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Almost effortless Crockpot Basil Butter Chicken – an incredibly delicious and nutritious comfort food. Indian-inspired butter chicken curry made with plenty of spice, creamy coconut milk, fresh basil, butter, and zucchini. Finish each bowl off with steamed rice, then serve with warm naan and basil. You’ll have the perfect dinner that can be enjoyed any night of the week. This meal is quickly put together in the crockpot (or made in one pan and baked in the oven) with no additional steps. Simply mix it all together, cook, serve, and enjoy!
And just like that, I can’t stop using my crockpot. I’ve used it in three separate recipes this week. As always, I’m reminded why I love crockpot cooking so much, especially towards the end of summer when my desire for cozier foods starts to kick in.
It may only be August, but the second we relaunch our Pumpkin Smash candle, I enter the transitional phase between autumn and fall. I’m looking forward to upcoming crisp nights with something slowly cooking, football on the TV, and delicious smells throughout the kitchen.
It’s crazy how quickly I can jump back into my cozy mode!
We’re all aware of how much I love creamy coconut-based butter chicken curry. In fact, one of our most popular recipes is a crockpot butter chicken that I shared here on HBH almost a year after we started the site.
I was recently looking back at that recipe. So when my oldest brother, Creighton, suggested curry for dinner, I thought of a few ways to reinvent a tried and true HBH recipe.
This curry came out so delicious with just a few tweaks to that recipe, like the addition of summer zucchini and basil. It’s going to be on repeat for a while over here!
Here are the details
Step 1: season the chicken
Start with the chicken. For this dish, I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts, but you can also use skinless thighs.
In the bowl of your crockpot (or, if in a hurry, a baking dish), toss the chicken with yogurt and add plenty of garlic and fresh ginger. Then, add all the spices: garam masala, chipotle chili powder, and cayenne.
Marinate the chicken in the crockpot bowl for ten minutes or so. Then, start cooking. If you’re in a time crunch, just start cooking. I’ve made this both ways, and there’s not a huge difference.
Step 2: everything else
Now, top the chicken with chopped onion. Mix in the tomato paste, pour over a can of coconut milk, and mix it all together until you have a very creamy sauce. Then, season with salt.
Cover and cook for 2 to 3 hours on high, or for 4 hours on low.
Step 3: finish
About an hour before you’re ready to eat, mix in the butter and zucchini.
After an hour, turn the heat to high. Add the basil and cilantro, and let the curry cook for 15 minutes on high to help the sauce thicken.
You’ll have perfectly cooked chicken in a delicious creamy sauce.
All you have to add to this is steamed rice and, ideally, some warm, buttery naan. It makes the dish just a touch more special. We love to use the naan to scoop up all that cream curry sauce.
This dish is so flavorful and full of color. Even though the additions I made are small, the zucchini and fresh summer garden basil make the biggest difference. They add such a nice lightness to a cozy dinner. I really think you’ll love this!
Looking for other Indian-inspired dinners? Here are my favorites:
30 Minute Butter Chicken Meatballs
Super Simple Coconut Chicken Tikka Masala
Gingery Coconut Sweet Potato and Rice Stew with Chili Oil
30 Minute Spicy Indian Butter Chicken
Crockpot Creamy Coconut Chicken Tikka Masala
Lastly, if you make this Crockpot Basil Butter Chicken, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And, of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Crockpot Basil Butter Chicken
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 284 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds boneless chicken breasts or thighs, cubed cubed
- 1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
- 2 tablespoons red curry paste
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 tablespoon grated ginger
- 2 tablespoons garam masala
- 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1-2 teaspoons chili flakes
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 1 can (6 ounce) tomato paste
- 1 can (14 ounce) coconut milk
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 zucchini, chopped
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
Crockpot
- 1. In the bowl of your crockpot, combine the chicken, yogurt, curry paste, garlic, ginger, garam masala, chili powder, cayenne, and 1 teaspoon salt. Toss to coat the chicken. Let sit 10 minutes. Add the onion, tomato paste, and coconut milk. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours or on high for 2-3 hours. 2. During the last hour of cooking, mix in the butter and zucchini. Crank the heat to high. Stir in the basil and cilantro. Cook uncovered for 15 minutes until thickened. 3. Serve the chicken, zucchini, and sauce over bowls of rice with fresh basil and cilantro. Enjoy!
Oven
- 1. In a baking dish, toss together the chicken, yogurt, curry paste, garlic, ginger, garam masala, chili powder, cayenne, and 1 teaspoon of salt. Let sit for 5 minutes.2. Preheat the oven to 400°F.3. To the chicken, stir in the onion, tomato paste, and coconut milk. Top with zucchini. Then add slices of butter. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Top with basil and cilantro.4. Serve the chicken, zucchini, and sauce over bowls of rice with fresh basil and cilantro. Enjoy!
My family loves this recipe! My husband & I can handle the spice but I tone it down for the little ones. I’d like to make this for a friend but she is dairy free, how could I adjust the recipe?
Thanks so much, Lexie!! I am so glad to hear this dish was enjoyed, I appreciate you making it! You can use any dairy free ingredients and it should work well. Have a great Tuesday! xx
Hi! This recipe looks amazing, but my daughter has a sesame allergy so I’d have to omit the curry paste. Do you have any recommendations for something to replace this with so we don’t lose out on flavor? Thanks so much!
Hi Jessie,
Thanks so much! Are you able to use Mike’s Organic Curry Love brand? From what I can see there is no sesame in their curry paste. Let me know! xx
Granted, I did not make this exactly as written, but very close! I am comparing this to her other recipe: “Crockpot Creamy Coconut Chicken Tikka Masala”, which is incredibly similar. (The instant pot version of that one never turns out right…BURN NOTICE…but THIS one more than makes up for it!)
I knew this would be too spicy, so I subbed the chili powder for paprika, and I use Aleppo pepper flakes (great flavor – no seeds). I skipped the cayenne altogether because we have a sordid past. 😉
Instead of fresh garlic and ginger like I usually do, I used the frozen cubes. 4 cubes of each. I was sure to dice my onions small since I wasn’t sautéing them first. That way they would not have as much of a crunch in the end . (I loathe crunchy onions)
Followed all the other steps minus the zucchini (don’t like it) and I forgot the basil! Cooked in crock pot on high for 2 1/2 hrs. It was a very rich, concentrated sauce, so I added about 1/2-1 cup of heavy cream to tone it down. It was PERFECT.
Do yourself a favor and grab the chili browned butter sauce from that other recipe – MAKES THE DISH!
Thanks so much, Anna! So glad to hear this dish turned out well for you! Thanks for giving it a try! I appreciate you sharing all of your helpful notes for others:) XxT
Easy to make. My kids are pretty good with flavors, but this was way too spicy for them. My son kept asking for more water and then said, “Why’d you make it so spicy? It would be good otherwise.” Bummed
Hi Sarah,
Thanks so much for trying this dish and sharing your feedback! SO sorry it was spicy for you, definitely skip the cayenne and chili flakes next time. I hope this helps! xT
Just made this for a baby sprinkle with just a few ladies, and it was delicious! We all brought a different HBH dish (salad, soup, main, bread, dessert). I roasted the chopped zucchini separately in the oven and then added it at the end because I wasn’t sure when we would start eating at the sprinkle and wanted to make sure it didn’t get too soggy. I also did 1/2 the chili flakes. Flavor was great! All the women asked for the recipe..it was a hit! It was such a fun night and I got to try so many HBH recipes I hadn’t had yet. My only regret is I wish we would have done a mocktail or hot chocolate or something too because those recipes always look amazing.
Hey Bethany,
Happy Sunday! Thank you so much for making this recipe and your feedback, I’m so glad to hear it turned out well for you! xT
I made this for dinner tonight and it was AMAZING! I can’t believe how easy it was! We will definitely be having this again!
Thanks so much, Tracy! So glad to hear this dish was easy and enjoyed:) I appreciate you giving it a try! xT
This was really good and simple enough. I’d make it again.
Hey Brittany,
Happy Thursday:) Thanks so much for making this recipe, I am so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Thanks for your comment! Xx
I love this crockpot recipe and so does my family (including two teenagers)! I’ve made it a few times now and is always devoured. It’s so unique and delcious–can’t believe we can have this tasty of Indian inspired food from our crockpot when we get home from work/school/sports. yum!
Thanks so much, Lynn! I appreciate you making this dish and your feedback! So glad it was enjoyed! xT
The flavor profile for this recipe is excellent and it will go in our recipe library with the minor changes I made. I prefer to convert crockpot dishes for the oven in most cases, so I was happy to see an alternative oven method. As with most HBH recipes, I leave out all the heat inducing ingredients, as my family doesn’t enjoy it. I eliminated the chili flake, substituted regular chili powder for the chipotle chili powder, and put just a pinch of cayenne in the mix. Perfect! People that like heat can always add hot sauce when the dish is served.
A couple of suggestions – when baking in the oven, use a covered casserole dish that has been sprayed with cooking spray. The recipe doesn’t specify covered, but it should. Also, there is no way this dish is done in 30 – 40 minutes at 400 degrees. I checked the chicken with a thermometer at 40 minutes and it was no where near done. I kicked the temp up to 450 and gave it another 10 minutes, which got the chicken to 165 or a little over. I suspect that no one tested this recipe in the oven, so something to consider when providing alternate cooking methods. It probably would have been done in 30 – 40 minutes if it started at 450.
Hey Craig,
Wow! Thank you so much for sharing all of your notes! So glad to hear this recipe is enjoyed! Hope you are off to a great week! xT
I left out the cayenne and chili flakes since my 6YO isn’t a fan of spicy foods. The flavor was a bit unbalanced after it was cooked (very tangy), so I added 2 tablespoons of white sugar and that seemed to help. If I make this again, I will sauté the onions first as they still had a bite to them even after 3 hours in the slow cooker on high. Overall, I appreciated the ease and having the added veggies in this dish, and it can be a great recipe with just a couple of tweaks.
Hey Blayre,
Thank you so much for making this recipe and your comment:) So glad it was enjoyed! Happy Friday! xT
I do not have any plain Greek yogurt on hand. Can I use sour cream in place of the plain Greek yogurt? Or is there another substitute you’d recommend?
Hey Jamie,
Totally, sour cream will work nicely for you! I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xT
This was entirely too spicy without even adding the chili flakes. My kids couldn’t eat it and my husband could only do about half a bowl. Was really disappointed.
Hi Ashlynn,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, so sorry to hear it was so spicy for you! My guess is the cayenne was just too much, my apologies! xT