My weakness is good butter chicken aka makhani chicken. A local place make one that is so good. I struggle with it from scratch but MTR or Swad have a ready to eat that aint too bad with a little "doctoring up". I just add some leftover rotisserie chicken to it mainly. Plus a little of this and that like a good garam masala.
Hey Evilgrin, here is the recipe that we make for Murgh Makhni aka butter chicken. For us it's a cold weather dish, fall, winter, you get the idea. As much as I don't like his politics, Penzey's has very good spices, they're not cheap by any means, but very good. This recipe does take a little while to make, and an immersion / stick blender makes it easier. I serve it on basmati rice that I put 3 whole cloves, and 3 whole green cardamom pods in along with some frozen peas. I always try to fish out the cloves and cardamom pods before serving. I love the flavor they add to the rice but I don't like the surprise of biting into one.
MURGH MAKHANI (INDIAN BUTTER CHICKEN)
Ingredients:
• 1 tablespoon peanut oil
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• ¼ white onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon ground fresh ginger
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• ¼ teaspoon ground fenugreek
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 plain Greek yogurt (5.3 oz. container)
• 1 tablespoon flour, whisked into the yogurt to prevent curdling
• ¼ cup heavy cream
• 1 cup tomato puree
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 pinch black pepper
• 1 tablespoon peanut oil
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, or skinless breast cut into bite-size pieces
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper
• ¼ cup finely ground unsalted cashews (do not use cornstarch to thicken)
• ¼ cup chicken broth
Directions:
1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat. Sauté shallot and onion until
soft and translucent. Stir in butter, lemon juice, ground ginger, garlic, 1 teaspoon garam masala,
chili powder and cumin. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add tomato sauce, and cook for 2 minutes,
stirring frequently. Stir in heavy cream and yogurt. Reduce heat to low, and simmer for 10
minutes, stirring frequently. Season with salt pepper. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Grind the cashews in a blender. Add the sauce to the blender to puree all the onion pieces and
cashews into a creamy sauce.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Cook chicken until lightly
browned, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat, and season with 1 teaspoon garam masala and
cayenne. Add the sauce to the chicken and simmer with the bay leaf until cooked.
3. Serve over Basamati rice garnished with chopped fresh cilantro.
