Paleo Chicken Makhani

I know, I know I only seem to ever post curries but that’s because we have 1 curry night a week in my house and this one is the family favourite. My kids always like my curries but this one keeps them quiet! It’s sweet and moderately spicy but you can just add less chilli powder to make it a mild curry.

I love this curry because you can get this bashed out in under 20 minutes if you have a food processor to do all of the chopping jobs for you! Traditionally the chicken would get marinated beforehand overnight but I find that this is just perfect without it. You will also be pleased to know that for a curry the ingredients are pretty simple and easy to get hold of. If you aren’t the best cook or are a beginner curry maker then you should definitely give this one a little whirl.

If you’re vegetarian then you will find that this works wonders with 500g of cubed sweet potato in it! If you are Vegan then you can always substitute the butter for 3 tbsp of coconut oil and 3 tbsp of coconut manna!

So here it is Paleo Chicken Makhani – also known as Murgh Makhani or Butter Chicken!

Serves: 4 people

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 15-20 minutes

Ingredients:

For the curry:

500g chicken breast (cubed)
1 onion (diced)
1 bulb garlic (cloves peeled)
2″ inch piece root ginger (peeled)
2 tbsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp Himalayan pink salt
6 tbsp raw grass-fed butter
4 large tomatoes (diced)
2 tbsp coconut sugar
1 tbsp tomato paste
1/2 cup dessicated coconut (or ground almonds)
1/2 cup coconut yogurt (or coconut cream)

For the garnish:

A small handful of fresh coriander (roughly chopped)
1″ piece root ginger (peeled & julienned)

Method:

1. Start preparing your chicken breasts by cutting away any sinew, and cutting the breasts into cubes. Set aside until needed later.
2. Peel and dice your onion and set aside.
3. Next in a pestle and mortar grind your garlic, root ginger, ground coriander, cinnamon, tumeric, chilli powder and salt into a paste.
4. In a large heavy bottomed pan heat 3 tbsp of your raw grass-fed butter (set the rest aside) on a low heat until it becomes frothy. Add your spice paste and onion and fry for 1 minute being sure to move around the mix frequently.
5. Increase the heat to medium and add in your cubed chicken breast and cook until lightly golden all over, about 5-7 minutes.
6. Add your diced tomatoes, coconut sugar, tomato paste & dessicated coconut. Stir, cover and cook for 5 minutes.
7. Stir in your coconut yogurt and cook for another 2 minutes. Stir in your remaining 3 tbsp of butter until melted and remove from the heat.
8. Plate up and garnish with chopped coriander and ginger juliennes.