This Salmon Tikka Masala is super flavorful, warm, and creamy, perfect to satisfy those curry cravings. Marinated salmon cooked along with tikka masala sauce on the stovetop or in an instant pot. Serve over basmati rice or enjoy with naan for a scrumptious dinner!
Adapted with permission from The Essential Indian Instant Pot Cookbook, copyright © 2018 by Archana Mundhe. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.
Since using the instant pot, I have shared many chicken and lentils/beans dishes, including Chicken Tikka Masala. I shared this delicious coconut shrimp curry but wanted to share more fish curry recipes on the blog.
When my friend Archana Mundhe’s new cookbook, The Essential Indian Instant Pot was released, she offered me to review and share a recipe with you all. I wanted to share this delicious Salmon Tikka Masala recipe from her book. It is finger-licking good, and I am sure you all will love it just as much.
This Indian fish curry with flavorful tikka masala sauce is perfect to satisfy those Indian curry cravings. We loved the curry, and my very picky daughter gobbled it up.
Table of Contents
Watch How to Make Salmon Tikka Masala
Ingredients
- Salmon: I use wild-caught skinless salmon in this recipe. You can use frozen wild-caught fish if you don’t have fresh. You can also use other fish, such as cod and tilapia.
- Spices: Turmeric, garam masala, red chili powder are used for marinating and in the curry, along with lemon juice.
- Aromatics: Use freshly grated ginger and minced garlic. I use diced yellow onions in this fish curry.
- Sauce: I use tomato puree and heavy cream. You can replace cream with full-fat canned coconut milk if you prefer a dairy-free option.
- Finishing: Add dried fenugreek leaves and garnish with fresh cilantro.
How to buy salmon?
I always prefer to buy wild-caught Alaskan salmon. Farmed salmon can be exposed to more chemicals than the wild-caught variety. Typically, wild salmon have fewer calories, saturated fat, and vitamins A and D than farmed salmon but contain more protein. For this fish curry, I bought fresh wild-caught salmon from Whole Foods.
Can you cook fish in an instant pot?
Of course, yes! The fear that most have is that instant pot will overcook the fish. The trick is to use larger pieces and steam the fish with the pot-in-pot method in the instant pot.
Pressure cooked fish is –
√ So tender and full of flavor
√ Cooks quickly without any monitoring
√ It can be cooked with curry or steamed vegetables once for a complete meal.
√ The biggie…no fish smell in the house.
How to make Salmon Tikka Masala Curry?
Let’s go through how to make this easy Salmon Curry. Before you start, gather the ingredients. Making a curry is much easier if you have all the ingredients ready.
Marinate the fish
The first step in a tikka masala recipe is to marinate the fish. This is the main difference from a Makhani (or Butter Masala) recipe, where marinating is not required.
Cut the fish into 2-3 inch pieces. Pat dry with a paper towel to avoid extra liquids. We will marinate the fish in ginger, garlic, lemon juice, and spices.
If you are cooking in the instant pot, I recommend marinating in a steel or oven-safe glass bowl that you can use for pot-in-pot cooking. Here is the link to the pot-in-pot container I use.
Instant Pot Method
Now, we will start making the instant pot salmon curry. Start by sautéing the onions in oil. Then, add minced ginger and garlic.
Then add the tomato puree and spices. Add water and stir well. Deglaze the pot and make sure nothing is stuck to the bottom of the pot.
This is an important step for the instant pot method so that the curry base does not burn.
Now place a trivet and the steel bowl with marinated salmon in the pot. You must use a tall trivet so the steel bowl does not sink into the curry.
Pressure cook the curry and the salmon. Then, quick release the pressure.
Carefully remove the steel bowl and trivet. I use these tongs to remove the hot bowl and trivet. Oven mitts can also be used to remove the bowl.
Stir in the heavy cream and dried fenugreek leaves.
Then, carefully pick the pieces of salmon and add them to the curry. Gently stir and cover them in the sauce. Don’t forget to add any leftover liquid from the bowl in which you cooked the fish to the curry.
Salmon Tikka Masala is ready.
Stovetop Method
Sear the Salmon: This step helps to seal the flavor of the marinated salmon tikka. I highly recommend not to skip this step. Heat oil in a medium pan or Dutch oven on medium-high flame. Then, arrange the marinated fish in a single layer. Let the fish sear on one side, then flip and cook for another 2 minutes until you see a char. This should total take about 5 minutes. Take the fish out in a plate and set aside.
Air Fryer option: You can also air fry the fish tikka and cook for 7 minutes at 380°F.
Bake option: Place a parchment paper and arrange the marinated salmon on a baking tray. Bake at 375°F for 15 minutes.
Make the sauce: In the same pan, add the onions and saute for 4-5 minutes. Then add the minced ginger and garlic and saute for another minute. (Note: if you like a smooth sauce, you can puree the onions at this time and add them back to the pan)
Add the tomato puree and spices. Stir well and cook for 2-3 minutes. Then add the water and cook for about 8 minutes on medium-low heat. Cover the pan and stir in between.
Stir in the heavy cream. Crush the dried fenugreek leaves between your palms and then add to the curry.
Add the salmon to the curry. Cook until you get a gentle boil, about 3 minutes.
While serving, garnish with cilantro. Enjoy with naan (we prefer garlic naan) and cumin rice.
Pro-tips
√ Do not skip marinating the salmon. It lets the fish soak in the flavor of the spices and cook in it, making it much more delicious.
√ You can also make this curry with other varieties of fish.
√ To make this dairy-free, you can use coconut milk instead of heavy cream.
√ Enjoy this fish tikka masala with steamed basmati rice or cumin rice (my preference) or with naan. Drizzle some lemon juice when serving.
√ Storing: You can store this curry in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Common Questions
Yes, one can of tomato puree is about 5-6 tomatoes. You can blend the tomatoes to a puree consistency and use them for this tikka masala sauce. Saute the sauce for 3-4 minutes after adding pureed tomatoes.
The above recipe shows how you can steam fish with the pot-in-pot method in the instant pot. I used marinated fish, but just fish with salt and pepper would work too.
With the pot-in-pot method, 3-4 minutes at high pressure works perfectly to cook salmon in the instant pot.
Salmon Tikka Masala (Instant Pot & Stovetop)
Video
Ingredients
For the marinade
- 1 tablespoon Lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 1 tablespoon Ginger, grated fresh
- 1 tablespoon Garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon Kashmiri red chili powder , or another mild red Chili powder
- 1 teaspoon Garam masala
- 1/2 teaspoon Ground turmeric (Haldi powder)
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1 1/2 pounds Salmon fillet, skinless, cut into 8 pieces
For the curry
- 1 tablespoon Oil , neutral
- 1 cup Yellow onion, finely diced
- 1 teaspoon Ginger, grated fresh
- 1 teaspoon Garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 cups Tomato puree, canned (do not use tomato paste)
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder, or another mild red Chili powder, adjust to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon Ground turmeric (Haldi powder)
- 1/2 teaspoon Garam masala
- 1/2 cup Water
- 1/2 cup Heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon Dried fenugreek leaves
- Cilantro leaves, chopped, for garnish
Instructions
To make the marinade:
- In a bowl, combine the lemon juice, ginger, garlic, chili powder, garam masala, turmeric, and salt and stir to mix. Add the salmon to the marinade and turn to evenly coat with the spices. Set aside. (Use a stainless steel bowl that will fit in the instant pot for that cooking method)
Instant Pot Method
- Select the high Sauté setting and heat the oil. Add the onion and salt and sauté until the onion turns translucent, about 5 minutes. Cover the pot with a glass lid (or other nonlocking lid that fits) to speed up the process. Add the ginger and garlic and sauté until aromatic, about 1 minute.
- Add the tomato puree, chili powder, turmeric, and garam masala. Press the Cancel button to turn off the Instant Pot. Pour in the water and stir well with a wooden spoon, nudging loose any browned bits from the pot bottom.
- Place a tall steam rack in the pot, making sure all of its legs are resting firmly on the bottom. Place the bowl of salmon on the rack.
- Secure the lid and set the Pressure Release to Sealing. Select the Pressure Cook or Manual setting and set the cooking time for 4 minutes at high pressure.
- Perform a quick release by moving the Pressure Release to Venting. Press the Cancel button to turn off the Instant Pot. Open the pot and, wearing heat-resistant mitts, remove the bowl of salmon to a trivet and remove the rack.
- Stir the heavy cream into the curry, then crush the fenugreek leaves with the palms of your hands to release the aromas and stir them in as well. Select the high Sauté setting and carefully add the salmon to the curry, turning it to evenly coat. Cook until the curry comes to a gentle boil and is heated through 2 to 3 minutes. Press the Cancel button to turn off the Instant Pot.
Stovetop Method
- Sear the Salmon: This step helps to seal the flavor of the marinated salmon tikka. I highly recommend not to skip this step. Heat oil in a medium pan or Dutch oven on medium-high flame. Then, arrange the marinated fish in a single layer. Let the fish sear on one side, then flip and cook for another 2 minutes until you see a char. This should total take about 5 minutes. Take the fish out in a plate and set aside.
- In the same pan, add the onions and saute for 4-5 minutes. Then add the minced ginger and garlic and saute for another minute. (Note: if you like a smooth sauce, you can puree the onions at this time and add them back to the pan).
- Add the tomato puree and spices. Stir well and cook for 2-3 minutes. Then add the water and cook for about 8 minutes on medium-low heat. Cover the pan and stir in between.
- Stir in the heavy cream. Crush the dried fenugreek leaves between your palms and then add to the curry.
- Add the salmon to the curry. Cook until you get a gentle boil, about 3 minutes.
Serving
- Garnish the curry with chopped cilantro leaves. Spoon the curry onto plates and serve with rice, naan, and lemon wedges.
Notes
Nutrition
If you like this recipe, check out other popular Indian Curry recipes:
Meeta, thanks for much for the great dinner idea!
Came out perfect, and in the usual don’t have every spice, here was my fix
For the fenugreek leaves, used ground fennel seeds, used my pepper grinder
Only had curry powder, added ground cloves and cinnamon, spot on,
And used almond milk, cooked it down a bit and yummy!
Can’t wait to try it with lamb & chicken
I really really loved the spices. The recipe is very good indeed. The only issues I’ve had – my Instant Pot gave me Burn message, while cooking the salmon, I had to open the lid and add more water to my curry and start again. It gave me burn message again. So I just opened the lid, put salmon into the curry, turn Sauté mode on and boiled it for 5-7 minutes. I turned out very good. I just hope the fish was cooked well.
How do I avoid this burn error?
Hi Olena – Sorry to hear you got the burn message for the recipe. This can happen sometimes if the tomato puree is very thick. In such cases, you can skip mixing after adding the tomato puree, or add more water. You could also try using fresh tomatoes which are juicier and are less prone to burn. I am glad you enjoyed the flavors in the recipe.
I tried with mahi mahi and turned out great!
Hi Meeta – I made this recipe tonight and was perfect. My family loved it. Thanks for sharing.
So glad you enjoyed it Anushree. Thank you for sharing back your review!
what if I don’t have the container to put inside the IP for the salmon? Can I bake the salmon in the oven?
Hey Sara – Sure, you can always cook the salmon in the oven or a pan, then add it to the curry. Hope you enjoy it!
Worked out great! I did double most of the spices because I wanted it to be a bolder taste and less cream but other than that – it was a great, easy, weeknight dinner recipe that I will use again!
Thank you.
Hey Ami – Glad to hear you enjoyed the salmon curry. Thanks for sharing the changes you made to the recipe!
Should the salmon be marinated overnight?
Hey Neha – I just marinate the salmon right before I start cooking in the instant pot. If you want to do it before, I would say 30-60 mins is enough time for salmon. Hope you enjoy it!
Hi Meeta,
Was the skin on salmon removed?
Thanks
Hey Minal – yes, I got the skin removed for this tikka masala. Hope you enjoy it!
Hi, thanks for the recipe! Do you cook the salmon in the PIP container without adding any water inside the container? I am just looking to cook the salmon and eat it for protein (like tandoori chicken). Would it be good if I marinated the salmon, cooked it in the PIP container without preparing curry?
Hey Aswin – Yes, that would work perfectly. Just add 1 cup water in the instant pot steel insert, and cook the marinated salmon in a steamer basket or pip container.
Hi,
Thank you for the recipe. I usually cook fish on low for 8 minutes and then use quick release. But it turns out touch and rubbery. I cook for 7 mins and it’s under-cooked. I don’t know what I am doing wrong? Don’t know how a fish in tin cans is so soft?
Hi Sam – Did you try with skinless salmon? We are cooking on high pressure here, so it would be equivalent to low pressure for double the time. We also marinated the fish which makes it cook faster. I would love to hear how it turns out.