Slow Cooker Butter Chicken (Murgh Makhani)
, Updated Jan 20, 2026
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This Slow Cooker Butter Chicken Is better than takeout! Tender chunks of chicken in a rich, creamy tomato-based sauce packed with warm spices. A super easy, hands-off curry the whole family will love.
Love curries? Why not try my Healthy Chicken Rogan Josh
Do you have a takeout night? Ours tends to be on a Thursday or Friday, because even food bloggers need time away from cooking! Sadly our favorite Indian takeout place has a pretty hefty price tag, so ordering is for special occasions only.
Butter Chicken is one of my fave curry recipes – who can resist the tender chunks of chicken smothered in an butter-rich creamy sauce? This slow cooker butter chicken recipe is easy-peasy – no browning, no fuss – your crock pot does all the work. So give your purse a break and make this insanely delicious curry at home – your family with thank you!
What’s Butter Chicken?
Butter Chicken, also referred to as Murgh Makhani, is among the most cherished dishes in India, celebrated for its luxurious and creamy tomato-based sauce and tender chicken. The word makhani translates as “with butter” in Hindi – indulgence is the name of the game with this dish.
So, here’s a fun fact: Butter Chicken was actually created by accident back in the ’50s at a Delhi restaurant called Moti Mahal. The chefs were looking for a creative way to use up leftover tandoori chicken, so they decided to slow-cook it in this rich, buttery tomato sauce. And that’s how Butter Chicken was born!
Here’s What you Will Need
This easy chicken curry doesn’t require a ton of ingredients, other than a few spices which add so much flavor to the rich sauce.
- Chicken: use boneless and skinless thighs. They are more tender and suitable for slow cooking.
- Onion, garlic and ginger – the holy trinity of curry aromatics
- Lemon juice to cut through the richness of the sauce
- Tomatoes and tomato paste or purée
- Spices: garam masala, smoked paprika, cayenne, turmeric, cumin
- Unsalted butter to enrich the sauce or coconut oil for a dairy free version
- Cream – heavy cream or full fat coconut milk for a dairy free version
How to Make Slow Cooker Butter Chicken Curry
- Put all the sauce ingredients in a food processor and blitz to a smooth paste.
- Cut the chicken thighs into cubes removing any large pieces of fat. Add the paste into your slow cooker and mix in the diced chicken. Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 hours or on LOW for 5 hours.
- Stir in the butter until it melts into the sauce and add the cream. Taste and adjust the seasoning (if needed).
Serving Suggestions
Butter Chicken is rich, creamy, and packed with flavor – so it pairs best with simple, fluffy carbs that soak up that gorgeous sauce!
- Rice – Fragrant, fluffy, and the perfect partner to curry. Try my easy pilau rice recipe for a classic combo that never fails. This Easy Coconut Rice Recipe is another wonderful option!
- Homemade Flatbreads – Skip the store-bought and make your own two-ingredeint flatbreads – they’re perfect for scooping up every last bit of sauce. Want to push the boat out? Make these delectable Garlic Naan.
- Make It a Feast – Add a side of dal for a proper curry night at home!
- Serious amounts of butter and cream make butter chicken suitable for keto and low-carb diet devotees, served over cauliflower rice or with steamed greens.
Storage and Freezing
- Storing: Let leftovers cool completely, then transfer to an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. The flavors actually deepen the longer butter chicken sits in the fridge! Stir in some water or extra cream when reheating to loosen the sauce, as needed.
- Freezing: Butter chicken freezes beautifully, but ideally you would leave the cream out before doing so. Portion into freezer-safe containers or zip-top bags (flattened for easy stacking). Freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight in the fridge, then reheat gently over low on the stove, stirring the cream in at the end to warm through.
Frequently Asked Questions
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are ideal because they stay juicy and don’t dry out during long, slow cooking.
No — browning the chicken first can deepen flavor, but it’s not required. The slow cooker will cook the chicken until it’s tender and it will absorb all the wonderful aromas and flavors of the curry.
Butter Chicken is not especially hot. Add chopped green chilies, cayenne, or extra chili powder for a spicy kick.
Full fat coconut milk or, ideally, coconut cream makes a lovely dairy‑free version. It changes the flavor slightly, but the curry will still taste rich and delicious.
To keep the sauce silky, add the cream at the end of cooking and warm through on low. Full-fat dairy products are more forgiving and less likely to split.
Yes but skip the cream — freeze fully cooled butter chicken in airtight containers for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight and reheat gently on the stove or microwave.
They’re similar, but butter chicken is usually creamier and sweeter with a milder spice profile. Chicken tikka masala has more tomato and spices, and is slightly tangier as it contains yogurt.
HAVE YOU MADE MY SLOW COOKER BUTTER CHICKEN CURRY? Post a photo on my Facebook page, share it on Instagram, or save it to Pinterest with the tag #supergoldenbakes and make my day!
Slow Cooker Butter Chicken
Video
Ingredients
For the sauce
- 1 onion chopped finely
- 4 garlic cloves
- 14 oz (400g) canned tomatoes or use passata
- 1 tbsp tomato paste (optional)
- 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger or ginger paste
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp cayenne
Butter Chicken
- 10 chicken thighs skinless and boneless
- ½ cup (115g) unsalted butter cubed
- ½ cup (120ml) cream heavy / double cream
- fresh coriander (cilantro) to garnish
- salt and pepper to season to taste
Instructions
- Put all the sauce ingredients in a food processor and blitz to a smooth paste.1 onion, 4 garlic cloves, 14 oz (400g) canned tomatoes, 1 tbsp tomato paste, 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 2 tsp garam masala, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp ground turmeric, 1 tsp smoked paprika, 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp cayenne
- Cut the chicken into large cubes removing any large pieces of fat. Add the paste into your slow cooker and mix in the diced chicken.10 chicken thighs
- Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 hours or on LOW for 5 hours.
- Stir in the butter until it melts into the sauce and add the cream.½ cup (115g) unsalted butter, ½ cup (120ml) cream
- Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed. Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve over rice or cauliflower rice.fresh coriander, salt and pepper to season
Notes
-
- Rice – Fragrant, fluffy, and the perfect partner to curry. Try my easy pilau rice recipe for a classic combo that never fails.
- Homemade Flatbreads – Skip the store-bought and make your own two-ingredeint flatbreads – they’re perfect for scooping up every last bit of sauce.
- Make It a Feast – Add a side of dal for a proper curry night at home!
- Serious amounts of butter and cream make butter chicken suitable for keto and low-carb diet devotees, served over cauliflower rice or with steamed greens.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is always approximate, and will depend on quality of ingredients and serving sizes.
This recipe is absolutely delicious! I grew up in a country where I could find Indian food on every corner but now live in a state where I can’t find a good Indian restaurant within driving distance sadly. The only way my family and I have a good Indian meal is if I cook it. I tried this recipe today and it’s a definite winner and MUST make again! Thank you for sharing! Saving this one for sure. 🙂
This is a stunning dish and so easy to make! I have tried a few slow cooker recipes but this is easily the best, very authentic. Thank you !
Hi Lucy – do you think Coconut Cream could be substituted for the heavy cream here without ruining the recipe? Thanks!
Hi Erin,
don’t see why not as long as it is full fat. I have also used soya cream in the past
I have been wanting to make butter chicken for quite some time. This recipe is simple to do! Will be in my rotation monthly. I did use fresh parsley for garnish as I did not have the fresh corriander.
Glad you enjoyed it 😘
Fantastic. Kids ate all of it
We don’t do a takeaway weekly mainly because I find I often enjoy the food at home better. I think my version of takeaway is a “it’s not going on the blog so it can be thrown on a plate however” kind of meal haha! We will occasionally have one, but not often. In NYC tho, I would probably have one once a week! There is so much good food up there 🙂 But I am an hour away from there. The tolls and parking make it not worth going all the time just for food anymore (I used to when I was a younger adult.)
I am going to try this with the family one day soon, it looks and sounds delicious 🙂
Your recipes are so perfect! Do you have an instantapot cookbook?
I was thinking of doing an ebook soon!
Awesome Indian recipe for the slow cooker. I always thought that Chinese restaurants here in the US are pretty bad, unless you are in big cities like San Francisco, LA, or Seattle. But, it’s good that you have great Indian fares over there.
I only experienced Chinese takeaways in New York. And a very long time ago. Probably not great by most standards but for my inexperienced taste buds the food was amazing. Indian restaurants in the UK range from incredible to pretty poor but I would say the standard overall is pretty high
Oh I just love butter chicken. We don’t have any Indian restaurants close to our home so a good recipe is a must.
I was just saying to my husband that I was craving Indian food—now I don’t have to drive 45 minutes into town for dinner! Can’t wait to try this.