Mughlai lamb curry is a delicious lamb curry that originates from the royal kitchens of India. Make it with minimal effort in the Instant Pot.
Many Indian dishes are synonymous with the food of the Mughals, who were the rulers of most of India in the 16th century. Their reign brought with it dishes such as korma and biryanis. This Mughlai lamb curry is one such dish inspired from the royal kitchens of the Mughals.
Traditionally, the lamb pieces are marinated in a yogurt and spice-based marinade, and then slow-cooked with onions, tomatoes and garam masala. This dish is traditionally slow-cooked on the stove top, but I have a quicker version that saves us a lot of time, using the Instant Pot.
I default to the pressure cooker whenever I’m cooking a meat-based curry, because of the convenience – the time taken for cooking the meat is cut down significantly, and the meat is always rendered tender and delicious!
I have anothe lamb curry recipe on the blog, lamb bhuna, which has a thicker gravy, that literally clings to the meat pieces. While the lamb bhuna makes use of boneless meat pieces, the mughlai lamb curry makes use of bone-in pieces.
Step-by-step instructions for making Mughlai lamb curry in the Instant Pot:
An hour before you begin to cook, prepare the marinade. In a small bowl, mix together ginger-garlic paste (or minced ginger and garlic), yogurt, turmeric, Kashmiri chili powder and salt and marinate the lamb with this mixture. Keep the marinated lamb in the fridge for at least 1 hour up-to 8 hours.
- Turn on the Instant Pot, in the Sauté mode. Sauté the onions in oil or ghee, until translucent
- Add sliced tomatoes and sauté for 5 minutes
- Add the cumin powder and fennel powder and stir together untill the tomatoes soften.
- Add the marinated lamb and mix well to combine all the ingredients.
- Add 1/2 cup tomato puree followed by 1/3 cup water and make sure to deglaze the pan, picking up any bits of residue that may have stuck to the bottom of the pot.
- Close the lid of the IP and turn the vent to ‘Sealing’ position. Pressure cook on ‘High Pressure’ for 15 minutes and let the steam release naturally.
- Once the valve comes down, open the lid, add the garam masala and stir.
- Switch to Sauté mode and simmer for 5 minutes until the gravy has thickened slightly.
- Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and slivers of ginger. Serve with rice or flatbreads (naans or rotis).
Tips for making mughlai lamb curry in the Instant Pot:
Nearly all curries mature with flavour, so if you are cooking for a party, try making the curry a day ahead in advance and refrigerating it for later.
Kashmiri chilli powder is ideal for most recipes that call for chilli powder. It has a vibrant red colour, but adds a very mild heat. Paprika would be a close substitute if you are unable to find Kashmiri red chili powder anywhere.
Garam Masala can be store bought or made at home. Making small batches of your own spice blend at home is way better than buying a mix from the store. This is my recipe for garam masala: In a pan on the stove-top, heat the following spices: ½ cup fennel seeds, 5-6 cardamoms, 6-7 cloves, a 2-inch piece cinnamon, 2-3 pieces of mace. Once the spices are heated and begin releasing their aromas, grind them in a high-power blender, or coffee grinder. Store the ground spice mix in an air-tight jar and use as needed.
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Instant Pot Mughlai Lamb Curry
Ingredients
- 1.7 lb lamb (or 770 grams) use bone-in lamb cuts
- 2 teaspoons vegetable oil or ghee
- 2 medium red onions diced
- 2 medium tomatoes sliced
- 1 teaspoon cumin or jeera powder
- 1.5 teaspoon fennel
- ½ cup tomato puree
- 1.5 teaspoons garam masala see notes on making your own garam masala
For the marinade:
- 2 tablespoons ginger-garlic paste or use 2 tablespoons minced ginger and garlic
- ½ cup yogurt
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 2 teaspoons Kashmiri Chili powder you can use paprika as a substitute
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Wash the lamb and pat dry.
- In a small bowl, mix together the ginger-garlic paste, yogurt, turmeric, Kashmiri chili powder, and salt and use this mixture to marinate the lamb. Keep the marinated lamb in the fridge for 1 hour at least.
- Turn on the Instant Pot in Sauté mode.
- Add the ghee or vegetable oil along with the onions, and sauté until the onions are translucent. This should take 5-6 minutes.
- Add the sliced tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add the cumin powder and fennel powder and stir for a minute.
- Add the marinated lamb and mix well to combine all the ingredients.
- Add the tomato puree followed by 1/3 cup water and make sure to deglaze the pan, picking up any bits of residue that may have stuck to the bottom of the pot. Not deglazing the pot can lead to a burn error.
- Close lid of the IP and turn the vent to ‘Sealing’ position. Pressure cook at 15 minutes and let the steam release naturally.
- Once the valve comes down, open the lid, add the garam masala and stir.
- Switch to Sauté mode and simmer for 5 minutes until the gravy has thickened slightly.
- Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and slivers of ginger.
- Serve along with rice.
Notes
Nutrition
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That's a beautiful curry and I love the simplicity of it too. I am definitely going to try this.
Glad you liked it Kankana! Thank you, I'd love to hear from you if you try it