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Butter Chicken Thermomix Skinnymixers

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Butter Chicken also known as Murgh Makhani, this popular dish needs no introduction. While this Butter Chicken may be a decadent treat, it is a healthier Thermomix alternative to take-away versions and well worth the effort. After releasing this recipe, the Skinnymixers Facebook Group begged me to put out my first cookbook ‘A Little Taste of India’ – available in the Skinnymixers Shop or Apple Books.

This viral Butter Chicken Thermomix recipe took the Thermomix Community by storm in 2014 and has been the top Skinnymixers recipe every year since. Don’t be turned off by the length of this recipe – it is written in simple step by step instructions to help even a new user of the Thermomix TM6 TM5 TM31/Bellini / Smith and Noble.

A Little Taste of India Cookbook Skinnymixers
My first Thermomix Cookbook ‘A Little Taste of India’ sold 5,000 copies on launch.

My Butter Chicken Thermomix recipe is mild for those who are sensitive to spice and children seem to love it. One of the ‘must make’ Thermomix recipes, it is easy to follow and will definitely impress.

Naturally gluten free and there are instructions to make it dairy free / vegetarian / keto / LCHF /low fodmap friendly below.

BEFORE YOU START – TIPS FOR THE BEST BUTTER CHICKEN

  • Leave yourself enough time the first time you make it – some beginners take 90 min. Enjoy the process, it isn’t hard or complicated!
  • Check that your Apple Cider Vinegar isn’t double strength. Not all apple cider vinegars are equal in taste, I recommend using Braggs ACV with the mother.
  • Using Pepper Free Garam Marsala helps keep this dish very mild. If you don’t mind a little spice, using one with pepper is fine.
  • Don’t use a tea bag or device to hold your whole spices together. The flavour will be impacted and it can damage your machine.
  • Use fresh spices! You can find all of these spices in all major supermarkets. I prefer to get my spices from Grandma’s Pantry, as they are fresher, gluten free & very high quality.
  • The food colouring, nut meal & honey are optional. If you aren’t used to a thick/creamy sweeter butter chicken then leave any of these out to suit your preference.

If you make this recipe, snap a pic and hashtag it #skinnymixers — We love to see your creations on Instagram & Facebook!

Slow Cooker Method

This recipe makes a lot of sauce. When you transfer this thermomix recipe to the slow cooker, for the best results you double the marinade & chicken but leave the sauce amount the same.

  1. Make the sauce and transfer to the slow cooker with the marinated chicken in Step 10.
  2. Stir through the nuts and cream at the end.

Skinnymixers Butter Chicken in the Slow Cooker

What to serve with your Butter Chicken?

You could serve your Butter Chicken with rice or cauliflower rice. If you are looking for standout recipes to wow your guests and tastebuds – you can’t go past the Garlic, Cheese & Spinach Naan, skinnymixer’s Jeweled Coconut Rice, Vegetarian Biryani or Indian Cauliflower Rice.

Thermomix Naan Bread Recipe
The Thermomumma Guest Recipe for Garlic, Cheese & Spinach Naan Bread is the perfect side dish for the Skinnymixers Butter Chicken
Indian Rice Thermomix Recipe for Biryani
The Vegetarian variation of the Biryani from the cookbook A Little Taste of India – takes this to the next level.

This recipe features in the Thermomix cookbook ‘A Little Taste of India’. Other standout recipes from this cookbook include:

FREE MEAL PLANNER DOWNLOAD: Are you on our Skinnymixers Newsletter? Have all of our latest Thermomix recipes delivered to your Inbox – http://bit.ly/SkinnyNews

Skinnymixers Butter Chicken

skinnymixer's Butter Chicken

Voted as the Best Butter Chicken Thermomix Recipe, you will also find this recipe in the Skinnymixers Cookbook A Little Taste of India. You can access the Butter Chicken FAQ's here.
4.95 from 69 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Indian
Keyword: Thermomix Recipe
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings: 6
Calories: 672kcal

Ingredients

  • 700 g chicken breast - diced
  • 150 g cashews - or almonds, raw (optional - omit for nut free)
  • 300 g cream - or coconut cream
  • 50 g honey
  • 1 bunch fresh coriander - chopped

Marinade:-

  • ½ Tbsp salt
  • ¼-½ tsp chilli powder
  • 1 tsp garam masala
  • Optional: 1 tsp liquid tandoori colouring OR ¼ tsp red food colouring and 2 drops of yellow food colouring
  • 10 g fresh ginger
  • 1 clove garlic - peeled
  • 15 g apple cider vinegar

Tomato paste:-

  • 2 clove garlic
  • 10 g fresh ginger
  • 30 g apple cider vinegar
  • 400 g tin of Ardmona chopped tomatoes
  • 100 g tomato paste

Gravy:-

  • 200 g brown onions - peeled, halved
  • 125 g butter
  • 1 stick cinnamon
  • 3 cloves
  • 5 cardamom pods - bruised
  • 1 star anise
  • 1 tsp cumin powder
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp garam masala - pepper free

Instructions

  • Add nuts to mixer bowl, mill 10 sec/speed 9/MC on. Set aside.
  • Without washing the bowl, (change to blunt blades for bellini and use speed 1 instead of reverse) add marinade ingredients to mixer bowl. Blend for 2 sec/speed 9/MC on. Scrape bowl down and repeat 3 times.
  • Add the chicken and stir through marinade for 10 sec/speed 2/reverse/MC on. Scrape mixer bowl out completely, set aside in a separate bowl to allow chicken to marinate.
  • Without washing the bowl, add tomato paste ingredients to mixer bowl. Blend 1 min/speed 8/MC on. Set tomato paste aside in a separate bowl again.
  • Without washing the bowl, add onions to mixer bowl and chop 5 sec/speed 5/MC on. Scrape bowl down.
  • Add 60 g or 2.1 oz butter to mixer bowl, cook 10 min/100°C or 212°F/speed 2/butterfly/MC on.
  • Add remaining butter (65 g or 2.3 oz), cinnamon, whole cloves, cardamom, star anise, cumin and paprika to mixer bowl.
  • Cook 5 min/100°C or 212°F/slowest speed/reverse/butterfly/MC on.
  • Add reserved tomato paste mixture, garam masala and 2 tsp salt to mixer bowl. Cook for 4 min/steaming temperature/slowest speed/reverse/butterfly/MC on.
  • Add reserved marinated chicken mixture to mixer bowl. Cook for 12 min/100°C or 212°F/slowest speed/reverse/butterfly/MC on.
  • Add reserved nut meal, cream and honey to mixer bowl. Cook for 4 min/100°C or 212°F/slowest speed/reverse/butterfly/MC on. While cooking, use your spatula to stir the curry occasionally.
  • Pour curry into an insulated server, remove whole spices, stir through chopped coriander and let it sit covered for 10 min.

Notes

Original Recipe: If you want to add fenugreek, its 1 tsp at step 7.
Dairy Free: Use coconut cream & 100 g of oil.
Keto / LCHF: Omit honey & nuts or use macadamias/almonds.
Low Fodmap: Replace the garlic with a little garlic infused olive oil & use the green part of leeks to replace the onions. Omit the nuts & use Rice Malt Syrup instead of honey.
Vegetarian: Replace Chicken with vegetables such as pumpkin, cauliflower and beans and cook until tender. You can also add some drained tinned chickpeas when adding the cream & honey.
Important note: DO NOT increase the quantities of any ingredients - this will avoid overloading your mixer. Unless you are cooking chicken on the stovetop or slow cooker.
This is one of our most popular healthy thermomix recipes.
Bellini: Do not use the butterfly / mixing tool.
Use the blunt blade, speed 1, chop the meat in 3-4cm cubes or wide strips. After the first 5 mins or so of cooking stop the machine and release the meat that has got tangled around the blade. Be sure to not overcook.
Tried this recipe?Mention @skinnymixer or tag #skinnymixers!

Nutrition

Calories: 672kcal | Carbohydrates: 19.8g | Protein: 34.6g | Fat: 49.4g | Saturated Fat: 25.4g | Sodium: 1370mg | Sugar: 15.1g

Frequently Asked Butter Chicken Recipe Questions

Can I use Ground Spices?

  • 1 tsp ground ginger powder
  • 2 pinches of cardamon powder or 1 tsp cardamon seeds
  • 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon powder
  • a pinch of the clove

How can I remove the spices easily?

  • As you are slowly pouring the Butter Chicken into the thermal server – using a silicone spatula you can usually find a few easy spices, then use it to look for the rest prior to adding the coriander.

Can I add more Chicken?

  • The Butter Chicken recipe makes a lot of sauce, but the chicken is at maximum weight capacity. If you need to make more we recommend cooking on the stovetop or slow cooker (see Slow Cooker Tips below). Some Skinnies like to freeze the extra sauce for a quick meal or use it for butter chicken pizza or even Butter Chicken Kievs!

Why is there Food Colouring in the recipe?

  • The food colouring can be left out for those who don’t like to use it, BUT a little secret…this is how the Indian take-away shops get their butter chicken to look that vibrant (unnatural) red colour! (You can find proper tandoori colouring at Indian grocers/supermarkets)

What is the Super Skinny version of the Butter Chicken?

Butter Chicken Recipe FAQ Page

Skinnymixers Butter Chicken Pin

  1. omg, just made this for the first time. Was a little skeptical after all the hype…. But it was amazing!!!!! Worth all the hype and well worth the spice investment!! What a great dish! Yum yum yum

  2. So many people rave about this recipe and they are right too. I will no longer eat butter chicken take away. This dish is simply divine and although the recipe looks daunting, it’s quite simple. You also don’t get that “bleugh” feeling you get after eating take always. Thank you Nik for sharing this deliciousness

  3. I was a bit intimidated by how much was involved with this recipe but it was so worth it!! I’m so proud of myself for making a curry from scratch for the first time! This was soooo yummy and even better when we ate it two days later for lunch!!

  4. Brilliant recipe, flavour is amazing!! I always use extra chicken to what the recipe states as there is so much sauce, I just transfer it to a saucepan to finish cooking rather than over load the TMX.

  5. OMG this is such an awesome recipe. I was a little daunted the first time I made it as I thought it looked difficult. I kept the ingredients together for each step. It was easy to make and easier each time I make it.
    Every person I have made it for is in awe and loves it.
    Fab fab fab 😀😀😀

  6. This is literally THE BEST butter chicken recipe I have EVER made. It was absolutely Devine. 10/10 from me!!!!

  7. The butter chicken is absolutely amazing!!! After making it P2 compliant I thought that it couldn’t get much better… I was wrong! It’s so delicious and with the nuts in it, it’s very filling.
    My partner said it was the best butter chicken he had ever had!

  8. Thank you! Made this for the first time and my family ADORED it! I underestimated how much time it would all take, but I also made the garlic, cheese and spinach naan bread as well which I did whilst the other parts were cooking so I fed them that first! They all raved about it – even my ASD son who normally has issues trying new foods! I will be making this on the weekends instead of serving dinner at 8.30pm! 🙂

  9. My 17 year old made this last night – first meal he has made in the thermomix – big success !!! Always a family favourite around here, thanks so much for such great recipes !

    1. Hi Danni

      To complete this meal in your slow cooker do the following:

      Marinate chicken
      Make sauce
      Add both to slow cooker, you can increase chicken to 2-2.5kg
      Add cream and nuts before serving.
      Thighs 6-8 hours on low
      Breasts 3-4 hours on low.

      Information from slow cooker file on skinnymixers Facebook group.

  10. I Made this last night and although I mixed myself up and added the almond meal to the chicken marinade it turned out lovely. Will do my own little tweaks in future but that is just personal preference. Really lovely recipe!!! Thank you 😉

  11. The only person who doesn’t love this recipe is our local indian takeaway. So great to make authentic tasting curry at home, and to know exactly what’s in it! Not sickly sweet like some butter chicken can be, a real winner!

  12. this was my first skinnymixers recipe and it was a hit with the kids! i found it a bit sweet so have since made it with less honey and it hit the spot.
    BTW i am of indian origin and this tasted very authentic!
    well done skinny mixers. i LOVE your recipes!

  13. Amazing! I had seen the reviews and wanted to make this for ages, finally got around to it and WOW soooo yummy! Served with steamed rice and the Garlic, cheese and spinach Naan bread guest recipe on here. Have made twice now, guests loved it! Will be a regular in our house thank you 🙂

  14. Delicious! I used Nutlex and coconut cream to make it dairy free, and seperately steamed carrot, broccoli and cauliflower. Amazing! Kids devoured it too.

  15. This recipe is simply the best! My kids love it and now its our favourite. The flavours, fresheness and healthy are each day more frequent in our house thanks to you Nikalene!!!!

  16. So we have made this 3 times and everyone loves it. Had family over on the weekend and even fussy eater ate it, and asked when we go camping can I make it for them. So its a winner. thanks for a winnimg recipe

  17. Butter chicken was my daughter’s favorite dish but 2 months ago she decided to become a vegetarian. It’s her 21st birthday in a couple of days and I thought I would try to make her “butter” vegetables. Nikalene – if I used veggies such as cauliflower, potatoes, peas, when do you think I should add them to the sauce, or any other pointers?
    Thanks for all your time and hard work.. Love your recipes and your website (thanks Michael).

  18. Yum, a favourite and regular in our house. My 2.5 year old loves this, he always has seconds and it’s hubby’s favourite thermie recipe.

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