Butter Chicken

The arriving winter has brought a cold snap this year, something we’ve taken for granted in the past with our warmer winters. Bring out the layers, thick socks, jeans, and cosy jumpers! Sometimes, no matter how many layers you put on it’s still chilly so cook a delicious curry to warm up from the inside. An added bonus is your home will be filled with delicious aromas as the curry simmers on the stove.

We have slightly adapted the recipe from the back of a Herbies butter chicken spice mix, we used 40g of spice mix rather than 50g. Also if you find that you can’t get a small can of coconut milk, instead of throwing the rest away you could freeze it. Start the recipe the day before so that the chicken has plenty of time to marinate.

The butter chicken is the main dish but team it up with sides, like rice, raita, naan, or pappadums! You will find our recipe for classic naan below the butter chicken recipe. Enjoy!

Herbies butter chicken spice mix is available in-store or through our online store, click here to buy.

Butter Chicken

This recipe is slightly adapted from the one found on the back of the Herbies butter chicken spice mix packet.

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Ingredients

1 kg chicken thigh fillets
40 grams Herbies butter chicken spice mix
375 g plain yoghurt
1 tbs butter or ghee
2 cloves garlic crushed
½ cup onion pureed
2 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp mango chutney
1 tbsp almond meal
200 ml single cream
1 small can (85-100 ml) coconut milk
1 tbsp fresh coriander leaves chopped
2 tbsp flaked almonds lightly toasted

Raita

1 cup yoghurt
1 cucumber grated
2 tsp lemon juice
salt & pepper to taste

To serve

Steamed basmati rice
naan bread recipe follows
pappadums
cucumber raita

Instructions

Mix 1/2 the butter chicken spice mix (about 20 grams) with yoghurt and marinate the chicken overnight.
The next day, place the chicken on an oven-proof tray lined with foil for easy cleanup and cook under the grill until the chicken is a little charred. While it's cooking start, preparing the sauce.
Melt the butter in a heavy pan over medium heat then, add the garlic and onion and fry for 2-3 minutes.
Mix the remaining spice mix (about 20 gram) with tomato paste, ketchup, chutney, and almond meal, and add this mixture to the onions. Cook for a couple of minutes, then add cooked chicken and pan juices. Stir in cream and coconut milk, and add salt to taste. Simmer to reduce a little before serving.
Stir through the coriander and sprinkle over the flaked almonds.
Serve with steamed basmati rice, steamed green vegetables, raita, and naan or pappadums.

Raita

Combine the yoghurt, cucumber and lemon juice in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Notes

If you only have a large can of coconut cream - use what's needed in the recipe and then divide the rest into usable portions (either in a zip lock bag or container), labe and freeze.

Naan, Kitchen to Table, Butter Chicken, Yamba

Classic Naan

Naan is the perfect accompaniment to a curry, and homemade ones are especially delicious! Any leftover naan could be toasted for breakfast and topped with peanut butter or Nutella ... there are endless ways to eat naan.

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Servings 4 naan

Ingredients

2 cups (250g) plain flour
1 tsp (5g) salt
1 tsp (4g) instant yeast
130 g boiling water
120 g greek yoghurt
butter melted, for brushing

Instructions

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and yeast. In another bowl, combine the yoghurt and water and whisk together before adding to the four mixture.
Stir to combine with a spoon or spatula then, bring the dough together with your hands until the flour incorporated. It will be a wet, sticky dough. Cover the bowl with a tea towel and place in a warm spot to rise for 1 to 1.5 hours.
Once the dough has risen, turn it out onto a floured bench and divide it into 4 equal portions. Then roll out each dough ball, using a rolling pin that has been dusted in flour, into a circle.
Heat a large frypan, approx 28cm, over high heat - cast iron or black steel is best for high heat cooking. Once the frypan is very hot, dust off any excess flour, place it into the frypan, cover with a lid, and cook for 1 minute.
Once the pan is sizzling, flip and cook for a further 30 seconds uncovered. If black spots start to appear on the pan, wipe them out and continue. Transfer cooked naan to a plate, brush with some butter. You could even add a drizzle of honey, yum!