Whole30 Butter Chicken
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This Whole30 Butter Chicken is a healthy version of a popular Indian curry recipe. This easy and flavorful butter chicken curry recipe rivals the taste of takeout with better ingredients!
The flavor of Indian takeout in the comfort of your own home
I made this Whole30 Butter Chicken specifically for my girlfriend after she told me that she loves Keto Connect’s Butter Chicken recipe. Every once in a while when I ask my usual, “what should we have for dinner?” she quickly asks, “butter chicken?”
Of course, I am always willing to oblige, but this round I knew I had to make it Whole30 friendly. That required me to make a creamy and satisfying recipe without dairy.
I’m not going to lie and say it better than butter chicken because I am deeply in love with heavy cream (sorry Amy!), but its a pretty delicious substitute. Since creating this recipe I have made Whole30 butter chicken for dinner an embarrassing number of times.
Healthy Butter Chicken is my go-to comfort food.
During this Whole30 journey I have learned that it is pretty easy to turn any regular dish into a Whole30 dish provided you aren’t getting into SWYPO (Sex With Your Pants On) territory. This Whole30 Butter Chicken fit the mold for a perfect recipe that could be modified to be Whole30 friendly.
I swapped out the butter for some ghee and heavy cream for some full-fat coconut milk and was able to come up with a rich and creamy dish that is just as tasty as the original one. The only difference between my version and the original was that the sauce was a little thinner so I added a bit of xanthan gum at the end just to thicken the sauce up a bit.
Whenever I add xanthan gum to a dish I will inevitably get the question, “but what if I don’t have xanthan gum?” and to all of you I say: its optional! It thickens the sauce a bit, but truly does nothing to change the taste of the dish and will be just as delicious without it.
What kitchen tools and ingredients will I need to make this healthy butter chicken recipe?
To make this simple Whole30 Butter Chicken all you need is a large nonstick pan and sharp knife. No fancy tools or gadgets. I try to keep things simple around here unless I’m cooking with my instant pot because that thing is amazing.
I wanted you all to see just how easy it is to make Whole30 butter chicken so I filmed a little recipe video of myself making this dish. The only thing I didn’t film was cubing the raw chicken, but you can do that by buying boneless skinless chicken breast and cubing it into bite size pieces.
A quick life hack for making that process even shorter is to purchase boneless skinless chicken tenders! There is less to cut when the pieces are smaller. Hit play on the video below to watch how I make this dish.
How to make healthy butter chicken
To make this whole30 butter chicken simply cube the chicken breast and then coat in spices. In the video I threw the spices directly into the bowl with the chicken, but I prefer to combine them on their own first before tossing with the chicken. This allows for an even flavoring.
I heat a pan over medium low and add some ghee. Then I cook onions and garlic in ghee until soft and fragrant. Add the seasoned chicken to the pan and cook over medium until almost fully cooked through.
Combine coconut milk and tomato paste with a whisk and pour into the pan. Allow simmering for 10 minutes. Stir in an arrowroot starch and water mixture to thicken the sauce and enjoy!
This recipe is perfect for your whole30 meal prep or cozy winter dinner. Grab the full recipe down below and, as always, if you try this recipe out, be sure to share how you liked it with me in the comments or on Instagram!
Whole30 Butter Chicken
A healthy twist on the popular Indian curry dish called butter chicken
Ingredients
- 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tbsp ghee
- 1 can full fat coconut milk
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 small yellow onion
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1.5 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 tsp ginger
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tbsp arrowroot starch
- 1/4 cup water
Instructions
- Dice the onion and mince the garlic
- Cut the chicken breast into bite-sized cubes
- Combine turmeric, ginger, chili powder, salt and cinnamon in a small bowl
- Pour spices over chicken and toss until chicken is fully coated in the spice mixture
- Heat ghee over medium-low in a frying pan
- Add onion and garlic to the pan with the melted ghee
- Cook onion and garlic until soft and fragrant about 3 minutes
- Increase the heat to medium and add the chicken to the pan
- Allow the chicken to cook over medium for 6 minutes tossing frequently
- While the chicken cooks, whisk together coconut milk and tomato paste
- Pour the liquid mixture into the pan with the chicken and increase the heat to high until the sauce bubbles
- Reduce to medium-low to simmer and simmer for 10 minutes
- To thicken the sauce, combine arrowroot starch and water in a small bowl
- Increase the heat to medium-high and push the chicken to one side of the pan
- Pour arrowroot and water mixture into the pan and mix vigorously as the sauce thickens
- Toss the chicken in the thickened sauce and remove the pan from the heat
- Enjoy with rice, cauliflower rice and veggies!
Jen says
This was outstanding! Very flavorful and I served it with couscous as well.
Madeline Tague says
Aw thank you i love to hear that! Sounds like a delicious meal!
Brandy says
THIS WAS SO GOOD!! Didn’t have Xanthan gum but still delicious. Thank you!
Diane says
Made this tonight and it was SO good!! Everyone from my 18-month-old to my picky husband all devoured it. Thank you for this amazing recipe!!
Madeline Tague says
YES that makes me so happy!! Thank you for sharing.
Brianna says
Delicious! My husband and 3 year old both gobbled it up!
Madeline Tague says
Thanks for sharing, Brianna! That makes me so happy!
manoj says
mouth watering Chicken Cutlet Homemade Just Try it youself https://youtu.be/CzPM2a7Ybto
Abetta says
Will this recipe taste the same without the xanthan gum??? I have everything but!!!
Charlotte says
So I gave this a shot, but didn’t have the xanthan gum……. AMAZING!!!! I don’t even think you really need it??? I’m excited to experiment with this recipe! By far the BEST one I’ve tried!!! Thank you so much for sharing this! I’ll be spreading the word! ??
Madeline Tague says
Yep! It doesn’t change the flavor just the thickness! SO glad you enjoyed it! Thank you!
Terri says
Do you know how many carbs it has?
Amanda says
Can’t wait to try it! Do you know how many calories this is?
Annie says
Wow I literally just made this and it was delicious!!!! Honestly one of the most delicious sauces I’ve ever made. I used Lite Coconut Milk and it was still great! Wonderful recipe 🙂
Michelle R says
This is sooo good! It’s so easy to make! Thanks for all that you do!
Madeline says
YAY! so glad you enjoyed!
Paige says
Made this with paleo naan for my dad and his girlfriend tonight, it was so delicious we were all scooping up every last bit with the naan. My dad is wary when trying new foods and isn’t big into Indian cuisine but he’s now converted. Thank you for the amazing recipe! It all came together so easily. Will definitely be on my regular rotation of dinners from now on!
Madeline says
YES!! I love hearing that!!
MichelleK says
I made this on Saturday after you did it on the live cook-a-long and it’s super easy to make and very tasty. I used ginger paste (as that was all I have) as well as chilli paste that I fried along with the garlic and onion. I also used tapioca starch instead of arrowroot, but for the rest I followed the recipe.
I had it the next day for leftovers and thought it tasted even better.
★★★★★
Madeline says
Oh yay! Glad the subs worked well!! And I agree it’s so good as leftovers
Haley says
This came out SO great, I even was able to freeze some for leftovers for later in the week & it heated back up perfectly!
Madeline says
I am so glad!! One of my favorites to make ahead and freeze.
Alexa says
Hands down greatest and easiest meal I’ve ever made. Craving it 7 days a week, 24 hours a day.
★★★★★
Madeline says
WOW! Thank you!!
Danielle says
I first made this when you did it live and it was so good that I have made it several times since. I love that it’s so full of flavour but isn’t spicy.
Madeline says
awesome!! thank you!
Brittany says
Really great! Perfect regardless of if you are doing a Whole30
★★★★★
Madeline says
yes!! thank you!!
Erica says
Great recipe! I make this several times per month and have tried with and without the Xantham gum, both to great success. Thanks!
★★★★★
Alicia says
Love this recipe! Subbed butter for ghee but it was still delish! Thank you for sharing your recipes with the world!
★★★★★
Madeline says
thank you so much!!!
Madeline says
awesome thank you!
Ellen says
I love this so much I doubled the recipe the second time I made it. Perfect for dinner and leftovers!
★★★★★
Madeline says
wonderful!! Thank you!
Shabibi says
This is a favourite in my house.
★★★★★
Madeline says
yay! so glad! Thank you!
Kat says
Love this recipe! Made it for the first time when I was doing Whole30 in January but still continuing to make it now!
★★★★★
maryjane says
Love that! Thanks!
Erin says
Love, love!! Very tasty, and I love the simple, concise instructions. Thanks for your recipes.
★★★★★
Heather Jane says
Do you think this would be good using ground chicken? It looks like a great recipe, I love Indian food and enjoy cooking it as well! Thank you!
Madeline says
it would have a very different consistency and texture – but the flavors would still work!
Megan M says
I’ve made this a few times now and it is always such a delicious addition to my week night menu! This flavorful dish will definitely be added to my fall dinner rotation!
Madeline says
wonderful! thank you!!