Instant Pot HK Beef Curry

Hong Kong Style Curry (Chinese: 港式咖喱) is another HK classic that captures our hearts.

Some of the most popular HK Curry food:

• HK Curry Fish Balls (Chinese: 咖喱魚蛋) – a favorite local street food
• Dim Sum HK Curry Cuttlefish (Chinese: 咖哩墨魚仔)
• HK Curry Chicken (Chinese: 咖哩鷄)

Whenever Jacky & I walk past HK Street Food stalls, our heartstrings are tugged, my wallet is ready to jump out of my purse, our minds yelling “gimme gimme“…

And yes, we’d surrender for HK Curry Fish Balls! hehe~

We usually share a regular skewer, then challenge each other with the Mega Spicy skewer (sometimes with dripping hot chili oil)! 😀

Then comes the “Why did we do this?” face of regret after our first bite…haha!!

But giggling as we compete to see who can eat more Mega Spicy Fish Balls without putting out the burning fire in our mouth with cold drinks. hehe~

What is HK Beef Curry?

Hong Kong became a British colony during the time the British Crown ruled India. So, that was the time when Indians began to settle in Hong Kong.

This is when the Indian spices & Curry entered & enriched the Hong Kong food culture.

The locals quickly blended the HK Curry sauce with Cantonese food in creating fusion dishes like the HK Beef Curry (港式咖喱牛腩).

And what’s awesome is this deliciously flavorful curry is super easy to make with simple ingredients!

Hong Kong Style Curry differs from Indian, Japanese, or Thai Curries.

They have adapted the Indian Curry by adding Coconut milk to give it a creamy sweet aroma, flavor, and texture, as well as to reduce the curry’s spiciness.

It’s deeply flavored, leaning more towards savory-spicy, with slight sour-bitter-sweet balance.

After some tests & tweaks, we’re excited to share our Instant Pot HK Beef Curry Recipe with you! 

Step-by-Step Instant Pot HK Beef Curry Cooking Guide

Here are the ingredients for Instant Pot HK Beef Curry:

*Pro Tips: The key ingredients play a huge role in this Beef Curry, so try your best to use high-quality, trusted brands for best results. Here are the ingredients we use & recommend:

• Try your best to use a high-quality Curry Powder!
• Trusted Hong Kong brand – Lee Kum Kee’s Chu Hou Paste 柱侯醬
• Red Boat’s 100% Pure 40°N Fish Sauce
• Aroy-d’s 100% Pure Unsweetened Coconut Milk – this is the best tasting one out of the 4 brands we tried. It’s not diluted, no additives, stabilizers, thickeners, gums, or preservatives.

*Pro Tip: the coconut milk we used in this recipe is NOT the beverage or refrigerated type of Coconut Milk.

If you cannot find some of the ingredients in your local markets, you can find them on Amazon! 🙂

Aroy-D Coconut Milk 8.5 Fl Oz (Pack of 12)

Pack of 12; BPA Free; Product of Thailand; Gluten Free, Vegan, Soy Free, Dairy Free; No additives, preservatives, or gums. Packaging may very slightly vary.

Red Boat Fish Sauce | Premium 40°N Fish Sauce made with just 2 ingredients in Vietnam | Keto,...

Brown Beef Finger Meat

*Pro Tip: Some of you may ask if we need to parboil the Beef Finger Meat before we brown it. I will say no as parboiling can remove some of the flavor/nutrients, plus, we are not making a clear soup here.

First, heat up Instant Pot using Sauté More function.

*Tip: For older version, press “Saute” button, then “Adjust” button. For newer version, press “Saute” button twice.

Wait until it says HOT (takes roughly 8 minutes).

*Pro Tip: You really want the Instant Pot to be as hot as it can be for the maillard reaction.

Then, pat dry the Beef Finger Meat.

Drizzle the inner pot with 1 tbsp Peanut Oil or Olive Oil. Then, brown 2 sides of the Beef Finger Meat in Instant Pot for 3 minutes per side.

*Tip: You may have to do this in two batches.

Set aside the beef in a large container.

Saute Garlic & Shallot

Add 3 Bay Leaves, crushed Garlic Cloves, and chopped Shallot in Instant Pot. Saute until fragrant (roughly 2 minutes).

While the Garlic and Shallot are being sauteed, quickly cut the browned Beef Finger Meat into large stew size pieces on a chopping board.

Deglaze Instant Pot

Add browned Beef Finger Meat pieces (with the meat juice),  3 tbsp (15g) Curry Powder, 1 tbsp (15ml) Fish Sauce, 2 tbsp (30ml) Chu Hou Sauce in Instant Pot.

*Pro Tip: Different brands, sources, blends of Curry Powder vary in taste, aroma, and quality. So, you may need to use a bit less or more Curry Powder. Please taste & adjust accordingly!!

Stir and saute for another minute.

Pour in ⅔ cup (188ml) unsalted chicken stock or high-quality beef stock, then completely deglaze the bottom of the pot.

Pressure Cook HK Beef Curry

Add in Potato chunks, then give it a quick mix.

Make sure all the beef pieces are partially submerged in the curry mixture. You can layer the potatoes on top.

Close lid and turn Venting Knob to Sealing position.

Pressure Cook at High Pressure for 25 minutes, then 15 minutes Natural Release

After 15 minutes, release the remaining pressure by turning the Venting Knob to Venting position.

Remove the lid carefully.

Adjust & Thicken Curry Sauce

With a tong, remove and set aside the beef and half of the potato chunks in a serving bowl.

Bring the sauce mixture to a simmer with the “Saute” button.

Add in ¼ cup (64ml) Coconut Milk, then break up the potato chunks to thicken the curry sauce.

To thicken the sauce further, mix cornstarch with water in a mixing bowl, then mix it in one third at a time until desired thickness.

Taste and adjust seasoning with salt, sugar, and chili powder or chili oil accordingly.

*Pro Tip: If the Curry Sauce is too salty, adjust seasoning by adding more Coconut Milk. 🙂

*Reference Note: our Curry Powder tastes quite bitter, so we added 2 tsp white sugar to balance it. We also added 2 pinches of salt to open up the flavor at the end, plus a dash of chili oil for a hint of spiciness.

Serve Instant Pot HK Beef Curry

Place the set-aside Beef pieces + half of the potato chunks back into the curry sauce, then give it a quick mix.

In my opinion, this dish is best served with rice.

Enjoy your Instant Pot HK Beef Curry!~ 🙂

Tools for Instant Pot HK Beef Curry

• Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker
• Bamboo Wooden Spoons
• Stainless Steel Mixing Bowl Set

Other Instant Pot Curry

Instant Pot Japanese Beef Curry

Instant Pot Thai Green Curry Chicken

Instant Pot Indian Goat Curry