Butter Chicken

I was pleased with how well this turned out. I didn't have all of the ingredients this called for, so I skipped on the cardamom and fenugreek. I also substituted canned tomatoes for fresh because there's not a decent fresh tomato in sight right now. Instead of grilling the meat, I fried it in the same dish I was making the gravy in. This was poor planning on my part because the cooking process ended up taking nearly an hour. I highly recommend starting the gravy while the chicken is cooking.

One year ago: Lemon Sabayon ... funnily enough I also made a lemon curd today

Butter Chicken (from Rasa Malaysia)

Ingredients
500 grams boneless chicken, cut into 1-inch cubes
juice of 1 lemon
salt and red chili powder, to taste
1 cup yogurt
2 tsp ginger
2 tsp garlic
1 1/2 tbs tandoori masala
3 tbsp butter
2 cardamoms
1 cinnamon stick
2 cloves
4 medium ripe tomatoes, blended (or about 2/3 of a can of tomatoes ... I didn't blend and instead crushed them as they cooked)
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp garam masala
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves
250 ml (about 1 cup) thick cream
extra butter or coriander to garnish

1. Marinate the chicken cubes in lemon juice, salt, chili powder, yogurt, ginger, garlic and tandoori powder for at least half an hour. Overnight is best.
2. Preheat the oven to the highest grill setting. Place the chicken on a baking tray closest to the grill and grill for at least 10 minutes on each side or until cooked. Allow the chicken to cook until it JUST starts to char.
3. To prepare the gravy, heat and melt the butter.
4. Add to it the the cardamoms, cinnamon sticks and cloves. Stir fry for a minute before adding the tomatoes and tomato paste, Let this simmer on low to medium heat, half covered, for about 15-20 minutes. You will notice the gravy thicken and the oil will form a film on top. If the gravy is too thick, you can add a small amount of water.
5. Add the rest of the ingredients as well as the grilled chicken and simmer for another 15 minutes. Garnish with butter or coriander.