Murg Makhani literally translates to Butter Chicken. And who does not love butter chicken? Tender morsels of chicken often cooked tandoori style are simmered in this wonderfully rich and flavorful tomato base. Served with naan, this is sheer delight. In fact, during both of my pregnancies, this was craving number one! It also made me realize that even though there are so many different foods I love, Indian food stands above all. And murg makhani with piping hot naans will top that list anyday!
There are as many recipes of this much loved dish as there are people who make it but my favorite version is from an Indian restaurant in the Bay Area in California. I worked there for a while, managing the front desk and kitchen inventory but I was never allowed to talk to the chefs lest I should find out the secret recipe which was extremely popular among all patrons of this restaurant. This was the most popular dish at the lunch buffet and most ordered a-la-carte item. Needless to say I loved it too and was trying hard to figure out how they made it. I would always keep an eye on what the chefs were doing when I would be doing the inventory assesment in the huge kitchens of the restaurant. And over a period of time I figured out the key ingredients they used to make this dish and tried a few versions of my own till I managed to make it so it tasted exactly the same! To this day I don’t know exactly how it was made in that restaurant but I am very happy with the version I have and love it every time!
This dish is extremely rich and tastes divine but it does come with its share of calories – this is evident from the name also! And really there is no way of making this dish without the fat content. Even though I am someone who really likes to go lean on the food I cook, using as little oil or butter as possible, there is no alternative to making this healthy that I am aware of. If any reader of this post can guide me to some good ways of making this healthier, please do let me know so that I can enjoy this more often! This also makes me think that so often we eat food outside the home not realizing how unhealthy it really is but we really try to keep it healthy at home. But sometimes, even for the more fattening and rich dishes, it is better made at home where we have more control on the quality of the ingredients used and we will be surprised by how much healthier and better it is for us inspite of all the calories in it.
The ingredients are fairly simple – canned peeled tomatoes, fresh cream, ginger, whole spices and kasoori methi make the sauce. Of course salt and red chilli powder need to be added as per taste. The chicken can be cooked tandoori style and shredded into bite-sized morsels. Or it can be marinated in yogurt or buttermilk and then cooked in an oven or even in a slow cooker, then shredded and added to the gravy. My personal favorite is using boneless chicken breasts, marinated in yogurt and then cooked in a slow cooker at a low setting for an hour and a half. This results in tender chicken every single time without any fuss. The gravy itself is very simple to make and cooks very fast making this a very easy recipe.
Ingredients:
Boneless skinless chicken breasts – 4
Buttermilk ¾ cup
Coriander powder – 1 tablespoon
2 - 14-oz cans whole peeled tomatoes
350 ml heavy cream
1 cup milk
1 inch fresh ginger
2 tablespoons kasoori methi
3 green cardamoms
2-3 cloves
¼ mace flower
Salt and red chilli powder to taste
Method:
1. Marinade the chicken in buttermilk, salt, red chilli and coriander powder for 1-2 hours. Cook in a slow cooker for 1.5 hours or roast in the oven at 180C till cooked. Shred the chicken into bite sized pieces. 
4. Add the remaining cream, milk and cook for another 3-5 minutes till the gravy has a rich and creamy consistency but should not be very thick. Add the kasoori methi, salt, red chilli powder and cook to let the flavor of kasoori methi be absorbed by the gravy.
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