My little apartment kitchen is crammed with cooking appliances, tools and toys. My roommates are extremely generous in allowing me to take up nearly all available shelving with my gadgets, and I feel OK about this only because I use every single one of these items on the regular (and try my damndest to feed my roommates whenever possible—living with a food writer should have some benefits!). With this in mind, I knew I had to come up with something to use my new, beautiful-but-enormous tagine for, beyond tagine-making. Butter Chicken, one of my favorite dishes to order at Pakistani and Indian restaurants, with its need to slowly simmer in a rich, buttery, tomato-y sauce, seemed a natural fit. The sauce for this dish is literally silky, with a luxurious mouthfeel that will leave you unable to stop eating it.

My method proved genius, the tagine’s conical top working overtime to keep the pot’s condensation circulating, yielding a deep, rich flavor. Of course, you can also cook this using a dutch oven or a deep, heavy-bottomed frying pan with a fitted lid.

Note: A nice touch is to throw a head or two of fresh chopped broccoli into the pan and cover, just before the chicken finishes cooking.

• ingredients
• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, chopped into 1-inch cubes $3
• 4 garlic cloves, minced Pantry
• 1 tsp curry powder $1.50 for 1 oz.
• 1 tsp ground coriander $1.50 for 1 oz.
• 2 tsp ground cumin $1.50 for 1 oz
• 1 tsp chili powder $1.50 for 1 oz.
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon $1.50 for 1 oz.
• 8 oz Greek-style (thick) yogurt $1.50
• 5 tbsp butter $1 for a stick
• 1 6-oz can tomato paste $1
• 1 15-oz. can chopped tomatoes $1.50
• 1 tbsp honey Pantry
• 4 cardamom pods (crush pods slightly to release seeds and more flavor) $1
• 1 cup heavy cream $1.50 for a half-pint
• 1 tsp salt Pantry
• pepper to taste Pantry
• 1 handful fresh cilantro, chopped $1 for a bunch

Total Cost of Ingredients $19

Directions

Combine chicken, garlic, spices (other than cardamom) and yogurt and mix well. Refrigerate in a covered container for at least 30 minutes (or as long as overnight).

In a tagine or other heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat,, melt butter. Add the tomato paste, chopped tomatoes, honey and cardamom. Stir well. Bring to a light boil and reduce to medium-low to simmer, stirring occasionally, until sauce is thick (15-20 minutes)

Add chicken and cream and stir well Continue to simmer for another 18-20 minutes, until chicken is fully cooked and very tender and sauce is creamy and thick.

Serve hot, garnished with cilantro.

Serves 4.