Slow Cooker Butter Chicken (Paleo & Whole30)
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Let’s make Slow Cooker Butter Chicken! This paleo butter chicken recipe is so easy and delicious, it’s become one of the all-time most popular recipes on this site! You’ll want to slurp the sauce with a spoon. (Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Paleo, Whole30)
Photos + post updated January 2021. Original post published October 2014.
Since they’re related to (and living with) a food blogger, my family is constantly eating a stream of new recipes. Some are winners that make it to the site, others are misses that send me back to the drawing board. Since we try to cut down on as much waste as possible, we eat almost everything I make for the blog. (Even most of the failures. Some failures just aren’t edible.) So it’s not super often that we repeat meals.
But some recipes are so good, they make it into the regular rotation and never leave. This Slow Cooker Paleo Butter chicken is one of those recipes. I first made this wayyy back in 2014 (when Milo was just 1!), and we’ve been making it on a regular basis ever since.
In the years since I first published this Slow Cooker Butter Chicken recipe, it’s become one of the most popular recipes on my site, has been featured around the internet, and was even been published in a magazine. I GET IT! It’s easy, it’s crazy delicious, and I wouldn’t be surprised if you licked your plate clean (been there!).
The sauce is velvety smooth (even without the traditional butter!), and it’s got a gorgeous flavor you’ll dream about after. Here’s what you need to get started…
Our Paleo Butter Chicken Recipe At A Glance:
Here’s What goes Into Our Slow Cooker Butter Chicken Recipe:
- CHICKEN BREAST OR CHICKEN THIGHS. You can make our paleo butter chicken with either boneless, skinless chicken breast or chicken thighs. Chicken breast is my go-to, though thighs can be less expensive and can stay even more moist (even with the longer cooking time).
- ONION + GARLIC + GINGER. This trio of aromatics adds TONS of flavor to our butter chicken sauce and sets the stage for all the layers of flavor we’ll build in. I love using frozen garlic + frozen ginger. The flavor is identical to fresh and there aren’t any additives! Next up, we have…
- WARM SPICES + SEASONINGS. The next layer of flavor comes from warm spices like cumin, cardamom, and coriander, along with some salt and a little cayenne (or not! It’s up to you!). The flavor and aroma is mouthwatering, and the cayenne gives *juuust* a little heat without making this super spicy. (Prefer it spicy? Add more!)
- TOMATO PASTE + CANNED COCONUT MILK. Tomato paste makes this sauce velvety smooth and stirs into the coconut milk like a dream. I beg, plead, and implore you to use full-fat coconut milk for this paleo butter chicken recipe! It gives the sauce such delicious texture (especially since we’re not using butter), and helps carry the flavors. You can even use coconut cream if you like, but I don’t recommend light coconut milk or refrigerated coconut milk for this recipe.
- A FEW FRESH FINISHES. Lastly, you’ll brighten up the dish by adding a squeeze of fresh lime juice and some fresh cilantro. It makes it look gorgeous and keeps the chicken cozy without feeling heavy.
What To Serve With Paleo Butter Chicken:
- RICE OR CAULIFLOWER RICE. I looove having something to soak up all that lovely sauce from the paleo butter chicken. Depending on your dietary needs, you can serve this with cauliflower rice or white rice. I love it either way! (Note: for Whole30 be sure you use cauliflower rice.)
- GREEN VEGGIES. Green veggies are a natural side dish pairing with our Slow Cooker Butter Chicken and we’ve made all kinds over the years. Simply cooked broccoli (steamed or roasted), some green beans, asparagus, zucchini… it’s all good! Pick your favorite and go to town!
- THAI CUCUMBER SALAD. We’re blurring lines cuisine-wise here, but one of my recent faves is to serve my Slow Cooker Paleo Butter Chicken with my Thai Cucumber Salad. The cool, crisp, refreshing flavors of the salad are a delightful pairing with the warm, creamy, rich sauce of the butter chicken.
- FRESH PINEAPPLE OR MANGO. Or, you can cool off your mouth with some cold fruit. Pineapple and mango are lovely, though you can certainly use whatever is in season or looks good at the market!
FAQ + Tips And Tricks For The Best Slow Cooker Paleo Butter Chicken:
CAN I JUST “DUMP-AND-GO”? Yes. If you are short on time, you can absolutely pour all the sauce ingredients into the crock of your slow cooker, give it a whisk to smooth it out, then add the chicken. I prefer starting the sauce on the stovetop as shown because the onions are more meltingly tender and the sauce is less likely to have any lumps, but LOTS (hundreds) of readers have successfully made this paleo butter chicken as dump-and-go recipe. You do you!
NEED A SLOW COOKER? If you’re in the market, we have two that we love. (#foodblogger). First up is this one. It’s programmable, and will automatically switch the heat to the WARM setting when it’s done. You can even use the included programmable thermometer so that the heat switches to warm as soon as it’s reached the right internal temperature (which means NEVER overcooking your meat). It also comes with a lid clip to keep the lid in place (which means no sloshing if you’re carting it to a friend’s house or potluck). Our other fave is this one (our exact color isn’t sold anymore, but it’s a similar model). It’s inexpensive, easy to use, and looks cute, too!
IS BUTTER CHICKEN SPICY? It can be, but isn’t always. You can control the heat here by adding more or less cayenne pepper. The amount I suggest starting with (1/4 tsp.) will add some warmth and mild heat, but I wouldn’t say it’s super spicy.
FYI: SOME SLOW COOKERS RUN HOT! I’ve had a few readers in the last few years (just 2-3) tell me their sauce burned a bit toward the end of the cook time. If you’re nervous, I suggest keeping an eye on it toward the end or try using the LOW setting instead of the HIGH setting.
Looking For More Healthy Slow Cooker Recipes? You might also like…
- Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Chili (Paleo + Whole30)
- Slow Cooker Chicken Curry (Paleo + Whole30)
- Slow Cooker Thai Chicken and Butternut Squash Soup
- Slow Cooker Paleo Beef Stew (Paleo + Whole30)
- Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala (Paleo + Whole30)
- Slow Cooker Pumpkin Taco Soup (Paleo + Whole30)
SHOP OUR FAVORITE TOOLS + INGREDIENTS FOR MAKING BUTTER CHICKEN:
Slow Cooker Butter Chicken (GF, DF, Paleo, Whole 30)
- Total Time: 3.5 hours
- Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
Description
Slow Cooker Butter Chicken – This paleo butter chicken is so easy and delicious! It’s become one of the all-time most popular recipes on this site–you’ll want to slurp the sauce with a spoon! (Gluten Free, Paleo, Whole30)
Ingredients
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast (or chicken thighs)
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 tsp coconut oil (or ghee)
- 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1 tsp fresh ginger, finely minced
- 1 tsp coriander
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp cardamom
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4–1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
- 1 (14oz) can coconut milk (full fat, please)
- 1 (6oz) can tomato paste
- juice of 1/2 lime (about 1 Tbsp.)
- 1/4 cup cilantro, or to taste
Instructions
- In a medium saute pan, heat coconut oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until translucent and fairly tender. Add garlic, ginger, spices, and salt. Cook 1 minute longer, till all the spices are fragrant and amazing. Stir in coconut milk and tomato paste and stir until well combined.
- Add chicken to the slow cooker. Pour sauce over everything.
- Cook on high heat for 3-4 hours or on low heat for 6-8 hours.
- Shred or dice chicken into the sauce, squeeze in lime juice, top with cilantro, and serve with your favorite vegetable, rice, or naan.
Notes
“DUMP & GO” DIRECTIONS: If you are short on time, you can pour all the sauce ingredients into the crock of your slow cooker, give it a whisk, then add the chicken and set it to cook.
- Prep Time: 15 Minutes
- Cook Time: 3-4 hours
- Category: Main Dish, Chicken
- Method: Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: Indian, Indian-American
so glad to come across this recipe! i was wondering if garam masala could sub for the corainder, cumin and cardamom? thanks!
Jessica – I’m sure you could, though your flavor will not be exactly the same. I’d love to know how it goes if you try it!
I made this tonight. I am usually so skeptical of chicken in the crock pot. It gets dry and stringy. This one is fabulous! Thanks for sharing. I plan to make it again. And now that the cooker weather is coming, I will make your pumpkin taco soup again. Yum!!
Oh, I’m so glad to hear it! It’s just one of my all time favorite meals. Glad you enjoyed it too!
I’d seen recipes for butter chicken a few times and passed them over ’cause my boyfriend can’t handle dairy. When I saw yours, I finally broke down and took a peek to figure out what butter chicken even was. Lo and behold, it had no dairy! So I held on to the recipe. I made it on Sunday (great debacles did not stand in my way) for my Dungeons & Dragons group, served with brown rice, naan, and fresh steamed green beans (which I totally butchered, lol). It was a total hit! Other than the fact there was waaay too much lime. I guess my plan to find the biggest, heaviest one I could didn’t work out too well. lol The naan helped cut the limeyness of the thing. My boyfriend looooved the chicken. I’d been worried about that part. I’d never cooked whole pieces of meat in the slow cooker before, and I expected a huge mess in having to pull them out and shred/cut them. But, when I stabbed the chicken to pull it out, it just fell apart. All I had to do was stir the whole thing to shred the chicken! It was aaawesome. So I plan to make this again at some point, with a smaller lime and better planning, and I expect it to be amazing. The flavor, aside from the lime, was very mild (the boyfriend requested more heat in the next batch) and pleasant. Thanks so much for the recipe! And for making it dairy-free. 🙂
I’m so glad you liked it! I actually just did the same thing with a huge lime in a curry I made yesterday! 🙂 Here’s to lots of yummy batches of Butter Chicken in the future!
Made this again yesterday–with a smaller lime. It was waaaay better, but my boyfriend and I are pretty much on the same page that maybe lime isn’t our thing… Regardless, leftovers for dinner tonight! Can hardly wait (mainly due to being so bored… lol). Do you think this could work with lemon? We are total lemon freaks.
I’m sure it would work with lemon, or you could skip it and add a shot of something spicy, like sriracha or chile oil in it’s place. Glad you’re still liking it!
Ooh, those are some great-sounding options. Even with the 1/2 tsp of cayenne, it didn’t seem all that spicy (it’s also kinda old cayenne, so I’m sure that didn’t help…). Thanks for the suggestions! 🙂
simple and absolutely delicious!!
I just made this but part way through I put in a cubed medium butternut squash (I can’t help myself- I vegetable-ize everything). It turned into total mush by the end but made for a thick, velvety texture, plus added squash-y nutritious goodness. I highly recommend, a real keeper. Thanks for such a great recipe!
This looks so good! I was wondering though if you think I could get away with using ginger seasoning instead of fresh ginger?
I always recommend fresh over dried for ginger in savory recipes, but a few readers have made it with powdered ginger (1/2-1 tsp) and have said they liked it! Best of luck!
I was curious if you think this recipe could be used for freezer cooking? What I’m thinking is freezing it with raw chicken and the sauce then cooking it frozen on cooking day for about 10 hours.
I’ve had a few friends do this, though I haven’t done it myself. I do recommend you do sauté the onions and mix the sauce up as directed before freezing it so that the sauce has the best blend and texture. If you give it a try, I’d love to know how it goes for you!
Awesome thanks!
Made this last night for my Non-Paleo eating family. It was a hit!
Many thanks for sharing!
I’m so glad!
Hey Emily! I wanted to let you know how the freezing turned out. It turned out great! I did the sauce as you suggested and froze the chicken inside the sauce in a freezer bag. I put it in the crock all day and when I got home the house smelled wonderful. My husband and I devoured it over some steamed cauliflower. It is going in the permanent rotation! Thank you!
YAY! What wonderful news! I’m so glad you came back to tell me.
This is totally whole30 compliant right?? I am on day 2 and can’t wait to make this tonight, it looks fantastic!
YES! It’s my FAVORITE Whole30 meal. I love it with broccoli, green beans, or cauliflower rice.
Wanted to let you know I tried it, it was amazing!! And also it was sooooooo good over cauliflower rice! Thanks for the recipe! I will for sure be trying some of your other whole30 ones!
I’m SO glad you enjoyed it! BEST of luck on the rest of your Whole30!
Sooo good! All I could find was whole cardamum, so I had to use the ol’ mortar and pestle, but it was totally worth it! It goes great with zucchini noodles too 🙂
Way to go with the mortar and pestle!
What is the nutrition info? Looks delicious.
Natasha,
I don’t calculate the nutrition information for my recipes, but you can import the recipe to lots of online calculators. I like the MyFitnessPal website and app best. Best of luck!
I am a huge fan of Indian food. So much flavour! I love it and the more I eat it the more I crave it. Totally normal, right? 🙂 We have a fabulous Indian food restaurant that we go to as a treat whenever anyone in our family has a birthday. Lucky for us my husband celebrated a birthday this month! Mmmm. My previous attempts at making butter chicken have yielded a disappointing result. I loaded up my crock pot yesterday and cooked on low. The chicken was so tender it literally fell apart as I was taking it out of the pot! I added a drizzle of Frank’s Bollywood Sauce on mine as I do love my Frank’s Bollywood. This recipe was hailed a “do-over” by the whole family and made great leftovers today. Thanks so much for sharing what has become another family favourite!
Oh, I’m SO GLAD you all liked it! Thank you for such a kind note!
I’ve never tried Frank’s Bollywood Sauce… Now, I have to track it down!
I’m excited to try this recipe but will have to use tomato sauce rather than paste because of my food restrictions. Any recommendations?
I’d love to help! Can you tell me more about your food restrictions? That might help me know how best to help you.
Tomato sauce and tomato paste are nearly the same thing as far as the ingredients are concerned. Tomato paste is simply concentrated tomato sauce. Both should only contain tomatoes, water, and possibly salt.
If you need to use tomato sauce instead of tomato paste, your sauce will be thinner since you’re essentially adding extra liquid to the recipe. I’m not sure how to recommend you counter-act that other than by adding less tomato sauce?
Thinner sauce is no big deal, I was just worried there would be a less tomatoey flavor and I would end up with coconut soup! I’m trying to keep the fodmap content low, and I understand tomato sauce is a better choice for that than paste because it’s less concentrated. I’ll let you know how it turns out!
Gotcha! Please let me know how it turns out!
My favourite part of this recipe: “1 (14oz) can coconut milk (full fat, please)” – haha.
I just put this recipe into the slow cooker, can’t wait for it to be ready! Great Paleo twist on a traditional Indian classic. Love your work!
Thank you Sarah! The full fat stuff just gives it SUCH a good texture!