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.
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.
- 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.
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.
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.
MORE INSTANT POT 5-INGREDIENT RECIPES
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- 5-Ingredient Instant Pot Recipes (Easy!)
Instant Pot Coconut Chicken Curry (5 Ingredients Only!)
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Category: Main
- Method: Instant Pot
- Cuisine: Asian
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Learn how to make quick and easy Instant Pot coconut chicken curry. This 5-ingredient recipe is perfect for speedy dinners, when on the budget, while travelling with your Instant Pot or making a last-minute meal for friends or family. Serve over white or brown rice, cauliflower rice, or veggies. Please note, we don’t count pantry staples like salt, sugar or oil as key ingredients.
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 lb / 900 g chicken breasts, diced into large cubes
4 teaspoons mild curry powder (like this)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar (optional)
2/3 cup water (you could also use chicken stock)
1 cup coconut cream (or thickened part of coconut milk)
For extra thickening: 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
Garnish: fresh cilantro
Sides: rice, broccoli
Instructions
- Prep. Cut chicken into 1 to 2-inch pieces. Finely dice garlic and ginger.
- Sauté. Select the Sauté function and add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil or coconut oil to the Instant Pot. Once hot, add the diced ginger and garlic and stir for 1 minute, until slightly golden and fragrant. Add the chicken and stir through for about 30 seconds. Now add salt, curry powder and sugar (if using) and stir. Cancel Sauté.
- Add 2/3 cup of water or chicken stock, stir through and pop the lid on top (always check the sealing ring on the inside is fitted properly!). The chicken will give out quite a bit of juice, hence we’re only using 2/3 of a cup.
- Set & cook. Secure and lock the lid; make sure the pressure handle is pointing to Sealing. Select Manual/Pressure Cook and adjust the timer to 15 minutes on HIGH pressure. After a few seconds, the ON sign will come on, indicating the pressure is building (you might also hear 3 beeps on some models); pressurizing will take about 5-7 minutes, and then the 15-minute timer will begin. Once the timer is done, allow the pressure to release naturally.
- Open the pot and stir. The curry broth might seem a little thin at this stage. Adding coconut cream will thicken the broth (and add that final essential curry flavor) but you can also do a couple of things to thicken the sauce further. Option 1: You can scoop out half a cup of broth to reduce the liquid (before adding coconut cream). 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.
- Finish by stirring in the coconut cream. Taste for seasoning and add a little more salt or sugar to balance out the flavors. Top with fresh cilantro if using.
Notes
- 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. Voila!
- If you don’t have fresh garlic or ginger, replace them with 2 teaspoons of powder each. Add at the same time as the curry powder and skip the first Saute step.
- For Paleo/Whole30 version, omit the sugar (you can do the same for a Keto version) and serve with cauliflower rice.
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: Curry, Chicken, Coconut, Instant Pot, Main, Asian, Gluten-Free, Paleo, Whole30, Keto
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)
Most of my chicken recipes call for much lass cooking time. Is 15 minutes correct?
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.