You’ll love this Whole30 Instant Pot chicken tikka masala recipe! It uses Whole30-compliant ingredients and a restaurant-style technique paired with the Instant Pot for an easier, insanely delicious Indian dinner recipe. The sauce is creamy, super rich, perfectly spiced but not too spicy, and the chicken is so tender. Low carb, too!
What Makes This Whole30 Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala So Good
- We use the Instant Pot to cut down on the simmering time without cutting corners on flavor.
- Caramelizing the aromatics and tomato sauce creates that authentic restaurant-quality chicken tikka masala taste that the whole family will love.
- The dried fenugreek leaves add a flavor to the dish that you’ll recognize from Indian restaurants but likely have left out of your own Indian cooking. I highly recommend getting some for your pantry!
- It’s perfect for a variety of dietary needs. All of the ingredients are Whole30-compliant, which makes this one paleo-friendly, too. It’s also low carb!
Can I Make This Whole30 Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala in the Crockpot?
Yes and no. You can absolutely use the Crockpot to simmer the mixture once you’ve caramelized the aromatics and tomato sauce, but you won’t be able to do those two things in the Crockpot.
Here’s what I recommend:
Follow the directions in my Restaurant Style Chicken Tikka Masala recipe for caramelizing the onion, serrano chile, garlic, and ginger, and then simmering the tomato sauce on the stovetop. Transfer the mixture to your Crockpot or slow cooker after step 5 and cook on low for about 3-4 hours, or until chicken is cooked through. Cook on High for about 2-2 1/2 hours.
Variations
- For a mild Instant Pot chicken tikka masala, use only one serrano chile and deseed it first before chopping.
- Swap the green bell pepper for a red bell pepper for a slightly sweeter veggie.
- Use chicken thighs for even-more-tender chicken.
- For a dairy-free version, use refined coconut in place of the ghee or butter.
Chef’s Tips
- When steaming your cauliflower rice, throw in a jasmine tea bag to infuse a classic basmati flavor.
- If you’re on a Whole30, make sure you use a compliant yogurt to marinate your chicken. Kite Hill Unsweetened is great! If you can’t find it or prefer not to use it, that’s fine, too. Just leave it out of the marinade.
- Don’t skip the caramelization process! Yes, it takes time, but it’s completely worth it. If you skip this part, you’ll be missing out on the restaurant-quality flavor you’d otherwise get from this Instant Pot chicken tikka masala.
Other Whole30 Recipes You’ll Love
- Breakfast Egg Roll in a Bowl (Whole30, Paleo)
- Whole30 Beef Stroganoff
- Egg Roll in a Bowl with Creamy Chili Sauce (Keto, Whole30, Paleo)
- Paleo Chinese Chicken Salad (Whole30)
- Brussels Sprouts Salad (Whole30, Paleo, Non-Dairy)
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Whole30 Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala (Paleo, Low Carb)
Equipment
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts about 2 pounds, diced
- 1 cup plain, non-dairy yogurt optional
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 2 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice about half a lemon
- 2 teaspoons black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon dried ginger
For the Sauce
- ¼ cup ghee 4 tablespoons
- 1 medium white onion diced
- 2 serrano chiles minced (deseeded for mild, seeds left in for medium/hot)
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ tablespoon grated fresh ginger
- 4 ½ teaspoons garam masala
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
- 1 green bell pepper deseeded, sliced into strips
- 1 tablespoon dried fenugreek leaves
- salt to taste
- 1-2 cups coconut cream just the solid white part from a can of coconut milk
To Serve
- steamed cauliflower rice
- fresh cilantro chopped
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together all marinade ingredients besides chicken. Toss chicken in marinade to coat well. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour, up to overnight.
- In the Instant Pot in Sauté Mode, Normal Heat, heat the ghee. Add onion and cook until softened, about 4-5 minutes.
- Reduce heat to Low Heat. Add serrano chiles, garlic, and ginger, and cook, stirring occasionally, until a nice, even toffee-brown color, about 10 minutes. Add 1-2 teaspoons water as needed if you notice the mixture sticking or drying out. If you cook this part over Normal Heat, monitor the mixture very closely. It will burn if you don't watch it well!
- When mixture is a toffee brown color, add garam masala and paprika; stir well. Cook a few minutes, or until fragrant, adding a couple tablespoons of water to reduce sticking, if necessary.
- Add the tomato sauce and stir well; transfer mixture to the blender and blend until smooth. Return sauce to pot and simmer for 15-25 minutes over Normal Heat or until thick like a paste, rather than like a sauce.
- Add chicken, sliced bell pepper, fenugreek leaves, and salt. Secure lid and cook on Manual High Pressure for 6 minutes. Carefully Quick Release.
- Add the coconut cream and stir until smooth. Taste and correct seasonings, adding more salt or fenugreek leaves as necessary. Serve over steamed cauliflower and top with plenty of chopped fresh cilantro.
Notes
- Yogurt: Use a compliant non-dairy yogurt, or skip it entirely and just marinate the chicken in the lemon juice and spices.
- Make it Dairy Free: Use refined coconut oil in place of the ghee.
Nutrition
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Cheryl Malik is the recipe developer, writer, and photographer behind the healthy, flavorful, family friendly recipes at 40 Aprons. She’s been a blogger for 10 years and is known for her delicious recipes and detailed recipe instructions. Cheryl is a mom of two who lives in Memphis, TN.
Lily Shields says
If I wanted to double or triple the recipe, would i double or triple everything? Including the spices? I’m excited about trying out the recipe! Thank you! Lily
Alyssa says
Just tried this recipe last night and the flavors are amazing! I had the same issues others have mentioned – got the “burn” warning on my Instant Pot once it came to pressure and had to stop it about 2 minutes in. I ended up just transferring everything to a regular pot and simmering for about 20 minutes to finish cooking the chicken. Came out great anyway! I think next time I would add some chicken broth or maybe do the saute part in a regular pot on the stove and then add everything to the Instant Pot.
Kim G says
Same thing happened to me. 1/2 -2/3 of chicken bone broth did the trick.
Dan says
Hi, just wondering: when adding the chicken to the tomato sauce blend, do I add the chicken and everything it was marinating in, or do I take the chicken out and throw the remaining greek yoghurt away?
Savannah | 40 Aprons Team says
You can add all the ingredients with it! It’ll give it that much more flavor!
Anna says
Can you use Greek yogurt to replace the plain yogurt?
Cheryl Malik says
Yes, it just may alter the flavor just a bit!
Jo says
Do you have a crock pot version?
Cheryl Malik says
Not at the moment, but great idea!
Cheryl Malik says
You could cook on the low setting for about 8 hours or so.
Caleb Lesch says
I made this tonight but used the immersion blender instead of moving it to the vitamix. I also broiled the chicken thighs til they were a bit charred and then transferred the juices and chicken to the pot. I kept getting the “burn” issue when trying to reach pressure though. I scraped the bottom and added a cup of chicken broth, but still got the same thing. After four failed attempts of getting to pressure, the chicken was cooked ? served over cauliflower rice, it was top notch flavor.
Cheryl Malik says
I hate it when I can’t get my equipment to work for me when I want it to! I’m so happy that it finally worked out and you ended up with a beautiful meal!
Elisabeth says
Also FYI It is my first try at Indian food so I was happy that hubby liked it. Next time just need to cook that chicken less and cook down the tomato more. mine came a bit saucy. I just was afraid to turn it up too high because it was making a mess boiling that tomato everywhere on anything except low heat.
Cheryl Malik says
Almost as good as a place in London is SUCH a compliment!! Great job at your first go cooking Indian! And yes – it does make a total mess, so I try to just put it somewhere I can wipe down later, ha! Keep it on low, but just cook it for quite a while and you’ll get that beautiful caramelization 🙂 You can actually likely get away with cooking the chicken only about 5 minutes high pressure too!
Elisabeth says
Yeah that’s where I messed up. 7 was too long. I also naturally pressure released for 10 min which I think I would skip.
Elisabeth says
So I did a kind of hybrid of this and the original one. It came out really good. I had to adjust the seasoning because sprouts didn’t have a jar of Garam Masala so I had to use the 2 teaspoons I had left after the marinade and added more turmeric and coriander. I didn’t buy enough of the garam masala obviously. Second I made much more than the recipe called for so it was way too much to flip all that chicken in the oven. I put it on one side under the broiler and browned it slightly and then threw it in the instant pot. I cooked the chicken for 7 min and natural release for 20. Should have either manually released or cooked for less time. Also I used the immersion blender rather than transfer back and forth. Otherwise I carmilized everything in my enameled cast iron dutch oven. It came out really good. I asked my husband what he thought and he said it was almost as good as his place in London. He goes to London a bunch and there is this great Indian place he took me to there. Its close to the airport where he usually stays. I ate there once and it was amazing so I took this as a great compliment.
Laura says
Any advice on how to make this dish with tofu or chick peas?
Cheryl Malik says
I would marinated cubed tofu then press and dry it; fry until very golden brown and crispy then remove. Make the recipe and skip the chicken steps, then stir it in at the last moment so as not to break it up much! With chickpeas you can skip the marinating and simply add them during the step you would add the cooked chicken.
Lynn says
Love all of your recipes! However, I got a burn code on my instant pot with this one. It happened after I sautéed and it was trying to heat up for pressure cooking. I had to restart the process two times. And it ended up not working. So next time I will try to sauté in a reg pan instead. I’ve read it could be the sautéing before and/or cooking with the tomato sauce. Just wanted to share. Thanks Cheryl!
Alana says
Help! I bought everything to make this, EXCEPT for the fenugreek, which I cannot find anywhere. Can I sub something else? Many thanks – love your recipes!
Cheryl Malik says
Unfortunately there isn’t really a substitute for fenugreek leaves. They are optional but add SO much flavor. I can find them at well-stocked international markets in the Indian/Pakistani section!