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Butter Chicken (aka Murgh Makhani)

Prep Time1 hour
CourseEntree
CuisineIndian
KeywordMakhani, murgh
Servings10 people

Ingredients

  • 2 lbs chicken thighs (cuisse de poulet) (including bones if ya got ’em!)
  • 1.5 cups finely chopped onions 1.5 baseball-sized onions
  • 3 cups finely chopped tomatoes 650g
  • 4 tbsp butter 58g
  • 1.5 tbsp cumin seeds
  • 10-15 curry leaves
  • 2 tbsp garam masala
  • 1 cup raw cashews, ground to a powder (.5 c ground)
  • 1 cup water
  • salt to taste

optional:

  • chopped cilantro for garnish

accompaniment

  •  traditionally with roti/chapati but we often enjoy it with white basmati rice.

Instructions

  • Finely chop onions and tomatoes, and keep aside in bowls. Chop thighs (boneless into bite-sized pieces, or if bones, just into thigh and leg pieces).
  • Heat large, heavy-bottomed pain to medium, melt 4 tbsp. butter and then add 1 tsp vegetable oil.
  • Add cumin and fry cumin till fragrant.
  • Add onions and fry till golden brown, adding curry leaves toward the end.
  • Add garam masala and stir till mixed in.
  • Add tomatoes, and scrape up any browned bits on the pan using the juices of the tomato.
  • Cook the tomatoes for a while until they begin to breakdown and blend w/ onions.
  • Add the cashew powder and fry for a bit.
  • Add water and chicken and cook until chicken is cooked, careful to not overcook the chicken.
  • For best results allow to rest for a bit, even overnight.

Notes

  • It helps to have everything mis en place (chopped and ready to cook) before beginning to cook, and more so with the chicken if it's whole, skin on thigh + leg like in France!  Boneless chicken thighs could be chopped once onions start cooking.
  • The more finely you chop the onions and tomatoes, the more quickly they will cook, and the smoother your curry will be (some recipes may call to puree it but I wouldn't).  I have tried a food processor for chopping and I don’t love it, particularly for the tomatoes which seem to become almost beaten, even when using the pulse setting.
  • ? I really only did 1.5 lbs of chicken 4-Mar-24 paris
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