Mr. Butter Chicken Singh?

If you are a Delhiite, or have lived here for even a figment of your not-so-vast-life, you’re sure to have had the butter chicken and you’re in love with it. If you’re not, don’t tell anyone you’ve lived in Delhi and just say you’re here for the common wealth games. People would still laugh at you, but at least they won’t beat you to death.

So yes, The Butter Chicken. (Okay, I’m drooling a bit here. *Wipes the keyboard.* *Squeaky*) It is by far one of the greatest contribution to the ever growing Indian food scene, and don’t just people love it. Statistics show (and yeah, I did ask three of my local home delivery outlets) that butter chicken is the most asked for. And what’s amazing is that it’s everyone’s food. Ranging from Rs 150 (Tandoor-e-shahi) to about Rs. 5000 (The Bokhara chef special) a plate, it fits everyone’s pocket and certainly tummys! It’s amazing how the Mughals don’t pride over themselves for giving the Sardars their most loved main course.

Hang on. Mughals? Yeah, you heard (read) it right. The Mughals. They are the real daddy of Mr. Butter Chicken Singh.

We all associate butter chicken to big beefy Punjabis, having a good time sitting in their cars and having swigs of whisky in the hush-hush plastic cups, but really, Mr. Butter Chicken Singh is Mr. Butter Chicken Mohammed.

So how really did this Mughal invention become a Punjabi delicacy? The story goes that a group of Mughal servants were captured by a Punjab community, and one of them decided to pass himself off as a Punjabi as he loved his life. And so he was appointed as a cook in the king’s kitchen and one fine day when the king desired something new and special, he came up with The Butter Chicken.

The biggest clue to Butter Chicken being of Mughlai origin is in it’s marination. No Punjabi meat is marinated. It is instead enriched in flavor by repeated indirect roasting ( bhun-na ). Butter Chicken on the other hand is marinated for 12 hours, before it can be cooked (and I’m not talking about the insta-Butter Chicken that we find in the markets today).

The King was happy and the people rejoiced and the Butter Chicken became an instant hit among the Punjabi community, while the humble servant kept his silence.

So, then next time somebody tells you that Butter Chicken is Punjabi, mail them a link to my blog. Or give them my number. Also, if you see Butter Chicken listed as Punjabi in any menu, be a true Delhiite (unless of course, there’s more of a Punjabi pride) and have the manager informed of the mistake.

Till then folks, Chak De Phatte.. Er, scratch that.. *Something in Farsi*

Love and Khuda Hafiz,

Dead Poet.

P.S. – See how food knows no boundaries? Bet you didn’t even know this one existed. Food for thought, eh?