Pressure Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala with Butter Rice & Peas or Turnips/Radish for Low Carbers, made with a rich and delicious creamy tomato sauce, is a British, Indian-ish recipe.
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Pressure Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala with Butter Rice
Pressure Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala with Butter Rice & Peas
Fragrant, spicy, creamy and delicious, is the only way to describe this Pressure Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala with Butter Rice & Peas.
It’s truly a “comfort” food. Years ago, my friend, Rebecca Cambreleng, gave me this delicious “Chicken Tikka Masala” recipe for the Slow Cooker (which I will also post). Fantastically delicious and so easy.
I’ve since converted it to my Pressure Cooker and in just under 30 minutes, you will have a meal with a simmer sauce that tastes like it was cooked all day.
Pressure Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala with Butter Rice & Peas is a British Second Cousin to Indian Butter Chicken Murgh Makhani, sorta kinda. It is less spicy than Butter Chicken with more of a Masala flavor.
Skip the rice and peas and use radish or turnips instead for a keto and low carb meal.
Pressure Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala with Butter Rice & Peas
The list of ingredients is not too long and it is a recipe where you can use your own Homemade Instant Pot Greek Yogurt, so that is a huge plus, right?
In addition, this is one of those recipes where I do something delicious with the leftovers! I will put up that recipe in a few days.
Sprinkle on Cumin, Salt and Coriander
Since this is a Pressure Cooker Recipe, we are not going to want skin or bones.
Remove the skin, bones and fat from the dark meat chicken thighs/legs, in order to make it boneless/skinless. Cut the Chicken into 1.5 inch pieces and place in a Medium Mixing Bowl.
If you buy chicken already boneless and skinless, you’ll just have to cut off the extra fat. Add the Cumin, Salt and Ground Coriander and mix through.
Kosher Salt is much milder than Sea Salt, so if you use Sea Salt instead, use half the amount listed.
Coat the Chicken with Greek Yogurt
Mix in the Yogurt and make sure all pieces are lightly coated.
Allow to marinate in the refrigerator for approximately 30 minutes or overnight.
Prepare the Onions, Garlic, Ginger and Jalapeño
Dice the Onions. Peel and mince the Fresh Garlic and Ginger. Remove the Stem from Jalapeño and pierce it several times with a knife.
Allow Frozen Peas to thaw. Set all vegetables aside.
Homemade Ginger Garlic Paste Ready to Use
Alternatively, you can just use a scoop of my Homemade Ginger Garlic Paste instead of worrying about peeling and mincing Fresh Garlic and Ginger.
Rinse the Basmati/Jasmine Rice
If you want to make this Pressure Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala with Butter Rice & Peas a Pot in Pot One Pot Meal with Rice, here is how. Rinse the Basmati Rice in a strainer basket, until the water runs clear.
Add the Rice, Fresh Water and Butter to the Rice Pan. Set aside.
Homemade Ghee in the Instant Pot Multi-Cooker
If you want to use Ghee instead of Butter in the rice or in the overall recipe, that is totally fine.
For low carb and keto followers, dice up turnips and radishes to make a nice mash.
Heat Cooking Pot and Add Oil/Butter
Select Sauté or Browning on your Pressure Cooker cooking pot and adjust to High.
If your Pressure Cooker does not have a Sauté or Browning button, choose any button or turn on using the dial.
Allow the cooking pot to fully heat. Heating a Stainless Steel pot completely, before adding the fat, will render the pot, non-stick.
After your pot is hot, add in the Oil and Butter or just Ghee. When using Butter at a higher heat, a little bit of Olive Oil, will prevent the Butter from burning.
Sear Chicken in Hot Pressure Cooker
Carefully, add the Yogurt Marinated Chicken, a little at a time. Using your Spatula, turn the chicken pieces to sear all sides of the chicken, until nicely browned.
Do this in batches and remove Chicken to a plate.
Add the Chopped Onions
Sauté the onions until they start to soften, about 2 minutes.
I use the di Oro Living Spatulas, as they will hold up forever. Add in some of my Homemade Ginger Garlic Paste, if using.
Otherwise, add in the Fresh Garlic and Ginger to the Pressure Cooker cooking pot and continue and Sauté the Garlic and Ginger.
Pour in 1/2 cup of Fresh Water (or Low Sodium Chicken Broth) and deglaze the Cooking Pot. Make sure nothing is stuck on the bottom.
Mix in the Crushed Tomatoes
Add in half of the Garam Masala and Raw Sugar and mix through.
We will add in the rest of the Garam Masala after the pressure has been released. In order to get the wonderful flavor from the Garam Masala, it needs to be added in towards the end of cooking.
Pour in the Crushed Tomatoes and mix to combine. This should smell really delicious now.
The food will look a bit soupy.
Because of the thick Crushed Tomatoes, water is needed to help the Pressure Cooker come up to pressure, without scorching. The sauce will thicken, during the simmer stage.
Add the Jalapeño and Trivet
Carefully add in the Seared Chicken and whatever juices are on the plate.
Add the Cinnamon Stick and pierced Jalapeño Pepper to the cooking pot and push them down into the Sauce. If you like a spicier dish, add another Jalapeño Pepper.
Place a Long Legged Trivet into cooking pot.
Place the Pan of Rice on the Trivet
Carefully place the Rice Pan on top of the Trivet.
Add the Rice, Fresh Water and Butter or, add diced turnips and radishes with butter.
ock on the lid and you are ready to cook.
Remove Pan of Rice and Cover
Turn off Pressure Cooker cooking pot and remove Rice Pan and Trivet.
Add the Defrosted Peas and Fluff with Rice. Cover Rice Pan to keep warm.
Stir in the Garam Masala and the Cream
Remove the Jalapeños, if desired. Select Sauté or Browning on the Pressure Cooker and quickly adjust to “Low.” Stir in the rest of the Garam Masala.
Simmer on low for about 10 minutes, or until sauce has reduced and no longer watery.
Pour in the Cream mix through. Continue simmering until the Sauce is the consistency desired. Taste and add more Salt or Cream.
Indian Butter Rice and Peas
Low carbers, ignore this section!
Basmati and Jasmine Rice, both work well for this dish. Taste and adjust with more Butter or Ghee and add Sea Salt, if desired.
If you would like a larger portion of rice, check out my Pressure Cooker Ghee Rice, which cooks right in the Pressure Cooker. Too add some vegetables to your meal, try my Pressure Cooker Seasoned Vegetable Ghee Rice.
The Ghee Rice is not a proper Indian dish, but ooooooh, it is so good.
Pressure Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala with Butter Rice & Peas and Naan
This Pressure Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala with Butter Rice & Peas is a very rich and delicious meal.
I hope you will enjoy the recipe. Don’t forget to serve with some hot Homemade Naan.
It’s actually quite easy to make. For a Northern Indian dish, try my Indian Butter Chicken Murgh Makhani.
Think about some Pressure Cooker Quinoa Kheer for dessert.
Kitchen Equipment and Essentials
- Instant Pot DUO 6 Quart
- J.A. Henckels Classic 7-inch Hollow Edge Santoku Knife
- Amco Advanced Performance 18/10 Stainless Steel Measuring Spoons
- Simply Gourmet (Dry) Stainless Steel Measuring Cups
- Anchor Hocking Glass (Liquid) Measuring Cups
- Rösle Stainless Steel Flat Whisk– a MUST have, probably my most used utensil
- di Oro Living Silicone Spatulas Set
- Alton Brown Salt Box
- Bellemain Porcelain Ramekins
- My FANTASTIC Teak Cutting & Charcuterie Board & Compartments
- Salbree Steamer Basket
- stainless steel flat bottomed insert pans or stainless steel flat bottomed insert pan for Pot in Pot Rice and Desserts
- Stainless Steel Tall Legged Trivet
- 3.5 Quart Stainless Steel Mixing Bowl
- Microplane Artisan Course Grater
- Basmati Rice
- Homemade Ghee recipe
Caring is sharing! If you would like to support This Old Gal, please share this recipe on Social Media, so that I can continue to bring you more wonderful recipes!
Here is the handy printable recipe:
Pressure Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala with Butter Rice & Peas
Print Pin Save RateIngredients
- 2.5 lbs Chicken Thighs boneless/skinless cut into 3 inch pieces
- 4 TBL Butter or Ghee
- 1 TBL Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 large Yellow/Brown Onion diced
- 3/4 cup Fresh Water or chicken broth
- 2 TBL Ginger Garlic Paste (or fresh ginger/garlic)
- 6 cloves Fresh Garlic (or use the Paste)
- 3 inch piece Fresh Ginger Root (or use the Paste)
- 28 oz Crushed Tomatoes (San Marzano)
- 3 TBL Garam Masala
- 1 TBL Raw Sugar (or Pyure Sweetener)
- 1-2 whole Cinnamon Sticks
- 1-2 whole Jalapeño Pepper stem removed/pierced
- 3/4-1 cup Heavy Cream (or more)
Marinade
- 1/4-1/2 cup Homemade Yogurt (thick)
- 1 TBL Kosher Salt (or 2 tsp Sea Salt)
- 1 TBL Ground Coriander
- 1 TBL Ground Cumin
Butter Rice and Peas
- 16 oz Basmati Rice (or Jasimine)
- 2 cups Fresh Water
- 4 TBL Butter
- 1 cup Green Peas
- 1 tsp Sea Salt
Instructions
Pressure Cooker
- Mix together Marinade ingredients and add Chicken. Allow to marinate for 20-30 minutes. Chop the onions and mince the Fresh Garlic and Fresh Ginger. With a sharp knife, pierce the Jalapeños a few times. Set aside.
- Rinse Rice until water runs clear. Place Rice, Salt and Butter into Rice Pan and set aside.
- Press the Sauté/Browning button on your Pressure Cooker and adjust to "High." Allow Pot to fully heat. Add Olive Oil and Butter (or Ghee). Carefully add Chicken to the cooking pot and give it a good Sear on all sides, 2-3 minutes. Remove Chicken to a plate. Add the Onions and Sauté for 2-3 minutes.
- Add Garlic and Ginger and Sear/Sauté for 1 more minute. Add 1/2 cup of Water or Broth and deglaze pot. Make sure nothing is stuck to the bottom of the pot.
- Mix in 1/2 of the Garam Masala and Sugar. Pour in Crushed Tomatoes and mix through. Turn off Pressure Cooker. Add the Chicken, Cinnamon Stick and Jalapeño and push them into the Sauce.
- Place Long Legged Trivet into Pressure Cooker cooking pot and place Rice Pan on Top. Pour the Fresh Water into the Rice Pan. (It is easier to add the Water to the Pan after the Pan is sitting on the Trivet.)
- Lock on Lid and close Pressure Valve. Cook at High Pressure for 4 minutes. When Beep sounds, allow a 10 minute Natural Pressure Release and then turn off the Pressure Cooker.
- Remove Lid, Pan of Rice and Trivet. Add defrosted Peas to Rice Pan and Fluff with Rice. Cover Rice Pan to keep warm.
- Select Sauté/Browning on your Pressure Cooker and adjust to Low. Add the rest of the Garam Masala (1.5 TBL) and mix in. Simmer, uncovered, stirring often, for 10 minutes, or until Sauce has started to reduce and no longer watery. Taste and add more Salt, if desired.
- Add Cream and simmer until hot and bubbly.
Notes
PIN this Pressure Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala with Butter Rice!
Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala with Butter Rice
I love the flavor of this recipe, but every single time we make it, it “finishes” without coming to pressure. Every time, we have to dump it into our extra pot and restart it. It’s scorching just enough to not pressurize. I added at least a cup and a half of water this time and still had to exchange pots.
Hi Chris. It sounds like the pot needs to be deglazed more thoroughly. Please just make sure that nothing is stuck on the bottom of the pot before locking on the lid. Jill
Thanks Jill! This is one of my favorite recipes and I’ve made it for my family many times even though they say they “hate Indian food”. They love this!
Thank you, Natasha. I am so glad your family enjoys this recipe. I think so many people don’t really “get” Indian food and when they finally taste it, they love it. Jill
For the recipe are you:
2 TBL Ginger Garlic Paste (or fresh ginger/garlic) are you using one Tablespoon of fresh minced ginger and one Tablespoon of minced garlic
6 cloves Fresh Garlic (or use the Paste) is this just 6 whole cloves that you take out after the meal is done
3 inch piece Fresh Ginger Root (or use the Paste) I am assuming you peal and cut but take out after cooking?
Danielle, all correct. Have fun cooking. Jill
This is absolutely delicious! Everyone loved this meal. So easy especially with pot in pot rice
Thanks, Liv. I am glad you enjoyed the recipe. Jill
I got the burn message when I made this. Looking back, it seems water/broth was not enough? It ended up being cooked thankfully and the spices and flavor profile were on point!
Wow this recipe came out great! My wife said she wanted to go straight to sleep so she could wake up and eat it again. Mine came out a little darker than your picture, but the flavor was amazing. Thanks so much!
I made this last night and it was delicious! I did have one problem…I did the pot in pot for the rice…two cups of rice, two cups of water, 4 tablespoons of butter. Put it on the tall trivet and put on the lid with holes. Cooked it for 4 minutes with 10 minutes NPR. When I opened the top of the rice, the butter hadn’t even melted! The rice was not cooked at all. I ended up cooking the rice in the IP after taking out the chicken but am wondering what I did wrong. I used the steamer inserts you suggested and the lid with the holes. I’m wondering if I should have used the solid lid?
Hi – Just wanted to say thank you for this! I recently boarded the Instant Pot crazy train and honestly, I’m LOVING IT! This recipe is absolutely delicious and I’ve tried several tikka masalas. I will stick with this one going forward. Hats off. I wanted to share my next day leftovers experiment that kept the comfort level high with this. Hope that’s okay ;p Ready? Tikka. Masala. Pot. Pies…Yep, I went there. Took the leftovers of this amazing meal you’ve given us and combined with basmati rice, frozen carrots, corn, and peas blend (defrosted), and sauteed mushrooms. Transferred to 12 oz. ramekins and topped with puff pastry, egg wash and a light salting….my mouth is watering as I type this.
Thanks again!
Thank you, Travis. I am so glad you enjoy my recipe. Your pot pie sounds delish. I do something similar with leftovers…I have taken whole wheat biscuit dough and rolled it out and then added the leftovers and sealed it into a ball. Then I put it in my Wolfgang Puck Pie Maker, which has huge inserts and bake it like a pie. Jill
I had a religous experience cooking and eating this. No joke, this shit is transcendental!
Thank you, Rb. So glad you enjoyed the recipe. Jill
Hi Jill, this is one of my favorite recipes from your site. I was wondering if I could use chicken breast instead? I have a few in the freezer that ive been wanting to use.
Yes, Carmela. Reduce the cook time. Jill
First, let me say that the recipe turned out amazing. However, I had to finish it in my Kuhn Rikon stovetop pressure cooker. I tried to cook it in the instant pot, and kept getting “BURN” on the display, and sure enough, it did scorch a bit. Not sure what I did wrong. I finished it on the stovetop cooker, and it did fine, although I agitated it throughout the pressure cooking phase. Any ideas? I would love to try this again in the instant pot.
I just made this as well and got a burn notice. I added a bit more stock and stirred it in. This time no burn. I didn’t see anything scorched when I gave it a gentle stir, I hope it works out
Hi Andrew. It is really important to completely deglaze the cooking pot. Jill
Thank you for this amazing recipe. My brother will be visiting (I made him get an InstantPot) and I told him about this recipe. He wants to make it together. When I made it I used the heavy cream in your recipe. He wanted to know if coconut cream could be used instead, or will that change it too drastically?
thanks!
Hi Deborah. The coconut cream will change it drastically. Coconut milk is lighter, but will also change it. That is not to say it will be bad, but it will be different and probably delicious. Jill
Thanks Jill! I always appreciate your recipes and help.
Where could I find the slow cooker version of this recipe please?
This was so yummy! Even my somewhat picky 10 year old loved it! I didn’t change anything and it was all perfect. The flavor was amazing. I can’t wait to make it again! Thank you for sharing!
Thanks, Elizabeth. I am glad you enjoyed my recipe. 🙂 Jill
Yum! I made as-is and the family devoured it. The flavors were better than he Tikka Masala at our local Indian food place and that is saying a lot because their food is amazing.
I’m trying a lightened version tonight by cutting down on the butter skipping the searing step. Also will be replacing the heavy cream with half and half. I hope it still tastes nearly as good as the full-fat version.
This was my first attempt at cooking Indian food and I was so impressed with myself! The dish turned out perfect and the flavor was amazing! My husband actually said this was the best meal I have ever cooked (he’s a big fan of Indian food)! I highly recommend trying this, it’s actually really easy. Note: I also don’t have the rice steamer so I just cooked it on the stove top.
Hi Mae. What lovely comments. How nice that your husband loved the meal. Thanks for sharing with me. Jill
The chicken Tika masala with butter rice is a delicious recipe, but ends some adjustments, I think. First, there is too much chicken to sautée all at once if you want it to brown,so must be done in batches (mine took 3). The 5 tablespoons of fat added all at once caused the first batch of chicken to basically braise and did not leave much fat for sautéing the rest. The tall trivet places the evokana pan with the rice too high for my 6 qt and although top closed, did not come to pressure until I switched to shorter trivet. Lastly, 16 oz of rice is ONE POUND! Two cups in a liquid measure is 16 oz.but rice should be measured using dry measuring cups, so recipe should call for 2 cups of rice, not 16 oz.
This is first TOG recipe I have had a problem with, but completed dish was very good. I will continue to use your website when searching for good IP recipes.
Hey Brooke. For this recipe 16 oz of rice is correct. I am aware that “rice” cups are 3/4 oz, which is why I gave the weight measurement, rather than “rice” cup or cup measurement. Regarding the chicken, if you feel it is too much to brown at once, I suggest only adding a bit of the oil for each batch. I was able to brown all in one batch. For the pot for the rice, I suggest using a shorter one, like I did. 🙂 Glad you enjoyed the meal. Jill
Can the chicken marinate longer than overnight, like 2 days, or will that affect the texture?
Hi Heather~
I would only marinate one day. Jill
Thank you, Jill. That’s what I wound up doing and it was amazing. I was wondering which pan you used for this rice recipe, because the ekovana is too smal. I made your PIP rice recipe with the added butter and then mixed the peas into the rice in a larger bowl. Thank you for all of the great recipes.
Hello!
I purchase my rice in a large bag. Do you have an easy conversion for 16oz to cups?
Thank you!
I Never use presure cooker with chickens…. maybe something to try next time
Wow what a delicious looking recipe! My mouth is watering. Definitely bookmarking to make this soon.
yummy!
Looks great. We don’t have a pressure cooker but is it similar to a slow cooker? I’ve been looking for a curry recipe to introduce my kids to curry and this sounds fab
OMG! I love this recipe! The dish looks mouth watering! I’m going to try this someday. Thank You! 🙂
I love your blog. That chicken must be all sorts of tasty! I haven”t used my pressure cooker in ages.
http://lifestyle360.co.ke
Hi Jill,
I was trying to purchase the long legged trivet shown on the recipe, but when I click on your link I only get the Ekovana steamer insert, not the trivet. Could you let me know or fix the link so I can put in my cart from your website? I love all your recipes! You must test them well, as they all come out as written. It’s such a pleasure. Thanks so much for sharing.
Sydney
Hi Sydney. It has been corrected. Thanks so much!!!! Just so you know, if you click through any of my links to Amazon, you can search for and purchase anything on Amazon. Here is the link. Tall Legged Trivet Jill
Hi I’d love to make this but we can’t get the stackable steamer here in Canada. Any ideas?
Amazon. Jill has a store – check it out – link is the top of the page. I got my steamer and trivet in two weeks and I live in Australia.