Butter chicken

Marinate 1 kg of chicken breast in the morning. Cook it in 35 minutes for four people.

Serves

4 people

Prep

20 minutes

Marinate

1 hour

Cook

35 minutes

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From the shop

Start with 1 kg of chicken breast. Cut it into 4 cm pieces. Chicken thighs work here too, and they stay juicier through the simmer.

To save the hour, ask for the breast in the shop’s Curry marinade when you order ($1 an item) and start at step 2.

Ingredients

Marinade

• 1 kg chicken breast, cut into 4 cm pieces
• 200 g Greek style yoghurt
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tbsp grated ginger
• 2 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp salt

Sauce

• 80 g butter
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 brown onion, diced small
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tbsp grated ginger
• 2 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 500 g tomato passata
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp caster sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 200 ml thickened cream
• 1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves, crushed (optional)
• Coriander leaves, to serve

Method

1. Mix the yoghurt, lemon juice, garlic, ginger, garam masala, cumin, turmeric, chilli and salt in a large bowl. Stir the chicken through until the marinade covers every piece. Cover the bowl. Refrigerate it for 1 hour.
2. Heat the oil and 20 g of the butter in a large frying pan over high heat. Sear the chicken in two batches, 3 minutes a batch, until the edges colour. Lift the chicken onto a plate.
3. Turn the heat down to medium. Add the rest of the butter and the onion. Cook for 8 minutes until the onion is soft and gold.
4. Add the garlic and ginger. Cook for 1 minute. Add the garam masala, cumin, coriander and chilli. Cook for 30 seconds. Keep stirring.
5. Add the passata, tomato paste, sugar and salt. Simmer on low heat for 10 minutes. Stir now and then.
6. Return the chicken and the juices from the plate to the pan. Simmer for 7 minutes.
7. Stir in the cream and the fenugreek. Simmer for 3 minutes until the sauce thickens.
8. Cut the largest piece in half. The meat must be white all through. Give it 2 more minutes if it is not.

Serve it

Spoon it over basmati rice with warm naan. Scatter coriander leaves on top.