Slow Cooker Butter Chicken

Tender chunks of chicken breast slow cooked in a rich, creamy, mildly spiced sauce, this Slow Cooker Butter Chicken curry is sure to become a family favourite! 

I’ve been craving really creamy, mildly spiced curries and rich, slow cooked beef casseroles lately – it must be the cold weather!

So this week I pulled my slow cooker out from the depths of the cupboard (I do use it regularly, but there’s no room for it on my kitchen counter!) and made this gorgeous butter chicken.  

Now I’m not going to claim that this is an authentic butter chicken recipe because it isn’t – but it’s definitely delicious! I promise you will love it. 

My boys can be the fussiest eaters around, but when I served this on Monday night they licked their plates clean!  If that’s not the sign of a good recipe, then I don’t know what is! 

How do you make slow cooker butter chicken? 

It’s really simple.  You start off by frying the chicken pieces off – I used chicken breasts.  You could use bonless, skinless chicken thighs instead if you prefer. 

While the chicken is browning, blitz the onion, ginger and garlic together in a food processor or chopper unti you have a fine paste. 

If you have a pestle and mortar and don’t mind a bit of bashing (good for relieving the stresses of the day!) you can use that instead.  

Once the chicken pieces are nice and golden, remove them from the pan and set aside. 

Melt some butter in the pan and add your onion paste and spices and cook for a couple of minutes until your kitchen smells amazing! 

Then add chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, chicken stock, a little salt and sugar to the pan.  Bring to the boil, then transfer everything to the slow cooker and leave it alone for a few hours.  Then stir in some double cream just before serving.

Naan bread is a must have for mopping up that creamy, spicy tomato sauce!

Can I make butter chicken curry in advance?

Sure! Once the curry is cooked and has cooled completely, transfer to the fridge where it will keep for 2-3 days. 

Make sure to reheat the curry until piping hot (in a saucepan, please don’t reheat in the slow cooker – it’s not recommended!)

If you make this butter chicken recipe, I would love it if you would share a picture with me on Facebook or Instagram – or simply just leave a comment and star rating below. 

Looking for more slow cooker recipes? 

Slow cooker chicken curry 

Slow cooker beef Stroganoff 

Slow Cooker Beef Curry

Slow Cooker Hunters Chicken

Slow Cooker Chicken Noodle Soup

Slow Cooker Mac and Cheese

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

Slow cooker beef and chorizo casserole

Slow Cooked Bolognese Sauce

More Easy Curry Recipes

Thai Green Vegatable Curry

Potato and chickpea curry

Quick Thai red prawn and spinach curry

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Slow Cooker Butter Chicken

Yield: 4 generous servings

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 8 hours

Total Time: 8 hours 20 minutes

Tender chunks of chicken breast slow cooked in a rich, creamy mildly spiced sauce - this Slow Cooker Butter Chicken Curry is very easy to make and absolutely divine to eat!

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Ingredients

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 4 large chicken breasts, cut into pieces
• 25 g butter
• 1 large onion, chopped into small dice
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled
• A thumb sized piece of fresh ginger, peeled and cut into small pieces
• 1-1 1/2 tsp mild chilli powder
• 1 tsp Garam Masala
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 3 cardamom pods, crushed to release the seeds
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 150 ml Chicken stock
• 1 400 g tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 5 tbsp Double cream
• Chopped fresh coriander, optional

Instructions

1. Preheat the slow cooker if necessary. Blend the onion, garlic and ginger in a food processor.
2. Heat the oil in a large sauce pan and add the chicken pieces. Cook over a high heat until the chicken has browned. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
3. Melt the butter in the sauce pan and add the onion, garlic and ginger paste. Cook on a medium heat until it is beginning to colour and smells fragrant. Stir in the chilli powder, Garam Masala, turmeric, cardamom pods and cinnamon. Cook for one minute, then add the chicken stock, chopped tomatoes, tomato purée, salt and sugar. Bring to the boil, stirring.
4. Place the chicken pieces in the slow cooker, pour the sauce over the top (making sure the pieces of chicken are well covered with sauce) place the lid on top and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 7-8 hours. Stir in the cream.
5. Remove the cardamom pods and sprinkle with chopped fresh coriander (if you don't despise it!)  Serve with rice, Naan bread, poppadoms and mango chutney.

Notes

Once cooked, this curry can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.  Reheat until piping hot before serving. 

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 410Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 138mgSodium: 497mgCarbohydrates: 15gNet Carbohydrates: 0gFiber: 2gSugar: 8gSugar Alcohols: 0gProtein: 41g

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