Whole 30/Paleo Butter Chicken

There is not much to say about butter chicken except for it is amazing! For this recipe I took a more traditional butter chicken recipe and then I adjusted everything to fit with Whole 30. I found the original recipe by doing a Google search and came up with this one.

 

Whole 30 Compliant Butter Chicken

Ingredients:
4 chicken thighs – about 1.5 pounds
1 15 ounce can of whole tomatoes with juice- pureed into sauce
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
2 Tablespoons ghee
6 pods of green cardamom
1 pod black cardamom
1 cinnamon stick
4 whole cloves
1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
1 dried chili
5 cloves of garlic-grated into a paste (use 1/3 of paste in marinade)
1 inch piece of ginger- grated into a paste (use 1/3 of paste in marinade)
1/3 cup raw cashews
2 cups water
1 teaspoon garam masala
½ cup coconut cream
½ teaspoon salt
Marinade:
1/3 cup coconut cream
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/3 of each garlic and ginger paste- see above

Garnish-optional
Cilantro
Coconut cream

Kitchen equipment needed:
Large sauce pan or Dutch oven
Container with lid for marinating chicken
Measuring spoons
Baking pan with wire rack
Foil
Meat thermometer

1. Mix all marinade ingredients together and pour over chicken thighs. Mix thighs with the marinade to coat well then marinade overnight.
2. The next day: line the baking sheet with foil. Place baking rack in center. Place chicken on the rack evenly spacing them out evenly. Turn oven to broil and broil the chicken thighs 10-12 minutes each side until they are slightly browned but not fully cooked. Place chicken to the side then start the butter sauce.
3. Heat the ghee in the bottom of the pot over medium-high heat. Add cardamom, cinnamon, & cloves and fry for 1 minute.
4. Add fenugreek, chili pepper, remaining garlic & ginger paste and sauté until slightly browned.
5. Add pureed tomatoes and tomato paste and cook until mixture cooks down into a paste like consistency.
6. Blend the cashews and water until they are a smooth paste. Add it to the tomato mixture and stir well.
7. Cut the chicken into bite sized chunks and add into the tomato sauce with ½ teaspoon salt, ½ cup coconut cream, & 1 teaspoon garam masala.
8. Cook on medium heat for 8-10 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked and meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F.

                         

                            

I made this for some dinner guests and they absolutely loved it. I served it with garam masala green beans and cauliflower rice. I found the recipe for the green beans here at Food.com and check out my recipe for cauliflower rice here.