Keto Butter Chicken (Instant Pot Version)
Keto Butter Chicken is a low-carb dish made in the Instant Pot to give you perfectly tender chicken and a rich, creamy sauce flavored with warm, aromatic spices.
This Keto Instant Pot Butter Chicken (Chicken Makhani) is a recipe Melinda and I have been working on for a while. Whenever we have a girls’ night out, you’ll find us at our favorite Indian restaurant with an order of vegetable samosas, butter chicken, and garlic naan.
With the start of the new year, we wanted an Instant Pot version of our favorite dinner, AND we wanted it to be low carb and keto (bye, bye vegetable samosas and garlic naan! We’ll miss you!)
Table of contents
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Why Keto Butter Chicken?
In the world of keto, where fats are friends and carbs are carefully counted, finding a dish that’s both comforting and compliant can be a challenge. Enter Keto Butter Chicken. Not only is it packed with protein and healthy fats, but it also carries the aromatic spices and luscious texture that make Indian cuisine a global favorite.
This Indian butter chicken recipe is naturally low carb so we didn’t have to make any major changes changes. Though a lot of recipes add cornstarch to thicken their butter chicken sauce, it isn’t necessary. Setting your Instant Pot to saute after it has finished pressure cooking will thicken the sauce up perfectly!
New to using an Instant Pot? Make sure you read our beginner’s guide on “How to Use an Instant Pot” to get started!
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Chicken thighs – We use boneless skinless chicken thighs cut into bite size pieces. This gives you a flavorful, tender piece of chicken with a good balance of fat and protein.
- Tomato – Both tomato sauce (make sure it has no added sugar) and tomato paste make up the base of this sauce.
- Curry – Red curry paste is made with a blend of warm, aromatic spices. It gives a big boost of flavor.
- Spices – Any Indian-inspired dish requires some bold spices. Garam masala, ground ginger, smoked paprika, and salt take the sauce to the next level.
- Aromatics – Onion and garlic are sauteed with the chicken to add a depth of flavor.
- Fats – Butter and heavy cream are added to the sauce to give it that rich, creamy flavor and silky smooth texture.
- Chicken broth – A little chicken broth thins out the sauce and helps to thin the sauce and ensure that you don’t get the dreaded Instant Pot burn warning.
- Cilantro – This is simply a garnish. If you aren’t a fan of cilantro feel free to skip it.
What You Will Need to Make Instant Pot Butter Chicken:
- Instant Pot – You’ll need an Instant Pot or similar pressure cooker to make this recipe.
- Garam Masala – This delicious blend of spices can be found at your local grocery store or on Amazon.
How to Make Keto Butter Chicken in the Instant Pot:
Step 1 – Saute. Set your Instant Pot to SAUTE. Add the butter, onion and garlic. Saute for approximately 5 minutes until the onions are tender. Press OFF to cancel the saute.
Step 2 – Broth. Add the chicken broth and use a spatula or spoon to scrape the bottom of the pot to get up all of the little browned bits. This will help reduce the likelihood of the burn warning.
Step 3 – Add the rest. Add the chicken, tomato sauce, tomato paste, red curry paste, garam masala, ground ginger, salt, and smoked paprika to the Instant Pot.
Step 4 – Cook. Lock the lid in place and turn the pressure valve to seal it. Set to HIGH PRESSURE for 7 minutes.
Step 5 – Natural release. When the timer goes off turn the Instant Pot off and let it do a natural release for 5 minutes. Then carefully flip the valve to VENTING and let the remaining steam out of the pressure cooker.
Step 6 – Remove chicken. Remove the lid and using a slotted spoon remove the chicken from the sauce and set aside.
Step 6 – Add cream. Add the heavy cream to the pot and, using an immersion blender puree the sauce until smooth.
Step 7 – Thicken sauce. Set the Instant Pot to SAUTE and stir the sauce while simmering for 7-10 minutes, or until it thickens. Turn OFF saute.
Step 8 – Put it all together. Add the chicken back to the sauce and stir everything together.
Step 9 – Serve. Serve the butter chicken over your favorite low carb option and garnish with cilantro.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I Use Chicken Breast Instead of Chicken Thighs?
The short answer is yes, BUT the dark meat gives this recipe so much more flavor, and it is even more moist and tender. It also helps keep your macro ratios of fat to protein in check. I highly recommend using dark meat if you can.
Is Keto Butter Chicken spicy?
In general butter chicken isn’t a spicy dish. It has a low level of heat with a lot of warm spices that give you a rich flavor. That being said every curry has it’s own makeup so the level of spice will be affected by the level of spicy in the red curry paste you choose. If you want to add a little extra spice you can add a pinch of cayenne pepper.
How can I thicken the sauce without carbs?
Though a lot of recipes add cornstarch to thicken their butter chicken sauce, it isn’t necessary. Setting your Instant Pot to saute after it has finished pressure cooking will thicken the sauce up perfectly!
Can I make this dairy-free?
Absolutely! Use coconut milk and dairy-free butter alternatives.
What Do I Serve With Keto Butter Chicken?
- Cauliflower Rice
- Zucchini Noodles
- Sauted yellow squash
- Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash
- Keto Naan Bread
How to Store and Reheat
Refrigerator: Let the butter chicken cool completely then place in an airtight container. It can be stored in the refrigerator for 3-5 days.
Freezer: Let the butter chicken cool completely then place it in an airtight container. It can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Reheating: When reheating, do so gently on the stove or in the microwave, adding a little extra cream or butter to revive the sauce’s creamy texture. This approach ensures the dish remains delicious and retains its consistency, making your keto meal prep both convenient and enjoyable.
Note: If you are reheating frozen keto butter chicken we suggest letting it thaw for 24 hours in the refrigerator before reheating. This will make the reheating process faster and give you the best results.
Want More Keto Instant Pot Recipes?
- Instant Pot Sausage and Kale Soup
- Pressure Cooker Pulled Pork
- Instant Pot Cabbage Roll Soup
- Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Dip
- Creamy Asparagus Soup {Instant Pot & Stove Top}
- Instant Pot Collard Greens
- Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash
- Keto Instant Pot Cabbage Rolls
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Keto Butter Chicken in the Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 2 cups Onion, diced
- 5 cloves Garlic, minced
- 4 tablespoons Butter
- 2 pounds Chicken thighs, boneless, skinless, cut into bite-size pieces
- 1/2 cup Chicken broth
- 15 ounces Tomato sauce, no added sugar
- 3 tablespoons Tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons Red curry paste
- 2 teaspoons Garam masala
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Smoked paprika
- 1/2 cup Heavy cream
- Cilantro, garnish
Instructions
- Set your Instant Pot to SAUTE and add butter, onion and garlic. Saute for approximately 5 minutes until the onions are tender. Press OFF to cancel the saute.
- Add the chicken broth to the pot and use a spatula or spoon to scrap up any burned bit off of the bottom. Make to to get it nice and clean this will help prevent the burn warning.
- Add the tomato sauce, red curry paste, and tomato paste to the pot. Sprinkle in the garam masala, ground ginger, salt, and smoked paprika and stir everything together.
- Add the chicken to the liquid and lock the lid in place. Turn the pressure valve to seal it. Set to HIGH PRESSURE for 7 minutes.
- When the timer goes off do a natural release for 5 minutes and then turn the valve on top to VENTING to let the remaining steam out of the pressure cooker.
- Remove the lid and using a slotted spoon remove the chicken from the sauce and set aside.
- Add the heavy cream to the pot and, using an immersion blender puree the sauce until smooth. See note #1
- Set the Instant Pot to SAUTE and stir the sauce while simmering for 7-10 minutes, or until it thickens. Turn OFF saute.
- Add the chicken back to the sauce, stir together, and serve with a garnish of cilantro.
Notes
- You can skip the immersion blender if you don’t have one, it just gives the sauce a smoother texture. Still delicious either way!
Love this recipe!
One thing I’ve learned with IP and using it for multiple functions (sauté then pressure cook) is to give it a bit of time between functions. Often times if I go immediately from one function to the next I’ll get a burn notice. Even if I deglaze the pan. I have a feeling the pan is almost too hot when it goes to build up the pressure.
I might try this with a different curry paste tonight if I don’t get to the store and get the thai kitchen brand. Yum! My family loves this recipe!
This is delicious!! I’m wondering what size constitutes a serving? A cup etc.?
Yes. Please answer this? How much is one serving? This is CRUCIAL information for Keto/diets.
It is a cup per serving, hope that helps.
Hi, when I convert 15 ounces to millilitres it’s says 443ml?! That seems like a lot. Am I reading it wrong?
In the US 15 ounces is a standard sized can of tomato sauce. It would be approximately 2 cups.
I’ve made this dish twice, and although it’s delicious, I got a burn warning both times I made it. Both times I washed the pot out and added a bit (about half a cup) of chicken stock to the dish. I’d still get a burn warning and have to do it a second time. Any tips to prevent this?
Try adding a 1/4 – 1/2 more liquid. Depending on the surface area of the Instant Pot or other pressure cooker you may get a burn error. I never get so I assume it may be smaller.
I got a burn notice too. I added more chicken broth and reset the timer.
My family LOVES this recipe and I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made it. My children love. Thank you so much for sharing!
Super YUMMY sauce, but got burn notice and had to finish on stove.
This was great!! Even my picky four year old ate it all. Like others, I did get the food burn error but it cooks so fast that by the time I got the error the food was done.
I also threw our sauce in our regular blender and it made for a really smooth sauce.
10/10! (I’m on my phone and it wouldn’t let me click the fifth star!!)
This was so good! I needed a delicious dinner in covid quarantine to cheer me up
So glad you liked it!
So I was feeding some of the young missionaries from our church the other day and got behind. Decided to do this in the Insta-pot. I KNOW I have curry paste in my pantry and could not find it for the life of me. I looked about 8 times! So, left it out, but all else was the same. Still delicious. Thanks for this.
Absolutely delicious!!! My IP did go to “burn,” so I finished on stove and will probably just cook it that way next time. Other than that, I haven’t stumbled on such a good recipe in quite a while! Even my super-picky son loved it!
Looks delish! Are the nutritional stats for 1 serving? Thanks.
Yes, per serving.
Really good! This is only my third recipe in the instant pot, but I love it. I added more curry. I’ll be making this again!!!
I like this recipe a lot. Blending does give a great consistency, although then I add cauliflower rice ha. I also brown the chicken once the onions are mostly done at the beginning which I really liked.
hi Kat & Melinda,
can this recipe be done without the IP?
thanks 🙂
Yes! I actually made it on the stovetop the other day :). I sauteed the chicken with the garlic and onion for 7-10 minutes, then sat them aside. I added the tomato sauce, tomato paste, red curry paste, garam masala, ground ginger, salt, and smoked paprika to the skillet and stirred them together, cooking until they began to bubble. Then I added the heavy cream and the chicken and simmered for 25-30 minutes. It was delicious!
How do you make the red curry paste?
We did not make it. It can be found at the local grocery store.
Looks like a great recipe, but can it be made with a non dairy milk/creamer rather than heavy cream if allergic to dairy?
I’m not sure how non dairy milk or creamer reacts to heat. If it thickens slightly like dairy than it will work just fine. Worst case it won’t be as thick.
I skipped the sauté onions part as family doesn’t like onions anyway. Put a little water in under the chicken, dumped chicken in and all the other stuff and did not stir. It came to pressure, no burn notice and was delicious! Even used the immersion blender. Thanks
Any changes to cook times if you use chicken breast instead of thigh? Trying this tomorrow night!
No it should take the same amount of time. Hope you like it!!
Can I substitute coconut cream with the heavy cream?
Yes, the thick, hardened coconut cream that’s left can then be scooped out of the can and used as a substitute for heavy cream. Swap an equal amount of heavy cream for coconut cream.
I’m left wondering where I went wrong, after 7 minutes my chicken came out as raw as it was when it went in.
Did your instant pot definitely seal and come to pressure?
It didn’t pressurize ): I checked the settings and the valve and my seal ring and everything was right. I used a 3oz instant pot, and while everything was below the max fill line I’m thinking maybe it was still too much.
Me and my daughter made this and it is delicious
I, like others, also got the burn notice. Because of this, I’d probably give like 3.75. It was pretty good and I think it almost taste similar to the kind I get from North Indian restaurants. But this cooking method seems to not work for many. I ended up finishing it on the stove after burn notice. That was frustrating. More dishes and more attention for the recipe. Still it was enjoyable. Maybe I’ll put more curry paste next time for a little more spice.
Nice recipe from the BFFs … great flavour, easy process! Although, I don’t have a slow cooker so did it on the stove. Was consumed by all of my man-children without a sound … and that is saying something for sure.
My boyfriend says thins might be the best curry he’s ever eaten, it is AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS!!! We will be adding this to our regular meal plan. We used the leftover sauce to dip keto cheese sticks, keto air fried chicken, and he was drinking it too 😛 Wonderful recipe! After cooking, the spice level was very mild (perfect for my 11 and 7 year old!) so we blended in a couple szechuan chilis to add some heat. Absolutely fantastic!!!
LOL this is great! I drank it before too. No shame! It’s so good.
Could you use coconut milk instead of heavy cream?
Yes you can use coconut milk instead of heavy cream.
Hello, what kind / brand of red curry paste do you use? All I can see is Thai red curry paste, not Indian.
I use the Thai red curry paste.
While I normally pressure cook in my IP I switched it up today due to being out of the house and used the sauté for the onion and then did a slow cook for the rest. Turned out great! Added the cream after I got home and all loved. Thanks for the great dinner!
When this says tomato sauce is this like ketchup? Or more like pasata tomato sauce?
More like pasta tomato sauce but it doesn’t have all of the seasonings. It is like tomato soup consistency (without the seasoning )
Unfortunately, I am making it now. I also got the BURN notice a few minutes after it went to full pressure. I am finishing it in a Dutch Oven.
I bought Tikka Masala instead of the Garam Masala, can I substitute the two or will it not come out right? I also have Curry powder and Cumin in my spice drawer.
Yes, you can. Even though tikka masala is a specific dish, it can be used instead of garam masala. You can add it as a combination with other ingredients as well as to the base of a tomato sauce.