Butter Chicken - Dhaba Style

Roadside restaurant style gravy made with succulent pieces of chicken marinated in tandoori spices then covered in a sauce prepared with tomatoes, spices and butter

Serves 4-5 people

Ingredients:

For chicken

1 chicken (cut into 8 or 12 pieces)

3 tbsp cooking oil

2 tbsp lemon juice

2 tsp salt

3 tsp chilli powder

2 tsp cumin seed powder

1 tsp black pepper powder

¼ tsp deep orange food colour

3 tsp garlic paste

For the gravy

1/2 cup butter (you can also use a mix of butter and cooking oil)

1 cup sliced onion

4 cloves garlic

½ cup cashew nut (soak them in boiling water for about 20 minutes)

2 tsp poppy seeds

1 tbsp raisins

3 tbsp tomato paste (if using tomato puree, use at least 1 ½ cup)

2 tsp salt (adjust according to taste)

3 tsp red chilli powder

2 tsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)

1 tsp garam masala powder

Honey (optional)

Cream for garnishing

Method

Chicken

Marinate chicken pieces with all the ingredients in this section and leave aside for at least half an hour. If you are running out of time you can start cooking straight after marinating.

In a pot, on a high flame put the chicken pieces and cover with the lid. Begin cooking on a high flame. After few minutes when there’s enough steam turn the heat to medium and let the chicken simmer cook until the pieces are tender. The chicken pieces will release water. It might take about 20 minutes for chicken to be tender. When chicken pieces are tender and there’s still water left, open the lid and dry excess water by cooking on high flame. This will also give the pieces a crispy coating like tandoori chicken. Keep stirring constantly. Be careful not to overcook the chicken as the meat will start falling off the bone. Finish cooking chicken when you get a crispy coating on the chicken pieces. This shouldn't take more than 3-4 minutes.

Alternatively, place the marinated chicken pieces in a tray and keep it in a preheated oven at 220 degree Celsius. Cover with aluminium foil and cook it in the oven for about 40 minutes. After that take the foil off, turn the pieces of chicken and leave it in the oven for another ten minutes. This will give a tandoori look to the pieces. If there's little water left in the chicken, you can use in the gravy at a later stage.

For the gravy

Make a fine paste of onion, garlic, cashewnut, poppy seeds and raisins, using a blender. You can add some water with the above ingredients to make a fine paste.

In a pot, add butter and fry the prepared paste until you can see the oil begins to separate. Keep stirring to avoid sticking in the pot. When the oil begins to separate, add tomato paste or puree, salt and red chilli powder continue frying for another few minutes. Next, add dried fenugreek leaves and mix in. Continue frying for few more minutes. Add chicken pieces and mix it in gently. Add about 2 ½ cups of water to make the gravy. Bring it to boil, sprinkle garam masala powder. Check the seasoning and adjust salt if needed. At this point if you want to add a little bit of sweetness you can add honey. Cover with the lid and let it simmer on low-medium flame for about 10 minutes. Butter chicken is ready to serve with Home Made Naans or Tandoori Roti !

Tips:

- You can buy prepared bar-be-que or tandoori chicken and add it to the gravy…. A quick way to make this dish.

- You can also use boneless chicken.