Moist and tender chunks of lamb in a spicy rich curry sauce, all made easy in the Instant Pot. Make this Instant Pot Indian Lamb Curry at home faster than you can order a take out from your favorite Indian restaurant. Whole30 and Paleo friendly.
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Mutton curry is what is more popular in most of India than lamb curry. I do buy mutton from our local Pakistani store sometimes but it is quite a lot in one package and it frozen.
So, I would rather compromise on the authenticity of mutton vs lamb and get good quality organic lamb cubes for stew and use those in a curry, which is what I have done in this Instant Pot Indian Lamb Curry.
I am also trying to get the husband to follow a Whole30 kinda diet for a month or so. He is already trying to watch carb intake and is mostly out of sugar.
So, I figured it will be a whole lot easier for me to take some help from the Instant Pot to make a lot of Whole30 compliant dishes for him, like this Indian Lamb Curry.
Is Indian Lamb Curry made in a pressure cooker traditionally?
Well, there are many recipes, where traditionally the curry is slow cooked so the meat gets really tender and absorbs all the flavors. Pressure cookers became an integral part of cooking in Indian kitchens later on.
They were then used to speed up the slow cooking process while getting the same results as with slow cooking. Chicken curries, mutton curries, dal, rice are all common dishes made in a pressure cooker.
And now, with the Instant Pot being a very common cooking medium in the kitchens these days, this is my version of an Indian Lamb Curry in an Instant Pot, cooked the pressure cooker way.
Can this lamb curry be made with coconut milk or yogurt added to it?
Yes, of course. The coconut milk or yogurt will temper down the spices a little, if you are new to trying out spicy curries and will also make it creamier. But, we love the curry without any yogurt or coconut milk added to it.
Do keep in mind that yogurt is not Whole30 approved, so you may want to stay away from that if you are making this curry when following the Whole30 diet.
How to make the lamb curry in the Instant Pot?
Making the Indian Lamb Curry in the Instant Pot is as easy as 1.2.3. steps.
- Start with browning the onion, along with ginger, garlic and whole spices in the Instant Pot in sauté mode. Add the lamb cubes and sear the meat to seal in the juices.
- Now add the spice powders - turmeric, coriander, meat masala / curry masala powder. Add a little water, to deglaze the pot. Add tomatoes.
- Set to 30 mins on High Pressure. Wait for pressure to release naturally. Open up and simmer on sauté for a few more minutes, if it is a little too liquid-y for your taste. The water released will depend on the kind of meat you buy.
- Garnish with cilantro.
What to serve the Indian lamb curry with?
You can serve it with basmati rice or naan or rotis or even regular bread or dinner rolls. If you are doing a Whole30 diet, then it is best to enjoy this as a stew with a side of salad.
Love cooking quick and easy in the Instant Pot? You have got to try these recipes
- Instant Pot Masala Turkey Chili
- Instant Pot Vegetarian Butternut Squash Chili
- Instant Pot Broccoli Cheddar Soup
📖 Recipe
Instant Pot Indian Lamb Curry
Ingredients
- 1 lb lamb meat for stew
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil
- 1 green cardamom
- ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1 inch cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
- 1 bayleaf
- 1 red onion chopped
- 3 cloves garlic smashed
- ½ teaspoon grated ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 tablespoon meat masala / curry masala powder
- 1 medium tomato chopped
- salt to taste
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro for garnish
Don't forget to check out Step-by-step instructions with photos in the body of the post above
Instructions
- Roughly crush the cinnamon, cardamom, black peppercorns and fennel seeds with a mortar and pestle and keep aside.
- Set the Instant Pot to SAUTE mode. Once it turns HOT, pour the oil into the pot liner. Add the crushed spices, onion, garlic and ginger. Saute till the onion softens and starts browning.
- Move around the onion mix to make space for the meat and add the lamb cubes to the Instant Pot. Make sure most all of them are touching the bottom of the pan, so get a nice sear. After a couple of minutes, slowly turn the pieces so the other side of the meat can sear as well.
- Once done, add a little water, about ¼ cup and deglaze the pot. This is to make sure that the burnt bottom does not get even more burnt while pressure cooking is in progress or it will give a BURN notice on the Instant Pot.
- Add the tomatoes, salt, turmeric powder, coriander powder and meat masala powder. Mix well.
- Hit CANCEL / KEEP WARM button to get off SAUTE mode.
- Set to MANUAL / PRESSURE COOK mode and adjust the time to 30 mins. Close the lid and seal the Instant Pot.
- Once the pressure cooking is done, wait for the pressure to be released naturally. Watch for the little silver button next to the seal to go down. Move the seal knob to release and slowly open the Instant Pot.
- The curry may seem a little watery, give it a quick mix to get all the onion mixture and meat to combine. If it still looks watery or you want it thicker, you can add some coconut milk or cook it in SAUTE mode for a few more minutes.
- Garnish with cilantro and serve hot.
Notes
Nutrition
Barbara says
Delicious. I added 1.5 c. Lentils, chopped carrot, 1/4 c water. Served over jasmine rice.
Manju says
Sounds like very filling curry that you made out of this. Delicious 🙂
Peggy says
Made this tonight with lamb loin chops. Delicious!! I used two Thai bird peppers and got a really nice heat. We served it over basmati rice, a sprinkle of chopped cilantro and a dollop of sour cream. Perfect.
Manju says
That sounds like a delicious meal, Peggy 🙂
GD says
Very good curry. Nice heat level.
Manju says
Thank you.
Manpreet Garcha says
Recipe is delish. I love it so much that I want to make combined with saag. Do you know how I can make it like lamb saag can I just add spinach leaves ?
Manju says
Thank you. You can add finely chopped spinach once you open the Instant Pot and let it saute for a few minutes till the spinach wilts and combines with the rest of the curry.
Katherine Barry says
Made this last night and it was absolutely delicious. Looking forward to another feed of it tonight. I added some broccoli and green beans and a little extra water because of the vegetables. I also added Spinach at the end. Other thing was a small amount of sugar (less than half a teaspoon) to counteract the acidity of the tomato. Recipe is now permanently saved for future reference. Thank you for sharing.
Manju says
Thank you Katherine. So glad you loved it. The sugar for balancing the acidity is a great tip. Thanks for sharing that with us.
Sumaiya says
This turned out delicious! So soft and tender. I had this with saag paneer and basmati rice. Will make this again!
Manju says
Thank you for sharing that with me. I am so glad you loved it. This is a favorite at home and with friends and neighbors 🙂
Reese says
This sounds amazing! Any ideas for how to make it in a regular crockpot?
Manju says
I think you can try making it in the crockpot. Follow the instructions for the searing of the meat, then add the rest of the ingredients as for the Instant Pot and let it cook. I am not sure how much time it will take. But try it and do let me know if it works. Good luck! I am excited to hear back from you.
Adilah says
I made this last night with lamb loin chops and added a cup of toor dal. It was so delicious! Thank you so much for sharing your recipe. I will be making this again.
Manju says
Thank you for letting me know! SO glad you loved it. And toor dal in is such a wonderful idea!
Chris says
Absolutely my favorite Indian recipe I've ever tried! You definitely knocked this one out of the park 🙂
I followed the basic recipe to a T (the seasonings are PERFECT!), but only had ground lamb on hand which worked out deliciously. Also added lamb bone broth, which I had previously frozen, and green papaya. Adjusted cooking time to 20 minutes on low pressure (didn't see high or low pressure specified in the recipe, so I guessed and it came out fine). I did include some coconut milk, but ended up adding a little organic potato starch in water to thicken it a bit more; served over turmeric (jasmine) rice. I was considering adding some baby bok choy and shiritaki mushrooms next time - but maybe that would mess up the authenticity of the dish?
Manju says
I love how you worked it and added your own touch to this delicious dish. I would totally go for the bok choy and shiitake mushrooms (after sautéing them prior to adding to the curry). Authenticity is one, making it delicious and more nutritious is another, I would never worry about giving up on the first for the second 🙂
Leslie Moore says
Hello, I'm making this lamb curry for the first time on Easter Sunday,for my family. Can you please advise me? When I double the quantities,should I double the amount of water? Or would that be too much
Thankyou in advance
Manju says
I believe that would be a little too much. I would add just a little bit more water not double.
Megan says
I followed your recipe exactly, and made of the most delicious curries I have ever tasted! Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipes. I plan on making this particular one over and over again!
Manju says
Thank you so much. SO glad you loved it!
Chris says
LOVE this recipe! Made it for a church potluck and everyone was asking for the recipe 🙂 Its absolutely delicious.
rani says
My boyfriend loved this recipe. Only thing I'll add next time is chili!
Harsha says
I made this recipe yesterday and although I followed the instructions closely, I kept getting BURN FOOD warning as soon as it started the pressure cooking cycle. I kept adding water and deglazing the bottom of the pot and after 3 times, I finally managed to get the pressure cycle. Once completed, I set the saute low setting to get rid of water but I must admit the spring lamb turned out chewy - not sure where I went wrong!
Manju says
Oh my goodness! I am so sorry how that all happened. The burn notice has never happened to me whenever I have made this recipe. You seem to have done all the right things to make that go away but I can understand how that would have made the lamb chewy in the end. The one thing I may do differently is to just let it all cool down a little, after you've made sure that there is nothing burnt at the bottom. Sometimes a very hot inner pot may also give this warning.
Sharon says
I had bought a 2 1/2 lb lamb roast and decided to cut it up into stew meat for this recipe. Since I’m more of a Jack Sprat person (Jack Sprat could eat no fat, his wife could eat no lean, and so between them they licked the platter clean). Sorry, I couldn’t resist a bit of nursery rhyme from my childhood. Anyway, after my painstaking removal of any sign of fat, I probably wound up with 2 lbs. of lamb. During the Instant Pot pressure cooking j kept everything the same in your recipe with the exception that I added 1 cup of water rather than 1/2 a cup. Once it finished the pressure cooking and cooled down normally, I opened the pot and added I can of drained chickpeas, 1 lb. of frozen chopped spinach, and 1/2 cup of dark seedless raisins. The raisins added a nice bit of sweetness to the superb combination of spices. My husband is not a big fan of “hot” spicy dishes, therefore, the chick peas, spinach, and raisins made this dish perfect for his palate. He is not one to give compliments, so I have to probe to see if he liked my dish. I can honestly say that he did “lick the plate clean”. Thanks so much for such a wonderful, tasty recipe. I felt it was better than many dishes we have eaten in various Indian restaurants.
Manju says
That addition of raisin sounds good, I can imagine how the little bit of sweetness will round up the flavors. I am glad you enjoyed the recipe.