Butter Chicken

The storied Butter Chicken, pop idol of Indian cuisine, is a fairly recent phenomenon in a culinary legacy spanning millennia. In fact, eating poultry, historically, wasn’t a widespread practice in the Indian subcontinent. It was the coming of the Mughals, with their love of small game such as partridge and quail, and later the British, with their fowl hunting, that saw poultry enter the mainstream, and the chicken rise quickly to the top of the collective Indian mind, and menu.

What’s more, our beloved Tomato, now synonymous with Indian cooking, didn’t arrive until the 16th century, with early Portuguese explorers, and wasn’t produced at agrarian scale until the 18th Century, for the British.

This is pertinent because at its essence, that’s all Butter Chicken is; Chicken in a Tomato sauce. A marriage of two un-Indian ingredients, producing what the world would come to love as quintessentially Indian; the story of Butter Chicken is not unlike that of the proverbial underdog, the outsider, who rose to royalty.

The origin of the dish is the subject of a long-standing dispute. Two families stake claim to its creation, and have been warring over this claim for more than half a century, not unlike the countless sects who, throughout history, have warred over the wills of their prophets. I might add that it is particularly appropriate to equate the dish to a prophet, for when done right, the experience of savoring a good Butter Chicken is nothing short of divine.

One thing the pretenders don’t disagree on however, is the recipe. Well, at least the ‘bones’ of it (pardon the paternal humour), in that it requires that the gravy be cooked independently, and Tandoori chicken be added to it, as was done in the origin story.

Anyhow, let us begin, without further ado.

I cannot claim complete authenticity. To be honest, I doubt anyone can. What I’m sharing with you is an amalgamation of different recipes that I have tasted, tested and tried over the years, distilled into something simple.

The recipe has three parts...

Part 1: Chicken

Part 2: Gravy

Part 3: Chicken & Gravy

Ingredients  for 1kg / 2.2lbs of Chicken

Use thigs and drumsticks, or boneless thighs and legs depending on your preference. Avoid using breast meat; it will dry out and become chewy. If boneless, cut into tikka-sized pieces (1.5-2 inches)

Lime Juice 3 tbsp

Green Cardamom 6pc

Black Cardamom 2pc

Cinnamon 3-inch stick

Garam Masala 1 tbsp

Coriander Powder 1 tbsp

Kashmiri Chilli Powder 3 tbsp

Dry Kasoori Methi (Fenugreek) 1 small fistful

Cashews 1/2 Cup

Butter 3 tbsp

Salt Some

Chicken 1kg/2.2lbs

Beaten Yogurt 1/2 Cup

Heavy Cream 3/4 Cup

Mustard Oil 4 tbsp

Tomatoes quartered. 1kg/2.2 lbs

Red Onion, medium. 3 to 4

Green Chilli, deseeded, fine julienne. 3 to 4

Ginger, fine julienne. 20 or so julienne

Ginger-Garlic Paste 1 tbsp

Preparation

Part I: Tandoori Chicken/Chicken Tikka

• 1st Marination: Put the chicken in a bowl, add salt, lime juice and ginger-garlic paste.

• Mix well and set aside for at least 30 minutes.

• 2nd Marination: Make a paste using the Yogurt, Garam Masala, Coriander Powder, Kashmiri Chilli Powder (2 tbsp) and Mustard Oil.

• Coat the chicken well with this paste, set aside to marinate for a minimum of 30 mins. 2 hrs. is even better, but 30 mins should do it. In the fridge.

• Lay the chicken out on a baking rack, within a baking tray, it will drip a bit.

• Put it in a preheated oven - 30 mins at 400F. This is a good time to start the gravy. Remove chicken from the oven, baste with melted butter, place the chicken in the broiling rack for 10 minutes, to get a mild char on the surface.

Part II: Gravy

• 1 tbsp of butter in a deep pan/wok, with a spot of oil to keep the butter from burning.

• Once the butter has melted, add the green cardamom, black cardamom, cashews and cinnamon, lightly fry until they become aromatic. Medium heat, don’t let the cardamom brown. Don’t let the cashews darken too much.

• Add onions, lightly fry till translucent. Don’t let them brown.

• Add tomatoes

• Add a tsp of Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder, and some salt to taste

• Cook till the skin starts to separate.

• Remove from heat, let cool

• Once cool, remove the whole spices, blitz, strain.

• Now you’re going to temper the gravy – To a fresh pot large enough to hold the gravy, add a tbsp of butter, keep the heat low.

• To this, add the ginger and green chilli

• Add a tsp of Coriander powder

• Lightly sauté

• Add gravy, mix well

• Adjust for water/salt

Part III: Chicken & Gravy

• Add the cooked chicken pieces to the gravy and coat them well

• Add in the honey, mix well. The sweetness is meant to counteract the tartness of the tomatoes to bring balance; you can play a little with the quantity of honey.

• Add heavy cream, mix well. At this point your gravy should have gone from a deep red to a bright orange. Turn the heat down.

• Kasoori Methi (Fenugreek). The importance of this ingredient cannot be overstated. Without this, you have only a spiced tomato soup. Zap your kasoori methi in the microwave, maybe a minute, till it is crumbly.

• Crush it through a strainer/sieve over a bowl, such that you have a fine powder.

• Take most of the powder and mix it into your gravy, saving just a pinch for garnish.

• Take a moment to take a few quick and intentional whiffs of the Methi once it hits the gravy.

• At this point you will want to give yourself a pat on the back, take a bow, do a little dance, whatever floats your boat.

• Transfer to a bowl, garnish with a few artistic strokes of cream (for you are now an artist), a knob of butter and a generous sprinkle of the Kasoori Methi Powder you so skillfully made.

• Serve with a flat bread of your choice. Buttered Naan is ideal.

Bask in the praise you are receiving, nonchalantly, while you reflect on how simple that was!