I like to gather all the ingredients to one place, before I start cooking. Especially when I am cooking Indian food, which involves a lot of spices and herbs. I also like to pre-mix all the dry spices I am going to be using. That way you will not need to add all the spices separately. Remember that you will need to fry the spices in oil, so having all of them bunched up in a small container makes it much easier to cook. If you are adding any other vegetables, prep them at this time. I used potatoes, carrots and frozen peas.
In a small cup add all the dry spices: turmeric, cumin powder, garam masala, chili powder, coriander powder and salt. CUMIN SEEDS do not go into this cup. Mix the above ingredients and set aside.
Chop the onion in the chopper, cut up the chicken in small bite size pieces. If you are using a whole chicken, cut it up in smaller pieces.
This next step can be done in the Instant Pot, SAUTE function set to 30 minutes. It takes a little longer for my taste. So, I like to fry everything up in a separate skillet and dump everything in the IP once I am done frying.
Place the skillet on the stove, add the oils and add the 1 tsp cumin seeds right away. Set the heat to MEDIUM high and wait for cumin seeds to start slightly crackling. This is an indication that the oil is hot enough to cook the rest of the ingredients. immediately add the chopped onion and saute until translucent (takes about 2 minutes). Add minced ginger and chopped garlic. Saute for 1-2 minutes.
Add a cup of dried spices and the bay leaf, which you’ve prepared earlier. Saute the spices along with the onion mixture, until the mixture is on a drier side (2 minutes). This process infuses the spices and makes your dish delicious. INCREASE the heat to HIGH and add the chicken into the pot. Saute everything together until chicken is no longer pink (5-6 minutes).
Add all the vegetables at this point and follow it up with 3 TBSP of crushed tomatoes. Keep on stirring everything together until tomatoes slightly cook down.
Add 1 cup of water, 3 TBSP of whisked yogurt and the fenugreek leaves. I buy my leaves from a local Indian store. They are frozen and I use a little bit every time I need them. The rest of the leaves go right back into the freezer.
Place the ready mixture into the Instant Pot. If you feel like the mixture is on the drier side, thin it out with a little more water. Make sure that the water does not cover the entire stew. 1/2 cup of water goes a long way.
Close the lid of the Pot, CLOSE the vent and set it to MANUAL mode, HIGH pressure and set the time to 10-15 minutes. Mine cooked in 10 minutes. With all the sautéing done prior, it shouldn’t take any longer.
Once the time is up, let the IP (Instant Pot) QUICK RELEASE. Once the steam is out, your chicken is ready to serve. Garnish with cilantro and serve with a side of carbs, be it rice or other vegetables of your choice.