Thai Coconut Chicken Soup (Instant Pot)

2 tablespoons oil
1 small onion, quartered
2 lbs skinless and boneless chicken breast or chicken thighs, cut into cubes
2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste
1 red bell pepper, cut into thick strips
6 slices galangal, optional
6 kaffir lime leaves, torn and bruised, optional
3 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons fish sauce or salt to taste
1 heaping tablespoon sugar
3/4 cup coconut milk
2 1/2 tablespoons lime juice
Cilantro leaves

Turn on the Saute mode on your Instant Pot. Add the onion and saute for 10 seconds before adding the chicken. Saute the chicken until the surface turns white. Add the Thai curry paste, bell peppers, galangal and kaffir lime leaves (if using), stir to mix well. Add the chicken broth, fish sauce and sugar. Cover the pot and select High pressure for 6 minutes.

When it beeps, turn to Quick Release. When the valve drops, remove the lid carefully, add the coconut milk and lime juice to the soup, stir to mix well. Top with cilantro and serve immediately.

If you can’t find galangal and kaffir lime leaves you can use lemongrass and skip the two ingredients. Lemongrass is not a substitute for both galangal and kaffir lime leaves but it will infuse the soup with its unique fragrance and aroma.

Thai Coconut Lentil Chickpea Curry (Instant Pot)

  • 1 Tbsp Coconut Oil
  • 3 Green Onions (chopped; separate white stalks from tops)
  • 2 Tbsp fresh Ginger (grated)
  • 4 cloves Garlic (minced)
  • 1 Tbsp Red Curry Paste (use 2 Tbsp for spicy)
  • 12 Cherry Tomatoes (halved) or 1 15oz can Diced Tomatoes
  • 1 14oz can Reduced Fat Coconut Milk
  • 1 cup dried brown Lentils (rinsed and drained)
  • 1 15oz can Reduced Sodium Chickpeas (rinsed and drained)
  • 1/2 cup Water
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  1. Add COCONUT OIL to instant pot insert; press sauté button; allow oil to heat.
  2. Add GREEN ONIONS (white stalks), GINGER, and GARLIC; sauté (and stir) a few minutes until slightly tender; add CURRY PASTE and TOMATOES; sauté a few more minutes until fragrant, stirring frequently.
  3. Press “cancel” to stop sauté cycle; add COCONUT MILK, LENTILS, CHICKPEAS, WATER, and SALT; close and lock lid, turn steam knob to “sealing” position.
  4. Press Manual > High Pressure, and set timer for + 6.
  5. When cycle ends, allow to sit, untouched, for 5 min (this is known as “natural pressure release”).
  6. Then, using an absorbent towel, cover steam knob and turn to “venting” position to release all steam.
  7. When steam is fully released, unlock and remove lid (IP defaults to “keep warm”); serve warm over rice.
  8. Garnish with: cilantro, sliced green onion (tops), and/or lime.

Instant Pot Chickpeas

1 C. dry Chickpeas/Garbanzo Beans
4 C. Water
3-4 cloves Garlic
2 Bay Leaves

  1. Rinse the chickpeas, and add to the Instant Pot.
  2. Add water, garlic and bay leaves.
  3. Place the top on the Instant Pot – close the valve, and set the Instant Pot to beans for 35 minutes.
  4. The pot will take time to come to pressure – once the 35 minutes of cook time is done, the pot will beep.
  5. Allow the pressure to come down naturally for 10-15 minutes, then open the pot.

 

Instant Pot Curried Coconut Lentils

  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tablespoon ginger paste
  • 1 tablespoon curry powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 3/4 cup dried red split lentils
  • 1 13.5- ounce can unsweetened full fat coconut milk
  • 1 1/4 – 1 1/2 cups water
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1 14.5- ounce can crushed tomatoes
  1. Press sauté on the front of your 6-quart Instant Pot. In the insert, add the onion, garlic, ginger paste, curry powder, crushed red pepper flakes, lentils, coconut milk, water, salt, and pepper. Stir to mix then let it come up to a simmer then press cancel. Immediately add the can of crushed tomatoes LAST and on top of everything else and do not stir it in. Pressure cookers seem to not like tomatoes for some reason and you will often times get a BURN notice. If you don’t stir the tomatoes in and just let it sit on top, you should be fine.

  2. Close the lid of the pressure cooker and make sure that the vent is set to sealing.

  3. Using the manual function, use high pressure and set the cook time to 15 minutes.

  4. Once the soup has finished cooking, let sit for 15 minutes before you quick release the pressure. You can choose to either quick release it or let it naturally release, depending on how hungry you are or when dinner is!

  5. Divide evenly into bowls and garnish with parsley or cilantro on top.

RECIPE NOTES

Many have mentioned that they get the BURN notice with lentils in pressure cookers. By bringing the mixture up to a simmer, in step 1, prior to closing the lid helps the pressure cooker heat up so it doesn’t have to do as much “heat up work” during the “come to pressure” process. So helping it out before throwing the lid on should help with the burn message.

After about 15 minutes, my lentils were more on the ‘mushy’ side. If you don’t like your lentils like that, I would reduce the cook time to 12 minutes.

Baked Beans (Instant Pot)

Soak Navy Beans

  • 1 pound (454g) dried navy beans(soaked overnight for at least 8 – 16 hours, 889g after soaked)
  • 1 ½ tablespoon (25g) fine table salt
  • 6 cups (1.5L) cold water

Baked Beans Sauce & Aromatics

  • 6 strips (242g) thick cut bacon, roughly diced
  • 1 (159g) small onion, roughly diced
  • 2 (6g) garlic cloves, roughly chopped
  • 1 ¾ cup (438ml) cold water
  • ¼ cup (80g) blackstrap molasses
  • ¼ cup (60g) maple syrup
  • 1 tablespoon (15ml) light soy sauce (not low sodium soy sauce)
  • ¼ teaspoon fine table salt
  • bay leaves
  • Ground black pepper to taste
  • 2 teaspoons (12g) dijon mustard
  • 1 teaspoon (5ml) apple cider vinegar
  1. Overnight Soaking Method: Place 1 lb (454g) dried navy beans and 1 ½ tbsp (25g) fine table salt in a large container. Pour 6 cups (1.5L) cold water in the large container and give it a few stir. Allow beans to soak overnight for at least 8 – 16 hours. If your house is very warm, place the large container in the fridge to avoid fermentation.Quick Soaking Method: If you’re short on time or forgot to soak the beans overnight, you can use this quick soaking method instead. The result will not be as good as the overnight soaking method. Place 1 pound (454g) dried navy beans, 1.5 tbsp (25g) fine table salt, and 6 cups (1.5L) cold water in the pressure cooker. Close lid and pressure cook at High Pressure for 0 minute + 30 minutes Natural Release.

  2. Drain Beans: Discard the soaked water and drain the navy beans through a mesh strainer. Rinse the beans with cold tap water. Drain well. The soaked beans should almost double in weight.
  3. Render Bacon: Place chopped bacon in Pressure Cooker and turn heat to medium (Instant Pot: press Sauté button). Stir occasionally and allow the bacon bits to crisp (~3 mins). Add in diced onion, freshly ground black pepper and sauté for a minute. Add in chopped garlic cloves and sauté until fragrant (~30 seconds).
  4. Create Molasses Mixture: While the bacon is rendering in pressure cooker, combine ¼ cup (80g) blackstrap molasses, ¼ cup (60g) maple syrup, 1 tbsp (15ml) light soy sauce, and 1 ¾ cup (438) cold water in a 1L (4 cups) glass measuring cup. Mix well.
  5. Deglaze: Pour ½ cup (125ml) of the molasses mixture in the Instant Pot. Deglaze by scrubbing all the flavorful brown bits off the bottom of the pan and mix them into the mixture.
  6. Pressure Cook Navy Beans: Add ¼ tsp fine table salt, 2 bay leaves, soaked navy beans (889g) and the remaining molasses mixture in the pressure cooker. Mix well and make sure all the beans are submerged in the molasses mixture. Close lid and pressure cook at High Pressure for 20 minutes + 20 minutes Natural Release. After 20 minutes, turn the venting knob to venting position to release the remaining pressure. Open the lid carefully.*Important Tip: The pressure cooking time may vary depending on many factors such as the age of beans. If your beans are not fully cooked, simply add pressure cooking time accordingly. For reference, some readers reported their beans need to pressure cook for an extra 15 – 25 mins.

  7. Season and Thicken Baked Beans: Add 2 tsp (12g) dijon mustard, and 1 tsp (5ml) apple cider vinegar into the cooked baked beans. Mix well. Turn heat to medium (Instant Pot: press Sauté button) and stir to thicken the baked beans to desired consistency. Taste and adjust the seasoning by adding more blackstrap molasses, salt, or vinegar if necessary. For reference, we added in another tbsp of blackstrap molasses.

Carnitas (Instant Pot)

  • 3-4 pounds pork shoulder bone-in
  • 2 tablespoon cumin
  • 2 tablespoon oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon chipotle powder
  • 1 tablespoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 tablespoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 yellow onion diced
  • 10 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 cup vegetable stock
  • 2 bay leaves
  • Corn tortillas for serving
  • Radishes sliced, for serving
  • Pico de Gallo for serving
  • cilantro chopped, for serving
  • Lime wedges for serving
  1. Combine spices to make a dry rub, and pat over the pork shoulder.
  2. Set Instant Pot to “Saute”, and sear all sides of the shoulder until browned.
  3. Add soy sauce, onion, garlic, bay leaves, and vegetable stock, and close the lid. Cook on Manual at High Pressure for 90 minutes.
  4. Release steam, and remove lid. Lift pork shoulder onto a plate, remove the bone, and shred meat with two forks.
  5. Serve hot with your favourite fixing like radishes, cilantro, pico de gallo, and freshly squeezed lime juice. Enjoy!

Matar Paneer (Peas and Paneer) (Instant Pot)

  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 1.5 cups finely chopped onions
  • 1 tbsp minced ginger
  • 1 tbsp minced Garlic
  • 1 cup finely chopped tomatoes
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon Garam masala
  • 1 teaspoon cayenne
  • 1/2 -1 teaspoon salt
For Finishing
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 12 oz peas
  • 1 cup chopped paneer or firm tofu if dairy-free
  • 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream Or full-fat coconut milk
  • 1/4 cup Cilantro or parlsey
  1. For this recipe, the most important thing is to mince the onions and tomatoes relatively finely. You don’t want to purée them, but you don’t want large chunks. I used my Kuhn Rikon Pull chopper to get small, even pieces.
  2. Add all the ingredients listed under Pressure cooking to the inner liner of your Instant Pot and mix well.
  3. Cook at high pressure for 5 minutes, and allow it to rest undisturbed for 5 minutes. Then release all remaining pressure.
  4. Turn your pot on Sauté. Add remaining 1/2 cup of water now. (Please read the post to understand why the two stage water additions).

  5. Add the remaining ingredients and allow them to heat through, stirring occasionally, for about 5-8 minutes.

Paneer (Instant Pot)

  • 1 quart half and half
  • 1/4 cup white vinegar
  1. Pour half and half and vinegar into the Instant pot and cook at low pressure for 4 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes. Release remaining pressure.
  2. When you open the pot, the milk will have separated into curds and a watery whey. Stir this well.
  3. Pour the mixture through cheesecloth (saving the whey for other uses).
  4. Gather up the cheesecloth and put a heavy weight on it to let the whey drain and for the paneer to form a cohesive block or ball.
  5. Form a nice square block and weighted it down with a can of beans to help the whey drain.

 

Chicken and Rice (Instant Pot)

  • 1 whole split chicken (3-4 lbs. total)
  • 2 Tbsp (approx.) seasoning blend of choice
  • 2 cups water
  • 1.5 cups long grain white rice
  • Handful parsley (optional)
  1. Season the chicken well on both sides with your favorite spice or seasoning blend. If your sblend blend does not contain salt, season the chicken liberally with salt as well.
  2. Add two cups of water to your pressure cooker or slow cooker, then add the chicken pieces (they do not need to be fully submerged).
  3. Secure the lid, set the pressure cooker to high pressure. Once it reaches full pressure, cook for 30 minutes. Allow the pressure to release naturally. If using a slow cooker, cook on low heat for 8-9 hours or high heat for 4-5 hours.
  4. Once the chicken is finished cooking, carefully lift it out of the cooker and place it on a baking sheet. Adjust your oven rack so that the top of the meat will be 6-8 inches from the broiler. Turn the broiler on to high, place the chicken in the oven, and let it broil for 5-7 minutes or until the chicken skin is brown and crispy. Keep a close eye on the chicken while it’s under the broiler, as it can burn quickly.
  5. While the chicken is broiling, pour the remaining liquid (broth) from the pressure cooker through a sieve to strain out any bone or skin fragments. Measure the broth to see how much was left behind. You’ll want three cups of broth. If you have less, simply add enough water to make three cups of broth total. Taste the broth and adjust the salt if needed.
  6. Add the broth plus 1.5 cups of uncooked long grain white rice back to the pressure cooker. Secure the lid and select the rice function. Once the rice had finished cooking, allow the pressure to decrease naturally, open the cooker, then fluff with a fork. If your pressure cooker does not have a “rice” function, you can find manual instructions here. If using a slow cooker, simply cook the rice in the broth on the stove top, following the package instructions.
  7. Serve the tender chicken pieces over the cooked rice, with chopped parsley as a garnish (optional). The pressure cooker (or slow cooker) creates extremely tender meat, so the split chicken can be easily broken into pieces (breast, legs, thighs, wings) for serving.

Sweet Potato Chicken Curry (Instant Pot)

  • 2 tsp. ghee or coconut oil
  • 1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 lb chicken breast, cubed
  • 1 sweet potato, cubed (~2 cups)
  • 1 red pepper, sliced or diced
  • 2 cups green beans, trimmed
  • 2/3 cup chicken broth
  • 3 Tbsp. curry powder
  • 1 tsp. cumin
  • 1 tsp. ground turmeric
  • ½ tsp. cayenne
  • 1/2 tsp. sea salt
  • 1 can (14 oz.) full fat coconut milk
  1. Set your instant pot to the saute setting. Add the ghee, onion, and garlic and saute until onions are translucent.
  2. Then turn to manual setting and set temp to high. Add the chicken, sweet potatoes, red pepper, green beans, broth, curry, cumin, turmeric, cayenne and sea salt. Seal the instant pot and set time for 12 minutes.
  3. Once time is up, release the pressure by switching from seal to vent. Once pressure is released, remove lid and turn Instant Pot to saute setting. Stir in the coconut milk and let cook for an additional 2-3 minute or until soup is hot. For a thicker curry, whisk together 1 tbsp. arrowroot with 2 Tbsp. of water. Stir into curry.
  4. Meanwhile, saute cauliflower rice in a skillet on medium heat with 1-2 tsp. of ghee. Saute until warm and cooked through. Length of time to saute cauliflower rice will depend on if it is in a fresh or frozen state.
  5. Serve over cauliflower rice and top with cashews and fresh cilantro

NOTES

**For a thicker curry – mix together 2 Tbsp. of water with 1 Tbsp. tapioca starch. While instant pot is on the saute setting, stir into curry after the coconut milk is heated through and let set for a few minutes to thicken.