Instant Pot Chicken Curry

If you’ve been following us for a while, you’ll know that we love curries – Indian curry, Japanese Karee, Thai Curries, Indonesian Rendang, or Pakistani Karahi…we just love them all!! 😀

What is Chicken Curry?

Curry is all about the complex combination of aromatic spices & herbs that makes it so exciting to eat. The deep, rich, balanced layers of flavors that explode like a party in your mouth!

Curry originated from India. But it has spread across the world by adapting to the local ingredients and cultural preferences, which allowed it to flourish into many varieties from different cultures.

You can make Curry with different kinds of seafood, meat, and vegetables.

We developed this Instant Pot Chicken Curry to be a very easy yet flavorful curry recipe using simple ingredients.

This chicken curry with potatoes and coconut milk is a fusion between Indian style & Hong Kong-style chicken curry (a dish you can find in Hong Kong Style Cha Chaan Teng aka 茶餐廳).

Time for cooking Chicken Curry in Instant Pot!

Step by Step Guide: Instant Pot Chicken Curry

Prepare ingredients for cooking Chicken Curry in Instant Pot:

Tools for Instant Pot Chicken Curry

• Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker
• Wooden Spoon
• Pyrex Measuring Cups
• Mixing Bowl

Brown Chicken in Instant Pot

First, press “Saute” button to “Sauté More” function to heat up Instant Pot. The indicator will switch to “ON”.

Wait until the indicator says “HOT” (takes roughly 8 minutes).

*Pro Tip: Make sure the Instant Pot is as hot as it can be to induce a Maillard reaction.

Pat dry the chicken parts with a paper towel, then season one side of the chicken with kosher salt and ground black pepper.

Add 2 tbsp (30g) ghee or unsalted butter in Instant Pot.

Place the chicken in Instant Pot (seasoned side face down), then brown for 4 minutes.

Season the other side of chicken with salt and ground black pepper, then flip the chicken & brown this side for another 3.5 minutes.

Finally, remove and set aside the browned chicken.

Sauté Onion

Add diced onions in Instant Pot, then saute for 3 minutes.

Sauté Garlic, Ginger, and Spices

Add minced garlic, ginger, 3 tbsp (24g) curry powder, ½ – 1 tsp (1.4g – 2.8g) cayenne pepper, and 2 tbsp (30g) tomato paste in Instant Pot, then saute for another minute.

*Spicy Level Tip: Adjust how much cayenne pepper to add depending on how spicy you want your chicken curry to be. For reference, we used mild spicy curry powder with  ½ tsp (1.2g) cayenne pepper and it was somewhere between mild & medium spicy.

*Pro Tip: You may want to use a cheap wooden spoon, silicone spatula, or yellow spatula for this recipe (or you can dedicate a spatula just for curry) because the curry will naturally dye it yellow. 😉

Deglaze Instant Pot

Now, pour 1 cup (250ml) unsalted chicken stock in Instant Pot, then deglaze by scrubbing all the flavorful brown bits off the bottom of the pot (as shown in the photo below).

*Pro Tip: Make sure to deglaze really well for this Instant Pot Chicken Curry!

Turn off the Instant Pot for now as you add in the remaining ingredients in the next step.

Pressure Cook Chicken Curry

Add 1.5 tbsp (22.5) regular soy sauce to the Instant Pot, then give it a quick mix.

Add back in the browned chicken parts with its meat juice (if any).

Then, layer the carrot and potato chunks on top. No mixing is needed!

With Venting Knob in Venting Position, close the lid, then turn Venting Knob to Sealing Position. Pressure cook using the “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” button:

• Pressure Cooking Methods:
  
  • Bone-in Chicken Thighs or Drumsticks: High Pressure for 5 minutes + 10 minutes Natural Release
  • Bone-in Chicken Breasts: High Pressure for 4 minutes + 10 minutes Natural Release

After 10 minutes, release the remaining pressure by turning Venting Knob to Venting Position.

When Floating Valve drops, open the lid carefully.

*Note: It smells delicious as it was releasing pressure. Take in all that sweetness from the carrots & rich aroma from the spices! 😀

Add Coconut Milk

Now, set aside all the chicken and half of the potatoes & carrots.

Bring the yummy curry sauce mixture to a simmer with the “Saute More” function.

Mix in ¼ cup (63ml) – ½ cup (125ml) coconut milk.

Thicken & Season

With a wooden spoon, break down the remaining potatoes in Instant Pot to give the sauce some extra texture & body.

Then, taste and adjust the seasoning by adding more salt.

*Pro Tip: For reference, we added roughly 1 – 2 large pinch of salt for this chicken curry recipe.

Serve Instant Pot Chicken Curry

Optional: Garnish the Instant Pot Chicken Curry with cilantro.

Serve & enjoy this chicken curry recipe with rice or your favorite side dishes!

More Instant Pot Indian Recipes

Instant Pot Butter Chicken

Instant Pot Chicken Biryani