Butter Chicken

RESTAURANT QAULITY!! You’ll never buy a butter chicken again ?

Submitted by Anon

Butter Chicken

RESTAURANT QAULITY!! You’ll never buy a butter chicken again ?
4.80 from 10 votes
Serving: 4
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 5 hours
Total Time 5 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients
 

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 4 Cloves Garlic (Crushed)
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 (420ml/14-ounce) can light coconut milk
  • 1 (175ml/6-ounce) can tomato paste
  • 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour (white flour is ok too)
  • 2 teaspoons Garam masala
  • 1 teaspoon curry powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder, or more, to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon ginger powder
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 1kg boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch pieces
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves (coriander)

Instructions
 

  • Heat olive oil in a pan over medium high heat.
  • Add garlic and onion, and cook, stirring for 2-3 minutes.
  • Stir in coconut milk, tomato paste, flour, garam masala, curry powder, chili powder and ginger powder until well combined and slightly thickened, about 1-2 minutes
  • Add salt and pepper, to taste.
  • Place chicken into slow cooker.
  • Add the sauce and combine.
  • Cover and cook on low heat for 5 hours.
  • Add the cilantro in the last hour

Note

  • Optional … the photo of the recipe above has 300ml of cooking cream stirred through in the last half hour before serving for a creamy consistency.
  • Photo updated at request of recipe submitter
Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central

About the Author: Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central

111 Comments

  1. I made this for the family with a 4 year old and 2.5 year.old. they don’t mind Spicey food and regularly eat butter chicken. I.made this with the half recommended amount of chilli (so 1/4 tsp). It still packed quite a punch! Perhaps try this with 1/8 tsp if making for younger members then increase chilli next time til youbat happy with volume.

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central May 17, 2017

      In the last hour it’s added 🙂
      I’ve fixed that info now for you too x

  2. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central May 17, 2017

    LOVE LOVE LOVED this recipe!!
    I adore butter chicken but I’ve always paid nearly $15 a dish for take away.
    I was able to make this entire recipe for less than that and it tasted just like the real thing!

    I added 300ml of cooking cream in the last hour just because I like it creamy and to drop the heat level a little bit
    And I skipped the cilantro as I don’t like it

    But I KNOW this recipe is going to be a weekly staple in my house now 🙂

    Thanks for sharing xx

  3. Too spicy. Also it waa nice but just felt like it was missing something. I’d say it’s definitely missing butter.

  4. Darren Comley May 20, 2017

    Just put the lid on the sc..mreLly lookng forward to trying this tonght

  5. Darren Comley May 20, 2017

    This was lovely. I will do it again and add extra chilli as i love chilli. My fussy son liked it too

  6. This is so yummy. I used a small can of coconut cream and a small UHT of lite evaporated milk and then some coconut essence just to lower the fat a little – and I will add less curry powder as we use keens and my guys found it too spicy!! But it was the best tasting recipe ever and I’ve been searching for a great butter chicken recipe forever!!

  7. Donna Mott May 21, 2017

    If you double the chicken, do you double everything else pauline@slow cooker central?

  8. I made this today and it turned out great.

    I added some cream 1 hour before serving, and also added a few tablespoons of cashew butter and brown sugar to sweeten it up a bit as I found it a bit bland when I tasted it. But after adding these few things it was very tasty!

    I served it with some saffron rice also which made the whole dish super yummy.

  9. Love this!
    So first time ever cooking with a slow cooker. I picked this recipe and it did not disappoint everyone in my family agrees this is better then store brought jars.

    • I left out the coriander
    • and left out the chilli (for my toddler)

    • added about 150-200ml cream half an hour before serving.

    Turned out great:)

  10. Just had this for dinner, put it on for 5 hours followed the instructions and it tastes absolutely horrible ?? I have no idea what went wrong but I’m so disappointed!!

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central May 27, 2017

      That’s no good!
      We followed it and LOVED it :))
      Maybe your cooker is one that cooks hot if it’s overdone?
      I found the time perfect?

  11. Kelly Clark May 24, 2017

    Do you gave to use so much tomato paste or can you use tinned tomatoes and some paste?

  12. So disappointed, followed the recipe perfectly and this tasted absolutely nothing like butter chicken and was fairly bland. I’d seen everyone talk about it so much and I was so excited to try it but, it was a complete let down.

    Does anyone know if any of the other butter chicken recipes are better?

  13. Did anyone actually pre brown things in a pan? Cause I find it so much easier to skip this and throw it all in the sc 🙂

  14. Lisa Downard May 31, 2017

    My hubby, son and I loved this butter chicken recipe. I didn’t add the coriander because I don’t like it. Will definitely be making again and again. Thankyou for sharing??

  15. Kylie Jeynes June 1, 2017

    My kids made this for dinner while I was at work, so not sure if they added & measured everything correctly lol, but we all found it delish! Will definately add the cream in next time 🙂

  16. This recipe is awesome although I reduced the chilli to 1/8 tsp and it still had some heat in it (too much for the kids). I also added about 100mls of cream about 45 minutes before serving. Hubby couldn’t believe it had come out of the slow cooker, super yum!!!!

  17. Colleen Arnott June 3, 2017

    I made this today. I used chicken thighs and also added the cream like Pauline an hour before serving. It was absolutely delicious…(although I’d have to say it doesn’t taste much like the butter chicken we get from our local Indian restaurant)

  18. Really nice but needed the cream at the end. We didn’t not find it spicy at all. I added the chilli as per the recipe and my 7 month old, 2 year old and 3 year old all loved it. It was a little mild for me.

  19. Dads kitchen June 14, 2017

    Not quite restaurant quality although had lots of flavour and mild heat …….the fussy eater who says everything is too spicy enjoyed the dish. I cooked this following the recipe and found it a bit to runny when finished.
    On the ease to create scale I rate this 7/10

  20. Both my Husband and i loved this meal. Im not a huge spicy person so added the cream and it was perfect!

  21. Christina July 12, 2017

    OK iv seen everyone comment about and share this recipe saying its amazing I followed the recipe and found it has way to much tomato paste all I can taste is tomato dosent taste pike butter chicken unless its just me but for next time I know not so much tomato paste other wise great recipe 🙂

  22. Sharon Ramsden August 14, 2017

    do you think this would work in a dump bag? If so would you pre-cook onion and garlic and thicken the sauce first? Thank you for your advice.

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central August 16, 2017

      I would give it a go in a dump bag for sure 🙂
      But I wouldn’t pre cook anything

  23. Jessica Hansen August 22, 2017

    Butter chicken has been a regular dish in our house I usually buy the premade dishes from Woolworths or Coles. I finally tried out this recipe that was going around the page and it did not disappoint. Only changes I made was to double the spices, left out the coriander (not a fan) and added 300ml cooking cream in the last 30mins definitely will be making it like this from now on ???

  24. If adding the cream at the end do you still add the coconut cream with all the other ingredients?
    Also what kind of curry powder do you use? Keens?

  25. Made this tonight, OMG!!! Hubby and I are so happy will be making this at least once a week!!!! Tried few butter chickens and never was nice until now!!! Yum!!!

  26. This is a menu regular in our house! Feeding a toddler so i leave out the chilli and still delicious. Thanks for such a great easy delicious recipe Pauline.

  27. Absolutely love this recipe. I added a few of my own spices as well, and will definitely be using it again

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central February 12, 2018

      I believe others have yes though I’ve not tried myself 🙂 We rarely have leftovers that long

  28. Best butter chicken I have made I added 300mls of thickened cream at the end and stirred in some brown sugar

  29. Marilyn Whitley April 18, 2018

    Definitely a family favourite I halve the chilli piwder quantity and I always put a good squirt of tomato sauce in as well, It just seems to enhance and give depth the flavour.

  30. I made this a few nights ago, oh man it was the best butter chicken I’ve ever had. Hubby and miss nearly 2 both loved it and hubby went for 2nds ? Keens curry powder was enough for us though no chilli required lol

  31. Kath Bowes June 9, 2018

    This was absolutely devine….. Invited my mum and dad for dinner and it was a hit and have also sign mum up to this page….. Will definitely be making again… I also added cooking cream at the end and I will up the amount of chilli also….

  32. Interesting, this was tasting great but the addition of cream (less than stated) reduced the richness of the taste. I tried another recipe last time & will probably revert, but might try this again without the cream!

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central October 2, 2018

      It’s plain flour, just in a wholewheat version. You can use white plain flour too if you prefer

  33. Jodie Leemhuis November 7, 2018

    This recipe is absolutely divine! I left out the cilantro and added some thickened cream just before serving this with rice. The whole family loved this and happily licked their plates clean. An extra bonus with this recipe is I no longer need to buy store bought jars for butter chicken #winning ? Thanks so much for sharing this with us ?

  34. Such a delicious recipe!! I changed it up a little by mixing chicken thighs and chicken breasts, I use chili and ginger paste, plus I blend the sauce with a stick blender. I then add cardamonm pods cook for 5 mins then take them out before adding the sauce and chicken to the slow cooker.

  35. Never had butter chicken before but made it tonight and had empty plates it was lovely
    I used diced chicken breast instead of thigh
    Thank you for the recipe will definitely be making it again

  36. I’ll add a bit more curry powder and chilli next time, but this was absolutely delicious.

  37. Decent curry but not like the proper butter chicken at an Indian restaurant.
    Added cream at the end for the kids to make it milder for them. Also added a cup of frozen peas last 5 min.

  38. Catherine June 17, 2019

    Made this today. Added a T of stevia just to sweeten it for the kids (so it was a bit more like takeout) and all plates were cleaned. Served with steamed veggies, rice and garlic naans. Very tasty.

  39. This recipe turned out amazing. Next time I’ll double the Chilli powder and add more salt for my personal liking.

  40. Shannon Anderson January 24, 2020

    Just making this now for the first time. Do you recommend using a tea towel? Or not?

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central January 27, 2020

      It will state if tea towel is required so no need for this one 🙂

  41. Love this recipe. I add a little bit more cream at the end as my little girl doesn’t like it too spicy, but I don’t think it needs messed with in any way

  42. Steve Mould March 20, 2020

    First time making and eating Butter Chicken. This recipe worked for my whole Family. I tried to keep to the published Recipe but found that I had to add a Tbl of brown sugar and, as suggested by the poster, about 300ml of cooking cream. This made the dish lush and smooth, it also mellowed the heat. My Wife, who doesn’t like spicy heat at all, added some more cream to her dish and eat it all. My Son who likes spice and heat, lapped it all up. All in All a great success and I will do it again. Thank you for the Recipe.

  43. Shannon Anderson March 21, 2020

    Haven’t had much much luck with other butter chicken recipes or jar/packet versions. My daughter, who loved butter chicken, has always thought they were just “okay” but this recipe was a hit for the whole family.

  44. Oh my wow ?? made this for first time & was so yum!!! I followed recipe & was just right for my family!! There is enough left over for tomorrow or I’ll freeze for later!! Thank you for sharing a great recipe ?

  45. I cooked Butter Chicken for tea tonight . All I can say is OMG ….. absolutely delicious ?
    I will definitely be making this again .
    It was a lil spicy ….. but it was perfect.
    Hubby loved it

  46. Shelley Skinner June 18, 2020

    Very yummy! Nice and creamy, definitely needed the extra cream in the last half hour. I did less chilli powder for the kids, but would put it all in if it were just me eating it, and would add extra curry powder and tomato paste if it were just me also. I added steamed veggies to the bowls (carrot, broccolli and capsicum). It was a hit with the kids! Great recipe x

  47. I’ve cooked this a few times in the past month I enjoy it so much. I do not like and cannot tolerate spicy hot food, particularly many Indian dishes, so leaving out the chili is all I do and I still love the taste this brings. For me the cream and coriander near the end are a must.

  48. Such a tasty meal & a no fuss recipe. Used a little less tomato paste to suit our taste. This will be on regular rotation!

  49. Sarah Anderson July 22, 2020

    Made a few small changes but the whole family absolutely loved this recipe! I puréed the onion with a little sauce before I put the chicken so it was nice and smooth. Used coconut cream instead of milk just because it’s what was in the cupboard but it made it nice and creamy so didn’t need to add the flour. I also left out the chilli but decided afterwards it needed a little something extra so added a few teaspoons of korma paste. It was AMAZING! Even better the next day.

  50. Margaret McCluskey September 29, 2020

    I made this for dinner tonight, everyone loved it, my husband even said it was the best chicken dish I had ever made. (We’ve been married 45years) ???

  51. I will never buy butter chicken again!!!
    This was so easy to do and having 4 very fussy eaters go back for seconds is an amazing feeling.
    If there was 10 stars… I’d be hitting every single one of them

  52. I made this tonight. I used 1.5 x the spices needed and I didn’t add the cream at the end. I bought the cream ready to use but after taste testing I thought it was great and didn’t want to dull the flavour with the cream. We all really really enjoyed this dish. Very flavoursome and much better than the jars and packets. Will definitely make it again 🙂

  53. Natalie Vlahos October 16, 2020

    I made this last night and it is now on the list of permanent recipes for our family! It was awesome and really hit the spot as I love Indian but with family allergies I needed a recipe with no nuts that still had the taste – this did indeed!
    I didn’t quite have enough tomato paste (just under) but it was delicious anyway! I think I will avoid cream as I had to limit chilli because of the children. Fantastic dish & easy to make!

  54. My son is allergic to coconut, but I would love to try this recipe. Do you think I could substitute the coconut milk with evaporated milk or something else? Thanks in advance!

  55. Before I’d even sat down at the table I heard my fussy husband say “this curry is awesome!” I blended the onion and garlic in my NutriBullet before cooking in the pan with the tomato paste and spices. I also added turmeric and cumin powder. I didn’t add the coconut milk or cream until the very end as I don’t like to add flour to my curry sauces. After taking some curry out to purée for my 8mo (who loved it!) I added some chicken stock powder and brown sugar. I served with steamed rice , broccoli , extra chilli for me, some natural yoghurt and homemade flat bread. Will definitely make again!

  56. Made this today for the first time and whilst it was very nice, it was missing something. I added a spoon of brown sugar but it possibly needed more and I may try more tomato paste next time. My partner liked it but said it just wasn’t as rich as a restaurant butter chicken. Still a tasty and easy dinner though.

  57. Made this tonight for my family, and everyone devoured it!
    A few variations; I doubled the spices in the recipe, used coconut cream instead of coconut milk, and added about a teaspoon of sugar. I also added about 150ml cream in the last 30 mins of cooking.

  58. Just made this today and it was so delicious even my fussy 8year old loved it I used plain flour and left out the chilli, I also used passata and left out the cilantro, and when it had half hour left i put creme fraiche

  59. Made this at the weekend , was away at our static holiday home , goes without saying I have a slow cooker there as well as at home !! Thought I would give this recipe a try , never had butter chicken before but it was so simple and incredibly tasty , put it on in the morning and was able to go off and make the most of our time away , fabulous !!

  60. Jacqui Burton May 1, 2021

    Made this for our family. Delicious! Everyone enjoyed it. I had some space in my large slow cooker (using oven bags) so I made a version with no chicken, I substituted a can of drained chick peas, and a smallish sweet potato cut into about 2cm cubes, the rest was the same ingredients (no cream).

  61. Louise UK ?? May 13, 2021

    Healthy & Tasty!
    Quick to throw together on my lunch break & was ready for the family in the evening. Swirled a tiny bit of single cream through before serving.
    Next time I might experiment with adding spinach before serving plus use fresh ginger.

  62. Made this in the hopes it was almost as good as restaurant quality. Yum! We had to add 2 tablespoons brown sugar as it was a bit tart even though we added the cream. Highly recommend! Definitely saves us a lot of $$ as indian takeaway can be pricey to get regularly. My boys 4 and 8 lovvveed it! Thankyou for another winner! This has been added to our rotation. All I need to learn now is how to make palak paneer, malai kofta and garlic naan ! Lol

  63. Robyn Palmer September 2, 2021

    This is as good as any Resturant Butter Chicken. Some like it spicy but I have one child that doesn’t like spicy so I just put a dash of cooking cream in his bowl.

  64. Just made this recipe, WOW I’m impressed. No more buying it 4 this house. Can’t believe how good it is with only a few ingredients. Thanx Paulene 4 your great recipes

  65. This is one of our favourite meals. I add some stir fry veg and we have it with rice, yummy never any leftovers.

  66. 5 stars
    Love, love, love this recipe ?
    I have made this multiple times as per recipe.
    Used chicken breasts though {prefer them}.
    Only cooked it on low for 3 hours but then my SC runs hot.
    I also add some brown sugar for that perfect balance.
    I didn’t add any cream.
    Served it with my own homemade garlic naan. ?
    Ran out of garam masala but found a recipe online and made my own.

  67. 5 stars
    My last baby (22 lol) has left the nest.
    Butter Chicken is one of her favourite meals, but the rest of the family are not fans of Indian style foods. So it’s normally a takeaway purchase for her!
    I decided to give this a go and OMG!
    She absolutely loved it! stated that was so delicious, so easy, I’m never buying it again!
    Hubby who hates Indian food even had a taste and said it wasn’t bad, from him that means it’s good LOL!

    I gave her the option of adding the cream, she opted not too! enjoyed it without!
    beside that, I only added a punch of the chilli, everything else to the recipe!

    NEXT TIME: We will us thigh instead of breast and she asked if I could double the sauce (she loves the sauce).

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central October 15, 2024

      What great feedback Robyn!
      Loved reading that story 🙂 🙂

  68. 5 stars
    I love this recipe. it’s so easy and tastes heaps better than a jar one!

    All of my fussy eaters (aka kids!!) love this and it’s always on the monthly food menu planner. And it’s budget friendly!

    It’s versatile as well, so can be made as a stir fry if you forget to put it in or just time poor. The longer it can sit the better it tastes.

    110% recommended from my family to yours!

  69. Great recipe, great butter chicken taste!
    Served with jasmine rice.
    A favourite dinner of Mr Teenager.

  70. A great Butter chicken recipe.
    Mr Teenager’s favourite dinner of the week.
    Served with rice and naan bread.

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central March 26, 2025

      When it’s a win with the kids it’s a win for Mum! 🙂

  71. Anita Hill May 26, 2025

    5 stars
    This is better than any take away we have eaten !!!
    The fussy grandkids even come back for seconds .
    It’s on semi regular rotation in our house 🥰

    We LOVE LOVE LOVE IT ! And would give it 100 stars if I could 🌟

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central May 27, 2025

      Now that’s some amazing feedback Anita!! Thank you 🙂 🙂

  72. 5 stars
    Have made this soooo many times. 110% recommend. It’s a family favourite for a family of fussy eaters!

  73. Dianna Harman January 8, 2026

    5 stars
    Delicious meal for all the family!!
    This dish is my son Will’s favourite!
    We had enough leftovers for the next night so bonus for me!!
    I really need to cook this more often!!

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central January 9, 2026

      That’s great to hear Dianna! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback – I so appreciate it 🙂

  74. 5 stars
    Cooked this tonight it was delicious 😋 I did half the chilli will definitely be making this again

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central March 19, 2026

      Thanks Sue for taking the time to come back and leave your lovely feedback! I really appreciate you 🙂

  75. 3 stars
    Made this on Saturday night.Followed the recipe, but added extra garlic and ginger because I like it spicy.YUM,will definitely be making this again

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central April 21, 2026

      Thank you so much Dale for taking the time to leave your fabulous review! 🙂

  76. 5 stars
    I use this recipe regularly. great for lactose intolerance. a hit with all the family

    1. Paulene @ Slow Cooker Central May 1, 2026

      That’s great to hear Davlyn! Thanks so much for leaving your fab 5-star feedback 🙂

4.80 from 10 votes (1 rating without comment)

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