Quick 20-minute butter chicken is creamy and packed full of flavor. It’s simplified and cooked all in one pan and goes great with a side of rice or naan! 

20 Minute Butter Chicken

Ever since moving to Alexandria, Virginia we’ve been in luck with all the Indian, Pakistani, and Aghani restaurants around us. We love the cuisine because it’s loaded with flavor and spice and is great for cold nights. One dish we keep going back for is the butter chicken. The spicy creaminess is unforgettable and always makes us go back for more!

I’ve been experimenting with my own version of home-made butter chicken over the past few weeks and I’ve finally found the perfect one. This simple no-fuss one pan butter chicken is just perfect. It’s simplified and does not require a whole bunch of ingredients, yet it’s packed with just the right amount of spice.

 

4.78 from 343 votes

Easy 20 Minute Butter Chicken

By: Layla
Quick 20-minute butter chicken is creamy and packed full of flavor. It's simplified and cooked all in one pan and goes great with a side of rice or naan! 
Prep5 minutes
Cook15 minutes
Total20 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients 

  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, finely minced or grated (or use paste)
  • 2-3 cloves garlic, finely minced or crushed
  • 1 ½ pounds about 2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into ¾-inch chunks
  • 4 tablespoons tomato paste, or 8 oz can of tomato sauce
  • 1 tablespoon garam masala
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder, or paprika, adjust to taste
  • 1 teaspoon Fenugreek, I use powder, but seeds or mustard seeds can be used too, optional*
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1 cup heavy cream, sub for half & half or yogurt for low fat
  • Hot cooked rice and naan for serving

Instructions 

  • Heat a large skillet or medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the oil, butter, and onions and cook onions down until lightly golden, about 3-4 minutes. Add ginger and garlic and let cook for 30 seconds, stirring so it doesn’t burn.

  • Add the chicken, tomato paste, and spices. Cook for 5-6 minutes or until everything is cooked through.

  • Add the heavy cream and simmer for 8-10 minutes stirring occasionally. Serve over Basmati rice or with naan.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving, Calories: 491kcal, Carbohydrates: 9g, Protein: 39g, Fat: 33g, Saturated Fat: 17g, Cholesterol: 198mg, Sodium: 963mg, Potassium: 895mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 1405IU, Vitamin C: 8mg, Calcium: 67mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

like this recipe? Rate & Comment below!

 



You May Also Like

Leave a Reply to Phil Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




The maximum upload file size: 512 MB. You can upload: image, audio, video, document, spreadsheet, interactive, text, archive, code, other. Links to YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and other services inserted in the comment text will be automatically embedded. Drop file here

340 Comments

  1. Very pleased! I’ve made the long version (another recipe) and this brings it back into regular rotation as it is super reasonable to carry out and delicious!

    1. I use raw chicken so that the seasoning costs the chicken better. But it usually takes me around 8 minutes to make sure it’s cooked through.

  2. So simple yet so delicious! 😍 Thanks for sharing. ☹️.

  3. Just made this for lunch. Absolutely delish. Very flavorful and super easy to make.

  4. I want to try your recipe. Should cubed chicken be cooked before adding to recipe?

    1. Very nice recipe just added little cashew and raisins with little sugar and results are super. Thanks for rapid and delicious recipe

  5. Delicious, very close to the best I have tasted, thank you

  6. LOVE!!!💖 SO simple and the best thing to do with leftover chicken as well! I didn’t have the fenugreek but I did add turmeric instead and doubled the heavy cream, tastes just like our neighborhood restaurant’s recipe, happy hubby=happy wife!! This one’s a keeper!

  7. I want to use yogurt (I live in Japan and cream is $3.50/cup). But I’m worried about it curdling like the other reviewer wrote. How do I make sure that doesn’t happen?

    1. Reduce the heat before adding the yogurt and add it at the very end.

      1. I tried the recipe and it’s one of the best I had ever ate yet so quick and easy
        Thank you

  8. Made this exactly as specified and absolutely loved it. Next time will marinate the chicken as suggested above. But definitely a keeper!

  9. Fast, easy and so delicious! We made it using plain Greek yogurt instead of the heavy cream for a healthier version, as suggested. Loved it!

  10. Used vegan yogurt and some whole milk instead of half and half. Had to add extra milk to make it creamier. Flavor was meh. Will have to try again without yogurt.

    1. You just needed to add more spices and garlic at the end. Thanks

  11. Cooked it today! Fast cooking and the result is delicious!. A little bit sour and tangy (I had added sour cream). Added 1 tsp sugar and 2 tsp cream and turned to be ultra delicious! Thank you. It is fast and easy to make

  12. Which tomato paste/sauce do you use? When I made this dish, I noticed that it had a slightly sour tomato taste to it and I think it’s from the sauce. I wonder if it’s better to use fresh tomatoes or canned tomatoes?

    1. SUCH a great and easy recipe – thanks! The fenegreek really hit the spot! I also noticed that it called for less butter but turned out tasty with really good consistency!

  13. This was very good. My kids love this and beg me to make it again and again ages 7+. It is not spicy but very flavorful. My 10 year old enjoyed cooking this with me and cooked for the first time to this recipe! Great recipe and so easy! Thank you

    1. Happy your grandchildren enjoy this chicken, Amy! Thanks for stopping by 🙂

  14. I love this recipe but unfortunately added too much tomato paste so it is a little tangy and less creamy. Any thoughts on what I could add to cut the tomatoes paste taste? Butter? Cream?

  15. Wow wow wow! My family is huge fans of butter chicken, especially my youngest son. He is somewhat a butter chicken connoisseur. Every time we give him his choice for dinner, whether out or in, it’s butter chicken. I have tried NUMEROUS butter chicken recipes at home and many have been “good but lacking something” in his expert opinion. 😉 There’s a restaurant that we once tried while on vacation years ago and it was his absolute most favorite butter chicken and the standard for any other that I make or we try. Well, last night after making your recipe (which I must say is one of the easiest I’ve ever tried too!), my son declared that it is “Best Butter Chicken he’s ever tried!” and went as far to say better than his favorite version at the restaurant! Now, my son likes to be somewhat of a critic (I don’t mind it because I pride myself on my cooking) so this is huge! So, long story short, your recipe is amazing and I will search no more for a butter chicken recipe! Super impressed! And five stars from my connoisseur son! 😉

    1. Wow! thanks for the great review, Natalie! SO happy your son enjoyed the butter chicken 😀

  16. LOVE IT!!!! Had to add a little bit more cream but it is perfect!!! I would definitely do it again and again and again 🙂

  17. Followed the directions and so easy to make. Truly delicious, my daughter even said ok to add to the rotation. #winning

  18. So good – did not have tomato paste or sauce so had to use rotel tomatoes with chilis . Definitely a keeper

  19. This recipe is amazing! As an Indian I can vouch for the gravy! The one thing I did different is marinate the chicken for a couple of hours in yogurt, ginger garlic paste, salt, red Chili powder, garam masala, turmeric powder and coriander powder for the flavours to really sink in

    1. Your comment means so much to me, Shikha! I’m happy you enjoyed the dish <3

    2. Tried this recipe with the mentioned modifications, but I was skeptical as the typical colors didn’t quite come in. But oh boy! It did deliver quite the flavor. So so good.

      1. Amazing recipe.

        Super easy to prepare.
        My friends love, love loved it. It was very delicious. Followed every step, it came out very well.
        HIGHLY recommend it.

  20. Tastes great, but I subbed Greek yogurt(like it said I could). It came out kind of chunky. Almost like the yogurt curdled. Disappointed in the substitution suggestion.

    1. Unfortunately cooking with yogurt can be tricky. Did you lower the heat when adding the yogurt?

      1. It doesn’t say Greek yogurt, it just says yogurt, so I assumed that means whole milk regular yogurt. Could that be the problem? I am planning to make this tonight with the regular yogurt.

  21. Absolutely delicious and easy to make! A perfect (quarantined) crowd pleaser.

  22. This was easy and delicious. Printing it up to save for my husband to make when I am recovering from a scheduled surgery….it was very easy to make. I used 8oz of left over cubed roast chicken breast that I added with the tomato puree and 1/2 & 1/2 and warmed it all up. Served it with a packet of Spinach Dal (microwaved for 60sec) rice and naan.

  23. Honestly, I don’t know if I’m just so in love with my local family-owned Indian restaurants’ butter chicken that this recipe came out Eh or if the recipe is really just Eh. It was super simple to make however it’s very tomato forward and not as creamy as I had hoped. I ended up adding a little under a half cup of butter to really bring out that rich flavor, added half a cup of water to get that light creamy base, And added a half tbs of salt. I tried to redeem the sauce but you can really taste the tomato paste. Next time I’ll only add in a little at a time, stirring frequently as I go until I get the desired flavor

  24. Hi! Do we add 1 teaspoon cumin powder or cumin seeds. Thanks!

  25. I love this recipe, delicious and so easy. thank you!!!

  26. Love this recipie and so does my boyfriend ^-^ I don’t change anything and its perfect. Thanks for the recipe.

  27. I made this today. Trying to cook at home more instead of take out during the pandemic. Anyway, it was WONDERFUL! It was so easy to make, also. The only thing I will change when I make it again (and I definitely will) is give it more heat. This is going into the regular recipe rotation. We put it over cauliflower rice and it was great.

    1. No, it will not work with flavored yogurt because it will alter the taste of the dish.