Slow Cooker Indian Butter Chicken
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Simple prep with zero fuss! Restaurant-quality butter chicken made so easily in the crockpot. Serve with rice and naan.
I’m sure some of you have already put away your crockpot for the season. Up in one of those high cupboards so you don’t have to see your slow cooker until the Fall hits.
But seeing as to how we moved to Chiberia and it’s still the dead of winter here, my slow cooker has been on full blast, especially with this butter chicken.
I mean, I have seriously made this at least four times in the last 6 weeks.
Mainly because it’s so stinking easy.
Prep work is minimal and you can throw everything right into the crockpot. And while your chicken cooks low and slow to that tender, melt-in-your-mouth goodness, you can cook your basmati rice and warm your garlic naan.
And here’s a big secret I’ll let you in on: be sure to hoard all the sauce you possibly can for naan dipping purposes.
Slow Cooker Indian Butter Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 cup basmati rice
- ½ cup chicken stock
- 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons yellow curry powder
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch chunks
- ½ sweet onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1 ½ teaspoons brown sugar
Equipment
Instructions
- In a large saucepan of 2 cups water, cook rice according to package instructions; set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk together chicken stock, tomato paste, curry powder, garam masala, turmeric, salt and pepper.
- Place chicken, onion, garlic and ginger into a 4-qt slow cooker. Stir in chicken stock mixture.
- Cover and cook on low heat for 4 hours. Stir in heavy cream, lime juice and brown sugar; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately with rice.
Did you make this recipe?
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Can I use coconut milk instead of the cre
This is officially one of my favorite meals! I had it with cauliflower rice when I was on keto and today I made it with basmati and it’s just perfect. I love the fact you can just throw everything in the slow cooker and then just leave it to cook itself – a great recipe!
Wow! That’s all I can say. He usually spend $20 at an Indian food restaurant.
Is this recipe gluten free?
Hi! It is naturally gluten free but double check that your chicken stock is gluten free :$ some of them have sneaky barley in ingredients like “yeast extract” (not always gluten but can be). Also naan has gluten but you can make your own- I like the recipe from Loopy Whisk!
Holy moly! Made this today for weekly meal prep and I was so happy with how it came out! It is really quite good! Will definitely be looking forward to work lunches this week. The dish itself was very easy to make with minimal prep, made easier by a food processor. It also didn’t have a ton of ingredients and I was able to make the rice in my instant pot while the chicken was cooking in the crock pot. I accidentally used a whole onion instead of half, but it did not make a ton of difference. I saw a lot of people saying they doubled the sauce. I don’t think that’s necessary unless you like it really saucy or plan to do a lot of dipping, which if you are, by all means double the sauce because it’s delish! I added some fresh spinach at the end for extra nutrition but that was the only thing I changed. The sauce is mild enough for kids or picky eaters or those who are a bit fearful of more adventurous flavors, but if you want to walk a bit on the wild side, I’d definitely encourage some cayenne or crushed red peppers for some heat. This will pair beautifully with some basmati rice or even riced cauliflower if you’re wanting something low carb. Super pleased with this recipe. Will definitely be incorporating it into my family’s rotation.
The recipe was SOO good. Empty plates all around the table.
I accidentally used a tablespoon of seasoning instead of a teaspoon, but I ended up doubling the chicken stock.
I made this tonight because I needed a simple dinner given it’s Mother’s Day and something different as I make a lot of chicken in this economy. It was absolutely delicious. This now will become a fixture in my dinner plans. I definitely could have used all of the thighs (4 extra) as there was plenty of gravy. I’m not a huge fan of curry. It gets overwhelming for me if too much and this had just the right amount.
Chicken thighs are so full of fatty parts . I can’t imagine using anything but chicken breast! Otherwise this is a fabulous recipe!!
Delish!
What if your slow cooker is bigger than 4 quart? Double it? Tyia
Family loved this, and we eat at Indian restaurants regularly, and my husband has spent a lot of time in Great Britain, where he enjoyed them also. This was very good, and very mild. Added some cayenne and after tasting. Doubled the sauce, rounded all the spices, sweet onions were small so added 2, sliced thin. Cooked fresh head of cauliflower pieces in micro 10 min, added to finished slow cooker, added an extra 1/4 c of cream, may use coconut cream or yogurt next time just to try, and add some hot peppers in slices or minced. This is easily adjusted to each oersons tastes, however. Yogurt may split if too hot, especially if light, so take care. Served with choice of coconut jasmine or brown basmati rice, and nan cooked in frypan w some butter. Thank you, lovely in slow cooker for a family meal!
I doubled the sauce and added raisins and cashews at the end. Yummy!
Hi! I have added heavy cream to crockpot recipes before at the end of the cooking and it was lumpy and ended up curdling! I’m worried about it happening with this recipe as well. Does it mix smoothly? I didn’t see any comments saying it got lumpy so maybe I’m paranoid lol
Such an easy and delicious dish! I used chicken breast instead of thighs and it was super good, not too dry. No need to double the sauce as others have commented. I followed the recipe as written and it was super saucey! Will definitely repeat this one.
LOVE this recipe! No adjustments are needed at all. It’s a really easy meal to prepare in the crockpot during the week. I pre-cut the chicken and onions and lay out the rest of ingredients the night before, and during my lunch, it takes about 10 minutes to get it all in the crockpot and it’s ready when I get home!
Very good dish with yummy sauce. I used chicken breasts instead of thighs. For some reason I tend to dry chicken out when i cook it, even in this dish. Any recommendations to prevent this? The family loved the awesome flavors!
This was a winner at our house. We added a southern twist and served it over cornbread. AMAZING! I wish it would get cold, cause I’m gonna make this one a staple cold weather dish. 🙂
Lovely recipe that is clearly inspired by a traditional Murgh Makhani, but more of a chicken curry. Typically, we do not use onions and would grind spices after toasting them. Ghee is required, and fenugreek is an essential ingredient as well. But it is nice to see how much this traditional dish of India has taken off throughout the world:). It is also great to a have a version in the slow cooker. As a chef and recipe developer myself, I am always looking for new twists on classic dishes.
Great recipe. I didn’t make any changes other than to use heaping spoons when measuring the spices. My husband just tried Indian food recently, so I wasn’t sure if he would like it… he ate 3 helpings! A great slow cooker recipe!
This is my go-to slowcooker recipe when we have guests over. Easy and tasty.
It’s not ~technically~ butter chicken (that would require butter/ghee), more of a curried chicken.
BUT it’s still one of my favorite things to eat after finding the recipe 4 years ago! Everyone I make it for can’t get enough, & I cook it at least once a month for my household.
I also make a lactose-free & vegan version for my friends with dietary restrictions by substituting vegan chicken for chicken thighs, vegetable broth for chicken stock, & coconut cream for heavy cream.
And I always serve it over basmati rice with garlic/cilantro-buttered naan on the side.