RECIPE VIDEO above. This is a Chef recipe and is one of the easiest Indian curries to make. The Butter Chicken Sauce is so good that you will want it on tap! Many restaurants take it over the top by adding copious amounts of ghee or butter into the sauce, but you'll find this rich enough as it is.And next time, try the streamlined One-Pan Baked Butter Chicken (readers are loving it!).
Recipe by Nagi | RecipeTin Eats on January 6, 2019
Prep time: PT10M
Cook time: PT25M
Total time: PT35M
Rating
4.96 stars (1100 reviews)
Keywords
Butter Chicken
Ingredients
1/2 cup plain yoghurt (, full fat)
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp tumeric powder
2 tsp garam masala ((Note 1))
1/2 tsp chilli powder or cayenne pepper powder ((Note 2))
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ginger, freshly grated
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1.5 lb / 750 g chicken thigh fillets, cut into bite size pieces
2 tbsp (30 g) ghee or butter, ( OR 1 tbsp vegetable oil (Note 3))
1 cup tomato passata (aka tomato puree) ((Note 4))
1 cup heavy / thickened cream ((Note 5))
1 tbsp sugar
1 1/4 tsp salt
Basmati rice
White rice
Coriander/cilantro (optional)
Categories
Chicken
Curry
Cuisine
Indian
Steps
Optional blitz: for an extra smooth sauce, combine the Marinade ingredients (except the chicken) in a food processor and blend until smooth. (I do not do this)
Marinade: Combine the Marinade ingredients with the chicken in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight, or up to 24 hours (minimum 3 hrs).
Cook chicken: Heat the ghee (butter or oil) over high heat in a large fry pan. Take the chicken out of the Marinade but do not wipe or shake off the marinade from the chicken (but don't pour the Marinade left in the bowl into the fry pan).
Place chicken in the fry pan and cook for around 3 minutes, or until the chicken is white all over (it doesn't really brown because of the Marinade).
Sauce: Add the tomato passata, cream, sugar and salt. Also add any remaining marinade left in the bowl. Turn down to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Do a taste test to see if it needs more salt.
Garnish with coriander/cilantro leaves if using. Serve with basmati rice.
The Butter Chicken is pictured with my very easy No Yeast Flatbread and no-fry papadums (Note 5).
Nutitrion
Serving Size: 310 g
Calories: 402 kcal
Carbohydrates: 9.8 g
Protein: 39.8 g
Fat: 23.4 g
Saturated Fat: 9.3 g
Cholesterol: 193 mg
Sodium: 928 mg
Sugar: 6.5 g
Reviews
Anna Krause on 2026-07-27 (5 stars): Fantastic love it. the only thing that i added was almond flour to thicken it quicker.
Lois on 2026-07-27 (5 stars): This was my first real time having butter chicken, I don't count a bite of someone else's from a food truck 20 years ago. I love the flavor! I am looking forward to leftovers tomorrow! I had to use ginger powder tho', I bought a knob of fresh ginger but can't find it! I think it's somewhere in my car, biding it's time!
Anthea on 2026-07-25 (5 stars): Yum, I love this recipe!
Benjamin Oliver on 2026-07-23 (5 stars): I made this for a family of four and it was stunning - I savoured every bite of it and paired it with those instant pappadums 😎 Thanks for the recipe - definitely making again
Anne on 2026-07-18 (4 stars): Not quite perfect as it was delicious, but quite wet despite the simmering time. Could it be thickened with either plain, corn or chickpea flour?
Deandra on 2026-07-17 (5 stars): Another amazing recipe from Nagi! I have made this recipe on many occasions, once even for 24 people at camping and everyone loved it. Don't despair if you decide to make it on a whim like I did today, I didn't have the luxury of marinating for the minimum 3 hours, and it still tasted wonderful even after a short marinade of 30 minutes. Thanks Nagi!!
Charlotte Bolcskey on 2026-07-07 (5 stars): OK, folks. I was sceptical that such a simple recipe could be really good, but all the comments were overwhelmingly positive, so I gave it a go. This is excellent and the marinade really does make it so. I only marinated the chicken for 1.25 hours, but even this was enough for a delicious flavour. I didn't use as much salt, as 1 tsp seemed excessive. I'd highly suggest undersalting and tasting as you go. I will use this recipe from now on. Even the picky teenagers ate it.
Annette on 2026-06-03 (5 stars): Tks making butter chicken again -always very good.
Valerie on 2026-06-03 (5 stars): Yum, I love this recipe!! I've made it twice and I didn't change a thing :)
Brandi on 2026-05-25 (5 stars): This is probably the 20th time I have made this. So good and so easy! Just make it. Thanks!
Janine on 2026-05-15 (5 stars): Hi Nagi, I made this recipe tonight for my husband and I and it was a real winner! We both really enjoyed it. The marinade was so quick to prepare. I put it together early this morning and let the chicken marinate until I got home from work. It was delicious! Thanks so much for another great recipe.
Tom MacKay on 2026-04-26 (5 stars): I committed to butter chicken last night, and came to see if you had a recipe with some helpful tips. ANd you did! Passata for the tom. sauce, which I thought would be good, and shaking off as much marinade as possible but not cleaning it off the chicken. Thank you.
Pre-roasted cauliflower is a nice addition near the end.
Thank you for keeping this wonderful website going.
Sarah on 2026-04-20 (5 stars): Really enjoyed it, although we all agreed it was a bit salty, I will halve the salt in future. Contrary to many other reviews mine was a bit too thick, I did leave it simmering longer than the recipe states, I suggest leaving it simmer a little longer if you prefer a thicker consistency. Will definitely be adding to our family menu.
