The ultimate 30 min pressure cooker butter chicken
Serves: 4
Prep time: 10 Mins
Cook Time: 10 Mins Sauté, 20 Mins Under High Pressure
Difficulty: Intermediate
One of our go-to comfort cuisines is Indian food. We are lucky to live in an area with an impressive array of Indian restaurants catering to a large expat Indian population. The locals know their Indian food, and ensure that the quality and authenticity of the food remains high. Of all Indian dishes, my favourite has to be butter chicken, also known as murgh makhani. We love the rich, spicy-sweet flavours, the creamy texture of the sauce, and the buttery softness of the chicken. This dish is our yardstick by which to judge an Indian restaurant; if the murgh makhani is not up to scratch, the restaurant is scratched from our list.
Given the lengthy cooking time of many conventional butter chicken recipes, when we purchased our Tefal Cook4Me, we were keen to find the ultimate speedy butter chicken pressure cooker recipe. After extensive hunting, experimentation and tweaking, here is the result - Ursula & Troy’s ultimate recipe for home-made murgh makhani perfection:
Ingredients
500g (1 lb) boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-size pieces
2 tablespoons vegetable oil (we recommend peanut oil)
3 shallots (peeled) or spring onions, finely chopped
1 medium white onion, peeled and cubed
½ cup butter
juice of ½ medium-large lemon
1 tbsp honey
6 large cloves of garlic, crushed (or 2 tbsp minced garlic paste)
2.5 cm (1 inch) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped/grated (Or 1¼ tbsp tsp minced ginger paste)
3 tsp fenugreek
3 tsp curry powder (or more to taste)
2 tsp garam masala
1 tsp of ground cumin
1 pinch black pepper
1 generous pinch Old Bay or seasoned salt
1 cup (250ml) natural yogurt
1 cup (250ml) sour cream
1 cup (250ml) tomato paste
1 can (400g) diced or crushed tomatoes
1 cup of chicken stock
Jasmine or Basmati rice
2 tablespoon cornflour + 3 tablespoons water mixed into a slurry
Optional
1 pinch cayenne pepper, or to taste, to add heat (this can be omitted for a milder butter chicken - beware, a little of this goes a very long way)
large pinch saffron of threads for making saffron rice
2 tbsp butter for making saffron rice
1 vegetable stock/bouillon cube for making saffron rice
¼ cup firmly packed minced coriander for garnish
Some extra sour cream to garnish
Some Garlic Naan and red wine as an accompaniment
Tip - For a brightening twist, you can use lime juice instead of lemon juice
See our guide to pressure cooker pantry essentials to find out more about these ingredients, our recommendations, and where to buy them.
Directions
Turn your pressure cooker on to frying mode (“Sauté” on the Instant Pot, “Browning” on the Cook4Me) and wait for it to heat up
Pour the oil and place the ½ cup of butter into the pot and let it melt until it becomes bubbly
Add in onions, garlic and ginger and cook until the onion is translucent, stirring frequently – about 5 minutes
Add in the garum masala, fenugreek, curry powder, cumin, pepper, Old Bay, and lemon juice; stir until incorporated. If too dry, add a small amount of extra butter or oil. Sauté for 1-2 minutes to allow flavours to develop.
Add the chicken and sauté, stirring frequently until it turns white (it should also take on some colour from the spices)
Add the chicken broth, honey, tomato paste and can of diced tomatoes. Stir until well combined.
Add the in the yoghurt and sour cream. Stir until dairy ingredients are fully blended.
Add the cayenne pepper if you wish to use it, and mix in thoroughly
Close and seal the lid of the pressure cooker.
Select the pressure cooking mode on high pressure (“Quick cook” on the Cook4Me)- set the cooking cycle to run for 20 minutes. Start the pressure cooking cycle.
Once finished, “Quick release” the steam if your cooker does not do this automatically.
Cook the rice using your preferred method in line with its instructions (see below for saffron rice instructions)
Turn pressure cooker on to “Sauté” or “browning” mode, and and bring the contents to a bubble
Mix the cornflour and water together into a slurry and add to the cooker. Stir to incorporate thoroughly. Let contents return to a boil
Put your cooker into “Keep Warm” and let it stay that way for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently, so the sauce thickens a and the flavours develop
Serve over a bed rice. Garnish with fresh minced coriander and a dollop of sour cream if desired
Serve and enjoy with some Garlic Naan and red wine
To Make Saffron Rice
Melt the 2 tbsp butter in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir in the rice, crumbled stock cube and saffron. Add water and a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil.
Stir with a fork. Reduce heat to low. Cover. Cook for 17 minutes. Use a fork to separate the grains.
Do you have any twists or favourite adjustments to this recipe? Let is know in the comments below!