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 was DELICIOUS! I marinated for 24 hrs in the fridge, and did the noted pressure cooker time, after simmered for several hours. Having it reheated the next day was even better. I also added chicken thighs for additional flavor.
This recipe is so delicious! We make it almost weekly in our house, but almost every time the instant pot stalls because it “burns”. We’ve taken to clearing out the chicken after sauté mode and cleaning the inner pot, but even that doesn’t always work. Anyone have trouble with burning who can save us the time of triple cleaning the inner pot? Any tips or tricks?
Hey Ashley, there are other comments further down in this thread that discuss burn errors and I’ve added my thoughts there. Take a look at them and see if any are helpful. I believe this happens with some newer Instant Pots, but I’ve tested with different ones and have been unable to replicate the issue.
I’m new to the IP world. I have a bigger family, so I will double (or maybe even triple) this recipe. In step 3, when I “select manual mode to cook for 10 mins at high pressure,” should I increase this time if I’ve doubled or tripled the recipe?
Hi Anne, keep the pressure cooking time (10 minutes) the same, even though you’re doubling or tripling the ingredients.
Absolutely delicious. Made as written. Garnished with limes, cilantro and grilled naan brushed with olive oil. Thank you so much for the recipe!
This recipe is delicious!! I mean I was surprised that it turned out so good. Thank you so much for sharing this. If anyone wants to try, I highly recommend this recipe.
This recipe is awesome. Who knew Indian food could be so easy to make and yet taste so good ? I love to eat this using my homemade yogurt and homemade naan.
Hi! You probably won’t see this in time, but I’ll try asking anyway… when you add the chicken to the IP do you add ALL the marinade with it or just the chicken (with marinade ON it)?
Just the chicken with the marinade on it. It shouldn’t make a huge difference either way.
Absolutely delicious! I’m a big fan of cooking Indian recipes and this one is a true keeper!
This was amazing! Everyone in my family loved it, my 16 year old got up in the middle of the night to eat more.
Hello we love this recipe at my house but I never can get it to thicken up :/
Try boiling it for a longer period of time until it’s noticeably thicker, stirring frequently.
I absolutely love this recipe- so much that it’s not enough! Do you have any tips for doubling the recipe in the instant pot?
Hi Blair! You should be able to double the ingredients, keeping the pressure cooking time the same.
This recipe is SO GOOD. I make it all the time, I love it. I’d like to make it for some family who is visiting soon, but one of them is a vegetarian. Would you know if I need to adjust anything substantially if I subbed the chicken for paneer or tofu?
Take a look at this recipe (https://www.savorytooth.com/cauliflower-curry/) which is a vegetarian version made with cauliflower.