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When the day’s busy and you’re craving something creamy, cozy, and restaurant-level, this slow cooker butter chicken is the move. It’s rich and saucy, but a little lighter than the classic.
Everything simmers low and slow so the chicken turns ultra tender and the spices bloom. Spoon it over fluffy rice, add warm naan on the side, and dinner basically serves itself.
Why You’ll Love This
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Hands-off slow cooker method with a creamy, spiced sauce that tastes like takeout—but cozier.
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Lighter spin (keep “buttery” flavor without the heaviness).
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Family-friendly heat; easy to adjust.
You see, there was a reason for that Naan yesterday.
Butter Chicken.
Butter Chicken and Naan just need each other. Especially when both are homemade and both are incredibly awesome.
And oh my gosh… So easy!
When I set out to make the Butter Chicken I wanted it to be crazy easy.
My cousin Maggie graduated from college with a teaching degree in May, and in August she started teaching full-time. Yeah, only three months later she landed her first teaching job and it’s full-time, with her very own kindergarten classroom! I know, right? The girl is pretty awesome and one of the hardest workers I know.
She’s also very busy, but really who the heck isn’t these days?
Maggie has been asking for easy crockpot recipes. You know, the ones that you can just throw everything in the bowl, turn it on and go!
So I adapted the classic Butter Chicken recipe, made a few changes to make it healthier, threw everything in the crockpot and prayed. Prayed that this (way too easy, most likely would never work) meal actually tasted somewhat edible.
Sometimes when I experiment things can turn out just plain bad. Like all the recipes I made this past weekend. Ugh…so disappointing. Let’s just not go there. But sometimes…
Yeah, sometimes I get lucky. I knew three hours in that the recipe was gonna be good.
The house smelled amazing. Almost fall like. It was awesome and so cozy.
Gotta love cozy comfort food that is not really comfort food.
I mean it’s comfort food, just a little lighter.
It’s seriously so cozy and perfect for quick weeknight meals.
Like I said, just throw it all in and go!
I have to say that normally I like browning my meat before I put it in the crockpot, but for this I did not miss it at all. There is so much flavor in the creamy sauce that you don’t need to brown the chicken first.
Which is just kind of awesome. I mean who wants to clean another pan? Not me, I’m already up to my eyeballs in dishes.
Oh, and seriously, the Naan is a must.
Make-Ahead, Storage & Reheat
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Make-ahead: Sauce develops flavor as it rests; make up to 1 day ahead and reheat gently.
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Fridge: Store airtight up to 3–4 days.
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Freeze: Up to 2–3 months; thaw overnight in the fridge.
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Reheat: Low and slow on the stove until hot and creamy; add a splash of water/stock if needed.
FAQ Block:
Can I use chicken breasts instead of thighs?
Yep—just cook until the chicken is tender and pulls apart easily. If using breasts, rely on doneness cues (juicy, easy to shred) rather than strict minutes to avoid dryness.How do I make this dairy-free?
Swap the cream for full-fat coconut milk and use olive oil in place of butter. Expect a slightly sweeter, coconut-forward finish that’s still rich and cozy.My sauce looks thin—how do I fix it?
Simmer uncovered until it coats the back of a spoon and leaves a line when you run a finger through it. A small cornstarch slurry also works in a pinch.Can I make it on the stovetop or in an Instant Pot?
Yes—follow the same flow: bloom spices, simmer until chicken is tender, then finish with butter/cream. Use texture and aroma cues (thick, glossy, fragrant) to know it’s ready rather than rigid timing.
Easy Healthier Crockpot Butter Chicken
Servings: 6 servings
Calories Per Serving: 456 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast cut into bite size chunks
- 1/2 onion finely minced
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 cloves garlic minced or grated
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 2 teaspoons curry powder
- 1-2 teaspoons Thai red curry paste
- 2 tablespoons garam masala
- 1/2-1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, use less if you are not a spicy person
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
- 1 (14 ounce) can coconut milk
- 1/2 cup greek yogurt
- 1/4 cup half and half or heavy cream
- cooked white rice for serving
- Fresh homemade naan for scooping (a must!)
Instructions
- In a large glass measuring cup or bowl mix together the coconut milk, greek yogurt and cream. Stir in the tomato paste, garlic, ginger and all the spices. Mix well.
- Spray the inside of your crockpot bowl with cooking spray or grease with olive oil. To the bowl sprinkle the onion over the bottom. Add the chicken and then pour the coconut milk mixture over the chicken so the chicken is completely covered. Add the butter and place the lid on the crockpot. Cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 6 to 8 hours. I like to stir mine once or twice during cooking, but it is not necessary. When ready to serve taste and season with salt and pepper if desired. Serve over rice with a big piece of fresh [Naan | https://fett-weg.today/homemade-naan-step-step-photos/%5D%3C/div%3E%3C/li%3E%3C/ul%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E View Recipe Comments
Obviously.
This post was originally published on September 9, 2013
We tried to like it but guess we aren’t big on curry and I cut that way down.
So sorry but I tried
OMG!!! I’m making this now and it smells amazing!
YES! Hope you loved it! Thanks!
Hi, I made this dish and it IS delicious. Very, very tasty. I don’t cook, so this was nothing short of a miracle. Haha! There is no nutritional value listed for the recipe, so I was wondering if you could list that. I’m just curious about it–calories, fat, carbs., protein, etc… Thanks!
So happy you loved it! Thanks!
Fantastic recipe! I have made this several times, and thoroughly enjoy it every time! My teenagers love it, too, and my youngest is pretty darn picky! I also enjoy that this is a bit lower in fat that you’d expect, but tastes just as good. I’m following Weight Watchers and I can eat this with a small piece of Naan and some rice without blowing my daily points! 🙂 In fact, I can even use some of my weekly points for a fabulous glass of wine to enjoy with this delicious meal! Thanks!
🙂 ~Seanna, Abbotsford, BC, CANADA
Haha! Ya! So happy everyone loves this. Thanks!
Thank you Tieghan for this recipe. I followed it exactly, save for using boneless skinless chicken thighs instead of breasts (next time I will use breasts).
The flavour was spot on. Cooking everything on low for 8 hours rendered the extra fat of the thighs and I was presented with a bright red thin layer of oil on top of the slow cooker. It was easily removed though.
Paired with basmati rice and nothing other to say than OMG.
I forgot to add the salt, but next time….
thanks very much
Tom
So happy you love this!! THANK YOU!
Another fantastic recipe. I made it on Saturday and it was perfect!
I just wanted to thank you for an amazing recipe. It is the best crock pot recipe I have ever cooked and I have cooked many! My family loves Indian food and the Naan recipe was brilliant also. I doubled the recipe and added a cup of lentils and one peeled, cubed sweet potato with about 1 hour and half cooking time left. It got rave reviews from my family and I will certainly be making it again and can’t wait to try some more of the recipes on your blog. Thanks again.
Tieghan,
Thanks for this recipe! This is the first thing I’ve made in a crockpot and of course, I started big 😛
A few notes/questions.
1. It did take about 45 min for me to prep everything (chopping/cutting/pressing the onion, garlic, chicken, ginger, etc) and measuring out all the spices, plus I have a manual can opener, haha.
2. Note to those teachers out there: this recipe will not survive 11 hours on low. haha. I put it in at 7 when I left for work and I came home at 6 and it was BURNT all around the edges and had a crust on top. I don’t believe my crockpot seals moisture well, but either way, I had hoped it would survive, I was wrong. Do you know if the “warm” setting on the crockpot is lower? I have “Low -> Hot -> Warm” as my options.
3. I was able to salvage enough to eat with one serving for leftovers and HOLY spicy monkey this was spicy, and I only put in 1/2 a tsp. I am a bit of a spice wimp, but this burnt my throat, I had to add a bunch of shredded cheese (I would’ve used sourcream if I had any) to cut the spice so I could eat it. I know, for myself, I probably should stick to 1/8 of a tsp next time.
4. There is something about it that is different than the restaurant style and I’m trying to figure out which spice it is so I can adjust it. It had a sweet flavor, not overpowering, but noticible (a sweet like cinnamon, sweet, not sugary) and all the butter chicken I’ve had has had a more savory flavor. I know I want to add more Garlic, and less cayenne, but I’m wondering if it is the garam marsala that adds the sweetness? should I cut this? What could I add to make it more savory? ( I know it is hard to describe flavor profiles through text, heh) I like the tumeric at the level it is at, and the curry powder, but I’m just not sure what to do next time.
Thank you for this!
Thanks so much for the notes! Sorry for the trouble you had, but I would not take out the garam marsala. Honestly, I do not know what to tell you to do, maybe decrease the amount of tomato paste because that is the only sweetness in the recipe. I will also edit the recipe to say to use less cayenne if needed.
Thanks again and I hope the second time goes better for you!
Can i make this in the oven and double the recipe?
Yes, you can. Just be sure to adjust the cooking time. I would cook it at 350 for at least 2-3 hours, but I am not sure. Just make sure the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened slightly. Hope you love this!
in your photos there is a torn green herb sprinkled on top…is that cilantro?? i don’t see anything in the recipe to match. thanks!
Yup! Sorry, I forget to mention it. I will add it in.
Hope you loved this. Thanks!
This was good! Unfortunately, I didn’t have exactly all the ingredients on hand so the first day we ate this it was good (too watery), but not great. Today it was yummy though after sitting overnight in the fridge! This was my fault and my crockpot’s fault for the following reasons:
1) Even if I follow ingredients EXACTLY, my crockpot tends to retain a lot of more liquid than the author of the recipe. This happens for pretty much every crockpot recipe I’ve ever tried. It seems to be very efficient at keeping in moisture. Using some cornstarch helps a bit…but not perfectly.
2) I used tomato sauce since I didn’t have tomato paste, and I used 1% milk instead of the heavy cream. This obviously adds additional moisture.
3) I have a 6 qt crockpot, and this was done in less than 6 hours on low heat (maybe 4?). I suppose I could have left it in longer to concentrate the sauce, but I was afraid of the chicken drying out. Maybe it would have been fine. I’m not sure what size crockpot you used. A smaller one would take more time since not as much of the food is near the heated parts of the pot. Brands/models can differ a lot too.
So…the first day it was good, but wasn’t as red/concentrated as yours and the sauce was a bit too watery. But, today, I just ate some for lunch and now that it has sat in the fridge for awhile, it was really good and I’m craving seconds!
So, if anyone has a crockpot like mine, or you sub in more watery ingredients and don’t follow the recipe exactly, try a little cornstarch slurry first…but it will probably taste much better the next day after all the flavors concentrate :-). I find this to be true with most slow-cooked meals.
Nice recipe Tieghan! I have yet to find a recipe I haven’t enjoyed on your site.
Also, the plans for your new barn house look awesome! I’m so jealous…hubby and I are still renting an apartment, which is nice, but we can’t do anything cool to it.
Made this last night – been looking for interesting chicken recipes for the crock pot and we love Indian food so thought I’d give it a go. I’m in the UK so was able to get pretty much everything from my supermarket (the only substitution I made was the tomato paste which we don’t really have in cans here – I subbed for a combination of tomato passata and tomato puree and I subbed cayenne pepper for 1 tsp chilli flakes because that’s what I had in the house!). It was FABULOUS. Really loved it and will definitely make it again and my other half loved it as well. It’s creamy and gorgeous and we served it with Basmati and Garlic Naan. For people asking if they can sub out the coconut milk, I’d say it’s worth it for the creaminess and the taste it gives. You just can’t get that authentic taste from anything else!
Thanks so much for this one, it’ll be on the ‘rota’ now – brilliant!! xxx
Hi Tieghan – I plan to make this amazing sounding dish today but wonder if I can sub the cream with more Greek Yogurt? I don’t do cream at all. How about almond milk – I have both these items in stock. Thanks!
Hey Jane, I think either one would be fine, but the dis may not be as creamy. Hope you love this and let me know if you have any more questions!
Was just wondering if it is spicy, sweet, or a mixture of both? I have had butter chicken numerous times, but have never attempted to make it from scratch! This looks scrumptious and I cannot wait to try it out!
It is not very spicy, but does have a little kick with a hint of sweetness. Hope you love this!
I tried the naan a few weeks ago and me and my husband both LOVED it! I’m making the butter chicken tonight and I’m so excited! I’ve had butter chicken at an Indian restaurant before and it is one of my favorite meals but have always been to intimidated to make it until I saw your recipe! Thank you so much for the simple recipe!! I can’t wait to taste it!!