Buttah Chicken

Chef Kev returns with yet another palette pleasa! 2-4-6-8, who do we appreciate!? Picture me in a cheerlea… actually no. Strike that. No pictures please.

Except this one:

S-U-C-C-E-S-S, that’s the way we spell success! Okay. Done with random cheerleading dialogue now.

Butter Chicken

Chef Kev note and disclaimer:

Note: The key to a good butter chicken is have it thick and creamy.

Avoid the “sauce soup snaffo”. Bad. Like fall-off-the-top-of-a-cheerleading-pyramid BAD. Okay, seriously, done now. Promise.

The disclaimer is as follows. Chef Kev wanted me to mention that this dish is “nothing too fancy” (speak for himself!) since he’s not making his own spice blend, but that the great thing about this meal is that it’s a wonderful “come home from work option” that tastes like a million bucks and is quick and easy to make.

There are many different butter chicken seasonings available in the stores. The one that Chef Kev used here comes with a chicken marinade as well as the sauce seasoning. This one had some good heat. Some seriously good heat. Like the kind that melts my laptop screen as I type my blog. If you like ’em milder then look for that option. Here are two of Chef Kev’s faves. I bet you can’t guess which one he used for this dish.

Because he’s a rebel, Chef Kev doesn’t really follow the package instructions. What he does instead is outlined below. He has come up with (through trial and error) the closest match to what he enjoys in a fine Indian restaurant. Lucky me!

First off you make a pot of rice. I think you all know how to do that but if not here is how…
step one: type “www.google.com”
step two: enter “rice”
step three: hit return
Umm, I shouldn’t joke because that’s kinda how I make rice. But this is about Chef Kev so back to that. He recommends adding chicken stock or water (the chicken stock adds more flavour). Also add a bit of butter to the water. It prevents sticking and adds some flavour too.

If your Butter Chicken mix comes with a marinade do that step now. Cube your chicken before marinating.

Dice a white onion and let it sweat (soften) in a sauce pan with butter. Did anyone else just chuckle at the thought of sweatin’ onions? I digress… Once your schweaty onions are ready add your marinated chicken. Cook until the chicken is half done and then add one can of tomatoe sauce (not paste or ketchup) and your seasoning. Then add some coconut milk or water and heavy cream. Let simmer for 10-15 minutes and add salt to taste.

Just before serving add chopped fresh cilantro, basil and chive. Serve to wife and reap accolades.

Lovin’ the Chef? Check out all his tasty creations here.