Sanaa-Inspired Instant Pot Butter Chicken!

I got the Instant Pot for Christmas, after having broken the previous electric pressure cooker I’d been given before I got to use it fully.

I LOVE this thing. I think I’ve used it almost every day since we got home from Christmas!

I also really, REALLY wanted to try and recreate the amazing butter chicken I had over the summer at Sanaa. Seriously, if you’ve never been there and you’re headed to WDW, you really must try it. Its just. So. Good!

So I made Naan bread in the morning (I’ll post that recipe a bit later) with tamarind chutney from the recipe Sanaa was kind enough to share. Then in the afternoon I looked at the recipe for butter chicken… and realized I didn’t have quite all the ingredients it called for.

Normally this isn’t a big deal. Go out, get the missing thing, come back and cook. However, I live in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia, and we just got about 10″ of snow. For us, this is tantamount to having like 2 feet. Things were icy and gross, and the temperature outside was in the single digits. I wasn’t going anywhere outdoors unless I had to.

So I improvised. And it actually turned out pretty good! Its not Disney level of awesome – it never is outside of the world – but it was really good and a totally acceptable substitute. I may make some changes next time, but I really enjoyed this. Considering the husband has been eating the leftovers without complaint, I think he liked it too.

I turned my instant pot onto saute, and sauteed a large diced onion, a teaspoon of minced ginger, and three cloves of garlic, also minced, in about 3 tablespoons of ghee. You could also use butter. I just happened to have the ghee handy.

Then I added a can of tomato paste and stirred that in, as well as about a half teaspoon of turmeric, and 2 teaspoons of garam masala. I added the tomato paste and then cooked it for another minute, before dumping in the chicken breasts I’d cut into chunks.

I added an entire bottle of tikka masala I’d bought especially for making the butter chicken a couple months ago, and then filled the jar with water and mixed that in.

Seal up your instant pot and set to 8 minutes.

Once it says its finished, I waited about 10-15 minutes to let it vent naturally. You can open the top and turn on saute again to thicken the sauce more, but I really enjoy things a little saucy. I added a cup of heavy cream, and I think I’d add about a half a cup of Greek yogurt. I added the yogurt to my bowl as a topping, but it made it so much creamier and silkier, I think I’d add it straight into the sauce next time.

I served it with white rice, and it made a really delicious meal.

Print

Instant Pot Butter Chicken

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

20 mins

Total Time

30 mins

 

This is a great dish for a rainy day!

Course: Main Course, Main Dish

Cuisine: Indian

Servings: 4 people

Author: cookwcharacter

Ingredients

• 2-3 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1" chunks
• 4 tbsp ghee or butter
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 tsp ginger, grated
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tsp garam masala
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 12 oz jar tikka masala
• 1 can tomato paste
• 12 oz water
• 1 c heavy cream
• 1/2 c greek yogurt

Instructions

1. Turn the instant pot to the saute setting. Add your ghee or butter and the onions, garlic, and ginger and saute for 2 minutes, until they start to soften. 

2. Add the garam masala, turmeric, and salt. Stir in and then add the tomato paste.

3. Add the chicken, the jar of tikka masala, sugar, and water. Stir in until all is combined, then secure the lid, and set the instant pot to 11 minutes.

4. When the instant pot says its done, allow the pressure to release naturally for about 10 minutes (or you can release if you're in a hurry). 

5. Remove the lid after the pressure has released, and stir in your heavy cream. You can also stir in the Greek yogurt, or you can wait and add it to taste individually. Serve with rice and enjoy!