An easy, one-pot recipe for classic Indian butter chicken! One of the most popular Indian dishes, this Indian Butter Chicken recipe (Murgh Makhani) is packed with an incredible depth of flavor that will leave your taste buds singing!  Rivaling your favorite Indian restaurant, it’s phenomenally delicious!

Prep: 60 mins  |  Cook: 45 mins  |  Total: 105 mins  |   Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients

For the First Marinade

• 2 1/4 pounds boneless chicken (skin removed)
• 1 lime (or lemon, juiced)
• Salt (to taste)
• 1 teaspoon red chili powder (adjust to suit your taste)

For the Second Marinade

• 1 cup fresh unsweetened yogurt (must not be sour)
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric

For Cooking

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil (or canola or sunflower cooking oil)
• 2 onions (chopped finely)
• 2 teaspoons garlic paste
• 1 teaspoon ginger paste
• 1 (14-ounce) can chopped tomatoes (ground into a smooth paste in a food processor)
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 2 tablespoons kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
• 3 tablespoons butter
• Garnish: coriander (cilantro) leaves

For the Spice Powder

• 6 cloves
• 8 to 10 peppercorns
• 1-inch stick cinnamon
• 2 bay leaves
• 8 to 10 almonds
• Seeds from 3 to 4 pods cardamom

Steps to Make It

 Marinate the Chicken for the First Time

1. Mix the chicken, lime juice, salt, and red chili powder in a large, nonmetallic bowl.

Cover and allow marinating for 1 hour.

Make the Spice Powder

1. Heat a flat pan or griddle over medium heat and gently roast (stirring frequently) the cloves, peppercorns, cinnamon, bay leaves, and almonds until they darken slightly. Cool and add the cardamom seeds.

Now grind into a coarse powder in a clean, dry coffee grinder.

Marinate the Chicken for the Second Time

1. Mix the yogurt, spice powder (from the previous step), ground coriander, cumin, and turmeric and add them to the marinated chicken.
2. Cover and allow marinating for 1 more hour.

Cook the Chicken

1. Heat the oil in a deep pan over medium heat. When hot, add the onions. Fry until pale golden brown in color and then add the ginger and garlic pastes. Fry for another minute.

2. Add the chicken (reserving the marinade) and fry until chicken turns opaque and the flesh goes from pink to whitish in color.

3. Now add the ground tomatoes, chicken stock, kasuri methi, and the reserved yogurt-spice marinade to the chicken.

4. Cook until the chicken is tender and the gravy is reduced to half its original volume.

5. Melt the butter in another small pan and then pour it over the chicken.

6. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with rice or naan and kaali ​daal.