Butter Chicken lovers—this one’s for you. Skip the takeout because this rich, creamy curry brings restaurant-level flavor straight to your kitchen.
The Best Butter Chicken
Butter Chicken has always been one of my favorite curries, and I’m so excited to finally share my version. The chicken is melt-in-your-mouth tender, and the sauce is rich, flavorful, and perfectly spiced.
While the Coconut Chicken Curry is a reader favorite, this is the one I make week after week. It’s a staple in my kitchen and never disappoints.
Ingredients In Butter Chicken
- Spices: Toast the spices for a minute in the pan to bring out even more flavor.
- Garlic & ginger: Grab pre-diced, jarred, or paste to keep things simple.
- Chicken: Thighs are juicier. If using breasts, cook fully first and stir in at the end.
- Greek yogurt: Use full-fat yogurt for best taste and texture.
- Lemon juice: Fresh lemon works best.
- Butter: Use unsalted so the dish doesn’t get too salty.
- Yellow onion: Chop small so it blends into the sauce nicely.
- Tomato paste & fire-roasted tomatoes: Fire-roasted adds extra flavor.
- Heavy cream: Add slowly over low heat to keep it from separating.
- Sugar: Just a little makes a big difference.Taste and adjust.
How To Make Butter Chicken
- Marinate: Combine spices, yogurt, lemon juice, and salt. Marinate chicken pieces in this mix for 30 minutes to overnight.
- Cook Onions: Sauté onions in butter, then add remaining spices and tomato paste.
- Cook Chicken: Add marinated chicken to the pan, cook until outside turns white.
- Add Sauce Ingredients: Stir in crushed tomatoes, cream, and sugar. Simmer until chicken is done and sauce thickens.
- Serve: Enjoy with basmati rice, cilantro, and optional naan or roti.
What To Serve With Butter Chicken
- I love Butter Chicken served over basmati rice, yellow rice, curry rice (or white rice).
- You can serve pita bread, flatbread, roti (buttery Indian flatbread), or even naan on the side.
- Serve with a stir-fry as a side dish — think cauliflower, carrots, etc.
- A very common accompaniment to Indian dishes is an easy cucumber and yogurt salad (called Raita; find the recipe in this pumpkin curry).
More Chicken Recipes
Butter Chicken
Butter Chicken is a beloved curry featuring tender, marinated chicken in a rich, creamy sauce.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons ground cumin
- 2 tablespoons garam masala
- 1-1/2 tablespoons ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1-1/2 tablespoons finely minced garlic
- 1-1/2 tablespoons finely minced ginger
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper see note 1
- 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs or breasts, see note 3
- 3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt full-fat
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1-1/2 teaspoons salt divided
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1-1/2 cups finely diced yellow onion
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 (14-ounce) can fire-roasted crushed tomatoes
- 1-1/4 cups heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- Basmati rice
- Fresh cilantro optional
Instructions
- Combine cumin, garam masala, turmeric, paprika, minced ginger, minced garlic, and cayenne pepper (see note 1). Stir together and set aside.
- Trim the fat and cut the chicken into 1-inch pieces and place in a large bowl or bag. Add yogurt, lemon juice, salt, and half the spice mix. Stir to coat, or knead if using a bag. Cover the chicken tightly, or seal the bag, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Do not marinate longer than 24 hours.
- Add butter to a large pan and heat over medium heat. Add in diced onion and cook for 7–10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat if it begins to burn. Add in the reserved half of the spice mix and 1 tablespoon tomato paste. Stir for 2–3 minutes or until very fragrant.
- Push onion and spices to the edges of the pan and add chicken to the center. Remove chicken from the marinade, but don’t clean any remaining marinade off the chicken. Cook over medium-high heat for about 3–4 minutes, or until the chicken is white on the outside, but not cooked through. Stir often and incorporate the spices and onion into the chicken as you cook.
- Once the chicken is white all over, add in can of fire-roasted crushed tomatoes, heavy cream, sugar, and 1 teaspoon salt. Stir, and reduce heat to low. Simmer 15–20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through to 165°F and sauce has thickened. Stir in some optional chopped cilantro here.
- Serve curry over cooked basmati rice (see note 2) and garnish with additional cilantro leaves. Serve with flatbread, roti, or naan.
Recipe Notes
Note 1: You can omit cayenne entirely if you’re very sensitive to spice. If you’d like some heat in this butter chicken, you can increase up to a full teaspoon.
Note 2: Here’s how I cook the basmati rice:
- Measure the rice and rinse it in a fine-mesh sieve until the water runs clear.
- Place that rice in a bowl and cover it with water to soak for about 5–10 minutes.
- While rice is soaking, fill a large pot with water and set it to boil.
- Once water is at a rolling boil, drain the rice and add it to the pot.
- Cook without reducing the heat for 5 minutes. Taste to ensure the rice is tender; add another minute if not. Drain and fluff with a fork.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 250kcal | Carbohydrates: 8.4g | Protein: 14.4g | Fat: 17.9g | Cholesterol: 93.1mg | Sodium: 71.7mg | Fiber: 0.9g | Sugar: 6.5g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi Chelseya – I have only just this week
“found ” your website and I am amazed by the great recipes
Could you help please with the Butter Chicken. – the heavy cream amount is given in cups. I am in UK and don’t know how many MLs this is – Can you help ? Many thanks
This recipe is amazing. My family loves Indian food and they all said this is the first Indian dish I’ve made at home that tastes as good or better than our favorite restaurant. High praise because that place is so good. I followed the recipe precisely as written and the flavors were absolutely perfect. I can’t wait to try more of your recipes! Thank you!!
So thrilled to hear that! Thank you so much Garby 🙂 I hope you love whatever you try next! 🙂
Chelsea, I can’t believe it took me so long to realize that EVERYTHING you make is sooo good lol! I have tried 4 dinner recipes so far, and I didn’t even realize that they were all yours (we use an app to plan meals) until I realized the connection – they are all amazing. I love Indian food sooo much, it’s my favorite, and my partner doesn’t XD. He has tried, but this dish made him a believer!! We’ve already made it twice since discovering it a month ago. Your directions and attention to detail are superb. I made it once with thighs and once with breasts and your handy notes saved the breast version from turning out too dry! We will definitely try to do the thighs in the future. Anyway, I just wanted you to know you have a superfan couple from MI and we will be looking at your blog first any time we need a new recipe 🙂
I am thrilled to hear this! You are so sweet! Thank you so much! I am so stoked to have you guys following my site! 🙂
I’m pregnant and have been craving Indian lately. In the past week, I made your coconut curry and this butter chicken. Both were amazing! The flavor in this dish was spot-on. I did make a few adjustments, mostly to the texture. I used half of the chicken called for because I like a bit more sauce to chicken ratio. I also cooked the chicken separate from the onions so that I could puree the sauce in my blender. Roughly chopped cashews also added a nice little crunch to the dish. Thank you for an easy and very tasty recipe!
Indian was a huge pregnancy craving for me! I’m so glad you’re loving these recipes! Thanks so much for your comment! 🙂
That’s such a pretty dish!
Thank you Lisa 🙂
Hi Chelsea, this recipe sounds delicious. I’m in Australia and was wondering what I can use in place of the fire roasted tomatoes as we just have plain crushed ones, wondering if the fire roasted have more flavour.
Fire-roasted has a bit more flavor, but if you can’t find them, plain crushed tomatoes will also be delicious! Hope you love this recipe 🙂
We absolutely loved this dish! Can’t wait to make it again!
Butter chicken is one of my favorites. I haven’t made it in ages. You have inspired me. I’m going to add it to my menu next week. Thanks!
This is my favorite Indian recipe! The flavor was perfect and super easy to make.