Indian Butter Chicken

I'm always in the mood for Indian recipes. This is so basic. So easy. So good. The ingredient list may look daunting, but I chopped and measured everything out earlier today, so it took just minutes to throw this entree together. I used a rice cooker for the rice (I use jasmine) and started that first. Everything else came together in less than 15 minutes. I served the chicken on rice with artichokes. This recipe is two healthy servings with a nice helping of leftovers for lunch tomorrow :-)

INDIAN BUTTER CHICKEN

1/2 onion (about 4 oz), chopped

1 Tbsp fresh ginger, finely minced

1/2 fresh jalapeno, seeded and chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 Tbsp canola oil

1 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp cardamom

1/4 tsp coriander

3 oz tomato paste (1/2 small can)

1 1/4 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup half and half or cream (I understand fat-free half&half works fine!)

1 small bay leaf

1/2-3/4 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces

S&P

2 Tbsp butter

cooked Jasmine or Basmati rice

Lime wedges, for garnish

Fresh cilantro, for garnish

In a large saute pan, combine onion, ginger, chili, and oil. Stir often over medium-high heat until onion is lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic, garam masala, chili powder, cardamom, and coriander. Saute an additional 2 minutes.

Scrape mixture into a blender or food processor; add tomato paste and chicken broth. Whirl until very smooth. Pour mixture back into pan, and half and half or cream and bay leaf, and bring to a gentle boil over high heat (mixture will spatter.....use a splatter screen!) reduce heat and simmer, sitrring often, until reduced a bit, about 5 minutes. Pour sauce into a bowl. Rinse and dry pan.

Pat chicken dry. Add S&P. Set pan over medium-high heat; add 1/2 Tbsp butter and chicken. Stir until chicken is no longer pink on the surface, a couple of minutes. Add the sauce and simmer over medium heat, stirring often, until chicken is no longer pink in the center, 3-4 minutes. Stir in remaining 1 1/2 Tbsp butter into sauce until melted.

Spoon chicken and sauce onto rice. Squeeeze lime juice over portions and garnish with cilantro.