Coconut Chicken Curry - Easy Instant Pot Chicken Thighs Recipe! (2024)

FAQs

Can you use coconut milk in a pressure cooker? ›

Make the curry: Place chicken, onions, ginger, garlic, tamarind paste, 1 cup coconut milk, salt, turmeric, cayenne, and water into the inner liner of your Instant Pot or Pressure Cooker. Add the spice mix and stir well. Cook for 6 minutes at high pressure.

Thighs. Because curries tend to cook a while, the breast easily becomes overcooked a dry. The extra fat in the thighs also mixes nicely with the curry to give it a silky, smooth quality.

Coconut milk and cream are mostly interchangeable in recipes such as curries and soups. If you prefer a richer flavour and texture, try coconut cream or vice versa. However, be careful when substituting coconut milk and cream in baked goods.

I wouldn't cook chicken longer than 20 minutes at high pressure, or it could start to dry out, but don't worry if you forget about it for a few minutes after the pressure cooking cycle is complete.

For example, if consuming products that are low in fat is a priority, coconut milk may not be your best choice due to its high fat content, which contributes most of the calories of coconut milk. In addition, regarding protein content, cow's milk and soy milk have more protein than coconut milk and almond milk.

One of the most popular uses for coconut milk is in soups and stews, where it adds a lovely creaminess and a subtle coconut flavor. The fattiness of coconut milk works particularly well with spices and acid, which is why it's often included in traditional Thai and Indian dishes.

The chicken is briefly browned in a frying pan and then cooked in a creamy, mildly spiced sauce. If the chicken is rubbery in texture then it is likely that it is being overcooked, or cooked too fiercely.

Usually I would brown whatever meat I'm using in a dish as it tends to improve the taste. However, many recipes for curries I've seen either omit browning the meat or explicitely state that you shouldn't cook the meat (usually chicken) at all before adding it to the curry.

Firstly, using on-the-bone chicken thighs not only reduces prep time, as you can just chuck them in the pan, it also provides the most flavoursome chicken. Most of the cook time is inactive, making it a great weeknight dinner, after a hard day at uni/work.

Once the spices and veg have cooked, add in the coconut milk and a couple cups of chicken stock. Turn the heat up so it comes to a boil and then lower to about medium heat and cook for 10-15 minutes. Just until it starts to thicken! I normally do 10 minutes, but if you like a really thick sauce, take it longer.

Should I use canned coconut milk for curry? ›

The coconut milk cools the spices in curry and adds its signature nutty-sweet flavor and thick texture.

If you prefer to go the coconut-free route (or if you don't have coconut shreds, cream, oil, water, or butter on hand), you can use plain old milk — whichever kind you prefer. Whatever you're making won't have the same flavor as it would with coconut, which may make things like curries taste a little flat.

Chicken breasts, thighs or drumsticks

By placing cooking liquid in the bottom of the pressure cooker and placing the chicken in the steamer basket above the liquid, you are guaranteed tender, moist chicken every time. However, you can also use the cooker to make a sauce and cook your chicken submerged in flavour.

Like the slow cooker, the Instant Pot (and other pressure cookers) creates a moist cooking environment that does not dry out the skin. Don't fear, though — this doesn't mean you can't get crispy skin after cooking in the Instant Pot.

Ultimately, slow cooking allowed our chicken to be perfectly seasoned without compromising the meat texture, a luxury pressure cooking can't afford.

Foods containing dairy, like milk, cream, or yogurt, should not be pressure-cooked. The high heat and pressure can cause dairy products to curdle or separate, ruining the texture, taste and flavour of the dish. Cooking fried foods is a strict no no, when it comes to pressure cookers.

It only makes sense that we would make this slightly sticky and not-too-sweet coconut rice in a rice cooker. After all… rice is sort of our thing! And all you need to do is substitute a bit of unsweetened coconut milk for some of the water you'd normally use when cooking rice (check the recipe for exact measurements).

Creamy ingredients (whether they're dairy or non-dairy) can split in a slow cooker. Avoid adding milk, cream, yoghurt, coconut cream or coconut milk at the beginning of cooking as it can end up curdled and grainy. For the best results, stir through at the end of the cooking time and warm through gently without boiling.

If there's one food group you should avoid in the Instant Pot, it's dairy. The high heat and pressure can cause milk and cheese to curdle, separate or clump together.