Recipe: You Don’t Need a Tandoor to Make Sarina Kamini’s Charred, Smoky Butter Chicken

Sarina Kamini didn’t grow up eating butter chicken. “I never cooked it until I started my Youtube channel and thought it might get me a few subscribers,” the cookbook author and teacher writes in her new book What We Call Masala. “I also wanted to see what all the fuss was about.” That experiment didn’t go viral – but it sparked a newfound respect for the world-famous dish.

Kamini’s version leans into technique over shortcuts, with marinated chicken charred dry on a hot surface to create smokiness and depth, then simmered in a rich tomato-butter gravy. “Working 24 hours ahead – it makes a noticeable difference,” she says of the overnight marinade.

While butter chicken’s origins trace back to Daryaganj, Delhi – where leftover tandoori chicken was folded through a tomato sauce to feed a hungry guest – Kamini’s take is anything but scrappy seconds. “I think my version is tastier,” she says. This is butter chicken made with intention, balance and respect – and it shows.

Butter chicken

Serves 6–8
Preparation time: 20 minutes (plus 24 hours marinating time)
Cooking time: 45 minutes

Ingredients

1.3kg boneless, skinless chicken thigh fillets, cut into 5cm cubes
¼ cup kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves)
¼ cup (60 ml) cream
Finely diced red onion, to garnish
Lime wedges, to serve

Marinade
500g plain yoghurt
2–3 tbsp water
2 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp Kashmiri chilli powder
1 tbsp finely grated ginger
1 tbsp crushed garlic
1 tbsp hot red chilli powder
2 tsp coriander powder
1½ tsp cumin powder
1 tsp fine white sea salt
1 tsp garam masala
½ tsp turmeric powder

Butter chicken sauce
600g tomato passata (puréed tomatoes)
1 tsp garam masala
½ tsp fine pink salt
½ tsp red chilli powder
¼ tsp fine black pepper
125g chilled butter, finely diced

Method

To make the marinade, whisk the yoghurt with the water in a large bowl. This thins the yoghurt and draws forward its acidity, one of the power players in butter chicken. Add all of the marinade spices and the lime juice and stir them through. (The Kashmiri chilli powder is key here: a standard chilli powder would reach into the char of the chicken and create a driving and drying heat that would overwhelm the rich makhani sauce, the floral/herbaceous element of dried fenugreek leaves, and the end drizzle of cream. The subtlety of Kashmiri chilli powder keeps the masala pretty.)

Add the chicken pieces to the marinade and mix well. Marinate in the fridge overnight. If you forget to start the day before, marinate for as long as possible before cooking.

The best cooking vessel is a large cast iron kadai or wok. You could also use a flat indoor grill plate or barbecue (grill) plate. It needs a cast-iron surface that will conduct high heat and char the chicken without oils or fats. I work in batches, spreading the chicken pieces in a single layer on the bottom and up the sides of the kadai and cooking them over high heat on the stovetop, without moving them, until they start to char. I then flip them and char the other side. This takes about 5 minutes per batch. When the chicken pieces are charred but not cooked through, I set them aside in a bowl. The charring makes this dish grown-up and smoky. It also makes the creaminess of the makhani sauce pop.

Reduce the heat to medium, pour the leftover marinade into the kadai and cook for 1–2 minutes, scraping in any charred pieces from the bottom and side.

Add the tomato passata and the butter chicken sauce spices to the kadai and stir through for 2–3 minutes, until the passata heats and the masala is no longer raw. It should bubble just a little. Return the charred chicken pieces to the kadai and stir through. Simmer for 5 minutes over medium–low heat.

Add the butter and stir it through, then increase the heat to medium. Once the sauce is bubbling evenly, reduce the heat to medium–low and simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes. Add the dried kasoori methi and cream and stir through until hot.

Serve immediately with naan or rice, garnished with diced red onion and with a wedge of lime on the side.

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This is an edited extract featuring images and text from What We Call Masala by Sarina Kamini, photography by Patricia Niven. Murdoch Books RRP $49.99.