When we say Butter chicken we are referring to the legendary sauce rather than the fact that this this traditional northern Indian dish contains chicken. The sauce is indeed completely vegetarian, and can even be made vegan by swapping almond or coconut cream in this recipe for regular cream. Substitute the chicken with lentils, beans, chickpeas or paneer and you will have a fantastic vegetarian meal to please anyone.
Ingredients
10-12 pieces of chicken (legs, thighs or drumsticks or boneless thighs), skin removed
Salt & pepper
1 TBL Monsoon Tandoori
1 large onion, finely chopped
2-3 TBL butter
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tsp ginger, grated
1 TBL Monsoon Tandoori
1 tsp Tobago Habanero Curry (or Moghul Curry for less heat)
1-380ml can tomato sauce or puree
½ -¾ cup water
1 tsp salt, or to taste
1 cup whipping cream
3 TBL fresh cilantro, chopped
Chile flakes
Instructions
Remove skin from the chicken. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and Monsoon Tandoori. Grill chicken on BBQ over medium low heat until almost done (10-15 minutes). (Alternatively, add olive oil to a sauté pan and fry chicken pieces over medium heat until almost done.)
in a Dutch oven, Sauté onions in butter over medium-low heat until soft (10-15 minutes).
Add garlic and ginger. Sauté for 2 minutes.
Add Monsoon Tandoori, Tobago Habanero (or Moghul) Curry. Sauté for 2 minutes.
Add tomato sauce or puree, and half the water and salt. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer 10 minutes.
At this point you can whir the sauce with a hand blender or regular blender to make it smooth or leave it a bit textured. You can also cool and freeze it.
Add the chicken stirring to coat with the sauce, slowly bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer covered until chicken is tender about 30-45 minutes. (20-30 minutes for boneless chicken)
Remove lid and reduce sauce or add more water according to desired consistency.
Just before serving, add whipping cream. Stir and simmer until heated through. Adjust seasoning and garnish with fresh cilantro and pepper flakes.
Serve with rice or chapati.