Chef Saransh Goila is synonymous with butter chicken. His version of the popular Indian dish has gained cult status, not just in his hometown of Mumbai, but across the globe.

“My recipe first came about when I was making a version of butter chicken for my vegetarian parents,” explains Saransh, “I used less dairy and more tomato than a classic butter chicken and infused the butter with smoke to replicate the flavour of chargrilled chicken without using meat. The result is a perfect balance of smoky, tart and creamy”.

Saransh’s iconic butter chicken, and the vegetarian paneer version, is made in four main steps. First, fresh plum tomatoes are simmered with a bouquet garni of spices including cardamom, cinnamon and cloves, along with lots of garlic, a touch of onion and some butter. “We simmer this for an hour, then add cashew nuts – this is one of the secrets to creating a creamy, velvety sauce without the need for so much dairy,” explains Saransh.

After blending the sauce, Saransh adds a tempered butter flavoured with Kashmiri chilli powder, garlic and onion. The third, and most important step is the infusion of charcoal smoke into the butter. “In India, we call this technique ‘dhungar’,” explains Saransh, “it means tempering fat such as clarified butter with a hot piece of coal to trap the smoke into it. It is this addition of smoke that really sets our butter chicken apart from others out there,” he says. Finally, the sauce is finished with a touch of cream before Saransh adds either marinated, chargrilled free-range chicken thigh, fresh, creamy paneer or both.

The butter chicken or paneer is garnished with tangy pickled shallots and a vibrant coriander chutney and served alongside smoked butter–brushed naans for mopping up the sauce.