• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Instant Pot Eats
  • Home
  • Recipes
    • 100 Best Instant Pot Recipes
    • Chicken
    • Beef
    • Pork
    • Instant Pot Fish & Seafood Recipes
    • Soups
    • Stews & Braises
    • Rice
    • Pasta
    • Side Dishes
    • Desserts
    • Roundups
    • Duo Crisp + Air Fryer
    • 5-Ingredients
  • Instant Pot Basics
    • Instant Pot For Beginners Hub
    • What Is Instant Pot?
    • How To Use The Instant Pot
    • The First 10 Meals
    • Instant Pot Accessories
    • Instant Pot Water Test
    • Instant Pot Cookbooks
    • Instant Pot 101 Series
  • By Diet
    • Vegetarian
    • Vegan
    • Gluten-Free
    • Paleo
    • Keto
  • About
    • About Us
    • Contact
    • Our Privacy Policy
    • Web Stories
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Home
  • Recipes
  • Instant Pot Basics
  • By Diet
  • About Us
×
Home » Instant Pot Recipes » Chicken

Instant Pot Coconut Chicken Curry (Only 5 Ingredients!)

Published: Sep 27, 2021 · Modified: Jan 8, 2024 by Irena Macri · This post may contain affiliate links · 6 Comments

872 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Email
Jump to Recipe

Learn how to make quick and easy Instant Pot coconut chicken curry. This 5-ingredient chicken recipe is perfect for speedy dinners, if you are on the budget or while travelling with your Instant Pot. It's mild and kid-friendly, perfect served over rice or cauliflower rice and a side of vegetables. Suitable for gluten-free, low-carb, keto, Paleo and Whole30 diets. 


Coconut Chicken Curry (Instant Pot Recipe, 5 Ingredients Only)

Would like a curry in a hurry? This coconut chicken curry is a must-try dish if you’re looking for quick and easy Instant Pot recipes. We will show you how to make this recipe with just 5 key ingredients for a speedy, budget-friendly dinner you can serve up to your family (kids including) or friends. It's great for making ahead and freezing as well. Please note, we don't count pantry staples like salt, sugar or oil as key ingredients.

Jump to:
  • Why You'll Love This Coconut Chicken Curry
  • 5 Ingredients To Make Easy Chicken Curry
  • How To Make Coconut Chicken Curry In The Instant Pot
  • Instant Pot Coconut Chicken Curry (Only 5 Ingredients!)

Why You'll Love This Coconut Chicken Curry

Instant Pot Coconut Chicken Curry - Quick And Easy

This delicious chicken curry is great for when you need something quick and easy with just a handful of ingredients.

  • This is a great dish when you’re travelling with your Instant Pot and want to make a hearty dinner without having to buy too many ingredients.
  • It’s tasty and full of flavor but not too spicy, kind of like a mellow curry so it's great for the whole family, kids and friends. 
  • Using just 5 ingredients (we don't count salt/sugar) makes this dinner recipe quite affordable. You can swap out the chicken for pork or beef and add extra vegetables at the end (see notes for this step). Simple white or brown rice is all you need as a side dish.
  • This is a good recipe to make as a large batch to enjoy as leftovers or to freeze for another meal.  
  • This recipe is suitable for those following a gluten-free diet, low-carb or keto, paleo or Whole30 (omit sugar and serve with cauliflower rice instead)

5 Ingredients To Make Easy Chicken Curry

This is a super simple curry recipe that uses accessible ingredients and isn't complicated with too many steps. Let's go through the key ingredients you'll need to make this coconut chicken curry in the Instant Pot.  Please note, we don't count pantry staples like salt, sugar or oil as key ingredients.

Coconut chicken curry ingredients
  • Chicken – you can use breasts or skinless thighs; our recipe used 3 medium to large breasts cut up into large cubes.
  • Mild curry spice mix – almost every grocery store should have a mild curry spice blend; it's a great introductory curry seasoning that can also be used to flavor scrambled eggs, soups and stew, roasted vegetables, fried rice or as a meat or fish rub. You will need about 4 teaspoons for this recipe.
  • Aromatics – garlic and ginger are the standard Asian aromatics that you can find in many curries so we decided to use those as the base for the curry. If don't have fresh garlic or fresh ginger, you can use powders. If you do, simply skip the first saute step and add the garlic and ginger powders when you add the curry powder (see notes on amounts in the recipe card below).
  • Coconut cream - if you can't find coconut cream, get a regular can of full-fat coconut milk. Pop it in the fridge for an hour then open and scoop out the thickened part, which is the separated cream. If you use thinner coconut milk, the curry won't be as thick or rich in flavor.

How To Make Coconut Chicken Curry In The Instant Pot

You will find the full recipe, ingredients and nutrition info just below. Here are some step-by-step pictures to guide you along.  

  • Step 1. Cut chicken into 1 to 2-inch pieces and finely chop the ginger and garlic. 
  • Step 2. Saute garlic and ginger in a little oil on Saute setting for a minute, then add the chicken and stir for 30 seconds.
  • Step 3. Add salt, sugar and curry powder and stir. Cancel the Saute setting. 
How to make coconut chicken curry in the Instant Pot step 1
  • Step 4. Add about a cup of water (we added ⅔ cup as we knew that chicken would release quite a bit of juice while cooking). STir through.
  • Step 5. Cook on High pressure for 15 minutes, with natural pressure release. 
  • Step 6. Open the lid and stir the curry. Stir in the coconut cream and taste for salt and sweetness. You can add a little more sugar or salt to balance the flavors.  Please see the full recipe below on how to thicken the curry sauce if it seems a little thin. 
How to cook Instant Pot chicken curry steps 2

Easy chicken curry with coconut cream in the Instant Pot


More Instant Pot 5-Ingredient Recipes

  • Easy Instant Pot Chicken Tacos (Only 5-Ingredients!)
  • Instant Pot Pumpkin Pasta Bake (Only 5-Ingredients!)
  • Instant Pot Creamy Sausage Pasta (Only 5-Ingredients!)
  • 5-Ingredient Instant Pot Recipes (Easy!)
Instant pot chicken curry

Rate This Recipe

3.34 from 6 votes

Instant Pot Coconut Chicken Curry (Only 5 Ingredients!)

Healthy and delicious Instant Pot coconut chicken curry made with only 5 key ingredients. This pressure cooker chicken recipe is great for a quick and easy dinner, while travelling with the Instant Pot, if you're on a budget. It's mild so is kid-friendly and great for the whole family.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time10 minutes mins
Cook Time25 minutes mins
Total Time35 minutes mins
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 346kcal

Ingredients

  • 1.5 tablespoons olive oil or coconut oil
  • 4 cloves garlic chopped finely (about 2 tbsp)
  • 2 tablespoons chopped ginger thumb-size knob
  • 2 lbs. chicken breasts 900 g, diced into large cubes
  • 4 teaspoons mild curry powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon sugar optional
  • ⅔ cup water or chicken stock
  • 1 cup coconut cream thickened part of coconut milk
  • For extra thickening: 2 teaspoons flour or gluten-free flour/corn flour
  • Garnish: fresh cilantro
  • Sides: rice and broccoli

Instructions

  • Prep. Cut chicken into 1 to 2-inch pieces and finely chop the ginger and garlic. 
  • Saute. Saute garlic and ginger in a little oil on Saute setting for a minute, then add the chicken and stir for 30 seconds. Add salt, sugar and curry powder and stir. Cancel the Saute setting. 
  • Add about a cup of water (we added ⅔ cup as we knew that chicken would release quite a bit of juice while cooking). Stir through.
  • Pressure cook. Set to Pressure Cook on High pressure for 15 minutes, with natural pressure release. 
  • Finish the curry. Open the lid and stir the curry. Stir in the coconut cream and taste for salt and sweetness. You can add a little more sugar or salt to balance the flavors.

How to thicken the curry sauce if it seems a little thin:

  • Option 1: You can scoop out half a cup of broth to reduce the liquid.
  • Option 2: You can thicken the broth with a little flour. If you want to have more sauce, do the flour trick. Combine 2 teaspoons of all-purpose flour with 4 tablespoons of water or broth from the pot in a separate bowl and whisk until smooth. Stir this slurry mixture into the hot curry and see the liquid magically thicken.

Nutrition

Calories: 346kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 34g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 97mg | Sodium: 567mg | Potassium: 728mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 0.4g | Vitamin A: 59IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 23mg | Iron: 2mg
CourseMain
CuisineAsian
KeywordChicken, Coconut, Curry, Instant Pot
Made this recipe?Mention @instantpoteats or tag #instantpoteats!

More Instant Pot Chicken Recipes

  • Instant Pot Japanese Curry
  • Instant Pot Thai Chicken Curry
  • Chipotle Chicken Enchiladas (with Video)
  • Orange Chicken (Step-By-Step Recipe)
  • Chicken Breasts & Gravy (Step-By-Step)

More Chicken

  • sticky pulled pork with potato, green peas and sweet corns
    Do Instapots Make Meat Tender? (Plus 5 Succulent Recipes)
  • air fryer boneless chicken thighs
    Air Fryer Boneless Chicken Thighs
  • Doritos Chicken Casserole
    Doritos Chicken Casserole
  • Jerk chicken pasta recipe (rasta pasta) feature
    Jerk Chicken Pasta
872 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Email

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Summer

    July 1, 2024 at 10:26 pm

    The recipe was easy but was definitely soupy. I didn't have time to thicken it but it definitely needs it.

    Reply
  2. Alyssa

    June 3, 2024 at 12:12 am

    Delicious and so easy! Made this for the whole family and everyone loved it, including the kids who are picky eaters! Followed the recipe exactly as is.

    Reply
  3. Common Sense

    February 22, 2023 at 6:07 pm

    Why put 5 ingredients in the title of a 12 ingredient recipe?

    Reply
    • Instant Pot Eats

      March 6, 2023 at 4:47 am

      In our 5-ingredient recipe series, we talk about 5 key ingredients. Things like salt, sugar, oil are not counted as they are things that most people already have on hand. The 5 ingredients also don't include side dishes or extras.

      Reply
  4. Gertie

    September 28, 2021 at 12:29 pm

    Most of my chicken recipes call for much lass cooking time. Is 15 minutes correct?

    Reply
    • Instant Pot Eats

      September 29, 2021 at 3:45 am

      Hey Gertie, this is correct. Look, yes, in theory, you can cook diced chicken breast much faster in the Instant Pot. Oftentimes, even 5 minutes with NPR might be enough. However, sometimes, chicken breast specifically can come out a little bit tough. You either have to cook it just enough or overcook it (like slow cooking for example). In our case, 15 minutes on HIGH results in tender meat every time. You can absolutely try it at 5 or 10 minutes instead. It's not going to undercooked, it might just be a little bit tough if it's in that middle ground.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

About Us

We are a team of food enthusiasts, chefs and cookbook authors. On this blog we share a variety of Instant Pot recipes catered to different diets, budgets and needs, as well as roundups of our favourite dishes and ideas from around the web. You can find our Instant Pot 101 series here, which are useful for anyone mastering their new pressure cooker.


Popular Articles

  • 33 Instant Pot Chicken Breast Recipes
  • display instant pot
    Understanding Instant Pot Settings And Instructions
  • How to use the Instant Pot for beginners
    How To Use The Instant Pot For Beginners
  • Instant Pot Chicken Souvlaki Rice
    Instant Pot Chicken Souvlaki Rice

Our Recipe E-Book

Fan Favorites Recipes eBook

GET OUR FREE 25-RECIPE EBOOK

Newest Articles

  • Wine Reduction with Sea Buckthorn and Prunes
    Seungje Han’s Wine Reduction with Sea Buckthorn and Prunes
  • Side Dishes For Fried Fish
    17 Side Dishes For Fried Fish
  • 6 featured images from 27 Best Side Dishes for Pork Chops
    27 Best Side Dishes for Pork Chops
  • Side Dishes for Chili
    19 Side Dishes for Chili

Footer

  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy

2024 © INSTANT POT EATS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.


Rate This Recipe

Your vote:




A rating is required
A name is required
An email is required