Butter Chicken by Tom

It tastes better than it looks!

Butter chicken (or murgh makhani) is popular in countries with a tradition of Indian restaurants.  It is tomato based and quite rich.  The addition of butter and heavy cream gives it a thick, velvety texture.

 I started it a little too late in the day, so we ended up not eating until around 8:00 pm.  What I missed originally when reading the recipe was the need to marinate the chicken in the "paste marinade" for three hours prior to cooking.  I will know better next time, which is why I am highlighting that in this section first.

I put the butter chicken on a bed of Nishiki Japanese rice.  The meal was filling and delicious.  And there were lots of leftovers to enjoy.  I will make this again.

 ---Tom

Butter Chicken  
(adapted from New Curries)

Serves 4

For the paste marinade:
1 cup unsalted raw cashews
2 teaspoons garam masala
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
3 cloves of garlic, chopped coarsely
1 1/2 inch piece of fresh ginger, chopped coarsely
3 tablespoons white vinegar
1/3 cup tomato paste
1/2 cup yogurt

For the rest of the recipe:
2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, halved or quartered
6 tablespoons butter
1 large onion chopped finely
1 cinnamon stick
4 cardamom pods, bruised
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 t. hot red pepper flakes
1 14-ounce can tomato puree
3/4 cup chicken stock
3/4 cup heavy cream

At least 3 hours or even the day before start the preparation of the paste marinade.

Dry fry the raw cashews, garam masala, coriander, and chili powder in a small frying pan over medium heat.  Stir constantly until the nuts are slightly browned and the spices are quite fragrant.  Be careful to not let the spices burn.

Remove from the heat and empty the frying pan into a food processor.  Blend the nut mixture with the garlic, ginger, vinegar, tomato paste, and half of the yogurt (1/4 cup).  Process until the mixture forms into a paste.

Transfer into a large bowl and stir in the remaining yogurt and the chicken.  Cover and place in the refrigerator for 3 hours or overnight.

Remove the marinating chicken mixture from the refrigerator.

Melt the butter in a large skillet.  Add the onions, cinnamon and cardamom pods to the skillet and cook until the onion is lightly browned.  Then add the chicken paste mixture and cook for an additional 10 minutes.  Stir frequently.

Now stir in the chicken stock, paprika, tomato puree and the red pepper flakes. Simmer uncovered for 45 minutes,  stirring occasionally.

Discard the cinnamon stick and cardamom pods.  Add the heavy cream and simmer uncovered for another 5 minutes.

Prepare rice based on the directions on the package.  Rice usually takes about 20 minutes to cook and another 5-10 minutes to steam off the heat.  I started the rice when there were about 25 minutes of cooking time left for the butter chicken mixture that was simmering.

Plate a spoonful or two of rice on a plate and then spoon the butter chicken mixture over the rice.

You are now finished and time to enjoy this concoction!

                    ---Tom