Welcome to my easy instant pot butter chicken recipe. Delicious and super tasty, restaurant-quality food served and made at home.
I looked at other recipes for butter chicken (and believe me there are a lot!), but they were all really complicated and just not what I wanted. For over 2 years I have been tweaking and perfecting this recipe until it's reached for me, absolute perfection.
How do you make instant pot butter chicken?
It's really simple to make. Just add the butter to the pot and set to saute. When it's hot, add the onion and fry until softened. Now add the garlic, ginger and chili. All of the spices are added next and when mixed in add the chicken (I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs as I think they are tastier, but breast will also work well). Add the creamy coconut milk, tinned tomatoes, tomato puree and stock (I've tried without the stock, but unfortunately got the dreaded burn notice). Stir together and put the lid on and seal. Set on high pressure for 15 minutes and when the time is up, leave
under pressure for another 15 minutes before doing a quick release. You can serve it now if you want, but I prefer to thicken the sauce using cornflour.
Tips for this instant pot butter chicken recipe:
- Leftover butter chicken will keep for 4-5 days in the refrigerator and will freeze well for up to 6 months. I usually reheat mine in the microwave and this works really well.
- For this recipe I used the 8l (8qt) instant pot, but I have also made it successfully with the same timings in the 6l (6qt). It should also work in the 3l (3qt), although it may be necessary to half the ingredient quantities.
- Butter chicken is perfect to make ahead and reheat when you need it (it will almost certainly taste even better as the flavours will develop and intensify).
- my butter chicken is fairly mild and was definitely child friendly, however you could add extra chili or some cayenne pepper if you prefer it hotter. Alternatively, if you would like it even milder, remove the seeds and pith from the whole chili as this is where most of the heat is found.
Commonly asked questions:
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What does instant pot butter chicken taste like?
As the name suggests, butter chicken is a delicious combination of butter with chicken in a spiced tomato and creamy sauce. My recipe is not too spicy but just has a perfect, buttery curry flavour. It first originated on the Indian subcontinent just after world war 2 and has become a world wide classic ever since.
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What do you serve with instant pot butter chicken?
I served mine with rice and Indian snacks but it would also be nice served with naan bread and chapatis
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Is easy instant pot butter chicken keto-friendly?
Yes, butter chicken is keto, however the serving suggestions of rice, naan bread and chapatis are not. To remedy this I would suggest serving with cauliflower rice instead or just on its own with lots of leafy green vegetables.
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Is instant pot butter chicken healthy?
Although butter chicken does contain a lot of butter and hence saturated fat, once shared out between the number of servings, the actual amount of butter is much less. The other ingredients are considered healthy and so I would say yes, butter chicken is a healthy recipe.
Easy instant pot butter chicken
Ingredients
- 125 g Butter I used salted.
- 1 large Onion (roughly chopped)
- 10 Cloves Garlic (roughly chopped)
- 3 tsb Fresh ginger (roughly chopped) Powdered would work - just use 1 tsp.
- 1 Whole Chili (roughly chopped) Red or green
- 1 tbsp Garam masala
- 2 tsp Ground coriander
- 2 tsb Ground cumin
- 2 tsp Turmeric
- 2 tsp Smoked paprika
- 1 tsb Chilli powder I used mild, but hot or even cayenne pepper would work.
- To taste Salt
- 908 g Chicken breast or thigh Boneless and cut into small pieces.
- 400 ml Coconut milk (tinned)
- 400 ml Tinned tomatoes
- 3 tbsp Tomato puree
- 200 ml Chicken stock
- 2 tbsp Cornflour
- 1 Bunch Coriander (to garnish)
Instructions
- Add the butter to the instant pot and set on saute. When its melted add the onion and cook until softened (around 3 minutes).
- Add the garlic, ginger and chili. Stir together.
- Now add the garam masala, ground coriander, ground cumin, turmeric, smoked paprika, chilli powder and salt (smells amazing!).
- Add the diced chicken. Stir well to combine (no need to brown).
- Add the tinned coconut milk, tomatoes, tomato puree and chicken stock. Stir thoroughly before putting the lid on the instant pot and setting on manual, high pressure for 15 minutes. Leave under pressure for a further 10 minutes and then do a quick release and remove the lid.
- Set the instant pot to saute. Add the cornflour to a jug and remove around 5 tablespoons of the liquid from the instant pot. Mix well and add back to the instant pot. Stir well whilst the sauce thickens (around 2 minutes).
- Serve and garnish with the coriander.
Video
Nutrition
There you have it, my delicious easy instant pot butter chicken. Just as good as from the restaurant and much healthier. The recipe served 6 and there was a large portion left over which made a delicious lunch for me the next day.
I served with boiled rice and indian snacks, but you could serve with naan bread or even cauliflower rice (this would make the recipe keto friendly).
For some interesting information about butter chicken, please click this link
If you have enjoyed my recipe for instant pot butter chicken, please look at some of my other great curry recipes:
- Instant pot lamb rogan josh
- Instant pot chicken tikka masala
- Instant pot keema
- Instant pot chicken biryani
- Instant pot chicken korma
If you have any comments, questions or suggestions, please leave them in the box below and I would be delighted to help.
Hi Andy. I made this for my family yesterday and it was perfect. I've tried butter chicken before from other recipe's, but I got the dreaded burn notice. There are enough left over for my lunch today as well. Thanks again for the recipe and I will be looking at some of your others too.
Your welcome Cynthia. I'm really glad you liked it.