Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani)

Ingredients

* For the tandoori chicken:

• 450 g skinless boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite size pieces
• 2 tbsp thick yogurt
• 2 tsp chickpea flour/gram flour
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1'' piece ginger, peeled
• 1 green chili 
• 1 tsp mild paprika
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp garam masala powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• Pinch of cinnamon powder
• Pinch of saffron crushed (optional)
• Salt to taste
• Butter for basting
• 1 tsp chaat masala
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• Salad and chutney to serve 

* For the butter gravy: 

•  1 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 5 green cardamom pods, lightly crushed
• 1" cinnamon stick
• 4 cloves
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp grated ginger
• 2 green chilies, slit lengthwise
• 1 tsp kashmiri chili powder
• 1/2 tsp garam masala powder
• 3 tbsp tomato puree
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1/2 cup cooking cream
• 1 tsp Kasoori methi powder 
• Salt to taste
• Chopped coriander for garnish

Method

* To make the tandoori  chicken:
- Add the ginger, garlic and green chili in a wet grinder, blend all too a smooth paste.
- Mix the yogurt with the gram flour in a bowl to get rid of any lumps to form a thick paste. Add the ginger, garlic and chili paste, paprika, chili powder, garam masala, coriander powder, the ground cinnamon, saffron and salt, stir well and tip in the chicken pieces, mix well. Make sure to coat them well in the thick marinade. Leave to marinate for a few hours or even overnight.
- Soak wooden skewers in water. Preheat the grill on medium. Shake off the excess marinade and thread the chicken pieces onto the skewers and place them on a wire rack.
- Cook them under the grill for 15-20 minutes on the top rack. Turn the skewers every 5 minutes and baste with melted butter until the juices run clear. They should be cooked through and slightly charred around the edges.

* To make the butter gravy:
- Heat a heavy bottom sauce pan and add some butter. Add green cardamom, cinnamon stick and cloves, fry them for about 20 seconds then add onion and saute for 5-7 minutes on medium heat until light brown.
- Add the grated ginger and slit green chilies. Fry for a further minutes and add the chili powder, garam masala along with tomato puree. Stir well and cook for a couple minutes.
- Gradually add the cream stirring continuously to mix all the spices with the cream. Simmer and cook for 2-3 minutes. At this stage, add a splash of water if the curry is too thick.
- Stir in the honey and the fenugreek powder. Season to taste.
- Add the cooked chicken pieces and simmer the curry on a low heat for 8-10 minutes. Garnish with coriander and serve with rice or roti.

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