Butter Chicken

I think of butter chicken as the General Tso's chicken of Indian food. Sweet, rich, a little spicy, and nothing too far from the norm of the western palette. Of course, this dish originated in Britain. I still love it. Just because it didn't come from India originally doesn't mean it's not authentic... OK maybe it does. But it's delicious, thats all that should matter. Good day sir.

For marinade
1 lbs cubed Boneless chicken
1 T Lemon juice
1 T Cayenne
1/3 c Greek yogurt
2 T Ginger garlic paste
1/2 t Cayenne
1 t Garam masala
2 t Ghee

For gravy
2 T Butter
2 Green cardamom pods
2 whole cloves
3 Black peppercorns
1 stick cinnamon
2 T Ginger garlic paste
1/2 cup Tomato puree
1/2 t Cayenne
2 T Sugar
Large pinch methi leaves
3 T Half and Half

First sprinkle the lemon juice and cayenne over the chicken breasts and let sit for 30 minutes. While it's resting, mix the the ginger and garlic pastes, red chill and garam masala powders, salt and ghee. Apply all of the above to the chicken and let it marinate overnight. Skewer the marinaded chicken and put into a 400 F oven for 10 minutes or grill. Remove the chicken and set aside

To make the gravy, heat the butter in pan. Add the green cardamom, cloves, peppercorns and cinnamon. Sauté to let the spices toast, add the ginger and garlic pastes and sauté for two minutes. Add the tomato puree, red chili powder, salt. Bhunao the mixture at this point removing all of the water and allowing it to stick lightly to the bottom of the pan but not to burn. This will bring the aromatic oils out of the spices. Add 1/2 cup water and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Add the sugar and methi leaves. Add the cooked chicken and simmer for 5 minutes. finish at the last moment with Half and Half. Put half into a freezer bag, freeze and ship to me. Enjoy the other half with Naan or Rice.

-Nom