Description
This Easy 20 Minute Butter Chicken is a quick and flavorful Indian-inspired dish made with tender chunks of chicken simmered in a creamy, spiced tomato sauce. Perfect for a weeknight meal, it combines aromatic spices, garlic, ginger, and rich cream served over hot cooked rice or naan.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
Main Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, finely minced or grated (or use paste)
- 2-3 cloves garlic, finely minced or crushed
- 1 1/2 pounds (about 2-3) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3/4-inch chunks
- 4 tablespoons tomato paste or 8 oz can of tomato sauce
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon chili powder or paprika, adjust to taste
- 1 teaspoon fenugreek powder (optional; seeds or mustard seeds can be used)
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup heavy cream (substitute half & half or yogurt for low fat)
- Hot cooked rice and naan for serving
Instructions
- Cook onions: Heat a large skillet or medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add oil, butter, and diced onions. Cook onions until lightly golden, about 3-4 minutes.
- Add aromatics: Stir in the fresh ginger and garlic, cooking for 30 seconds while stirring to prevent burning.
- Cook chicken with spices: Add chicken chunks, tomato paste, garam masala, chili powder, fenugreek, cumin, salt, and black pepper. Cook and stir for 5-6 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.
- Simmer in cream: Pour in the heavy cream and reduce heat to a gentle simmer. Cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally to thicken the sauce and blend flavors.
- Serve: Spoon the creamy butter chicken over hot cooked basmati rice or naan bread. Enjoy immediately.
Notes
- You can substitute heavy cream with half & half or yogurt to reduce fat content.
- Fenugreek powder is optional but adds authentic flavor; substitute with seeds if preferred.
- Adjust chili powder or paprika to suit your spice tolerance.
- This recipe serves 4 people.
- Use fresh ginger for best flavor but paste works well in a pinch.
- Cooking times may vary slightly depending on chicken chunk size.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving (approx. 1/4 of recipe)
- Calories: 420
- Sugar: 6g
- Sodium: 700mg
- Fat: 28g
- Saturated Fat: 15g
- Unsaturated Fat: 12g
- Trans Fat: 0.2g
- Carbohydrates: 8g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 35g
- Cholesterol: 130mg
