Bite-sized fried chicken pieces drenched in creamy butter sauce, garnished with green chilis and curry leaves — butter chicken is truly an irresistible comfort food. Here’s a simple recipe to make this dish at home, be generous with the butter gravy servings so you can enjoy it to your heart’s content and lick your plate clean!
Butter chicken has its origins in Indian cuisine, dating back to pre-partition India. The owner of a shop in Peshawar realised that the tandoori Chicken hanging on skewers all day would tend to dry out if unsold, he then came up with the idea of creating a basic gravy with tomatoes, butter, cream and some spices to immerse the Tandoori Chicken pieces in, helping them regain moisture and become palatable again — hence the invention of the butter chicken dish. Chicken pieces drenched in creamy curry sauce, it has a tangy and savoury taste that goes well with naan bread or garlic butter rice.
In Malaysia, butter chicken is also a popular dish served in various restaurants, food stalls, cafes and also bars, but cooked differently. A typical Malaysian butter chicken dish looks like this: bite-sized fried chicken pieces drenched in creamy butter sauce, garnished with green chilis and curry leaves, served with steamed white rice. Compared to its original version from India, butter chicken in Malaysia tastes sweet and savoury with a hint of spiciness, as its main ingredients are evaporated milk, unsalted butter, chilli and curry leaves. The usage of evaporated milk might raise some eyebrows — it is more commonly used for making desserts, making it an unusual ingredient for savoury dishes. Nevertheless, the dish was a hit among Malaysians and became a fad for a period of time, with patrons flocking to restaurants that serve butter chicken as its specialty dish — truly an irresistible comfort food. Most local eateries are quite generous with their butter gravy servings, so dip the chicken in the gravy to your heart’s content and lick your plate clean!
Enjoy the butter chicken dish from the comfort of your home with MAGGI’s simple and quick recipe! Looking for ways to elevate the taste of your dish? We’ve got you covered with some ideas inspired by local eateries — add some salted egg or garam masala to make the butter chicken taste more savoury, or serve it together with some papadoms for an extra crunch. If you are looking for more satisfying creamy dishes, check out MAGGI’s simple salted egg chicken, golden cereal prawns and baked beef pasta.
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