This Indian butter chicken slow cooker recipe makes the most delicious Indian butter chicken, and it’s easily as good as what you’d hope for at a restaurant. It’s a rich and creamy dish with chicken that pairs so well with any kind of rice or even fries if you prefer. If you’re in the mood for Indian cuisine, this isn’t a recipe you want to miss!
Although chicken thighs are perfect for this recipe because they’re so succulent and harder to dry out, chicken breast would definitely work if that’s your preference. Since the chicken slow cooks in liquid, it won’t dry out if you go slightly over the cooking time.
If you enjoy this dish, you might also like to try an Indian omelet or Indian chicken pasta salad recipe. Another tasty idea is this Indian ground beef salad with fresh tomatoes.
Table of Contents
Indian Butter Chicken Ingredients
Along with the chicken thigh pieces, you will need the following:
- Chicken stock: the basis of the sauce
- Curry powder: use your favorite brand or blend
- Sweet onion and garlic: to add an aromatic flavor
- Ginger: freshly grated fresh ginger is best
- Turmeric: for flavor
- Garam masala: a versatile Indian spice
- Salt and pepper: to season the dish
- Basmati rice: feel free to substitute naan bread or even fries if you prefer
- Heavy cream: for richness
- Lime juice: always used freshly squeezed
- Tomato paste: one small can
- Brown sugar: for a sweet flavor
Butter Chicken Variations
- Feel free to substitute artificial sweetener for the light brown sugar.
- Use chicken breast if you prefer or even extra-firm tofu for a vegetarian version (swap the chicken stock for veggie stock in that case).
- Swap the sweet onion for yellow onion.
- Spice the dish up with some hot red pepper flakes or a dash of hot sauce.
What to Serve with Indian Butter Chicken
Basmati rice is both perfect and traditional, or you could partner it with naan bread, roti or paratha. Some roasted vegetables or a salad would also be good. If you’re feeding a crowd, you might like to make several sides including vegetables, some kind of salad and a selection of Indian breads and rice dishes, and serve it all buffet style. I love cilantro (UK: fresh coriander) with mine and recommend it for a pop of green and a complementary flavor.
Is Indian Butter Chicken Keto?
The ingredients in this Indian butter chicken slow cooker recipe are all keto friendly with the exception of the brown sugar and the basmati rice. You can swap the brown sugar for brown Swerve and the basmati for cauliflower rice if you want this to be a low carb dish.
How to Store Leftover Butter Chicken
Put your leftovers in an airtight container and refrigerate them. Eat within 3 to 4 days. You can also freeze butter chicken but don’t be surprised if the sauce separates upon thawing and the chicken texture changes slightly. You can reheat Indian butter chicken in the microwave or in a pan on the stove.
Indian Butter Chicken Slow Cooker Recipe
This tasty, creamy butter chicken recipe couldn’t be simpler! It’s a breeze to make and you can leave it alone all afternoon and let the slow cooker do all the work. Cook some basmati rice when the butter chicken recipe is just about done and then serve together, perhaps with some vegetables on the side.
- Prep Time: 20 Minutes
- Cook Time: 4 Hours
- Total Time: 4 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients
- ½ cup (125ml) chicken stock
- 2 teaspoons Indian curry powder
- ½ diced sweet onion
- 3 minced garlic cloves
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup (210g) uncooked basmati rice
- 2 pounds (1kg) boneless skinless chicken thighs, in 1-inch (2½-cm) cubes
- ½ cup (125ml) heavy cream (double cream)
- 6 ounces (170g) tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1½ teaspoons brown sugar
Instructions
- Whisk the chicken stock with the curry powder, turmeric, tomato paste, garam masala, salt, and black pepper.
- Put the chicken, onion, ginger, and garlic in a 4-quart slow cooker and add the chicken stock mixture.
- Cover and cook on low for 4 hours.
- Cook the rice according to the instructions on the package in 2 cups (500ml) water.
- Stir the cream, brown sugar and lime juice, along with some salt and pepper in the chicken mixture.
- Serve the butter chicken right away with the basmati rice.
Notes
I used this 4-quart crockpot to make this recipe.
You can swap the brown sugar for your preferred artificial sweetener if you prefer (brown Swerve is great!)
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