Easy Weeknight Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe

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Easy Weeknight Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe | Cobalt Chronicles

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*Recipe easily feeds two people with leftovers.

Michael and I cook dinner at home most nights during the week. Usually, I try to share what we’re cooking on Instagram Stories. After receiving feedback on Stories, I decided to start documenting some of our go-to recipes. I usually make a “menu” for the week prior to grocery shopping (I usually grocery shop on Monday morning). I put the menu on our fridge for easy access throughout the week.

One of our go-to recipes is Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala. If you don’t have an Instant Pot, you can easily make this recipe on your stove top, it will just take a bit longer to cook the chicken, and you’ll have to watch it. One of the best things about the Instant Pot is that you can set it (for 20 or so minutes) and forget it.

Without further ado, here’s my easy weeknight Chicken Tikka Masala recipe.

Easy Weeknight Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe

Ingredients

  • Chicken Breasts (2 Large)

  • 1 Jar Tikka Masala Sauce (I use Trader Joe’s)

  • I Jar Red Curry Sauce (I use Trader Joe’s)

  • ½ cup Greek Yogurt (I use 0% fat)

  • 1 can Coconut Milk

  • ½ Purple Onion chopped

  • Crushed Red Pepper

  • Fresh Cilantro

  • 1 Lime

  • Salt & Pepper to taste

  • White Rice, Brown Rice, or Cauliflower Rice

  • Naan (I like Trader Joe’s)

Directions

  • If you have time, put the raw chicken breasts, Greek yogurt, tikka masala, and curry sauce in a silicone bag (ziplock bag if you haven’t made the switch yet) and let it marinate for up to a day. If I remember, I’ll do this step, usually just for 30 minutes or for however long I have before starting to cook dinner. If you’re in a rush, no worries, throw all of this in the Instant Pot.
  • Once the chicken with the masala, curry, and yogurt are in the Instant Pot, use kitchen scissors to cut the chicken breasts into bite size pieces.
  • Set the Instant Pot to “Pressure Cook” for 20 minutes (make sure the Instant Pot vent/tab on the lid is set to sealed).
  • Cook for 20 minutes. Chicken will be tender.
  • Start cooking your rice in a separate pot (for white and brown rice)/pan (for cauliflower rice) at this time so that it’s ready around the same time as your chicken.
    *For cauliflower rice, I like the frozen option at Trader Joe’s. Drizzle olive oil in a skillet, place cauliflower rice in, add additional olive oil drizzle and salt and pepper. Stir occasionally. Eventually, it will start to crisp up and turn brown – about 10-15 minutes. You’ll want to cook until it starts to crisp, otherwise it will be mushy.
  • Vent the Instant Pot. After venting is complete, remove the Instant Pot lid.
  • Set the Instant Pot to “Sauté” and add onion, coconut milk, and crushed red pepper.
  • If needed, add more tikka masala sauce. The thickness of the sauce will depend on the type of masala and curry sauces and coconut milk that you use. I’ve had both super thick sauce and super thin almost broth-like sauce, both are delicious so don’t fret!
  • Allow to simmer for at least 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking on the bottom.
  • Set oven to 350 degrees. Once pre-heated, pop the naan in (I put slices directly on the racks) for 3-5 minutes, just to warm up and crisp a bit.
  • For serving, place rice in a bowl, top with chicken tikka masala. Add cilantro and lime juice to finish. Slice naan to serve on the side.
  • That’s it! Enjoy!

Questions?! Leave a comment below!

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