Instant pot chicken tikka masala. A smart and savvy way to recreate your restaurant favorite at home. This authentic version of tikka masala with vibrant creamy sauce is so delicious you’ll want to make it again and again. The secret is to cook chicken in the sauce and then grill to bring in that beautiful charred look. Serve it with naan or fluffy rice for the best comforting dinner ever.
One of the things that attracted me to instant pot cooking is its ease to use. Obviously, it’s super easy to create your dinner in a matter of minutes with this smart appliance. Another bonus? Whipping up a restaurant style dinner even on weeknights is a breeze with instant pot.
Making a classic dish in an instant pot without compromising on its authentic taste is a bit tricky. To make classic chicken tikka masala, you’ll need to grill the chicken and add to the rich creamy curry. However, in the instant pot version of this recipe, I’m going to cook chicken first in the sauce and then grill them to perfection.
How To Make Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala
We’ll make the authentic chicken tikka masala from the blog, but this time, in an instant pot. This magical appliance cuts down the cooking time dramatically. Let the chicken cook in the sauce and then grill them to get the authentic tikka taste. And towards the end of cooking process, you’ll need to add in the cream and a sprinkle of garam masala for a beautiful depth of flavor.
I like to marinate chicken overnight in a mixture of tomato paste, ginger, garlic, ground cumin, paprika, red chili powder and yogurt. Ideally, you’ll need to marinate this overnight, however, you can add the chicken directly to the curry when you’re time-poor.
Sauté the onions in a little oil until it’s soft and translucent. Add ginger and give this a quick stir fry. Now it’s time to stir fry the ground spices - ground turmeric, ground coriander, paprika and red chili powder. When aromatic, fry the tomato paste. Add water, season with salt, add chicken, place the lid and pressure cook. Again, in this recipe, you’ll not need to cut the chicken into small pieces , you can add whole thighs or breasts and start cooking.
Now the second step of making this instant pot chicken tikka masala. Remove the cooked chicken from the sauce. Place them on a grill. Wait until it gets a beautiful charred look. This will only take about 5 minutes. Cut this chicken into small pieces and add them back into into the instant pot.
The final step - addition of cream, a touch of garam masala and coriander (cilantro) leaves. Give this a stir and let it simmer for about 3 minutes. And done.
Beautifully creamy instant pot chicken tikka masala to make your meal more delicious!
More Instant Pot Recipes:
More Tikka Masala Recipes:
Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala | Video
Ingredients
Marinate chicken:
- 1 kg chicken thighs or breasts I used thighs
- 3 cm fresh ginger
- 6 garlic cloves
- 1 and ½ teaspoons cumin seeds
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder
- 2 tablespoons yogurt
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- Salt to taste
Chicken tikka masala:
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 1 cup chopped onions
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger ginger paste
- ½ teaspoon ground turmeric turmeric powder
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder
- 4 tablespoons tomato paste tomato purée
- 1 cup water
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
- ¾ cup heavy thickened cream or coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons coriander cilantro leaves
- 2 tablespoons oil
- Salt to taste
Instructions
Marinate chicken:
- Place ginger, garlic cloves, cumin seeds, ground coriander, garam masala, paprika, red chili powder, lemon juice and yogurt in a food processor. Process to make smooth paste. Set aside.
- Place chicken in a large bowl. Add marinade. Toss chicken to coat in the marinade.
- Cover and marinate in the refrigerator for at least an hour or overnight if possible.
Instant pot chicken tikka masala:
- Follow manufacturer’s instructions to cook tikka masala in this instant pot.
- Turn on instant pot.
- On sauté mode, add oil. Add onions. Sauté, stirring, 1-2 minutes or until onions are soft and translucent. Add minced ginger. Sauté, stirring, for a minute or until fragrant.
- Add ground turmeric, ground coriander, paprika and red chili powder. Sauté, stirring, for few seconds, or until aromatic. Add tomato paste. Sauté, stirring, for a minute.
- Add water. Stir to combine. Season with salt. Add chicken. Close with lid.
- Change the setting to “pressure cook” mode. Set the timer to 10 minutes. When done, wait until the pressure is released naturally.
- Open the instant pot. Remove chicken from the sauce and arrange them on a baking tray. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil.
- Preheat grill. Grill chicken for about 5-7 minutes. Cut into cubes. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, with instant pot on sauté mode, add garam masala, cream and coriander (cilantro) leaves. Stir to combine. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
- To serve, place the grilled chicken in a bowl. Pour in the sauce.
- Garnish with coriander (cilantro) leaves.
- Serve with rice, naan or roti
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Arturo Delmoni says
Hi! Would you be willing to post how to make this dish the regular old traditional way. I don’t have an Instant Pot and I doubt if I will ever buy one.
Thank you!
Arturo
Rose Mary George says
Here's the link to the traditional version of this recipe : https://nishkitchen.com/authentic-chicken-tikka-masala-recipe/
Tamisyn Grantz says
What type of red chili powder do you recommend
Rose Mary George says
Kashmiri red chili powder