Oh the Butter Chicken....

Tyler was out of town one night this past week so I decided that was the day I would make the Butter Chicken recipe from Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen Website.  You see it calls for an entire onion which he could not handle.  Somehow I didn't even realize until I started eating it, that it was actually an indian dish traditionally called Chicken Tikka Masala.  My sis-in-law loves that dish and I tried it with her once at a local indian food restaurant.  I thought it was OK, but not great enough to go back to the restaurant and have it again.  Well, I must say, the homemade version is FANTASTIC!  Paige and I have eaten almost all of it!  Basmati rice is sooo good and is paired perfectly with this rich sauce!!!  It is a tad spicy but my one year old can eat it for heaven's sake so try it!! 

Ingredients

•4 pieces Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts (cut Into Bite Sized Pieces)

•5 cloves Garlic, Minced
•1 teaspoon Salt
•½ teaspoons Black Pepper
•½ teaspoons Cayenne Pepper
•¼ teaspoons Ground Coriander
•¼ teaspoons Cumin
•¼ teaspoons Cardamom
•1 whole Lime, Juiced
•1 whole Onion, Diced
•¼ cups Butter
•1 can (14.5 Oz. Can) Tomato Sauce
•1 can (14.5 Oz. Can) Petite Diced Tomatoes
•1 pint Whipping Cream (I only used 3/4 and next time will just use 1/2--it was very rich!)
•1 bunch Chopped Cilantro, to taste
•2 cups Basmati Rice (or However Much You Want)

Preparation Instructions

Combine first 9 ingredients and marinate overnight (at least a few hours).
Saute the onion in the butter until soft.

 Add marinated chicken and cook about 10 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and diced tomatoes. Cook for 30 minutes over medium-low heat with the lid on.

 Add the whipping cream

 (I have used light cream or half-and-half also) and cilantro just before serving over Basmati rice.

Note: this is a little spicy, but you can cut back on the cayenne if you want.

This is now one of my favorite dishes and I will definitely be making it again!  If you like indian food, it is a MUST!  The spices could easily be changed too and use this recipe as a base for tomato cream sauce for pasta!  Yummy!  So glad I stumbled upon this one!!!