Mom’s authentic Chicken Curry recipe made in Instant Pot or Pressure Cooker. This chicken curry instant pot recipe is made in a simple onion-tomato gravy with the aroma of whole spices. This is the best Chicken Curry you will ever have!
I wanted to recreate my mom’s chicken curry in the instant pot and tried it multiple times. But I was not getting the exact favor that comes when she cooks the curry….something was missing! But guess what, mom is visiting and shared her secret tips for the chicken curry.
Mom’s Chicken Curry Tips
- Sauté the onions for longer, about 4 mins until the oil starts separating .
- Add the tomatoes and sauté the onion-tomato mixture for longer, again about 4 mins until the oil separates.
- Add the chicken and cook it on sauté for 2-3 mins, before you pressure cook.
You get the idea, basically sauté the ingredients perfectly, to get the perfect chicken curry. Another great thing about this curry is, there is no marination required. So no pre-prep for this recipe.
Step-by-step Chicken Curry Instant Pot Instructions
Start with getting the main ingredients ready.
- The whole spices in one bowl. If you want to make this recipe simpler, you can skip the whole spices. What you lose with that is the aroma, but trust me, it will still be as flavorful.
- The ground spices in one bowl.
- Chicken cut into pieces. I used boneless chicken breasts in this recipe, but mom says bone-in chicken tastes even better. This is next to try, but I do like the convenience of boneless chicken.
Now we are ready to start cooking! Start the instant pot in Sauté mode, and heat ghee or oil in it. I prefer ghee to get the richer taste, especially homemade ghee in the instant pot. Add the whole spices and sauté for 30 seconds to get the aroma. Add the green chili, onions, ginger and garlic to the pot. Sauté for about 4 minutes until the onions turn brown and the oil separates. Now add the tomatoes and ground spices. Sauté for another 4 minutes until oil separates. Remember mom’s tips, this sautéing of onions and tomatoes is what gives a great taste to the chicken curry. Keep stirring at about 1-2 minute interval, so the onions and tomato don’t get stuck to the bottom of the pot.
Let’s add the chicken pieces to the pot. Stir it well, so the chicken is coated with the onion-tomato masala. Sauté the chicken for a couple of minutes. Now add half cup of water to the pot. The trick is to add less water, as the chicken also releases water.
Change the instant pot setting to manual mode and cook for 5 minutes on high pressure. Quick release the pressure, as we don’t want to overcook the chicken. Stir in the lemon juice and garnish with cilantro.
Look at the end result, doesn’t it look appetizing? I had this chicken curry for three meals at a stretch, first with roti (Indian flatbread), then with rice and finally with naan.
Don’t have an instant pot or pressure cooker, use the same steps to cook chicken curry in a pan. After adding chicken to the pan, cover pan with a lid and cook for about 15 minutes. Stir every 3-4 minutes, so the chicken does not stick to the pan. You would need to double the amount of water (1 cup) when cooking in a pan.
Try this Chicken Curry instant pot recipe and let me know how you like it.
- Recipe posted 3 months ago: Bell Pepper and Potato Stir Fry
- Recipe posted 6 months ago: Vegan Spinach Tofu Curry
- Recipe posted 9 months later: Potato Curry in Tomato Gravy
★ DID YOU TRY THIS CHICKEN CURRY INSTANT POT RECIPE? Don’t forget to give a ★ rating. Just click on the stars in the Recipe Card to rate!
Mom's Chicken Curry - Instant Pot Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 pound Chicken boneless, cut into 1-2 inch pieces
- 3 tbsp Ghee or Oil
- 1 Green Chili Pepper small, chopped (optional)
- 1 inch Ginger finely chopped
- 5 cloves Garlic finely chopped
- 1 Onion medium sized, finely chopped
- 2 Tomato medium sized, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup Water
- 1 tbsp Lemon juice
- 1/4 cup Cilantro to garnish
Whole Spices
Spices
- 2 tsp Coriander powder (Dhaniya powder)
- 1/2 tsp Cayenne or Red chili powder
- 1/2 tsp Garam masala
- 1/4 tsp Ground Turmeric (Haldi powder)
- 1 tsp Salt
Instructions
- Cut the boneless chicken into small pieces, about 1-2 inch in size.
- Heat the instant pot in Sauté mode and add oil to it. Add the whole spices and sauté for 30 seconds to get the aroma.
- Add the chopped green chili, onions, ginger and garlic to the pot and sauté for 4 minutes until they turn golden brown. Keep stirring at regular intervals.
- Add the chopped tomatoes and spices. Sauté for another 4 minutes, while stirring at regular intervals.
- Add the chicken and sauté for 2 minutes. Then add the water and stir it with the chicken. Deglaze and scrape off anything stuck to the bottom of the pot.
- Change the instant pot setting to manual/pressure cook mode on high for 5 minutes.
- When the instant pot beeps, quick release the pressure manually. Stir in the lemon juice.
- Garnish with cilantro and chicken curry is ready to serve.
Video
Notes
- If you want to simplify this recipe, skip the whole spices in this recipe.
- To make this less spicy, you can skip the green chili.
- If using bigger pieces of chicken, increase the pressure cooking time to 7 minutes. I used chicken breasts when making this curry, but chicken thighs would work great too.
- This recipe was created in a 6qt Instant Pot DUO60 Multi-use Programmable Pressure Cooker.
Nutrition
Note: Nutrition values are my best estimates. If you rely on them for your diet, use your preferred nutrition calculator.
♥ Spread the Love If you make this recipe, share your food photo with hashtag #pipingpotcurry on Facebook or Instagram, so we can see it and others can enjoy it too! Thank you ♥
Subscribe to my Youtube Channel for tasty video recipes. Looking for Instant Pot recipes, check out my Instant Pot Recipes board on Pinterest.
If you are looking for more chicken recipes, check out Chicken Korma, Keema Matar, Chicken Chettinad, Saag Chicken and the famous Butter Chicken. Like goat meat, check out our Mutton Curry recipe.
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Dear Meeta,
I just started using the IP Ultra. I have rarely cooked in the past 18 years except for making my mom’s tandoori chicken recipe. Wife does the cooking and I do the cleaning. But the IP has enticed me to cook. I used to cook a lot before marriage. Your chicken curry recipe was the perfect one for me to get started. I made 1.5lbs of boneless thighs and just multiplied everything by 1.5 times, it was so simple and came out superb!!! Thanks so much. I will try your other recipes for sure.
Take care,
Neeraj Arora
Hello Neeraj – So glad to hear that the instant pot is getting you back into cooking food. Even better that you started with the chicken curry. It is definitely close to my heart as I worked on this with my mom. I would love to hear if you try any other recipes!
hi Meeta, If I want to double the amount of chicken, shall I double the amount of onions, tomato as well?
Hey Radha – yes, doubling all the ingredients. The pressure cooking time will remain the same. Hope you enjoy it!
I made this today and doubled the recipe but also doubled the water which made it super thin.. Should I have only used the half cup water? I did simmer the water down and added some potatoes to make it a bit more thicker.. Very tasty.. Thank you
Hey Mini – I agree not doubling the water would work well. As chicken releases a lot of water and that will be enough to get the instant pot to pressure. Glad you enjoyed the taste. Thank you for sharing back your review!
This is spectacular! I made it and added potatoes, carrots and asparagus. I will definetely make this over and over again!
Thanks. Glad you enjoyed the chicken curry. Love that you added so many veggies too 🙂
When did you add the potatoes? Were they raw or half cooked? My mom used to put aloo in her chicken curry but I’m not sure how to modify for IP. Tips?
Hey Jessica – In this curry, I did not add potatoes. You can definitely add in potatoes. Cut them in large pieces and add before pressure cooking. Hope you enjoy it!
Absolutely delicious and easy too. I will use 1/2 the water next time – sauce was too thin but still delic. I took chix out then simmered sauce w cornstarch for several minutes. I’m sure not authentic, but I loved it! I also added cauliflower and green beans after I released the pressure and simmered a few minutes. I will definitely make many times more! Thank you!!
Hey Dee – So glad you enjoyed the chicken curry. Adding veggies is absolutely wonderful. Chicken can release a lot of water, which is the reason I add very little. But as you said simmering on saute at the end can work well. You can also add coconut milk or heavy cream to make the curry thicker. So happy to hear you will be trying it again!
I really enjoyed making this delicious curry in our new instant pot. I rarely cook with chicken but this dish has encouraged me to use it more. Both hubby and I loved it and I look forward to making this super easy dish again for friends and family!
Thank you very much for sharing this lovely receipe!
Hey Jasmine – So glad to hear you and your husband enjoyed this chicken curry. This one definitely takes me back to childhood memories. Thank you so much for sharing back your review!
I followed the steps exactly and when I opened the IP all I saw was water water everywhere.
I tried this recipe for dinner today and it was a huge success for me. I have tried making curries before, however my measurements for onion and tomatoes were too less, I did not start with whole spices and leaves, and I did not saute for a long time before pressure cooking. I had to use a little more water but I’m glad I started with less so the consistency was good. This was my second time trying to make curry in an instant pot and it turned out just like proper chicken curry. Thank you so much!
Hey Akshya – So glad to hear you enjoyed the chicken curry. I found that mom’s tips really helped me get the right taste with this curry. Thank you so much for sharing back your review!
Another fantastic recipe. I tend to saute your recipes at both ends, i.e. before the pressure cook and for a few minutes afterwards to get the full “bhunna flavor”.
Can you kindly add Pasande and Nargisi Kofta (from beef/chicken) as well to your list? This way I can relive my childhood all over again. Are any Kabob’s possible to make in Instant Pot? I’m talking Shami Kabobs (eat at tea time), or Seekh Kabobs? So basically here’s my wish list:
Beef/Chicken Pasande
Nargisi Kofta (beef/chicken)
Shami Kabobs
Seekh Kabobs
Khatti Daal
Thank you Bob for sharing the changes you do to the make the dish even more flavorful. I have added your suggestions to my list. I think the prep for kabobs can be done in instant pot, but the final kabobs need to be made in the oven or air fryer. Thank you!
Hi there,
I’ve cooked this tonight. Thoroughly enjoyed it, however, it turned out very watery and hasn’t had the desired consistency I was hoping for. I cooked exactly after recipes instructions in a Breville pressure cooker. What did I do wrong? 🙂
Hey Rico – Thank you for sharing back your experience. Chicken can sometimes release a lot of liquid. You can reduce the amount of water added to the curry to 1/4 cup. Another option is to just boil off some liquid on sauté mode after you pressure cook (3-5 mins). I am glad you still enjoyed the flavors. Thank you!
Would the time be the same for boneless chicken thighs? It seems to be all I have in the fridge!
Hey Mariam – Yes, the same cooking time will work for chicken thighs as well. Hope you enjoy it!
Have tried this recipe of yours a few times now with both bone and boneless chicken and has always consistently turned out good!!
Everybody at home really enjoy this curry. Thanks!
Hey Shweta – Thank you so much for sharing back your review. So happy to hear your family enjoys the chicken curry.
Is it just 1 whistle in the cooker? Should I release the pressure immediately afterwards?
Hi Jake – If you are using a regular stovetop pressure cooker, I would suggest 2 whistle and then let the steam release naturally.
My family loves this dish! It’s quick and super flavorful. The step-by-step pictures help a lot, thanks for posting those!
Hey Shabnam – Glad to hear your family loves the chicken curry. I made it just yesterday. Thank you for sharing back your review 🙂
Excellent recipe. Came out good in my first attempt !
However, taste being very subjective , made a few minor changes.
1. Instead of one small chilly, I chopped a whole jalapeno.
2. Almost doubled the chopped onion/tomato content ( since I wanted more gravy)
3. Instead of cooking for 5 minutes in Instant Pot, I cooked for 3 minutes. ( this on suggestion by my wife ! )
Hey Satish – Glad you enjoyed the Chicken Curry. Thank you for sharing the changes you made, it is very helpful to other readers 🙂
Hi do you leavethe top off when you saute?
Hey Alicia – Yes, I don’t use the lid when on sauté. Hope you enjoy the curry!
I tried this recipe last night since my husband loves Chicken. I have to say this was very easy and quick and delicious. Awesome Recipe!! I did marinate the chicken for like 15 mins in a ginger-garlic-green chili paste ( not sure how much difference that made but it was nice). Thank you!!
Hey Urvi – Glad you all enjoyed the chicken curry. Marinating chicken is always great. Thank you for sharing your review!
Hello Meeta, Most of the time I have frozen Bone-in Chicken thighs or drumsticks. At what stage do I need to cook it extra to give it enough time to thaw and then cook, without it being getting too dry, or not enough cooked?
Thanks in advance for putting up the receipe. Denver has plenty of Indian restaurants but all of them are substandard and the need to eat authentic Chicken Curry is prompting me to try it to cook myself.
Hey Deepak – You are very welcome. I suggest to thaw the chicken before using in this recipe and cook bone-in chicken for 7 mins at high pressure, with a 5 minutes NPR (release pressure 5 mins after beep). I hope you enjoy the curry!
Awesome recipie. Keep up the good work. Yummy.
Thanks Darren. Glad you enjoyed the chicken curry 🙂
Do you happen to know how long to cook this with drumstick chicken?
Sorry I didn’t mean to rate the recipe. I haven’t made it yet
Hey Annu – You can cook for 8 minutes with 5 minutes NPR for drumsticks. I know there is no way to take the rating out once you have clicked it. Hope you enjoy the curry.
I like potatoes in my chicken curry. What is the best way to add the potatoes with chicken?
Hello Jan – Potatoes are a great addition. As we are pressure cooking for just 5 minutes, you can add cubed potatoes just before pressure cooking. That time would be enough to cook the cubed potatoes. Hope you enjoy the chicken curry, this one is my favorite!
Hey Meeta,
If I double the recipe, would the cooking time remain the same?
Hey Kiara – Yes, the cooking time will remain the same even if you double the recipe. Instant pot will take longer to come to pressure. Hope you enjoy the chicken curry!
This was AMAZING!! We can’t wait to have it again !
Hey Koty – So glad you enjoyed the chicken curry. It is very much my favorite as well!
This was delicious! Thanks so much Meeta 🙂
Yay! Glad you enjoyed it. Thank you for sharing back your review 🙂
Easy to follow and Punjabi hubby enjoyed it so I’d say it’s a hit 🙂
Hey SB – Glad to hear that your husband enjoyed the chicken curry. Thanks for sharing your review!
Thanks for this. This was great. Very easy and quick to make and absolutely delicious.
Hey Raj – Glad you enjoyed the chicken curry. Thank you for sharing your review!
Namaste. I made this for the first time, and I assure you it is not the last. I used fresh tomatoes, rather than tinned. Next time I will double the recipe. It is so flavourful, especially served with basmati rice.
Thank you for sharing!
So glad to hear that you enjoyed the chicken curry. This one is definitely my favorite too. Thank you for sharing your review!
If I were to double this recipe, how would I alter the cooking time?
Hey Lara – The cooking time would remain the same even if you double the recipe. Hope you enjoy it!
This was delicious! I doubled all ingredients except the water, and used 1/2 a jalapeño because it was the only pepper I had. I also used two 14 oz cans of diced tomatoes instead of four fresh tomatoes. I realized later that one can would have been more equivalent to four tomatoes, but it turned out great anyway, just slightly soupy but so tasty! I put in about 8 green cardamom pods because we love cardamom (and I didn’t have any black). My whole family oved it! A real keeper!
Hey Carol – So happy to hear your family loved the chicken curry. This one is certainly close to my heart. Thank you for sharing your review and the changes you made 🙂
I just reread the recipe, and I think I lost the benefit of sautéing the tomatoes that you mentioned, because the diced tomatoes had so much liquid. It was more like boiling than sautéing. As I said, it turned out delicious, but next time I’ll try with fresh tomatoes.
I agree that one can of diced tomatoes would be sufficient with double the recipe. But yes, fresh tomatoes are great for this recipe. Looking forward to hear how it turns out when you try again 🙂
Can I use this to make lamb curry? What would be the time for Manuel Mode? Thanks
Hey Sital – Check the Mutton Curry recipe. It is similar and the cooking time for lamb and goat meat is almost the same – MEAT mode for 20 minutes. http://pipingpotcurry.com/goat-curry-pressure-cooker/
Amazing! I just got my Instant Pot and this was my third time using it. I absolutely LOVE curry, so this only seemed appropriate to try. The flavor was amazing, however, I didn’t have whole cardamom, cloves, or coriander seeds, so I used a random amount of ground. I’m looking forward to trying again with an accurate amount of the whole versions. I also used a jalapeño instead of a milder green chili, which made it extra spicy. My eyes and nose were running and my face was sweaty! I like spicy but it made it hard to appreciate the other flavors. My only other issue was because I added mushrooms, I think I made it a tad too watery. Obviously these were all my errors so I looking forward to trying again and making some adjustments. Thanks to you and your mom for the amazing recipe!!! 🙂
Hey Annie, Glad to hear you tried the chicken curry and are looking forward to try again. You can always skip the whole spices, and still make the curry as it. They are mainly to add flavor, we typically don’t eat the whole spices when eating the curry. Absolutely, also use less of the green chili or again, it can be reduced or skipped. I use birdseye or thai chili, which are also spicy, but are much smaller in size. So if you use a jalapeno, then just use 1/3 of it. Hope you enjoy the curry!
This sounds amazing! Can’t wait to try this! Can you tell me what type of green chili you use in this recipe? Would Serrano peppers be the best?
Hey Mia – Thank you! I usually use Serrano or birds eye chili pepper, so that sounds great. Do adjust the pepper quantity to your taste. Hope you enjoy it!
Thank you for getting back to me! I just finished making this and it is SO delicious. I wasn’t able to find whole black cardamom at my local grocery store, so I look forward to making this again with the cardamom, maybe once I visit an Indian grocery store. The only thing I would modify is the amount of water I used. As you mentioned, using less is better. I doubled the recipe and mine looks to be just a tad soupier than the consistency of your images above. For as much as I LOOOVE Indian food, especially chicken curry, this was my first time braving up to try cooking it. Now I will have to try some of my other favorites from your site 🙂 Thanks so much for sharing!
Mia, so happy to hear you enjoyed the chicken curry. I certainly love this one, as my mom stood with me as we made this recipe. Adding black cardamom is a very subtle change in taste, and you might not even feel too much difference 🙂 Looking forward to hear what else you try!
Hi, Just made this recipe with two chicken breasts. Cut them in half to make it four pieces then followed your instructions to saute for 2 minutes and then manual for 5 minutes, however, the chicken was overcooked a bit.
How can I fix this for next time?
Hey Anu – I am sorry for the late reply. Somehow the comment went into moderation and I missed it. You can always pressure cook the curry for less time. Try 3 minutes next time and see if that gives better result. Hope you enjoy it!
Namaste Madameji,
Your recipes rock! I made Chicken Chettinad and Mom’s Chicken Curry and they were both amazing.
I will be looking for your Chicken Tikka Masala recipe.
Have great holidays!
Hello George – Thank you for your kind words and sharing your review. Happy Holidays!
This is one of the best chicken curry recipes I’ve eaten. It definitely taste better than the restaurant too! The instructions are also very easy to follow. I just got an instant pot and so happy to have found your site. I would love a Chicken Tikka Masala instant pot recipe from you. I can’t wait to try your other ones as well!
Hey Sangita – Thank you so much for sharing your review. This one is certainly my favorite too, just like mom’s cooking. I will be posting more recipes soon and have your request added for a Chicken Tikka Masala recipe 🙂
Just tried this , wanted to do a chicken curry with newly purchases Instantpot , Amazing , Friday night in US , just had it with rice . Cant explain the joy
Thanks a lot , Now I want to try your other receipes
Santhosh
Hey Santhosh – I am so happy to hear that you enjoyed the chicken curry for your Friday dinner. I can relate to your joy of mom’s food, when you are away from home. I have experienced it too 🙂
Thank you for sharing your review. Let us know what else you try!
Meeta
If using breast meat, how should the cook time be adjusted?
Hello Mariam – Sorry, I missed responding to your comment earlier. I suggest the same cooking time for chicken breasts.
So incredibly flavorful and tasty! My wife is a pescatarian and I’d love to alter this recipe to use as a base for a fish curry. Any recommendations on best way to do this? I know the fish won’t need to cook long at all.
Thanks Nathan. You can use the same recipe, then add fish and cook at high pressure for 3 minutes followed by a QR. Hope your wife enjoys it 🙂
Love it! Best curry recipe I’ve tasted. Love the green chile!
Yay! Glad you liked it ????
Thank you so much for this recipe! I recently got married and moved out of moms house and unfortunately I didn’t learn how to cook much while I was home, So I’ve been looking for simple but delicious recipes to keep me and hubby alive and this one has been by far one of the best!
Thanks again
Xoxo
Aww..thanks so much. Glad you enjoyed it ❤️
I just started using my instant pot n im searching for veg n non veg recipes… i made ur chicken curry today and it ws delicious. I have a question though.. y did u not use the poultry setting? I followed as per ur instructions and the chicken cooked perfectly… thank u ..will be tryin out more recipes.
Thanks Roanne. Glad you liked the chicken curry. Hope you enjoy the other recipes too ????
Great question about the setting, I have just been using manual mode a lot more as it is quicker than the poultry mode for such curries.
This is absolutely wonderful ! Thank you to you and your Mother for taking the time to remember this and share it. I’ve made lots and lots of chicken curries through the years, and I like this one the best.
My question: what part of India does this recipe come from ? Maharasthran ? Punjabi ? Please tell ?
So glad you enjoyed the chicken curry. I will convey to my mom as well. This is mostly Punjabi style chicken curry…a rather homely one with no added cream.
I was actually going to ask if I could add a few tablespoons of cream to this, or would it ruin the balance of the taste?
Yes, you can definitely add cream to this recipe. It will still taste delicious. I hope you enjoy it!