Easy Butter Chicken with Simmer Sauce
Chicken browned in a pan, then simmered in jarred butter chicken sauce with a little butter, cream, and sugar to round it out. About 25 minutes, and the additions are what stop it tasting straight from the jar.
Servings: 4
Calories: 575kcal
Equipment
- 1 sauce pan or pot
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- ½ medium onion, diced
- 1 pound chicken thighs or chicken breast cut it bite size pieces
- 12 ounces butter chicken simmer sauce
- 4 tablespoon butter
- ¾ cup heavy cream or half and half
- 1 teaspoon sugar
Instructions
- In a pan, heat a bit of oil over medium heat. Add the grated garlic and chopped onion and sauté until the onion is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.2 cloves garlic, crushed, ½ medium onion, diced, 2 tablespoon olive oil
- Add the chicken and let the pieces sit against the pan before stirring. Cook until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. You want color on them, not just cooked through.1 pound chicken thighs or chicken breast cut it bite size pieces
- Pour in the simmer sauce and stir to coat, scraping up anything stuck to the bottom of the pan. Simmer 10 to 15 minutes, until the chicken reaches 165°F.12 ounces butter chicken simmer sauce
- Stir in the butter and cream over low heat. The sauce will turn from red to orange.4 tablespoon butter, ¾ cup heavy cream or half and half
- Add the sugar a teaspoon at a time, tasting as you go. Season with salt and pepper only if it needs it, since many jars are salted enough.1 teaspoon sugar
- Simmer 5 more minutes. Serve over rice or with homemade naan.
Notes
Serves 4 over rice or with naan.
Which simmer sauce. I use Maya Kaimal, from Target. Look for one where tomato is high on the ingredient list and sugar isn't, since you're adding sugar and cream yourself. A jar that's already sweet stacks and the dish goes cloying.
Taste the sauce before you season. Salt varies a lot between brands. Some jars are meant to be eaten straight, others expect you to finish them. Adding salt out of habit is how this ends up too salty to fix.
Brown the chicken properly. Let the pieces sit against the pan before you stir. Color on the chicken and browned bits on the pan bottom are most of what separates this from sauce poured over cooked chicken.
Use a big enough pan. Crowded chicken steams instead of browning. Give it room or do it in two batches.
Chicken thighs stay more tender through the simmer than breast does. If you use breast, shorten the simmer and pull it as soon as it hits 165°F.
Add the cream on low heat. Cream that boils in an acidic tomato sauce can split. Once it's in, you're warming through rather than simmering hard.
Sugar a teaspoon at a time, tasting as you go. It's balancing the acidity, not sweetening the dish. Some jars need none at all.
Half and half works in place of heavy cream and gives a thinner sauce.
Dairy-free. Full-fat coconut milk instead of cream and a plant butter. Check the jar too, since some simmer sauces already contain cream.
Make it a day ahead if you can. The sauce settles and the chicken keeps absorbing it overnight. Same dish, noticeably better.
Storage. Airtight in the fridge 3 to 4 days. The sauce thickens as it sits, so add a splash of water or cream when reheating. Reheat gently on the stove rather than the microwave. Store rice separately or it soaks up all the sauce.
Nutrition
Calories: 575kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 44g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Sodium: 700mg | Sugar: 7g
