Instant Pot Coconut Chicken Curry (Only 5 Ingredients!)

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. 


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.

 

Instant Pot Coconut Chicken Curry - Quick And Easy

WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS COCONUT CHICKEN CURRY

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 INSTANT POT COCONUT CHICKEN CURRY

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

How to make coconut chicken curry in the Instant Pot step 1

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 cook Instant Pot chicken curry steps 2

Step 4. Add about a cup of water (we added 2/3 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. 


Easy chicken curry with coconut cream in the Instant Pot

 

MORE INSTANT POT 5-INGREDIENT RECIPES

MORE INSTANT POT CHICKEN RECIPES

Print
clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon
Instant pot chicken curry

Instant Pot Coconut Chicken Curry (Only 5 Ingredients!)

  • Author: Instant Pot Eats
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 25 minutes
  • Total Time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 4 1x
  • Category: Main
  • Method: Instant Pot
  • Cuisine: Asian
  • Diet: Gluten Free

Description

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.


Ingredients

Scale

1.5 tablespoons olive oil or coconut oil

4 cloves garlic, chopped finely (about 2 tbsp)

2 tablespoons chopped ginger (thumb-size knob)

2 lb / 900 g chicken breasts, diced into large cubes

4 teaspoons mild curry powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon sugar (optional)

2/3 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, 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 2/3 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

  • Serving Size: 5-6 oz chicken with sauce
  • Calories: 301
  • Sugar: 0.9 g
  • Sodium: 467.6 mg
  • Fat: 7.6 g
  • Saturated Fat: 1.4 g
  • Carbohydrates: 2.1 g
  • Fiber: 0.8 g
  • Protein: 34.6 g
  • Cholesterol: 109.5 mg

Keywords: Instant Pot, Chicken, Curry, Coconut

Instant Pot Recipes
By Instant Pot Eats

About us: We are a team of Instant Pot enthusiasts, who love good food and cooking. Our blog is dedicated to delicious Instant Pot recipes you can make using your trusted pressure cooker.
PS. This post may contain Amazon affiliate links, which means we receive a small commission for purchases made through these links. 

More about us here »

COMMENT OR RATE THIS RECIPE

Made the recipe? Leave a rating as it helps other readers to discover this dish. You don’t need to comment to leave a rating, unless it’s 3 stars or below.

Leave a Reply

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

Recipe rating 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

Comments

4 Comments
    1. 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.

    1. 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.

See all comments »

You Might Also Like