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Butter-less Chicken Murgh Makhani

Jim Weber; Inspired by the Instant Pot Recipe https://recipes.instantpot.com/recipe/butter-chicken-murgh-makhani/
This is a "Now and Later" Instant Pot recipe because it makes more sauce than you need. Simply freeze the extra sauce, reprising the dish later by cooking the chicken on top of the already-prepared sauce. Garam masala (Hindi:  गरम मसा ला ; Punjabi:  ਗਰਮ ਮਸਾਲਾ ;  Urdu:  گرم مصالحہ ; Bengali:  গরম মসলা garam ("hot") and masala (a mixture of spices) is a blend of ground spices common in cuisines from the Indian subcontinent. It is used alone or with other seasonings. The word garam refers to "heating the body" in the Ayurvedic sense of the word, as these spices are believed to elevate body temperature in Ayurvedic medicine.
Print Recipe
Course Meat, Fish & Seafood Dishes

Ingredients
  

  • To Cook:
  • (14 oz) can diced tomatoes
  • 0.25 cup chopped okra*
  • 5 cloves garlic
  • 2 teaspoons fresh ginger grated
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
  • 0.25 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon garam masala**
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 pound chicken thighs if frozen, add 2-3 minutes to cooking time
  • To Finish:
  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 0.5 can coconut milk
  • 1 tablespoon garam masala
  • 0.25 cup cilantro, chopped

Instructions
 

  • Place all "To Cook" ingredients in the Instant Pot in the order listed, mixing the sauce well. Place the chicken on top of the sauace. If it's frozen, push it into the sauce a bit so it defrosts better. Close the cooker and select "Manual" and adjust to "High Pressure" cooking for 10 minutes. When time is up, allow for natural pressure release (15 minutes). Remove the chicken carefully from the Instant Pot and set aside. Blend together all the ingredients left in the instant pot, preferably using an immersion blender. Add the "To Finish" ingredients, stirring until well incorporated. It's best to let the sauce cool just a little before adding the oil and milk. Adding it into the boiling sauce will make your sauce very thin. If that happens, just put it in the fridge for a little while to allow it to thicken up. It should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove half the sauce and freeze for later or strore in the fridge up to 3 days. Add the chicken back into the pot and heat through. Break it up into smaller pieces if you need to, but don't shred. Serve over rice, riced cauliflower, or even zucchini noodles.  (Recipe♦228)

Notes

*Okra is a great non-fat/low starch way to thicken soups and stews.**Garam Masala: If you don't have this handy, you can make some by grinding together a mix of black and white peppercorns, cloves, cinnamon or cassia bark, mace or nutmeg, black and green cardamom pods, bay leaf, cumin, and coriander.