Make this Indian favorite at home in 30 minutes in your pressure cooker, or make it in your slow cooker!! Better than a restaurant!
Prep Time10 minutesmins
Total Time10 minutesmins
Course: 30-Minute Meals
Cuisine: Indian
Keyword: chicken tikka masala sauce, crock pot pressure cooker recipes, easy chicken tikka masala recipe, easy pressure cooker recipes, instant pot chicken tikka masala, instant pot tikka masala
Servings: 4
Calories: 612kcal
Author: Averie Sunshine
Ingredients
Chicken Marinade
about 1.25 to 1.50 pounds boneless skinless chicken breastcut into bite-sized pieces
6ouncesplain Greek yogurtI use 0% fat
2 to 3clovesgarlicminced or finely pressed
2tablespoonsolive oil
2tablespoonslemon juice
2teaspoonsgaram masala
2teaspoonsground cumin
1teaspoonsmoked paprikaor regular paprika
1teaspoonkosher salt
½teaspoonfreshly ground black pepper
½teaspoonground ginger
Sauce
2tablespoonsolive oil
one small sweet Vidalia oniondiced small
¼cupunsalted butter
4 to 5clovesgarlicminced or finely pressed
one 15-ounce can tomato sauce or tomato puree
2teaspoonsgaram masala
2teaspoonsground coriander
1teaspooncumin
1teaspoonsmoked paprikaor regular paprika
1teaspoonkosher saltor to taste
½teaspoonground ginger
½teaspoonkosher saltor to taste
½teaspoonfreshly ground black pepperor to taste
¼ to ½teaspooncayenne pepperoptional an to taste
½cupcream or half-and-halfuse a dairy-free milk if desired
about 1/4 cup finely minced fresh cilantrodivided for garnishing
naanbasmati rice, etc. for serving, if desired
Instructions
Chicken Marinade:
Add all ingredients to a gallon-sized ziptop bag, seal, squish contents around to distribute evenly, and allow chicken to marinate in the fridge for at least 1 to 2 hours (overnight is ideal).
Sauce:
Turn Crock-Pot® Express Crock Multi Cooker to brown and sauté mode, add the onion, and cook until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes; stir intermittently.
Add the butter, garlic, and cook until butter has melted and garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute; stirring nearly constantly.
Add the chicken (fish it out of the marinating bag, and discard the bag with the marinade and the marinating mixture), tomato sauce, garam masala, coriander, cumin, smoked paprika, ginger, salt, pepper, optional cayenne, cover, lock the lid, and set to pressure cook mode by touching the meat/poultry button on the top lefthand corner. Make sure the steam valve is set to lock on the top/backside of the machine. It will take about 10 minutes for it to 'preheat' into the pressure cooking mode and when it has preheated, '15 minutes' will appear on the screen. You don't need all 15 minutes of pressure cooking time. Stop cooking after 10 minutes has elapsed by pressing the stop button.
Allow pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes, then flick the steam valve with a utensil (the steam that escapes is hot) and remove the lid.
Alternatively, rather than pressure cooking you can use the slow cooker mode and cook for about 4 hours on low or about 2 hours on high, or until chicken is cooked through and sauce is as thickened as desired.
After the lid is open, set to brown and sauté mode, add the cream, stir to combine, and cook for about 2 minutes or until sauce is warmed through.
Optionally, allow sauce to simmer for 5 to 10 minutes to reduce and thicken in volume. Taste sauce to check for flavor balance and if desired make any necessary tweaks, i.e. more pepper, salt, cayenne, etc. to taste.
Portion chicken and sauce into bowls (use a slotted spoon if desired because there is a lot of sauce), evenly garnish with cilantro, and serve with naan, basmati rice, etc. or as desired.
Notes
Step 5 in the directions discusses using either pressure cooking or slow cooking.
This is a very saucy dish which we love. However, if you prefer less sauce, you can halve the amount of butter and/or cream and use 1.50 pounds of chicken.