Butter chicken

Butter Chicken

Butter Chicken
Origin
Alternative name(s)	Murgh makhani
Place of origin	India
Region or state	Ghaziabad
Details
Main ingredient(s)	Chicken, butter

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Butter chicken or murgh makhani is a classic Indian Punjabi recipe, that was probably developed during the time of the Mughal Empire. Though it is an Indian dish, there are Pakistani, Nepali, and Tibetan versions of the dish as well as more modern Anglo-Indian variations. A 20th Century recipe for butter chicken (by Madhur Jaffrey) credits the restaurant Moti Mahal in Delhi with the recipe. This has unfortunately been misconstrued to mean that the recipe originated in the kitchens of Moti Mahal. While the more popular version of the dish arose there, the origins of the dish go back centuries to ancient Parsi recipes.

Preparation

Many versions of the recipe exist for the recipe, typically dressed chicken (with or without bones) is marinated overnight in a yogurt and spice mixture usually including garam masala, ginger, garlic paste, lemon or lime, pepper, coriander, cumin, turmeric and chili. The chicken is traditionally cooked in a tandoor, but can also be grilled, roasted or pan fried. The sauce, is made by heating and mixing butter, tomato puree, Khoa and various spices, often including cumin, cloves, cinnamon, coriander, pepper, fenugreek and fresh cream. Cashew paste can also be added, and will make the gravy thicker. Of all the spices added to the dish it is dried fenugreek leaves (Urdu/Hindi: Qasuri Methi) that makes the greatest contribution to the characteristic flavour of the dish. Once the sauce is prepared, the prepared chicken is chopped and cooked until the gravy and chicken have blended. The dish may be garnished with white butter, fresh cream, sliced green chillies and Qasuri Methi. Butter chicken is usually served with naan, roti, parathas, roomali roti or steamed rice.

See also

• Indian cuisine

Bibliography

• Curry Club Tandoori and Tikka Dishes, Piatkus, London — ISBN 0-7499-1283-9 (1993)
• Curry Club 100 Favourite Tandoori Recipes, Piatkus, London — ISBN 07499149 & ISBN 0-7499-1741-5 (1995)
• India: Food & Cooking, New Holland, London — ISBN 978-1-84537-619-2 (2007)

External links

• Food Network - Better Butter Chicken
• Butter Chicken recipe on Recidemia
• Butter Chicken recipe on About.com Indian Food site
• Anaarkali Butter Chicken recipe