Thai Instant Pot Beef Massaman Curry
An amazingly tasty Thai Style Massaman Beef Curry made in the Instant Pot. Quick, easy and delicious!
Servings 4 serves
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cup coconut milk
- 1 ½ lb beef chuck cut into 2-inch cubes
- 4-6 Tbsp massaman curry paste store bought, homemade or “semi homemade” as per recipe
- 3 Tbsp palm sugar chopped
- ¼ cup roasted peanuts
- 2-3 Tbsp tamarind juice
- 1 medium potato ~300g, cut into big chunks
- 2-3 Tbsp fish sauce
- Half a large onion cut into 1/2-inch strips
- Jasmine rice for serving
- Easy Semi-Homemade Massaman Curry Paste:
- 1 tsp toasted coriander seeds or ground
- 50 g store bought red curry paste see note
- 1 tsp toasted cumin seeds or ground
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom or 2 whole pieces
- Optional: 1 tsp fermented shrimp paste gapi, only if your paste doesn’t already contain it
Instructions
- For the curry paste:
- Using a mortar and pestle or a coffee grinder, grind all whole spices into a powder.
- Combine curry paste, ground spices, and, if using, fermented shrimp paste in a mixing bowl.
- For the curry:
- Add just enough oil to coat the bottom of a large skillet and heat over medium high heat until hot. Sear the beef in one layer, without crowding the pan, until the bottom is well browned. Brown the other side of the beef. Keep an eye on the heat and make sure the browned bits on the pan don't burn. Turn off the heat and remove the beef from the pan.
- Set the pan to medium heat, add just enough water to coat the bottom, and scrape all the browned bits into the water. Keep the pan juice for extra flavor. Note: If you've burned the stuff that's stuck to the pan, don't deglaze it; just throw it out.
- On medium heat on sauté mode, add ½ cup coconut milk and bring to a boil.
- Stir in the curry paste until well combined. Reduce the heat to low and continue to stir the mixture until it is very thick or the coconut oil separates from the paste. This may not happen if you use canned coconut milk.
- Stir in the remaining coconut milk. Add the seared beef, deglazed pan juice, 2 tablespoons fish sauce, palm sugar, and tamarind. Mix thoroughly.
- Close the Instant Pot and set it to "Pressure Cook" mode for 30 minutes on high pressure.
- When the timer goes off, place a cold wet towel on top of the metal part of the lid and leave it for at least 10 minutes, or until the pressure valve drops. Please keep in mind that if you make more than this recipe, your cool down time will be longer.
- Always press the quick release button before opening the lid to ensure that any remaining pressure is released. This is especially important if the valve has not fallen back down, as this indicates that there is still pressure inside that must be released before the valve can be opened.
- Open the Instant Pot and pierce the beef with a fork—it should easily pass through.
- Add the potato, onions, and peanuts and cook for 10-15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.
- Season with additional fish sauce or tamarind as desired and serve with jasmine rice.