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A birds eye view of a bowl containing half rice and half butter chicken.
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4.53 from 152 votes

Slow Cooker Butter Chicken

This slow cooker dairy-free butter chicken is a lightened-up take on a classic Indian dish. Chicken breasts are cooked to juicy perfection in a creamy coconut milk and tomato sauce that's packed with flavor.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time3 hours
Total Time3 hours 10 minutes
Course: Lunch/Dinner
Cuisine: Indian
Keyword: dairy-free butter chicken
Servings: 6

Ingredients

  • 2 Tablespoons coconut oil
  • 1 large yellow onion chopped
  • 5 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 inch knob of fresh ginger chopped
  • 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
  • 1 Tablespoon garam masala
  • 1 Tablespoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground pepper
  • ½ teaspoon cayenne optional
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast chopped into chunks
  • 1 15 oz can full fat coconut milk
  • 1 15 oz can tomato sauce
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 2 cups thawed frozen or fresh green beans optional
  • ¼ cup chopped cilantro

Instructions

  • Add oil to a large skillet or saucepan and cook onion and garlic until soft and fragrant, about 5 minutes.
    Garlic and onion sautéing in oil in the bottom of a slow cooker.
  • Add fresh ginger, turmeric, garam masala, cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, cinnamon and cayenne and toss to combine. Cook for another 1-2 minutes. This step can be done in the base of your slow cooker if it allows.
    Spices mixed together with onions and garlic in a slow cooker.
  • Transfer onion and garlic mixture into your slow cooker. Add chicken, coconut milk, tomato sauce, lemon juice and cinnamon stick to the slow cooker as well.
  • Cover and cook on high for 3 hours or low for 6 hours. Add green beans when there's about 1 hour left in the cooking process.
    Fresh green beans have just been added to a slow cooker containing butter chicken.
  • Serve butter chicken over cauliflower rice (or regular rice) with fresh cilantro and a wedge of lemon for squeezing.

Notes

  • Thicker sauce: If you prefer your sauce thicker, whisk together 1 Tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot powder with 2 Tablespoons water and add it to the slow cooker right before adding the green beans.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/6 of recipe | Calories: 360kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 761mg | Potassium: 197mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 5g