Where can you get the best butter chicken on the northern beaches?
EVERYONE loves butter chicken. Foodie Friday tracks down three of the northern beaches’ best creamy chicken dishes.
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WHO doesn’t love the universal appeal of butter chicken? Murgh makhani, the mild and creamy Indian curry, is a staple of curry houses the world over. It is the one dish even curry haters enjoy.
The story goes that this chicken curry and its creamy tomato gravy hails from the Moti Mahal restaurant in Delhi in the 1950s.
After 21 years, butter chicken is still Collaroy restaurant Gur Taj’s bestseller. It’s so popular with customers that Gur Taj has a dedicated chef to make chicken tikka and butter chicken.
There’s a lot more to the dish, Mr Singh, from the family-run restaurant said. Preparation starts a day ahead.
The chicken and an assortment of garlic, ginger and spices are marinated for 24 hours before being cooked in the tandoori. Add a creamy sauce that's flavoured with tomato paste and it becomes butter chicken.
The resort-style Terrey Hills Indian restaurant Urban Tadka has had the hugely popular dish on its menu since April 2011.
Butter chicken is listed on the menu as Delhi ka murgh mughlai, is served with boneless pieces of tandoori chicken cooked in a rich sauce of tomatoes, cream and butter and fenugreek.
Again, preparation is key and there is a lengthy cooking process. The two heroes of the dish — the sauce and chicken — are prepared separately.
The award-winning restaurant makes its sauce from scratch and uses quality ingredients such as fresh tomatoes and cashew paste. The secret is sieving the ingredients.
Jaz Virk and his chef Tony Minhas opened their Indian restaurant on Collaroy Plateau in 2014. They have been surprised to see how popular the dish is.
And it’s not just the kids that love The Indian Joint’s most sought-after dish.
Orders are spilt down the middle with as many adults picking the creamy curry. On a busy weekend butter chicken orders can exceed 60, Jaz Virk said.
The Collaroy Plateau restaurant makes its own sauce and adds the chicken, which is marinated in garlic, ginger and spices overnight, before being cooked in the tandoor.
The secret is making sure the cream doesn’t split.
Essentials
The Indian Joint: 3/23 Telopea St, Collaroy Plateau, 0430 155 007
Urban Tadka: 321 Mona Vale Rd, Terrey Hills, 9986 1040
Gur Taj: 2/1030-1034 Pittwater Rd, Collaroy, 9971 2740
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