Healthy Butter Chicken is a delicious Indian dish with tender chicken pieces swimming in an amazing, creamy tomato curry sauce that’s packed with spices and flavor. This easy recipe is ready in 30 minutes!
What a weekend we had!
Soccer, sleepovers, play date, symphony, bike riding, and of course lots of time in the kitchen cooking and testing recipes.
I'm a bit wiped out, but also feeling revived and refreshed and ready to tackle the week ahead. And I'm so excited to share today's new recipe with you at last!
You guys know I love my curry dishes, especially when they’re quick, easy and on the healthier side.
I’ve shared my quick chicken curry, 20-minute coconut chicken curry and my quick and easy vegetarian curry.
Today, I’m so excited to share one of my favorite easy Indian recipes: healthy butter chicken!
I’m so in love with this dish. The aroma, the spices, the sauce, the simmering deliciousness that bubbles away and has you drooling as you wait to dive in.
It’s a classic for a reason!
First things first though.
What is butter chicken?
- Butter chicken is an Indian dish of chicken in a mildly spiced tomato sauce.
- It’s also called murgh makhani or chicken makhani.
Funny enough, it’s not uncommon to not actually use butter in the sauce for this butter chicken recipe.
And it's not needed. My version uses no butter, is made without any cream and you don’t miss it one bit.
(The creaminess comes from the Greek yogurt.)
It’s got such a rich, creamy tomato sauce that’s begging to be spooned greedily over all of the chicken and rice on your plate.
In fact, this is slightly embarrassing, but I have actually put the sauce in a bowl and spooned it up all by itself.
See, I was doing my vegetarian month and was making this dinner for the rest of my family. So I couldn’t have the chicken. But that didn’t stop me from missing out on the sauce!
And once you smell it and taste it, you’ll know just what I mean!
Seriously scrumptious!
I've also got this Instant Pot butter chicken recipe if you want to check out that version. Or try slow cooker butter chicken for a hands-off meal.
Plus, it’s really easy to make and takes just 30 minutes! (Plus some time for marinating the chicken, if you can swing it. See the notes below.)
Dinner winner right here!
OK, let's get cooking.
I've got a few notes and substitutions below. Feel free to scroll on down to the recipe card if you'd rather.
Recipe Notes:
- Marinade time: I think this tastes best when you let the chicken marinate for at least 45 minutes to an hour. If you’ve only got 30 minutes, that’s good too. If you don’t have time to marinate it at all, just mix it all together first and then start cooking. It’ll still taste great!
- Garam masala is a tasty blend of ground spices often used in Indian cooking. If you don’t have any, you can substitute curry powder.
- Greek yogurt: I use a nonfat or 2% Greek yogurt to stir into this dish at the end. You could try substituting half and half or heavy cream, but I’ve not tested it that way.
- Like it spicy? You can increase the amount of cayenne up to ½ teaspoon.
Oh, and I never have an issue with curdling, but milk and yogurt can curdle if it heats too quickly, or if it comes to a boil.
You may want to lower your heat or briefly remove the pan from the stove when you add the Greek yogurt in this recipe to help prevent curdling.
As for serving, we love this over steamed brown or basmati rice. You could also use cauliflower rice for a low-carb option.
I love this with peas and sometimes mix them right in with the chicken and sauce to warm them and get them all coated in the sauce. So yummy!
You could also use steamed broccoli or asparagus as a veggie side to round out this meal.
Last thing, let's talk about how to handle any leftovers. Cause this saves really well.
Tips for Leftovers:
- Leftover butter chicken, once cooled, can be kept in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Reheat over medium low in a small pot on the stove or reheat individual servings in the microwave.
- You can also freeze leftover butter chicken. Label, date and freeze it for up to 5-6 months in a freezer-safe ziptop bag or container.
- Defrost in the refrigerator overnight and then reheat on the stove or in the microwave.
There you have it! You can make butter chicken at home any time you like. And I think you’ll fall in love!
Enjoy!
XO,
Kathryn
P.S. Check out all of my other 30-minute chicken recipes for more quick and easy dinner inspiration.
Yield: 6 servings
Healthy butter chicken is a delicious Indian dish with tender chicken pieces swimming in an amazing, creamy tomato curry sauce! And it's ready in just 30 minutes!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Additional Time1 hour
Total Time1 hour 25 minutes
Ingredients
For the marinated chicken:
- 2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- ¼ cup plain Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 2 teaspoons garam masala (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ¾ teaspoons black pepper
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
For cooking:
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
- ½ cup plain Greek yogurt
- ½ cup water
Instructions
- Place the cut pieces of chicken in a bowl or tiptop plastic bag. Combine all of the marinate ingredients in a bowl and stir well. (It will be very thick.) Pour the marinate ingredients over the chicken and stir to coat all of the chicken. Let marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to 8 hours (see notes).
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add canola oil.
- Add onion and cook for 2-3 minutes, until softened. Add garlic and cook for an additional minute.
- Add the marinated chicken (along with all of the marinade) to the pan. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cook for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the yogurt and water, reduce the heat to medium or medium-low, enough to maintain a steady simmer. Let cook for 8-10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and sauce is thickened.
- Season to taste with salt and pepper (it may not need any).
- Serve the chicken hot with extra sauce spooned over top.
Notes
Marinade time: I think this tastes best when you let the chicken marinate for at least 45 minutes to an hour. If you’ve only got 30 minutes, that’s good too. If you don’t have time to marinate it at all, just mix it all together first and then start cooking. It’ll still taste great!
Spices: Garam masala is a tasty blend of ground spices often used in Indian cooking. If you don’t have any, you can substitute curry powder.
Like it spicy? You can increase the amount of cayenne up to ½ teaspoon.
Greek yogurt: I use a nonfat or 2% Greek yogurt to stir into this dish at the end. You could try substituting half and half or heavy cream, but I’ve not tested it that way
I never have an issue with curdling but milk and yogurt can curdle if they come to a boil or heat too quickly. You may want to remove your pan from the heat when you add the yogurt in this recipe to help prevent curdling.
Leftovers: Leftover butter chicken, once cooled, can be kept in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat over medium low in a small pot on the stove or reheat individual servings in the microwave. You can also freeze leftover butter chicken. Label, date and freeze it for up to 5-6 months in a freezer-safe ziptop bag or container. Defrost in the refrigerator overnight and then reheat on the stove or in the microwave
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 327Total Fat: 8gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 130mgSodium: 486mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 1gSugar: 6gProtein: 51g
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