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Karahi & handi

Chicken Makhni Handi Recipe

چکن مکھنی ہانڈی بنانے کا طریقہ

Marinated boneless chicken in a buttery tomato and cream sauce with kasuri methi, gently sweet and mildly spiced, the way Pakistani restaurants serve it.
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Illustration of Chicken Makhni Handi

Prep

15 min

Cook

35 min

Marinate / soak

30 min

Serves

4

Difficulty

Medium

Spice

Mild

Makhni handi is the Pakistani restaurant take on butter chicken: boneless chicken in a smooth, orange tomato gravy enriched with butter and cream. The chicken is marinated and seared first so it keeps some smoky colour, and the tomatoes are cooked down in butter until sweet before the cream goes in. It is mild enough for children and rich enough for a dawat.

Ingredients

4 servings

For 4 servings

Measures

Marinade

Makhni sauce

To finish

Method

  1. Mix the chicken with all the marinade ingredients and leave for at least 30 minutes (or overnight in the fridge).

    ⏱ 30 min

  2. Heat the oil in a wide pan on high heat. Sear the chicken in one layer, turning once, until patches of brown appear. It does not need to be cooked through. Lift it out.

    ⏱ 6 min

  3. In a handi, melt the butter on medium heat and fry the ginger-garlic paste for 1 minute.

    ⏱ 1 min

  4. Add the tomato purée, cashew paste, Kashmiri chilli, red chilli, coriander, salt and sugar. Cook, stirring often, until the purée darkens, thickens and butter shows at the edges.

    ⏱ 12 min

  5. Add the water and the seared chicken with its juices. Cover and simmer on low heat until the chicken is cooked through.

    ⏱ 8 min

  6. Stir in the cream and kasuri methi and warm through on the lowest heat for 2 to 3 minutes without boiling.

    ⏱ 3 min

  7. Taste and adjust salt and sugar. Top with the last tablespoon of butter and the coriander and serve.

Tips for the best result

  • For a smoky restaurant taste, give the finished handi koyla smoke: put a red-hot piece of charcoal in a small foil cup on top, drip on a few drops of oil and cover for 2 minutes.
  • If your tomatoes are sour, add a teaspoon of honey instead of extra sugar; it rounds out the sauce.
  • Kashmiri chilli gives the orange colour without much heat. Use more red chilli powder if you like it hotter.

Common mistakes

  • Not cooking the tomato purée long enough. Raw purée tastes sharp and sour; it needs to darken and smell sweet.
  • Boiling the sauce after the cream goes in. It splits and loses its silky texture.

How to serve

Serve with garlic or plain naan, roghni naan, or plain basmati rice.

Storing and reheating

Keeps 3 days in the fridge. Reheat gently with a splash of water or milk. Freeze for up to 1 month; stir well as it thaws.

Nutrition and cost

Worked out from the ingredients, not measured in a lab. Treat both as a rough guide.

Per serving Estimate

Calories
570kcal
Protein
46g
Fat
38g
Carbs
12g
Fibre
2.5g
Sodium
1100mg

Estimated from USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy (April 2018), public domain values for the raw ingredients (100% of the recipe by weight had data). Deep-frying oil is counted at 20%; bones and water lost in cooking are not subtracted, so bone-in and fried dishes can read high. Not medical advice. Method

Cost per servingEstimate

≈ Rs 205

Whole dish ≈ Rs 825 · 85% of ingredients by weight priced

From the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics weekly SPI, week ended 29 Oct 2026. Spices, herbs and some vegetables are not in the SPI and are left out unless you add your price, so the real cost is a little higher. How this works

Chicken Makhni Handi: questions people ask

Is makhni handi the same as butter chicken?

They are close relatives. Pakistani makhni handi is usually a bit spicier and less sweet, often has green chillies, and is served in a handi rather than a bowl.

Can I make makhni handi without cashews?

Yes. The cashews only add body. Leave them out and add an extra 2 tablespoons of cream at the end.

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Read this recipe in Urdu: چکن مکھنی ہانڈی بنانے کا طریقہ

https://handi.danixsoft.com/recipes/chicken-makhni-handi · Handi, DanixSoft