Butter Chicken Recipe (Murgh Makhani) - Pai's Kitchen! 

HELLO LOVELY VIEWERS! Important Note: If you have questions about this recipe, you can post it here for the community to answer. But if you want to ask me, please get in touch via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or my website (all links are in the description above). If you leave questions in the comments I may not see them due to the large volume of comments I receive across the hundreds of videos on this channel. Also, before sending on any questions be sure to read the written recipe on the website as I often add extra tips and notes not covered in the video. Thank you for watching!

Hey Pai, you just got a mention by Mandy (Souped Up Recipes) on her Chicken and Broccoli video. She was very complimentary of you and your channel. She's a relatively new, Chinese home cook who's absolutely adorable. You two, along with Chef John at Food Wishes, are my favorite RU-vid foodies.

Pai, I love your cheerful character when you cook, I swear I can just turn on your channel every time I cook, so vibrant and happy :D

I made this recipe, and the taste exactly when I ate in India, my kids love it!! Thank you for the great recipe.

Best Non-Punjabi rendition for Butter chicken! I love how you didn’t miss the Kasturi methi!

Pai, I just love everything about you; your smile, your knowledge, the way you teach, and how encouraged I feel after watching you cook anything and everything.

Yum!! Always loved butter chicken but always thought it was too complicated to try and make. After watching your tutorial I think I can try it! Thanks Pai!

OMG. I'm really drooling over this one. That looks and sounds so good.

Pailin, Like your enthusiasm and energy when you cook. Thank you for your explanation on the Indian spices and the cooking technique for this dish. Chicken thighs are my favorite because it is very moist.

Thank you for celebrating the Asian culture by preparing another Indian dish. Your recipe had a secret most cooks won't tell - "Kasuri Methi" / Dried fenugreek powder. I use only 1 tsp in any curry I prepare and it distinctly changes the flavour of any curry without ever being known . It changes the flavour of any curry and it's pretty cheap. The reason why I subscribed you was because of the simplest way you teach just anything with adequate information wherever necessary. Thanks a lot. I will tell you another secret to give it a punch. Burn a coal ,put it in a small metal bowl , pour a tsp of clarified butter on the burning coal and it will smoke out , just place this smoke on the prepared butter chicken curry for a minute and cover the lid (make sure that the curry and the metal bowl are separated and that the coal doesn't mix in the curry . This will give a smoky flavour to the curry and yeah , add in cinnamon powder in the marinade ,that's another secret most people don't know about

I love your mood and your emotional expresions, all of them. Congrats and thank you for your recipes.

Put those onions too with the chicken in the oven so they can caramelize and get sweet naturally and than puree them with the tomatoes, ginger and garlic. That will eliminate the need for adding brown sugar. We Indians never add sugar, we let the onions bring sweetness to the party.

Hi, Pailin! I have made this for our dinner last night. Our family loves Butter Chicken and we always order this from our fave restaurant. The list of ingredients is very long but it's not really hard to cook. Five stars! Very very delicious! I have added fresh cilantro before serving! So perfect with basmati rice! Very authentic tasting! Thank you for posting!

I've never had this dish before but it kind of makes me want to try it now that I know what's in it lol. I love how accessible you make these dishes to those of us who are unfamiliar with new culture's foods.

Probably one of the best Butter Chicken recipes online, definitely the best one not made by an Indian chef, and better than even some Indian videos. I won't give you any suggestions! You are entitled to be the boss of your own recipe. You nailed all the authentic ingredients though, especially the dried fenugreek.

A couple of things about the chicken part, the yoghurt should be hung in a cloth to separate the water so that it's concentrated. The other thing you missed out is a bit of mustard oil in the marinade, this is very essential for a good tandoori chicken. The last thing is you can add half a teaspoon of carom seeds and dried fenugreek leaves crushed. Oh, and a bit of lemon juice, that's important too. That would be a complete tandoori masala :) For the "curry" bit you should fry your ginger garlic first, once the rawness has completely gone, then add half a cup of yoghurt with additional spices (coriander seed powder, cumin seed powder, turmeric powder, red chilly powder of choice, etc but no garam masala yet). The oil must separate completely after the yoghurt is cooked. Then you add your tomato puree. This sequence is standard fare in almost all Indian cooking. Different dishes change the order around but they all are separated in a sequence. After all this simmers for a bit, add the grilled chicken, salt, a tiny bit of nutmeg grated and a tiny bit of mace, and some sugar. Simmer for a bit and then a little garam masala, simmer again and then add the fenugreek dry leaf crushed. For restaurant quality, add a drop of "kewra" essence and simmer for a few mins. Be very careful with Kewra essence, not more than a drop, if it's not a concentrate and it's kwera water version, half a teaspoon is good, it's a very subtle thing. You got most of it right. There is no one way to do it; everybody does it slightly differently. This recipe doesn't need onions, that would make it more of a regular curry, the thing about butter chicken is the tomato korma thing. But if you do add onions you must caramelize the onions by frying between the ginger/garlic and yoghurt stage. I just described one of my versions, I hope you don't mind :) Love your channel, I've learned a lot for you, I love when the host explains things well. A trick to make this recipe insanely good is to smoke it. Burn a two inch piece of coal to the point is glowing red inside, then place it on the fully cooked curry directly and pour two tablespoons of ghee or butter over the coal directly, it'll start to smoke, cover it immediately with an airtight lid, put a weight on it and let it sit for 20 mins. Remove the coal before serving, mix the oil in well with the gravy :) Another thing you can do to increase the richness of the gravy beside cream is to put in some smooth cashew paste between the yoghurt and tomato puree. Best to soak the whole cashews, a fist full will do, in hot water before chopping and then grind it to a paste. Apologies about the long post; but there's there are endless options :)

you should've seen my face when I saw this in queue. This is my favorite Indian Dish!

As an Indian who lacks ideas on what to cook for dinner, I often find ideas off your channel and this time... Hands down, you cooked a dish from my culture that I don't know how to cook it myself so, thank you for sharing the recipe.

I love Indian food!!!

I made this tonight and it is unbelievable delicious. I have tried different recipes but they were not the taste I was after so I gave up until I found hot thai kitchen's recipe. Thank you so much for making my day. It will definitely be my weekly meal menu.

I should say you did justice to the dish.. 👌🏻

My favorite Indian dish! I too think it must be complicated!!! Thanks for sharing!! Can’t wait to try it in my kitchen!!

The best butter chicken recepy I came across. Thank you! You also have the most cheerful and positive personality. Very enjoyable! 😊

I’ve made this around four times. I do caramelize the onions though. It’s the best butter chicken I’ve ever had and friends agree. It takes a bit of time but it’s outstanding

I am Indian and you did complete justice!!! Loved it

Absolutely the best Butter Chicken I have had! Thank you for this and all of your recipes.

I love your imperfect (only a little) presentations Pailin, little mistakes make your videos so much more relatable than clean over edited factory output.

Everyone has it own recipe, but when I do chicken tikka masala or butter chicken I marinate the chicken with fennel seeds, it's delicious and nobody (in Chile) can tell what's that secret flavor

I am ur great fan pailin.....plz cook more Indian dishes.....lots of love from India ❤❤❤❤❤❤

Broiling chicken and saving the juices is brilliant. Will use in my other chicken recipes.

And she's back!!!!! Im so happy :) will try this one

Pai, thank you very much for the great recipe. My children love butter chicken with naan as they have become our weekly or biweekly dinner. Much is appreciated!

Well done!! As a chef from India I liked the way of your cooking,wonderful..when we make the better chicken we add usually the cashew nut paste also,,but you simplified it ,great job

You are extremely inspiring, i have been watching your shows this month and adapting some of your ingredients and technique at home, cheers

This spicy and creamy Indian dish is lovely. Though a little complicated with the various spices, I think I'm gonna try it someday.

yummy recipe!! thanks pai and congrats for 500K subs!

One of my favorite too . Looks amazing thanks for the recipe

Your recipes are always on point! I like'em all!

Your love of cooking is really infectious! Love your show and your recipes. We love Thai cuisine. My younger daughter and I have been trying out your recipes, especially chicken ones for a while. Last week we made pork dumplings following your recipe and it came out so well- no more buying dumplings! Being a Indian dad who loves cooking, I was pleasantly surprised to see you cooking Butter Chicken! I have been making this dish for my two daughters from scratch, for years and yes, like most Indians households I make my own Garam masala too! I guess no two Indian families have the same Garam masala, it’s as unique as the finger prints 😂. I really liked your recipe a lot … Oh! Well, it’s hard to admit, but much better than mine! I really liked the idea of adding extra water to the pan to recover the drippings for the gravy. And adding Kasuri methi! I have a jar full of it in my painterly … why didn’t I think of it, it would be delicious! Yes! A+ for pronouncing ‘Garam masala’, ‘Kashmiri Mitch’ and ‘Kasuri Methi’ … like a typical North Indian! Oh, well after all it’s a North Indian dish 😂 Thank you, itching to try your ideas into my favorite dish to cook! Thank You ❤ Happy Holidays, all!

Made it last night. Super delicious!! Thank you, Pai : )

Pai, you are the sweetest Asian cook with the greatest personality going on RU-vid. Thanks for the wonderful recipe and am excited to try it!

Super delish! It came out to be mild to moderately spicey with all the cayenne. Yum!

Wow this is seriously delicious! I’ve been cooking various Indian curries for many years, but butter chicken always eluded me. I tried recipe after recipe, disappointed every time... until now! This is like the rich, saucy, flavorful butter chicken I’ve had in good Indian restaurants. Try this and you’ll see!

Looking very tastey like the way you prepare it. Will try it. Thanks for sharing.

I trust your recipes more than the others'. You are a great chef.

Thank you pai for such a great recipe! You teach so well 😊

I love this...and what a pleasant and fun video to watch...I have to make this....Thank you!

Chef... very impressive ! Thank you for your teachings ... many steps...well explained & executed to provide me confidence that I can actually do & have success! You’re an 😇🙏Cooking class tour please ! 😍😍😍

Hi Ms. Pai! So thankful that I learned from you! I did it! My butter chicken! Thank you!

You made the process look so easy, finally I can gather some courage to cook this dish. I love love love this butter chicken dish

Hey Palin, you did an awesome job with this dish as always.

nice recipe...covers all the bases of a good butter chicken

Thank you for sharing this recipe! I have made it for today's dinner and it came out delicious! I am having it with rice now 😋😋

I was waiting for a splash of fish sauce just because lol looks amazing as always!!

Pai, for me you are the best, I love the way you describe everything. Never ever stop :) I love all of your recipes .... Greeting from Jakarta

Tried it. Really, really delicious! Thank you.

Made this 3 times. Absolutely wonderful!!!

I just made this lovely dish tonight it was a hit thank you so much for this recipe Pai!❤❤❤❤❤

Thank you so much!!! I can’t wait to make this!!! :) I’m Thai, too, so I definitely love a lot of spice ;)

Greetings from Toronto. I have made this dish several times now . It's a very popular dish for my family and our friends. Your a very good chef with great instructions . Thank you .

Just made it tonight, and it is delicious!

Yum 😋 One thing I would like to mention, dried tarragon can also be added if fenugreek leaves aren’t available. It’s definitely not the perfect replacement but it’s the closest one. I have tried it. 🙂

Everybody loves the butter chicken and loved how you prepared the dish. Just wanted to let you know that we r not using whipping cream, we r using fresh cream, and it's thicker, ... Love your videos. Love from India.

Thank you very much, always wanted to try to cook this.

Love ur knowledge on Indian spices

Instant love ... been looking for a recipe ... now that you have one, i have one i can trust to be yummy!! Whoop Whoop!!

Pai, this was a very good video. I really appreciated your tips, such as adding water to the pan when roasting. I usually roast Italian sausage links and the juice from the links burn and smell up the whole place, so next time I plan to add some water to help.

You are killing me! Everything you cook looks sooooo delicious!!! I'm dying!🤤🤤🤤🤤

So much splash going on this episode, yet so satisfying 😁🙌

Wow, u really added an extra dimension to the classic dish !!! Liked the broiling part.... Thx

Thank you Pailin , I love watching your channel So pleasant to watch you. Tonight I tried to cook your Thai fried banana, it was delicious. Thank you again. God bless you. ♥️🙏🏼

Wow this looks so amazing.. gonna try that next week!

Great explanations. Thanks for making this vid!

I have to say it again. I love it. the perfekt butter Chicken. Made this recipe the 5th time. Me and my family love it!!. Greetings from GERMANY!!

i think this is your best vid yet, i want this curry !

I tried to make one 7 yrs ago, following instructions from some authentic indian chef, who asked to even use fresg tomato. But the result was mehh. (Maybe i was not as skilled in cooking as nowadays?) But i just made this today for dinner.. and even though i forgot to grill the chicken (simply throw it to the sauce:p ) and forgot to blend the onion ginger garlic.. hence the appearance is not as smooth and beautiful.. , and i dont have fenugreek leaves... but despite all that, the taste was perrrfecttt!! Thank you Pai!!! I will definitely keep this!

Simple n yummy butter chicken tq I'm going to try it

Looks fantastic. I just finished watching and going to shop to get ingredients.

Looking Absolutely Delicious, Thank You!

Yes!!!!! We have to try cooking this!

you nailed butter chicken....love from India 🥰

*Nice to see Pai cooks Indian dish.*

I love how u cook ,inspired me to cook more in the house

Hi Pai. I substituted cream with yogurt and used whole ingredients for garam masala instead of powdered one. Also made saffron rice. The contrast of bright yellow rice and the orange butter chicken is really amazing.

Thanks for making this dish!! Being Indian even I do not know how to make it. You can also make it with paneer. Very authentic!!

If you add few cashew nuts along with puree, the sauce becomes even more delicious ☺️☺️☺️ ,also I love seeing n trying all your recipes❤️

That's really nice, so much like how we Indians make it! You can also try adding honey instead of sugar and if you add some nutmeg, it'll give a unique flavor

I love this dish. Goes on my list!

Thanks Pai for making another Indian dish!! ❤️❤️

Made this today. Loved it.

Hi!!! Thanks you made this recipe easy!!! Gonna try it soon!!!

But where's the fish sauce? ;-) Seriously, this looks amazing. I'll have to fix this for my girlfriend who loves butter chicken. Love not only your recipes and your expert tips but also your delightful sense of humor. Buckets-o-fun!

Very great recipe, the best on RU-vid ❤️🙏.... I would skip the sugar... not one of those who add sugar on a tomato based dish, thats will keep the natural acidity from the tomatoes and no need for the lemon 👍🏻👍🏻

You did a wonderful job with this - it looks so delicious! Big hugs from Canada!

3:26 the way you said ‘ok’ was so cute. I’m a recent subscriber and really enjoy that you give recipes for different cultures. Although buying all these spices and sauces is hitting my wallet hard. 😭😂😋

So OK! I just today found you! I’m an not at all Asian, not even one iota! I am almost pure Acadian/Cajun French descent. I am from and still live in southeast Louisiana. But! I do some traveling and love all kinds of Asian foods! I just a few years ago had my first Thai food! I was visiting my daughter and her family in Santa Barbara, CA and she took me to a Thai restaurant. OMG! She ordered for me and everything was so good and fresh tasting. I am loving this recipe so I will try it. Who is your favorite Southern cook/chef? Mine is the Cajun Ninja and Charlie Andrews on You Tube. And of course I love Paula Deen! And now you are on my favorite list! You explain so well!

That is a great recipe! Thank you.

Will cook... will overeat.. i love it!

Lovely, delicious dish. You are an excellent teacher and, I'll admit, I really like the bloopers at the end of the video. LOL!

always so methodical wow!