Butter Chicken and Naan

So I was talking to Helen on Thursday and she told me about how she was making Butter Chicken for dinner and I had no idea what that was. I assumed it was chicken with a butter sauce. Nope, this has garam masala and is a tasty orange sauce. So I decided since I had all of the ingredients already, I would make butter chicken on Saturday for dinner and since Emily just shared a beautiful recipe on Facebook for naan, I would make that for the accompanying starch.

YUMMY

So the butter chicken recipe was pretty easy and FULL of flavor. The yogurt marinade was the first marinade I think I've ever made and it was delicious. The naan was good too and simple and rose beautifully. Fresh naan is totally worth the extra effort. Overall, we both enjoyed this meal. However, I thought the sauce was so thick and flavorful that it would be better with rice rather than naan since it needed to be broken up with more starch than just dipping bread.
Some pointers for the recipes for next time:

• Butter chicken sauce says to blend, Definitely blend it. It provides a nice consistent texture and I was tempted to not do it since I didn't want to dirty the blender, but it was completely worth it. 
• I could see subbing in coconut milk rather than heavy cream to make it vegan and just aid in the tasty flavor. 
• I did not have fenugreek, so I used a teaspoon of Dijon mustard
• For the naan, it told me to use white whole wheat flour which I have and I used it, 2 cups white to 1.5 cups of white whole wheat. Jacob does not like wheat flavor as much as I, so next time, I might have to take out the whole wheat flour. 
• Also, I didn't roll the first few naan thin enough which led to slightly doughy center, so next time I gotta make them nice and thin. 
• 
  

Butter Chicken 

Time: 1.75 hours -1 hour of  marinade, 15 minutes prep

Makes: 5 serving

Ingredients:

For the chicken marinade:

     28 oz (800g) boneless and skinless chicken thighs or breasts cut into bite-sized pieces

     1/2 cup plain yogurt

     1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic

     1 tablespoon minced ginger (or finely grated)

     2 teaspoons garam masala

     1 teaspoon turmeric

     1 teaspoon ground cumin

     1 teaspoon red chili powder

     1 teaspoon of salt

For the sauce:

     2 tablespoons olive oil

     2 tablespoons ghee (or 1 tbs butter + 1 tbs oil)

     1 large onion, sliced or chopped

     1 1/2 tablespoons garlic, minced

     1 tablespoon ginger, minced or finely grated

     1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

     1 1/2 teaspoons garam masala

     1 teaspoon ground coriander

     14 oz (400 g) crushed tomatoes

     1 teaspoon red chili powder (adjust to your taste preference)

     1 1/4 teaspoons salt (or to taste)

     1 cup of heavy or thickened cream (or evaporated milk to save calories)

     1 tablespoon sugar

     1/2 teaspoon kasoori methi (or dried fenugreek leaves)

Steps:

1. In a bowl, combine chicken with all of the ingredients for the chicken marinade; let marinate for 30 minutes to an hour (or overnight if time allows).
2. Heat oil in a large skillet or pot over medium-high heat. When sizzling, add chicken pieces in batches of two or three, making sure not to crowd the pan. Fry until browned for only 3 minutes on each side. Set aside and keep warm. (You will finish cooking the chicken in the sauce.)
3. Heat butter or ghee in the same pan. Fry the onions until they start to sweat (about 6 minutes) while scraping up any browned bits stuck on the bottom of the pan. 
4. Add garlic and ginger and sauté for 1 minute until fragrant, then add ground coriander, cumin and garam masala. Let cook for about 20 seconds until fragrant, while stirring occasionally.
5. Add crushed tomatoes, chili powder and salt. Let simmer for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally until sauce thickens and becomes a deep brown red colour.
6. Remove from heat, scoop mixture into a blender and blend until smooth. You may need to add a couple tablespoons of water to help it blend (up to 1/4 cup). Work in batches depending on the size of your blender.
7. Pour the puréed sauce back into the pan. Stir the cream, sugar and crushed kasoori methi (or fenugreek leaves) through the sauce. Add the chicken with juices back into the pan and cook for an additional 8-10 minutes until chicken is cooked through and the sauce is thick and bubbling.
8. Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve with fresh, hot basmati rice.

Naan

Time: 1.5 hours including 1 hour of rising

Makes: 8 naan

Ingredients:

     1 cup warm water

     2 tablespoons honey

     1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)

     3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (or 2 cups white whole wheat flour + 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour)

     1/4 cup plain yogurt

     2 teaspoons salt

     1/2 teaspoon baking powder

     1 egg

     1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) butter

     3 cloves garlic, minced

     (optional topping: chopped fresh cilantro)

Steps:

1. Stir together warm water and honey until the honey has dissolved.
2. Add the water mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough attachment, and sprinkle the yeast on top of the water.  Give the yeast a quick stir to mix it in with the water.  Then let it sit for 5-10 minute until the yeast is foamy.
3. Turn the mixer onto low speed, and add gradually flour, yogurt, salt, baking powder, and egg.  Increase speed to medium-low, and continue mixing the dough for 2-3 minutes, or until the dough is smooth.  (The dough will still be slightly sticky, but should form into a ball that pulls away from the sides of the mixing bowl.)
4. Remove dough from the mixing bowl, and use your hands to shape it into a ball.  Grease the mixing bowl (or a separate bowl) with olive oil or cooking spray, then place the dough ball back in the bowl and cover it with a damp towel.  Place in a warm location (I set mine by the sunny window) and let it rise for 1 hour until the dough has nearly doubled in size.
5. Meanwhile, heat the butter in a small saute pan over medium heat until melted.  Add garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.  Then remove butter from heat, strain out and discard the garlic, leaving the infused melted butter behind.  Set aside.
6. Once the dough is ready, transfer it to a floured work surface.  Then cut the dough into 8 separate pieces. Roll each into a ball with your hands, then place on the floured surface and use a rolling pin to roll out the dough into a large circle (or oval, or whatever shape it takes) until the dough is a little less than 1/4-inch thick.  Brush dough lightly with the garlic-infused butter on both sides.
7. Heat a large cast-iron skillet or heavy saute pan over medium-high heat.  Add a piece of the rolled-out dough to the pan and cook for 1 minute, or until the dough begins to bubble and the bottom turns lightly golden.  Flip the dough and cook on the second side for 30-60 seconds, or until the bottom is golden.  Then transfer the naan to a separate plate, and cover with a towel.  Repeat with remaining dough until all of the naan pieces are cooked.
8. Keep the naan covered with the towel until ready to serve, so that it doesn’t dry out.  Serve sprinkled with fresh cilantro, if desired.

EAT