Butter Chicken

Marinade

• 800 g boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 3–4cm chunks
• 120 ml full-fat plain yogurt
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1.5 tbsp garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp ginger, minced or finely grated
• 2 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder, or 3:1 sweet smoked paprika to cayenne
• 1 tsp salt

Sauce base

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp ghee, or 1 tbsp butter + 1 tbsp neutral oil
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4 green cardamom pods, lightly crushed
• 3 cloves
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 onion, large, finely diced
• 1.5 tbsp garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp ginger, minced or finely grated
• 1.5 tsp ground cumin
• 1.5 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 400 g tinned crushed tomatoes
• 1 tbsp tomato paste, concentrated
• 15 g raw cashews, soaked 20 min in hot water, blended to a smooth paste with 2 tbsp water
• 1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder, adjust to taste
• 1.3 tsp salt, or to taste

Finish

• 240 ml double cream, at room temperature (lactose-free is fine — see note)
• 2.3 tsp sugar, or substitute 2 tsp honey
• 0.5 tsp kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves), crushed between your palms just before adding
• 15 g cold unsalted butter, cubed, for monter au beurre finish
• 1 bunch fresh coriander, chopped, to garnish

Marinate the chicken

1. 1

   Combine the chicken with the yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, ginger, garam masala, turmeric, cumin, chili powder, and salt in a large bowl. Massage the marinade into every piece.

   5m

   Yogurt Marination + Tandoor-Style Broiler Char
2. 2

   Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 3 hours — overnight is genuinely better. Yogurt's lactic acid tenderizes gently and won't over-tenderize into mush the way a pure citrus marinade can.

   3h

   Tip: Up to 48 hours ahead is fine and only improves flavor.

Sear and char the chicken

1. 3

   Pull the chicken from the fridge 15 minutes before cooking. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering, then sear the chicken in batches of two or three pieces at a time — don't crowd the pan.

   6mmedium-high

   Crowding the pan steams the chicken instead of searing it.

2. 4

   Set the seared chicken on a foil-lined tray, spaced apart, and slide it under a hot broiler for 3–4 minutes until you get real charred, blackened edges in places. Set aside — it finishes cooking in the sauce.

   4mbroiler

   Yogurt Marination + Tandoor-Style Broiler Char

   Tip: This is the single most important step versus a home version: a pan-sear alone browns, but the char is what gives real tandoor-style depth.

Build the sauce base

1. 5

   In the same skillet, wipe out any burnt bits, then melt the ghee over medium heat. Add the cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, cloves, and bay leaf, and let them bloom for about a minute until fragrant.

   1mmedium
2. 6

   Add the diced onion and cook, stirring occasionally and scraping up any fond, for 6–7 minutes until soft and beginning to turn golden.

   7m
3. 7

   Stir in the garlic and ginger and sauté for 1 minute, then add the ground cumin, garam masala, and coriander, cooking for 20 seconds until highly fragrant.

   1m

   Don't let the ground spices sit too long or they'll scorch and turn bitter.

Reduce, blend and strain

1. 8

   Pour in the crushed tomatoes and tomato paste, along with the chili powder and salt. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10–15 minutes, until reduced to a thick, jammy, deep brownish-red paste that looks almost dry in the pan.

   13m

   Tomato Reduction, Purée & Straining

   Tip: If it looks dry before 10 minutes is up, add a splash of water rather than pulling it early.

2. 9

   Remove the whole spices (cinnamon stick, bay leaf, as many cardamom pods and cloves as you can fish out), then transfer the mixture to a blender with the cashew paste. Blend until completely smooth, adding water a tablespoon at a time if needed, up to ¼ cup total.

   blender

   Tomato Reduction, Purée & Straining
3. 10

   Pass the blended sauce through a fine mesh strainer back into the pan, pressing with the back of a ladle to extract every bit of liquid.

   fine mesh sieve

   Tomato Reduction, Purée & Straining

   Tip: This step is purely textural — it's the difference between a good sauce and one that coats a spoon like velvet.

Finish the sauce

1. 11

   Bring the strained sauce back to a gentle simmer. Whisk a few tablespoons of the hot sauce into the room-temperature cream in a separate bowl to temper it.

   Cold cream added directly to a hard-boiling, acidic sauce is the most common cause of a split sauce.

   Cream Tempering & Emulsification
2. 12

   Stir the tempered cream back into the pan along with the sugar (or honey) and the crushed kasoori methi. Add the seared, charred chicken and its resting juices, and simmer gently for 8–10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce coats the back of a spoon.

   9mgentle simmer

   Cream Tempering & Emulsification
3. 13

   Off the heat, whisk in the cold cubed butter a piece at a time until fully melted and glossy. Taste and adjust salt. Garnish with chopped coriander and serve immediately with basmati rice and naan.

   Do this off the heat — the butter should melt in gradually, not separate into an oil slick.