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    Home » Recipes » Pressure cooker

    Instant Pot Massaman Chicken Curry

    Published: Jan 21, 2020 by Mike Vrobel · This post may contain affiliate links · 10 Comments

    Jump to Recipe
    A yellow bowl of massaman chicken curry with a serving of rice, on a gray table with basil, cilantro, and an Instant Pot visible in the background
    A yellow bowl of massaman chicken curry with a serving of rice, on a gray table with basil, cilantro, and an Instant Pot visible in the background
    Instant Pot Massaman Chicken Curry

    Instant Pot Massaman Chicken Curry. A quick weeknight curry, using store-bought curry paste, from my pressure cooker.

    My son came back from a Toronto vacation a Massaman Curry addict. It was a fluke; he wanted Korean BBQ, but the line was too long, so he tried the Thai place around the corner. Ever since, he’s been nagging me to make him Massaman curry. Of course, I’ve made it for him before, but he claims he doesn’t remember that.

    Why am I making this traditionally beef curry with chicken? Our local Thai restaurants let you choose your protein, and he picks chicken more often than not. So, here’s a remake of my beef version of Massaman curry, this time with chicken.

    My trick to Thai cooking is store-bought curry paste. Maesri brand is my favorite, because the can is the right size for my pot of curry. I also like the taste of Mae Ploy brand, sold in larger tubs, but I don’t make curry often enough, so I wind up throwing away most of the tub. And that bothers me.

    My pressure cooker chicken trick is to use chicken thighs. Thighs can handle the pressure, unlike that delicate flower, chicken breast, which will overcook if you look at it funny. Join us on the Dark Side of the Chicken!

    Recipe: Instant Pot Massaman Chicken Curry

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    A yellow bowl of massaman chicken curry with a serving of rice, on a gray table with basil, cilantro, and an Instant Pot visible in the background

    Instant Pot Massaman Chicken Curry


    ★★★★★

    5 from 4 reviews

    • Author: Mike Vrobel
    • Total Time: 35 minutes
    • Yield: 3 quarts of curry 1x
    Print Recipe
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    Description

    Instant Pot Massaman Chicken Curry. A quick weeknight curry, using store-bought curry paste, from my pressure cooker.


    Ingredients

    Scale
    • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
    • 1 medium onion, peeled and sliced thin
    • 1 medium red bell pepper, trimmed, seeded, and cut into thin strips
    • 3 cloves garlic, crushed
    • ½ inch piece of ginger, peeled and crushed
    • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
    • Cream from the top of a 13.5-ounce can of coconut milk
    • ½ cup massaman curry paste (a whole 4 oz can)
    • 2 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch cubes
    • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
    • 1½ pounds baby potatoes
    • The liquid from a 13.5-ounce can coconut milk
    • 1 tablespoon fish sauce
    • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
    • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
    • Juice of 1 lime

    Garnish and Sides

    • Minced cilantro
    • Minced basil (preferably Thai basil)
    • Lime wedges
    • Crushed peanuts
    • Jasmine rice

    Instructions

    1. Sauté the aromatics: Heat the vegetable oil over medium-high heat in the pressure cooker pot until shimmering. (Use Sauté mode adjusted to high in an Instant Pot electric pressure cooker.) Stir in the onion, red pepper, garlic, and ginger, sprinkle with ½ teaspoon of salt, and sauté until the onion starts to soften, about 3 minutes.
    2. Fry the curry paste: Scoop the solid cream from the top of the can of coconut milk and add it to the pot. (Stop when you hit the thin coconut liquid, and save it for later in the recipe.) Stir in the curry paste and cook, stirring often, until the curry paste darkens and the fat starts to separate, about 5 minutes.
    3. Pressure cook the curry for 10 minutes, with a quick pressure release: Sprinkle the cubed chicken with the fine sea salt. Stir the chicken into the pot, coating it with curry paste. Stir in the potatoes, and then the rest of the can of coconut milk. Add the fish sauce, soy sauce, and brown sugar. Lock the lid and pressure cook on high pressure for 10 minutes in an electric PC or stovetop PC. Quick release the pressure in the pot.
    4. Finish the curry: When the pressure valve drops, remove the lid from the pressure cooker, tilting it away from you - the steam is scalding hot. Stir in the lime juice. Ladle the curry into bowls, sprinkle with minced cilantro, basil, and crushed peanuts, and serve with Jasmine rice.

    Equipment

    6-Quart Pressure Cooker

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    Flat edged wooden spoon

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    Notes

    • OK, OK, if you insist on using boneless skinless chicken breasts, go ahead. Cut them into 1-inch cubes and use them in the recipe; It doesn't change the cooking time.

    Tools

    • 6 quart or larger pressure cooker (I love my Instant Pot 6-Quart Pressure Cooker)
    • Flat edged wooden spoon
    • Prep Time: 10 minutes
    • Cook Time: 25 minutes
    • Category: Weeknight Dinner
    • Method: Pressure Cooker
    • Cuisine: Thai

    Keywords: Instant Pot Massaman Chicken Curry, Pressure Cooker Massaman Chicken Curry

    Did you make this recipe?

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    What do you think?

    Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.

    Related Posts

    Pressure Cooker Thai Green Chicken Curry
    Instant Pot Short Ribs with Coconut Milk and Thai Curry
    Pressure Cooker Thai Panang Beef Curry
    My other Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Recipes

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    More Pressure cooker

    • Instant Pot Mexican Black Beans (no soaking needed!)
    • Instant Pot Thai Panang Curry (With Beef)
    • Instant Pot Pork Adobo Recipe (Filipino Style)
    • Instant Pot Chicken Legs and Rice (Arroz con Pollo)

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Kim says

      April 26, 2021 at 8:55 am

      Delicious! Everything was cooked perfectly, and there was plenty of leftovers for another midweek meal. I ended up adding about 1/4 of water due to a burn signal, but I regularly receive that warning whenever I cook with coconut milk. Thank you for sharing your awesome recipes!!!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        April 26, 2021 at 9:23 pm

        You're welcome!

        Reply
    2. Diana from Arlington, VA says

      January 11, 2021 at 6:45 pm

      Thanks, Dave, another great recipe! I used one small potato, sliced mushrooms and carrots. (Next time, I'm going to try turnip and maybe yam.) Very good! I also used a pot-in-pot method to cook rice at the same time. We appreciate you!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        January 13, 2021 at 8:57 am

        Thanks!

        ★★★★★

        Reply
    3. Rita says

      September 10, 2020 at 6:09 pm

      Mike, a challenge. I have one vegetarian and 4 non-vegetarians in the family.

      I am thinking of making the full 3-quart recipe through Step 1 to get the base sauce recipe, and then setting aside enough of the sauce (say 1/4 of the base) to make a vegetarian version with tofu or with vegetables or something else that would fill out the dish to make it acceptable for a vegetarian.

      How to handle the tofu if I use that? Press it, fry it, freeze it first?.....I wouldn't want it to fall apart in the dish. Maybe an extra vegetable or two would be more forgiving?

      Your recipes are so good that I don't want to pass this one up!

      Thank you,
      Rita
      I wouldn't mind making the base for the recipe and setting aside some of the sauce to

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        September 11, 2020 at 2:16 pm

        I would cook it as written, without the chicken. While the IP is running, pan-sear the chicken and tofu separately on the stovetop, and serve them on the side to be mixed in at the table. (I don’t know enough about Tofu to recommend pressing or freezing - but my gut tells me it will fall apart under pressure.)

        Reply
    4. Gary Dahl says

      April 26, 2020 at 9:56 pm

      We made this last night, but noticed along the way that unlike your other curry recipes (including the beef version of this one), no chicken stock is on the list. I went ahead and added some (8 oz) just to be on the safe side, and it came out great. Perhaps the chicken gives off enough water already...do you make it without any added liquid?

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        April 27, 2020 at 9:52 am

        Yes, my testing of this recipe showed the coconut milk and chicken itself provide enough liquid - no extra broth required.

        ★★★★★

        Reply
    5. Spencer says

      January 22, 2020 at 11:02 pm

      Have you tried making tamales using your Pressure Cooker?
      Hope so! Enjoy your work. Gracias

      Reply
    6. Aaron Friedman says

      January 22, 2020 at 9:54 am

      This is a great technique that I have used many times. However, I use medium size potatoes (usually Yukon gold), cook them whole on a trivet above the rest of the curry, then slice them after and add them back in. It makes the sauce taste less "potatoey".

      Reply

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    Welcome to Dad Cooks Dinner! I'm Mike Vrobel, a dad who cooks dinner every night. I'm an enthusiastic home cook, and I write about pressure cooking, rotisserie grilling, and other food topics that grab my attention.

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