This slow-cooker Butter Chicken brings all the comfort of the classic Indian favourite, with an added twist: a generous boost of hearty green lentils for extra fibre and protein. It’s the kind of recipe that makes a long day feel easier, because most of the work happens while you’re doing something else.
The flavour base starts the way great curries do, by slowly cooking onions in butter until soft, then layering in garlic, fresh ginger, brown sugar, chili powder, curry powder, salt, and pepper. A quick sauté wakes up the spices and caramelizes the aromatics, so when they go into the slow cooker with diced tomatoes, chicken stock, and nutty peanut or almond butter, the sauce has depth right from the start. Hours on low heat give everything time to meld into a rich, velvety base before you puree it smooth.
Instead of throwing raw chicken straight into the slow cooker, this recipe has you brown the chopped thighs in butter first. That extra step adds flavour and gives the chicken better texture, so it stands up beautifully to the creamy sauce. Cooked green lentils join the browned chicken in the slow cooker for the final half hour, soaking up the spices and turning the dish into a more substantial, one-pot meal that still feels like Butter Chicken, just more nourishing.
Right at the end, whipping cream and fresh cilantro round everything out, bringing the signature silky richness and bright freshness you expect from Butter Chicken. Serve it spooned over steamed rice with warm naan on the side and you’ve got a crowd-pleasing dinner that feeds eight without much hands-on time.
It’s an ideal recipe for busy days: 20 minutes of prep, then the slow cooker quietly does the rest. Leftovers reheat well for lunches, and the lentils make it feel a little more down-to-earth and weeknight-friendly, while still delivering that “takeout at home” satisfaction.
Recipe courtesy of Lentils.org
Butter Chicken
Ingredients
- 6 Tbsp butter, divided
- 2 onions diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 2 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
- 2 Tbsp packed brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp chili powder
- 1 Tbsp curry powder
- 1/2 tsp salt and pepper
- 28 oz can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1/4 cup peanut or almond butter
- 1 lb boneless, skinless, chicken thighs, chopped into 1-inch (2.5 cm) pieces
- 3 cups cooked green lentils
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Instructions
- Heat 1/4 cup (60 mL) butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in onions and cook for about 5 minutes, until they are translucent. Stir in garlic, ginger, brown sugar, chili powder, curry powder, salt, and pepper. Cook for another 1-2 minutes until mixture is fragrant and garlic is golden. Remove from heat.
- In a 4 or 5-quart slow cooker, add onion mixture, diced tomatoes, chicken stock, and peanut butter. Stir together, cover and cook 5-8 hours on low.
- With an immersion blender, puree sauce until smooth.
- In a large skillet, heat remaining butter over medium heat. Add half the chicken, season with salt and pepper and cook until each side is golden brown, about 3-4 minutes per side. Repeat with remaining chicken. When chicken is browned, add it to the slow cooker, along with the lentils.
- Cover, and cook for another 30 minutes on high, until chicken is fully cooked and no longer pink inside.
- Stir in whipping cream, cilantro, and adjust seasonings with more salt and pepper, if needed.
- Serve over steamed rice, with naan bread on the side.
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