Instant Pot Tandoori Curry Chicken
This gem came up out of desperation and mostly not wanting to chop or do anything fancy. I basically used precuts from the grocery store, because of energy levels and pain. If you don't know what precuts are, and you suffer from chronic pain and illness, meet your new best friend.
There is a section in the grocery store in produce where you will see precut fruit...I'm sure you are familiar with that. However, they also have precut onions, green onions, bell pepper, carrots, and at least in Texas, cilantro.
Yep. Everything washed, chopped, and ready for your dinner. As I mentioned, your new bff.
Pair this with already riced cauliflower, fresh or frozen, and you've got an incredibly easy meal.
Ingredients:
2 T tbsp ghee
5 t of minced garlic (pre-minced in the jar)
1 inch of grated fresh ginger or 1/2 t of ground if you don't want to take the time to grate
1 large yellow or white onion diced (precuts for the win)
2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Two 14 oz. cans of Rotel
1/4 c full fat unsweetened coconut milk
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
2 T of oil of your choice
1 bag of frozen riced cauliflower
2 large sweet potatoes
Chopped Cilantro for Topper
Curry Mix:
1 T tandoori masala
2 t smoked paprika
1.5 t cumin
2 t curry
Equipment:
Instant Pot
Small bowl and whisk
Microplane grater
Immersion Blender or Blender
Food processor or hand mixer
Oven and foil lined baking sheet
Stove and large skillet
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Scrub sweet potatoes, pat dry, and place on a foil lined baking sheet in the oven for an hour.
Go relax for 30 minutes, if you bought your oh so fabulous precuts, or start prepping the onion and ginger.
Combine the curry seasonings in a small bowl, whisk, and set aside.
Press saute on your Instant Pot and add 2 T ghee. When the ghee is melted, add the garlic, ginger, and onion. Season with a pinch of salt. Saute until onions are translucent. Add the curry seasonings and saute about 10 seconds to warm up the spices. Turn off Saute.
Add 2 cans of Rotel and scrape the bottom of the pot to get that lovely browned vegetable and garlic taste into the curry. Add the salt and pepper. Stir. Add chicken and cover each piece with sauce. Seal the lid and pressure cook for 10 minutes. Finish with a 10 minute release.
While the chicken cooks, warm up 2 T of oil of your choice. I prefer avocado, and saute the cauliflower in a large skillet over medium heat. Add salt and pepper to taste.
When the cauliflower is soft and toasted with a nice golden brown color turn the heat to low to keep the cauli'rice warm.
The potatoes should be just about done. Pull them from the oven and check to make sure they are soft throughout. If so, cut open the skins and scoop out the insides into a food processor and blend until smooth.
If you don't have a food processor an old fashioned hand beater works great too. Just put them in a beater safe bowl and whip them. Cover to keep warm.
The Instant Pot should be finishing up right about now.
Using a slotted spoon, scoop out the chicken. Add the coconut milk. Puree the sauce using an immersion blender until creamy and no lumps remain. Shred the chicken with two forks or dice the chicken up and add them back to the instant pot. Stir the shredded chicken into the tandoori curry sauce. If my kitchen helper is around, I have him shred the chicken while I finish the sauce.
Plating:
I like to serve these in bowls. I put a generous scoop of the sweet potatoes in the bottom of a bowl and make a donut shape with it. In the center, I put a large scoop of the cauli'rice and then top with the curry. The cilantro on top really makes the dish so don't forget to garnish the top with cilantro!
This makes enough to feed 6 - 8 people depending on appetites. I froze half for #leohusband and me to enjoy on a day I'm in too much pain to cook.
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