Simmer sauces are blend of exotic Indian spices that add up to the flavor of the food making it taste more Indian. The simmer sauces come in different flavors and can be used in variety of dishes. Sometimes known as curry sauce, simmer sauces range from mild to hot and one can choose any flavor depending upon the preference. There are numerous recipes of Simmer Sauces. Here are two recipes of delicious Indian food using simmer sauces:

1) Butter chicken or chicken makhni

The makhni sauce is used to make this delicious north Indian dish. The spice is mild and the taste is like creamy butter. Although this spice is meant for chicken, one can also use it for cooking lamb, beef or cottage cheese. Here is the recipe -

Ingredients: 1 tablespoon of oil, 1 chopped onion, cubed chicken (500g), 460gms makhni sauce, coriander for garnishing and salt depending upon taste.

Preparation: first the oil is heated in the pan and then the onion is fried till it is golden brown in color. The chicken is then added and it is also fried for around 5 mins. After the chicken is fried makhni sauce is added and the pan is covered for the dish to simmer. The estimated time for this is around 10mins. After the chicken is cooked it is served garnished with coriander.

2) Barbequed Chicken tikka kebab

Tikka masala is the Indian simmer sauce used in this preparation. Like most of the simmer sauces, this sauce is also mildly hot. This sauce is combination of tomatoes, onions, cloves and coriander.

Ingredients: 460 grams of the tikka masala, 2 tablespoons of yoghurt, salt depending upon the taste, 650gms of diced chicken with breast pieces being more preferred, green pepper, 1 red onion cut in to chunks, oil spray, lemon wedges and bamboo skewers.

Preparation: the tikka masala, yoghurt and the salt is mixed at first. Then the pieces of the chicken are dipped in to this mixture and are coated well in it. After this the chicken pieces are kept around 3-4 hours in the fridge so that they can marinate. The chicken is then skewered with alternative use of red onion and green pepper. The chicken is then cooked on the barbeque or a griddle pan and oil is sprayed. In case of the griddle pan the heat should be low to medium. The ideal time for searing the chicken is around 20 mins but sometimes it may take more time and one should wait till the chicken is cooked.