’ve made this twice now and it’ll be in our regular line-up of meals. Delicious!! Both times I forgot the water, and my sauce was a little chunkier than yours, but the flavours are perfect. No more store bought sauce for me.
Thanks! I’m going to try the steak chili next.
Cheers
Michael
Very good! Even without any heavy/whipped cream. Will definitely try it again. Recieved compliments from my 9 year old who loves Indian food. Thanks for the recipe!
Thank you for such a delicious recipe. Appreciate the helpful tips also. I am fairly comfortable
in the Kitchen and have been cooking even more since the current world has shuttered many restaurants. I love Butter Chicken and even though I used yogurt, this came out great with even brighter spice presence than restaurant version.
This is motivating me into doing more Indian recipes and maybe some Tikka Masalas. I liked this better than restaurant version the first time I made it.
You’re very welcome!
This was the best butter chicken recipe I have tried but it was still lacking from my favorite restaurant. To my families taste it was missing some spice and to much tomato. Next time I will ahead some more spice and more cream. Easy recipe to follow and will try again. Thank you for the recipe!
You’re very welcome!
Just made this curry and it tastes amazing!! Thanks for this fantastic recipe!