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This Butter Chicken with Cilantro will knock your socks off! In 2009, Mark taught a class in India, and so we added a few days of vacation. We visited our friends Ed and Greta in Hyderabad and then flew on to Bangalore (Bengaluru) for the remainder of the week. Our love of flavorful, spicy food made every day a culinary adventure. Years later, to our surprise, we discovered a fantastic butter chicken at Essex, a restaurant just a few blocks from our condo in Charlotte. After countless orders, we finally decided to try making it at home. If you love Indian food, you have to give this a try.

Butter Chicken with Cilantro Recipe

Servings: 8
Calories per: 447*
Active Time: 15 min
Total Time: 1 hr 15 min
Difficulty: Easy

WHAT YOU NEED	WHAT TO DO	WHY
	Place oven rack just below center; preheat to 350°F Convection (verify with an oven thermometer).	Internal oven thermostats are often improperly calibrated.
1 cup yogurt, plain whole milk 3 ounces (¼ cup) tomato paste 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 2 ounces yellow onion, chopped 1 ounce (4 cloves) garlic, crushed ¼ ounce ginger root, sliced 1 tablespoon fine sea salt 1 tablespoon cumin, ground 2 teaspoons onion powder 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 1 teaspoon cayenne 1 teaspoon turmeric, ground 1 teaspoon ground black pepper 1 teaspoon coriander, ground 1 teaspoon cardamom, ground ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ground ⅛ teaspoon cloves, ground ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg, ground	Add all to a blender or food processor. Purée until smooth (~1 minute); scrape into a 5-quart terra cotta or 4-quart enameled cast iron Dutch oven. Alternatively, add to a slow cooker with a capacity of at least 3-quarts.	Yogurt acts as a meat tenderizer. Placing wet ingredients close to the blades helps pull in the onion, garlic, and ginger. Slicing ginger across the grain prevents long fibers in the sauce.
2 pounds chicken thighs, boneless, skinless, trimmed of excess fat and cut into bite-sized pieces	Add chicken to the yogurt mixture; fold in to coat evenly. Cover and bake/cook until the chicken is done (30-40 minutes). Meanwhile…	Thighs produce a silkier texture than chicken breasts, which tend to dry out.
2 tablespoons heavy cream 2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped Indian bread, such as Na’an	Stir in cream and butter just before serving. Sprinkle cilantro attractively over each serving. Add 1 piece of na’an for dipping in the sauce.	Cream thickens the sauce and rounds out the flavor. Fresh cilantro adds an earthy freshness. *Na’an is included in calorie calculations.