We grew up in Bangalore, India during our teenage years, so this dish brings back so much memories. Murgh which means chicken and Makhani butter is a comforting dish, full of aromats, flavours and spices. Our mum learnt her butter chicken recipe from an amazing Indian cook and we made sure she passed the recipe down to us. Did you know how this humble dish was invented? The legendary Indian Chef Kundan Laal Gujral found a way to minimise wastage from tandoori chicken and tikkas that are dried out. He came up with a buttery gravy to keep it moist and enhance the flavour of the overall dish… Pure genius we believe. The creamy spiced tomato gravy is absolute magic. We used our all time favourite Mutti Passata Tomato Puree to create the rich tomato gravy. Soak naan bread into that sauce and you will be in food heaven… Now let’s get cooking

SERVES 4                PREP 10 MINS               COOK 20 MINS

INGREDIENTS

TANDOORI CHICKEN MARINATE

• 500 grams of boneless chicken thighs (skinless), cut into chunks

• 2 tbsp Greek yogurt

• 2 tsp plain flour

• 5 garlic cloves

• 4cm ginger peeled 1 green chilli

• 1 tsp paprika powder

• ½ tsp cinnamon powder

• 1 tsp chilli powder

• ½ tsp garam masala powder

• 1 tsp coriander powder

• ½ tsp saffron powder

• Butter, for basting

• Salt to season

• 7 wooden skewers, soak in water for 20 minutes to prevent burning when grilling

BUTTER CHICKEN GRAVY

• 3 tbsp unsalted butter

• 5 green cardamom pods, lightly crushed

• 1 cinnamon stick

• 5 cloves

• 1 medium red onion finely chopped

• 1 tbsp grated ginger

• 2 green chillies, cut lengthwise

• 1 red chilli, cut lengthwise

• 1 tsp chilli powder (or mild paprika)

• 1 tsp garam masala powder

• ¾ cups MUTTI Passata

• 150mls double cream

• 2 tbsp honey

• 1 tsp curry powder

• Salt, sugar to taste

• Chopped coriander for garnish

• Naan, to serve

METHOD 

1. Place ginger, garlic and green chilli in a mortar and make a paste. Otherwise, place ingredients into a small blender and make into a paste. Mix yogurt and flour into a bowl, making sure no lumps and form into a thick paste consistency.

2. Add the ginger, garlic chilli paste, paprika, chilli powder, garam masala and coriander powder into the yogurt bowl. Also mix in the ground cinnamon and saffron powder. Season with salt.

3. Stir well and add in the chicken pieces and combined well. Leave to marinate for 20 minutes or overnight.

4. Once marinated, pre heat the grill on medium. Shake off the excess marinade and thread the chicken pieces onto the skewers. Cook under the grill until cook and charred on the outside. Making sure to baste with melted butter on both sides when turning to cook.

5. To cook the butter chicken gravy, heat a heavy bottom sauce pan and add the butter. Add the cloves, cardamom and cinnamon stick. Fry until fragrant and add the onions. Sauté on medium heat until they take on a light brown colour.

6. Add the grated ginger and the chillies. Fry for a further minute and add the garam masala, chilli powder along with MUTTI Passata tomato puree. Stir in well and further cook for a couple of minutes. Gradually add the double cream stirring continuously to mix all the spices.

7. Add ¼ cup of water if the curry is too thick. Stir in the honey and the curry powder. Season to taste. Add the cooked chicken pieces and simmer the curry on a low heat for 10 minutes. Garnish with coriander and served with roti.