Indian Butter Chicken

I think a lot of the time when I love food in a restaurant there's always a desire for me to recreate it at home.  You probably noticed this if you read the slightly failed chile encrusted steak!  Unlike that recipe, this is definitely a success!  Hubby rated this a 5 tonight!  Woohoo!  I've been trying to make some of his favorites this week since it was his birthday yesterday, so I was pretty excited when it got his good reviews.  He really likes Indian food, so that was a great compliment!

I did a few things differently with this tonight than I usually do.  *One change made marinating everything much quicker.  +The second change made the flavor SO much richer.

I really think this rivals any restaurant Butter Chicken.  The sauce tonight was so good that if I was being totally gross I'd probably just eat the sauce like soup.  Hmm...that was probably too much information for you.  HA ha!!  I blame the baby.

Try this!!  You definitely won't regret it.  Though I'll warn you, it might ruin your experience of butter chicken at the next Indian Restaurant you try.  Ha ha! I'm a little too full of myself after eating this it was that good!  This is a pretty special occasion dish around here because it requires a few special ingredients that aren't usually in the kitchen like serrano chiles and heavy cream.  I didn't used to have garam masala or fresh ginger in my kitchen all the time, but I just learned to keep buying those.  This also requires a bit more planning because of the long marinating time.

Makhani Chicken (Indian Butter Chicken)
Adapted from THIS RECIPE on allrecipes.com

For marinating
1 1/2 pounds of meaty chicken pieces cut into chunks(I used cut up thighs tonight)
2tbsp lemon juice
1tbsp chili powder
1/4tsp salt

1 c plain yogurt
4 large cloves of garlic
1/2 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp chili powder
2inch chunk of ginger sliced
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/4tsp salt

2 tbsp melted butter
Sauce1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp ginger minced
1 tbsp garlic minced
1 serrano chile minced
1 15oz can tomato sauce
1 tbsp chili powder
salt to taste
1/3 c water
1 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp fenugreek
1 cup heavy cream

1.  Combine the first 4 ingredients in a large container with a lid.  Set it aside and put the lid on while you work on the rest of the marinade.

2.  Combine the next 7 ingredients in a blender (I used my magic bullet) and blend until smooth.  *This was the first change I made.  I used to mince everything and mix it together, but I think this is so much faster and probably gives a better flavor.  Pour the blended marinade and the melted butter over the chicken in your container and mix well.  Cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours (I usually do overnight).

3.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 

4.  Pull the chicken out of the marinade and bake on a tray in the oven for 45 minutes.  Set aside the marinade.

5.  While the chicken is baking heat the butter and garam masala in a heavy bottom pot until it starts to sizzle.  Add the ginger, garlic, and chiles and saute until soft.

6.  Add the tomato sauce, chile powder, salt, water, and the rest of the marinade (+adding the marinade was the second change I made to the recipe).  Bring to a boil on medium high for at least 5 minutes (this is important to kill off the bacteria!) stirring constantly.  Cover and bring the temperature to low and simmer for 30 minutes stirring occasionally.  Add a little more water if your sauce starts to get too thick. 

7.  Add the honey and fenugreek and take off the heat.

 8.  Add the chicken and heavy cream.  

What my chicken pieces looked like when they came out of the oven.

 

Adding in the cream.


9.  Serve with hot naan or over rice!

It sounds like a lot of work at first, but you'll get the hang of it.  It's definitely worth the work!!  I don't really know where I'd find organic butter chicken in a restaurant either!


In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Dear God,
  we know that you provide everything for us and are always helping us toward holiness.  Please let us be content with what you have given us while always striving to do your will.  Amen.

Chicken Curry

Since apparently I've given up meal planning for this week I thought tonight's dinner was bound to be a flop.  I was mistaken!  Jon rated tonight's dinner somewhere between 4.5-5.  Cool. 

Whenever I ask my mom for dinner ideas she usually ends up telling me to go look in one of the cook books that's she's given me.  Last time I talked to her about food she told me that these were the cookbooks she used while we were growing up.  So while I was recently looking in the "Let's Cook with Nora" book by Nora Daza I found a recipe for chicken curry. 

I was a bit skeptical about this curry.  All of the indian recipes I've made before (butter chicken, vindaloo, tikka masala) require many hours of marinating and this didn't require any, so I didn't think it could taste all that great.  It tastes fantastic!!  What's more is that it doesn't require that many ingredients!!  It's a winner.  I didn't have to think too far ahead and it tastes great. 

At first I thought I would make this version from allrecipes.  But I went with Nora instead.  The two are very similar anyways.  Here's what I did!

Chicken Curry
(adapted from Let's Cook with Nora by Nora V. Daza)

Ingredients
1lb of chicken
1 can of coconut milk

1 can diced tomatoes

1/2 an onion diced

4 cloves of garlic minced

2 tbsp curry powder

1tbsp chili powder

1tbsp oil

1tsp salt

1.  Saute garlic and onion in oil. 

2.  Drop in chicken pieces and cook covered for 5 minutes.

3.  Add curry powder, chili powder, and salt and stir until well combined.

4.  Pour in coconut milk and diced tomatoes.  Bring up to a boil.

5.  Simmer on low for 45 minutes allowing the sauce to reduce until thick and chicken is cooked through. 

Serve over hot rice!!

This was easily the easiest Indian style food I've ever made.  It will definitely become a more frequent dish on the weeknight menu.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Dear Heavenly Father, 

 thank you for wonderful days with friends and their babies that bring a bit of rest and refreshment throughout the week.  Father, help me prepare for this weekend.   Amen.