If you want to explore the use of your Insta-Pot, I’ve found that the Insta-Pot method of cooking makes a really delicious curry.  It lacks the heaviness of a slow-cooked curry, and so I’ve decided to document my recipe and share the goodness.  I cook the vegetable component separately because I like a perfectly cooked vegetable in my curry and the pressure of the Insta-Pot tends to over-cook the vegetables in this application.  Feel free to throw yours in if you don’t mind that though!

I’m going to save a video tutorial on instagram in my highlights, so for additional help you can request to follow me at @andreadugg.

Insta-Pot Chicken Curry

serves 4

Ingredients:

2 medium onions, diced

1 tbsp minced fresh ginger

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp of coconut oil (or ghee, or vegetable oil)

2 tsp ground garam masala (Indian spice mix, don’t panic if you don’t have it)

2 tsp ground cinnamon

2 tsp ground cumin

3 tbsp Patak’s mild yellow curry paste (make sure it’s paste, not sauce)*

1/4 tsp red hot chili flakes (optional)

2 tbsp tomato paste

1.5 tsp salt

1 tsp ground pepper

2 cups water

1 lb. chicken breast or thighs, boneless, diced

1 14oz can coconut milk

additional vegetables (cooked separately)

3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1.5 ” chunks

3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 1.5 ” chunks –

to thicken: 

1/2 cup of water mixed with

2 tbsp corn starch

nice to have with it: fresh cilantro, mango chutney

serve with: basmati rice, naan bread

Directions:

Step 1

Prepare potatoes and carrots, place in a medium pot covered with water and cook for 15 minutes until just tender. Drain and keep aside.  Meanwhile…..

Step 2

Collect all of your needed ingredients and measure them out so your cooking experience is more pleasant and has good flow.

Step 3

With your Insta-Pot set to ‘saute’, add oil and onions. Stir fairly often, cooking them to a golden brown, being careful not to burn them.  Due to the lack of temperature control on the ‘saute’ function, you may need to turn it ‘off’ to allow the element to cool down a bit, then turn it back on to ‘saute’ until the desired doneness is achieved. You really need to spend that time cooking the onions down quite well, as with any Indian recipe.

Add ginger and garlic and saute for about 10 seconds. Add in your garam masala, cinnamon, cumin, curry paste, chili flakes (if using), tomato paste, salt and pepper. Again, if you find your Insta-Pot too hot, turn it off.  Sloosh that around for about 20 seconds.  Add your 2 cups of water and mix again, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pot.  Throw in your chicken chunks and the coconut milk. Stir to combine.

Step 4 

Place lid on Insta-Pot and turn clockwise to lock. Turn the vent dial to “seal” — this is a really important step.  Next, press your timing to ‘Manual’, then using the – or + sign, adjust time to read 10 minutes, and the  pressure button should be adjusted to “High”.

Make sure the vent is not directly under the cupboard – leave room for the steam to release freely.

After the beep which indicates that your curry has completed it’s pressure cooking, stand back, and with a utensil, flick the vent dial to  release your vent.  Steam will shoot out and this is normal.  Once your pressure button is flush to the black part of the lid and there is no more steam coming out of the vent,  you are free to unlock and open your Insta-Pot.

Step 5

Remove lid.  Mix remaining water and cornstarch, and add to pot. Mix and allow to thicken. Add your cooked vegetables at this point.  Taste, and adjust salt if necessary.

Serve over rice, with cilantro (if available!) and mango chutney (if you have it).  We are smack in the middle of a global pandemic and it’s not easy to attain all ingredients.   I drizzled a parsley/garlic puree that I had on hand over top and found some PC naan in the freezer – perfect!

Bon apetit!!

*if you can’t find Patak’s yellow curry paste, you can use Vindaloo paste (hot), or Tikka Masala paste, or any curry paste you can find. Just ensure that it’s “paste” and not “sauce”.