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Butter chicken has an origin story precise enough to be almost a myth: in 1950s Delhi, Kundan Lal Gujral, founder of Moti Mahal restaurant, was left with unsold tandoor chicken at the end of the day. He simmered the pieces in a sauce of tomato, butter, and cream — and murgh makhani was born from the logic of not wasting good food. The sauce is deliberately mild and sweet compared to other North Indian curries, calibrated to appeal across age and spice tolerance — a quality that made it the gateway curry for millions outside India. What distinguishes a good butter chicken is the tandoor step: chicken marinated in yogurt and spice, charred until lightly blackened, then added to the sauce so the smoky edge offsets the richness. Without that char, the dish becomes flat, no matter how good the makhani sauce.
In a large bowl, mix the yogurt, lemon juice, ginger-garlic paste, turmeric powder, garam masala, ground cumin, ground coriander, red chili powder, and salt.
Add the chicken pieces to the marinade, ensuring they are well coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, preferably overnight.
Preheat your oven to 200°C (400°F).
Arrange the marinated chicken pieces on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and slightly charred. Set aside.
In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat.
Add the finely chopped onion and cook until it becomes soft and translucent.
Stir in the minced garlic and ginger, and cook for another minute.
Add the crushed tomatoes, ground cumin, ground coriander, garam masala, turmeric powder, red chili powder, and salt. Cook for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens and the oil begins to separate.
Stir in the heavy cream and bring the sauce to a simmer.
Add the cooked chicken pieces to the sauce, stirring to coat them well.
Simmer for another 10 minutes, allowing the flavors to meld together.
Garnish the Butter Chicken with freshly chopped cilantro.
Butter chicken is a North Indian curry of tandoor-cooked chicken pieces simmered in a smooth tomato-butter-cream sauce. It is milder and sweeter than most Indian curries, deliberately so — the original recipe at Moti Mahal was designed to be approachable to a wide audience.
Butter chicken was created at Moti Mahal restaurant in Delhi's Daryaganj neighborhood in the 1950s. Kundan Lal Gujral, the founder, repurposed leftover tandoor chicken by simmering it in tomato, butter, and cream — a solution to waste that became India's most exported dish.
The marinade uses yogurt, lemon juice, ginger-garlic paste, and spices (garam masala, cumin, turmeric, chili) for the tandoor stage. The makhani sauce builds on butter, onion, crushed tomatoes, cream, and kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) — the last ingredient adding a faint bitterness that cuts the richness.
The crucial step is getting char on the chicken before it goes into the sauce — grill or broil the marinated pieces until lightly blackened at the edges. This smokiness is what separates restaurant butter chicken from the flat, saucy home version. Kasuri methi, added at the end, is the second secret most home recipes omit.
Butter chicken pairs best with butter naan or garlic naan for scooping the sauce, or with basmati rice. A simple cucumber raita and sliced raw onion on the side balance the creaminess. Jeera rice (cumin-tempered) is the restaurant standard pairing.