Gordon Ramsay Slow Cooker Butter Chicken Curry

Name: Gordon Ramsay Makes a Curry in a Hurry | Next Level Kitchen
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 5 h
Total time: 5 h 25 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 800 g boneless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into bite sized chunks; 1 tsp salt; 0.5 tsp black pepper, freshly ground; 1 tsp fresh turmeric, grated; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp ground coriander; 0.5 tsp cayenne pepper; 1 tsp garam masala; 3 tbsp natural yogurt; 1 tbsp grapeseed oil; 2 tbsp grapeseed oil; 2 red onions, sliced; 2 cardamom pods, lightly bashed; 3 cloves, whole; 30 g fresh ginger, roughly sliced; 1 red chilli, sliced, seeds left in; 3 garlic cloves, peeled; 50 g unsalted butter; 1 small handful fresh coriander stalks, leaves reserved for garnish; 0.5 tsp garam masala; 0.5 tsp ground turmeric; 0.5 tsp ground cumin; 0.25 tsp cayenne pepper; 350 g passata or tomato sauce; 150 ml double cream; 30 g unsalted butter, cubed; 1 lemon, zest and a squeeze of juice; 1 small handful fresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped

Source video by Gordon Ramsay on YouTube. This recipe was adapted with strict source-fidelity rules and is marked for human review.

Gordon Ramsay's 15 minute butter chicken from his Next Level Kitchen series, reworked here for the slow cooker. The chicken is marinated in yogurt and spices, then cooked low and slow in a rich onion, ginger, garlic and tomato sauce finished with double cream and butter. The result is a velvety, fragrant curry that benefits from the longer cook time, allowing the spices to penetrate deeply. Serve with steamed rice or warm chapattis.

Slow cooker notes: Original is a fast hob recipe. Adapted by browning chicken and building the spiced onion base on the hob, then transferring to the slow cooker with tomato sauce to cook low and slow. Double cream, butter and lemon zest added in the final 20 minutes to prevent splitting. Sauce is blitzed and passed through a sieve as in the original, before the chicken is returned for finishing.

Ingredients

Chicken marinade

800 gboneless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into bite sized chunks
1 tspsalt
0.5 tspblack pepper, freshly ground
1 tspfresh turmeric, grated
1 tspground cumin
1 tspground coriander
0.5 tspcayenne pepper
1 tspgaram masala
3 tbspnatural yogurt
1 tbspgrapeseed oil

Sauce

2 tbspgrapeseed oil
2red onions, sliced
2cardamom pods, lightly bashed
3cloves, whole
30 gfresh ginger, roughly sliced
1red chilli, sliced, seeds left in
3garlic cloves, peeled
50 gunsalted butter
1 small handfulfresh coriander stalks, leaves reserved for garnish
0.5 tspgaram masala
0.5 tspground turmeric
0.5 tspground cumin
0.25 tspcayenne pepper
350 gpassata or tomato sauce

Finishing

150 mldouble cream (add late)
30 gunsalted butter, cubed (add late)
1lemon, zest and a squeeze of juice (add late)
1 small handfulfresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped (add late)

Method

Cut the chicken into bite sized chunks. Place in a bowl with salt, pepper, fresh turmeric, cumin, ground coriander, cayenne and garam masala. Add the yogurt and a tablespoon of oil. Mix well to coat. Marinate for at least 30 minutes, ideally overnight in the fridge for the deepest flavour.
~10 min
Heat the grapeseed oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat. Add the sliced red onions, bashed cardamom pods and whole cloves. Spread the onions up the side of the pan to caramelise quickly, around 3 to 4 minutes.
~5 min
Add the sliced ginger, chilli (seeds in for heat) and garlic cloves. Stir for 1 minute, then add half the butter and the coriander stalks. Sprinkle in the garam masala, turmeric, cumin and cayenne. Toast the spices in the butter for 1 to 2 minutes until fragrant and the onions are soft and caramelised.
~5 min
Push the onion mix to one side of the pan. Add the marinated chicken with all of its marinade and brown for 3 to 4 minutes, just to colour the outside. The chicken does not need to cook through.
~5 min
Pour in the passata and bring to a simmer. Lift out the chicken pieces with a slotted spoon and set aside. Transfer the sauce base to a blender and blitz until smooth, holding the lid down with a tea towel as it is hot.
~5 min
Pass the blitzed sauce through a sieve into the slow cooker, pressing with the back of a ladle to extract every drop. Discard the solids. Add the browned chicken and stir to coat.
~5 min
Cover and cook on Low for 4 to 5 hours or High for 2 to 3 hours, until the chicken is tender.
Stir in the double cream and remaining butter. Add the lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice. Cover and cook on Low for a further 20 to 30 minutes. Do not let it boil hard once the butter is in.
~25 min
Taste and adjust salt and pepper. Scatter over fresh coriander leaves and serve with steamed rice or warm chapattis.
~2 min

Frequently asked

Can I marinate the chicken overnight?

Yes, and Gordon recommends it. Overnight marination lets the yogurt and spices penetrate right through the chicken, lifting the flavour and colour considerably.

Do I need to brown the chicken first?

Yes. Slow cookers do not brown, so colouring the chicken in the marinade on the hob first locks in flavour and gives the sauce its richness.

What if the curry is too spicy?

Stir in an extra knob of butter or a splash more double cream at the end. Butter is an excellent cooling agent and tames the heat without dulling the flavour.

Can I use chicken thighs instead of breast?

Absolutely. Thighs are actually better suited to slow cooking as they stay tender and juicy through the long cook. Cut them into four chunks each.

Why pass the sauce through a sieve?

It removes the whole cardamom pods, cloves and any fibrous bits, leaving a beautifully smooth, velvety sauce. It is optional but worth the extra two minutes.

Extraction notes (transparency): Several quantities were not stated in the transcript: tomato sauce ('half a jar'), double cream amount, butter amount, lemon juice, salt, pepper, oil, and chicken weight. Estimated reasonable amounts based on a 4 serving butter chicken but flagged for review. Marinade spice quantities given as teaspoons in transcript. Source is a hob recipe adapted for slow cooker.