Instant Pot Chicken Curry

A very pleasantly inviting authentic Indian chicken recipe, this chicken curry is made in an Instant Pot and requires only 5 minutes of pressure cooking! A comforting dish that's full of warm spices. Pairs perfectly when served on top of my Rice Pilaf or with a warm piece of naan.

I've never really been a big fan of chicken curry. But when I spent some time in England and had it in an authentic Indian restaurant, my opinion changed. Thick, creamy, and full of rich flavors, the chicken just melts in your mouth. It's so tender!

This is a really easy chicken curry recipe anyone can make. All you need is an Instant Pot or a pressure cooker. I never thought I'd be able to replicate restaurant worthy authentic food at home but with this coconut curry, that's exactly what you're going to get!

What is Chicken Curry?

Curry is most commonly made with chicken that has been cooked in onion and contains a tomato based sauce. It's typically flavored with garlic, fresh ginger, and spices such as cumin, curry, and cinnamon. But sometimes you'll see green curry. The biggest difference between the two is not only the color, but red chillies are used in the base for a red curry whereas green curry is often derived from green chilies. This curry recipe is tomato based and is made with warm aromatic spices consisting of chili powder, curry, and garam masala.

Ingredients You'll Need

When making this chicken curry, you'll need the following ingredients. Fresh ginger is key in this dish. You can taste the spicy sweet taste in every single bite and it's just delicious when paired with the coconut milk and fire roasted tomatoes.

The garam masala, curry, chili powder, and white pepper is what gives this curry the warm spice flavors. When I say spice, I don't mean "hot"...I mean full of flavor and robust. There is no heat at all in this dish.

Step-by-Step Instructions: How to Make Instant Pot Chicken Curry

Start off by cutting the chicken breasts into 1-½ inch cubes. Place the chicken cubes in a gallon-sized Ziplock bag and add in the curry powder, chili powder, white pepper, garam masala, and salt. Seal the bag and mix well to combine ensuring that each piece of meat has been evenly seasoned with spice rub. Set aside. Expert Tip: I find it easier to mix the dry rub ingredients in a small bowl before pouring them in the plastic bag. This will help provide more of an even spread.

Turn the Instant Pot to "Saute" mode. Pour in the olive oil and allow it get hot, about 3-4 minutes. Add the chopped onions, garlic, and ginger to the hot oil and saute for 2-3 minutes.

Add the seasoned chicken and saute for 5-7 minutes, ensuring you move the meat around at least once. Once browned, remove and set aside. Expert Tip: Using a spatula, scrape the bottom of the pot to loosen any drippings from the bottom. Those loosened drippings provide a lot of flavor to the dish!

Next, add in the coconut milk, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, and can of fire-roasted tomatoes. Stir until well combined.

Add the seasoned chicken back in with the other ingredients and stir until combined. Turn the Instant Pot off by pressing the Cancel button. Securely place the lid on ensuring the vent is closed.

Select the Manual mode and set it to cook for 5 minutes on high pressure. After 5 minutes, do a quick release and when the pin drops, remove the lid. The chicken curry sauce will be very liquidy at this stage.

To thicken, remove ½ cup of sauce and place it in a small bowl. Add 2 Tablespoons of cornstarch to the sauce and whisk until combined. Set it back to Saute mode. Slowly pour in the cornstarch mixture and whisk constantly until the the sauce thickens. Once the sauce has reached the desired consistency, you are ready to serve.

Expert Tips and FAQs

• I use boneless skinless chicken breasts in this recipe, but you can substitute for thighs if you prefer.
• Using shrimp instead of chicken is also a great choice. Shrimp curry is quite tasty and only requires a 3 minute pressure cook.
• I often get asked how long I need to pressure cook the chicken for this recipe. It only takes 5 minutes to pressure cook. That may seem like a short cook time but remember, it takes the Instant Pot a bit of time to reach the high pressure status before it will start the 5 minute countdown.
• If your Instant Pot is prone to getting a burn notice, make sure you do a thorough job of scraping the dripping from the bottom of the pot.

Curry chicken is delicious when topped with fresh chopped cilantro and served over rice. And chicken curry in the Instant Pot just makes cooking so much easier because it does all the hard work for you! This is an easy curry recipe everyone will enjoy!

If you like this recipe, you might also enjoy my other Instant Pot recipes. Especially my Tuscan Chicken!

If you loved this recipe, give this recipe a star review! Also, snap a picture of your finished curry and share it with me on Instagram using the hashtag #recipesworthrepeating and tagging me @recipesworthrepeating.