Get your Indian fix by making one of my most popular recipes, chicken tikka masala, now adapted for the Instant Pot pressure cooker.
Chicken tikka masala is one of my favorite dishes of all time, and one of the most popular Indian dishes ordered at American restaurants. It goes great with basmati rice to help soak up all of the delicious sauce, or with some slabs of naan bread on the side. I enjoy this dish frequently in various forms, whether it be in a restaurant or just at home with a microwaveable frozen version (the one at Trader Joe’s is quite good!). I’m somewhat embarrassed to admit that there have been times where I ate chicken tikka masala more than once in a single day. It’s just one of those dishes that ticks off all of the boxes for me: (1) warm and comforting, (2) thick and saucy, (3) tons of spices and flavor, and (4) tender bites of chicken.
I developed my one-pan stovetop chicken tikka masala recipe about half a year ago — it’s a made-from-scratch chicken tikka masala that’s surprisingly easy and tastes just as good as the restaurant version. Since then, I’ve been asked to adapt the recipe to make an Instant Pot version. Via pressure cooking, it only takes 10 minutes to cook the sauce, which is about half as long as the stovetop method. I’ve also made some minor adjustments such as tweaking the spice mix and using less heavy cream. All in all, this Instant Pot chicken tikka masala tastes just as amazing as the stovetop version, so you can pick whichever cooking method you prefer.
Recently, I added a slow cooker chicken tikka masala for those of you with crockpots and other slow cookers.
If you’ve ever made my stovetop chicken tikka masala, you’ll know that it comes with a generous amount of sauce. This Instant Pot version is the same. You won’t ever find me skimping on tikka masala sauce, otherwise, what’s the point of basmati rice and naan if there isn’t extra sauce to soak up? The flavors here are top notch — even the typically wary-of-Indian-food Mr. Savory Tooth loves it — and there’s also a wonderful hint of lemon flavor as an added bonus.
For a low carb and keto friendly version, simply make the recipe as follows and substitute white rice with riced cauliflower or low carb naan.
Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala (Pressure Cooker)
Ingredients
For marinating the chicken:
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts about 2, chopped into bite-sized pieces
- 1 cup plain 2% fat greek yogurt 7 ounces
- 1 tablespoon garam masala
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
For the sauce:
- 15 ounces canned tomato sauce or puree
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 4 teaspoons garam masala
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream added last
For serving:
- basmati rice
- naan
- freshly chopped cilantro
Instructions
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Marinating the chicken: Combine all marinade ingredients (minus the chicken) in a bowl and mix well. Add chicken chunks and coat with the marinade. Let sit in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
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Pressure cooker saute mode: Select the saute mode on the pressure cooker for medium heat. When it has reached temperature, add chicken chunks (along with any marinade sticking to them) to the pressure cooker. Saute until the chicken is cooked on all sides, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Turn off the saute mode.
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Pressure cooker high pressure mode: Add all of the sauce ingredients except the cream to the pressure cooker, over the chicken, and stir. Secure and seal the lid. Select the manual mode to cook for 10 minutes at high pressure. Use the quick steam release handle to release pressure.
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Pressure cooker saute mode: Select the saute mode on the pressure cooker for low heat. When it has reached temperature, add cream to the pot, stirring with the other ingredients. Simmer until the sauce is thickened to your liking, a few minutes.
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Serving: Serve with basmati rice or naan. Garnish with cilantro.
Nutrition Info
This recipe yields 12.5 g net carbs per serving. Nutrition information does not include rice or naan.
| Nutrition Facts Per Serving |
| Calories 460 | |
| Total Fat 27g | 41% |
| Saturated Fat 17g | 85% |
| Trans Fat 0g | |
| Cholesterol 171mg | 57% |
| Sodium 970mg | 40% |
| Potassium 320mg | 9% |
| Total Carb 19g | 6% |
| Dietary Fiber 6.5g | 26% |
| Sugars 6g | |
| Protein 32g |
This recipe was delicious so much so I made it 2 nights in a row, spice heat was just right for me, Marinated the chicken in a vaccum pac bag for around 2 hours and used smoked paprika.
Do you think I would be able to sub coconut yogurt for Greek yogurt and coconut milk for cream to make this Kosher?
Many readers have subbed coconut milk for cream and liked the results. I’m not sure about the coconut yogurt though — I’m hoping other readers can chime in on this.
Seems like a simple enough recipe. Perfect for breaking in my Instant Pot! Thanks, Julia!
Can you marinate overnight?
Yes, that should be fine.
This was very good. I substituted a can of full fat, unsweetened coconut milk for the heavy cream and added it up front. It thickened up quite a bit, but maybe not as much as it was supposed to (I’ve never had or made this dish before, so I can’t judge). I think next time I’ll add a diced jalepeno pepper and sauteed onions. I was unable to find brown basmati rice, so I served it with couscous. This is only the second recipe I’ve made with my new Instant Pot, and it was a success! Thanks!
Do you add the rest of the marinade to the pot after you brown the chicken or just discard it?
This looks delicious and the recipe seems very easy to follow. We just purchased our Instant Pot and I’m so intimidated I haven’t even unboxed it yet! Did you cook the rice in the Instant Pot as well?
I typically cook the rice (or cauliflower rice for a low carb option) separately.
Made this recipe and turned out excellent! Perfect sauce to chicken ratio and definitely flavorful!
If I wanted to sweeten the sauce up a bit with coconut milk, would I add it before pressure cooking or with the cream at the end?
I would add it at the end. I recommend substituting part of the heavy cream with coconut milk, as opposed to just adding coconut milk. Otherwise you might end up with too much sauce.
Makes sense. Thanks!!!
My family and friends love this dish! The recipe is super easy and fast. Thank you!
Great recipe the whole family looooooved it. Thank You!
Hello,
Learning to cook, and trying with this recipe. With the pressure cook step, it doesnt mention adding water. Just want to doublecheck if this is correct, or if the minimum amount of water for the instapot should be added.
It’s correct — you do not add water. If you do, you will end up with way too much extra water in your sauce. Unlike other modes of cooking, pressure cooking retains almost all of the liquids in the added ingredients.
Loved it. Made it exactly as per recipe except used boneless skinless thighs (because I prefer dark meat). I simmered for at least 10 minutes at the end because the sauce was a bit liquid. I might use more chicken next time because my husband prefers more meat. Served over riced cauliflower. The garam masala I used didn’t have “spice” in it, so the dish was mildly spicy.
That is what the cayenne pepper is for. Just double or triple that up
This is by far my favorite recipe for my instant pot! I have shared it with so many friends and colleagues over the past several months, and it’s definitely become a regular on my family’s dinner rotation. I sauté an onion with the cloves of garlic before browning the chicken, but otherwise, I follow your directions to the letter. Thank you so much for this fabulous recipe!