Butter Chicken-style silky tomato-butter-cream sauce

Ingredients

Marinade

• 600 g chicken thigh fillets, cut into 4 cm chunks
• 150 g Greek yoghurt
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp salt

Sauce

• 60 g cashews, soaked 30 minutes in hot water
• 3 tbsp ghee
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tbsp ginger, minced
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 400 g chopped tomatoes
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp garam masala
• 1 tsp sugar
• 100 ml double cream
• 50 g cold butter, cubed
• 1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)

To finish

• Fresh coriander, chopped

Method

1. Marinate. Mix chicken with marinade ingredients. Rest overnight (min 1 hour).
2. Cook chicken. Grill or sear on high, 8 minutes. Set aside.
3. Cashew paste. Drain cashews. Blitz with 100 ml water to a smooth paste.
4. Aromatics. Heat ghee. Fry onion 8 minutes until golden. Add garlic + ginger, 1 minute.
5. Sauce. Stir in tomato purée, then tomatoes, turmeric, garam masala, sugar. Simmer 15 minutes.
6. Blend. Cool slightly. Blitz smooth.
7. Combine. Return to heat. Stir in cashew paste and cream. Simmer 5 minutes.
8. Finish. Add chicken, butter cubes, fenugreek. Stir until butter melts. Top with coriander.

Tips

• Cashew paste is the secret. Smooth, rich, no bite.
• Butter at the end. Cold cubes, stirred in off the heat.
• Less chilli than tikka masala. The point is subtle richness.