Murg Makhani or famously called as Butter Chicken, is the most consumed Chicken recipe across the world. This is one of the most popular Indian dish eaten outside India.
The aroma of the yogurt and spices cooking with the Onion/tomatoes is very tempting, difficult for anyone to resist.
You will find different versions of this dish, and each one of it as delicious like the other. Some prefer pan frying the marinated chicken before cooking in the gravy, and some prefer cooking the marinated chicken after the Onions are fried.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 Kg Chicken
- Dry Masalas
- 2 tea spoon salt (or as per taste)
- 1 tea spoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 tea spoon cumin powder
- 1 tea spoon coriander powder
- 1/2 tea spoon turmeric powder
- 2 tea spoon Kashmiri Mirchi
- 1 tea spoon Chaat Masala (or chicken masala)
- 2 tea spoon Chicken Tikka Masala (or chicken masala or garam masala)
- Greens
- 2 table spoon spoon ginger garlic paste
- 2 Onions
- 3 big tomatoes
- 4 green chillis
- 1/2 Lemon
- 1-2 cups Dahi/Yogurt
- 10 Cashew Nuts
- 2 tea spoon dry Kasturi Methi
- 2 table spoon Oil and equal amount of Ghee or Butter
- 1 cup cream (or 1 cup Milk)
Preparation:
Step 1) Marinate the Chicken
- Clean the chicken properly and drain out the water.
- Add 1 table spoon ginger garlic paste
- 1 tea spoon black pepper
- 1 tea spoon Chaat Masala (or Garam masala)
- Squeeze in 1/2 Lemon
- Marinate it well and keep it in fridge for 15 minutes
- Take the marinated chicken out of the Refrigerator
- Add 1 cup Dahi and mix it well
- Keep the chicken back in refrigerator for another 15 minutes or longer (overnight)
Step 2) Preparing the Gravy
- Take a skillet and add 1/2 tea spoon oil and heat it.
- Cut 2 Onions and 2 chillis in big pieces and add to the skillet.
- Add Cashew Nuts.
- Saute the Onions till it become soft, transparent and slight brown color
- Take the Onion mixture and blend it to fine paste. (Make sure the mixture is cooled down before blending it)
- Take 3 Tomatoes and blend them separately to fine paste.
- Take 2 table spoon Oil and equal amount of Butter or Ghee in the skillet
- Once the oil is hot, add the Onion mixture paste in the oil. Saute the paste till it turns slight brown color
- Add 1 table spoon Ginger-Garlic Paste and fry for 2 minutes
- Once the Onion paste is fried well, Add the tomato paste to the mixture and simmer it well.
- Once the Oil starts separating from the Onion/Tomatoe Paste, it is an indication the mixture is fried well.
- Reduce the flame and add the dry masalas to it
- 1 tea spoon salt
- 1/2 tea spoon turmeric powder
- 2 tea spoon Kashmiri Mirchi
- 1/2 tea spoon cumin powder
- 1 tea spoon coriander powder
- 1-2 tea spoon tikka Masala or Chicken Masala or Garam Masala
- Optionally add a pinch of Orange/Red color
- Mix the dry masalas well
Step 3) Cooking the chicken
- Add the marinated Chicken to the skillet
- Turn the flame to high and fry the Chicken for 5 minutes
- Add 1/2 – 1 cup of water depending on the thickness you need
- Cover the Skillet with a lid and let the Chicken simmer (cook on low-medium flame) for 15 – 20 minutes
- Add 2 tea spoon dry Kasturi methi
- Add 1 cup of Cream or Milk, Add little more water as needed
- Add 2 Green Chillies
- Let the chicken simmer for another 5 minutes and then switch off the gas
Step 4) Serving the Chicken
- Garnish the chicken with coriander leaves (optional)
- Add Slight Butter on the hot chicken before serving.
- Serve the creamy and Silky Chicken with Roti or hot rice
This dish takes roughly 45 minutes to 1 hour effort. Frying the onion and tomatoes take some time, but the cooking process is simple and easy.
Please try this Chicken at home, and let me know how it tastes. Please provide feedback on the article, and share the version you like the most.