YOGHURT BUTTER CHICKEN
Serves: 4 a part of an Indian meal.
Prep Time: 2 hours inclusive of marinating chicken.
Cooking Time: 45 minutes
Dietary Style: GF.
Classic butter chicken uses tomato in the yoghurt base to make a richer, more densely spiced gravy for the chicken. My butter chicken recipe skips the tomato in favour of a lighter, slightly more intricate but no less delicious version that relies on time marinating the chicken and a dense degree of spicing to create unforgettable flavour. Come winter, this is my family’s favourite one-bowl meal served with rice and a movie on a rainy Friday night. If you can, marinate the chicken in yoghurt and spices for a few hours before cooking to intensify the flavour.
INGREDIENTS:
- 800 gm skinless, boneless chicken thigh fillet
- 1.5 cups yoghurt
- 1 tsp fine pink salt
- 3/4 tsp fine white salt
- 1/2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1/3 tsp cracked black pepper
- 1/3 tsp fine white pepper
- 1/4 tsp hot ground red chilli
- 1/3 tsp ground ginger
- 1/3 tsp turmeric
- 1/4 tsp fenugreek powder
- 1/2 tsp fennel seed
- 2 tsp cumin seed
- 1/3 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 white onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 cinnamon quill
- 6 clove buds
- 5 green cardamom pods
- 2 tbsp mustard oil
- 1 tbsp melted butter
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1/2 head of chopped fresh coriander stirred through
Cut the chicken thigh pieces into chunks - around six pieces per thigh - and pop into a large bowl with the yoghurt. Add all of the dried ground spice to the yoghurt and chicken, stir through and refrigerate for two to four hours.
In a pot, add the mustard oil, the chopped onion and garlic, along with the cinnamon quills, bay leaf, cassia sticks and clove buds, and place on the stovetop on medium to medium-high heat.
After three to five minutes, once the whole spice is aromatic, add the marinated chicken and spiced yoghurt to the pot.
Cook on a medium heat for about 20 minutes until the chicken is cooked mostly through. Once this point is reached, turn the heat down a little further and keep cooking for a further 20 to 25 minutes until the chicken is very tender and the yoghurt gravy is reduced.
Remove from the heat and finish off with spice at the bench top.
Finish with 1 tbsp butter, the garam masala and the fresh coriander. Stir these final three aromatics through to bring a rich, sweet and creamy finish.
Serve.