Instant Pot Tandoori Chicken

Instant Pot Tandoori Chicken consists of juicy tender chicken on the bones coated with a delicious homemade tandoori marinade. Chicken Tandoori in Instant Pot as tasty as an authentic Tandoori Chicken recipe.

5 from 4 votes

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Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Indian

Keyword: Chicken Tandoori in Instant Pot, Chicken Tandoori without oven, Instant Pot Tandoori Chicken, Pressure Cooker Tandoori Chicken

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 6 minutes

Servings: Chicken leg quarters

Calories: 697kcal

Author: Meghna

Equipment

Instant Pot DUO 6 quart

Ingredients

2 pounds Chicken Leg Quarters skin removed 3 leg quarters / 907.18 grams
3 tbsp Tandoori Masala use any brand, I got mine from Whole Foods.
2 tbsp Paprika or Deggi Mirch or Kashmiri Red Chili Powder you can use any one variety
1 tsp star anise powder or garam masala powder READ NOTES
1 tbsp dry roasted chickpea flour or besan READ NOTES
1.5 tbsp Ginger Garlic Paste
5 + 2 tbsp hung curd or greek yogurt READ NOTES
2 tbsp Extra Virgin Mustard Oil or use olive oil
2 tbsp lime or lemon juice
Salt (to taste)

For Bright Red Color

1 tbsp Organic Beet Root Powder store bought, available on Amazon or homemade

Instructions

Steam the Chicken Leg Quarters

Wash and pat dry the chicken leg quarters very well. There should not be any excess water left.
Massage them well with 2 tbsp yogurt, a few dashes of paprika or deggi mirch powder or kashmiri red chili powder, salt, lemon juice. And set aside.
Pour 1 cup water in the steel insert of the Instant Pot and place the metal trivet inside the steel pot of the Instant Pot.
Gradually place the leg quarters on top of the metal trivet. Close the lid of the Instant Pot and seal the vale. PRESSURE COOK on HIGH for 10 mins.
Once, the cooking cycle is over you'll notice that the Instant Pot will begin to beep. Immediately do a quick pressure release by moving the valve from the sealing to the venting position. Open the lid and carefully remove the metal trivet along with the steamed leg quarters. Set them aside while you prepare the tandoori marinade.

How to make the BEST Chicken Tandoori Marinade at home?

Take a clean and moisture free bowl. Add the yogurt, the mustard oil, ginger garlic paste, the dry spices, salt, lemon juice and beet root powder. Mix all the ingredients very well with the help of a fork or a whisk until well incorporated.
Place the steamed chicken leg quarters one at a time and coat them well with the tandoori marinade on all sides. Do this one by one and gently otherwise the cooked meat will come off the bones. Leave no gaps at all.

How to broil the Instant Pot Chicken Tandoori?

You can broil them either on a cast iron skillet like a lodge skillet or on a baking tray. I used a lodge cast iron skillet to broil the chicken leg quarters.
Spray the skillet with cooking spray or brush a few drops of oil.
Layer the tandoori marinade coated chicken leg quarters on the skillet.
BROIL on HIGH on the top rack of the oven for 7-8 mins or until you get the desired charred look. The broiling time totally depends on ones oven and might vary slightly from oven to oven. So, watch the chicken like a hawk and adjust the time accordingly.
Take out the skillet and serve the Tandoori chicken with onion slices and lemon wedges for a quick appetizer. Add your loved sides to make it into a complete meal. Enjoy!

Video

Notes

Measuring Units used, 1 cup = 240 ml and 1 teaspoon = 5 ml.
How to make start anise powder at home? Skillet roast a few star anise for 1 min over medium heat. Tranfer them to a powerful mixer grinder (Vitamix or an Indian Mixer Griner with stainless steel jars) make a fine smooth powder and store in an air tight jar. Do not use PLASTIC mixer grinder JARS as the plastic will melt with the friction. It happened to me! Star anise needs a powerful grinder.
Want to sub star anise powder? well. use the same amount of GARAM MASALA POWDER in the recipe.
If the Marinade becomes too dry or tight you add a little more greek yogurt or hung yogurt.
Why use roasted chickpea flour or besan? This acts as a binder and helps bind the marinade very well. It also boosts the flavor of the Tandoori Chicken recipe.
How to make roasted chickpea flour or besan? Dry roast the chickpea flour or besan in a skillet over medium heat until it slightly changes color and starts to emit a lovely roasted aroma. Do not leave it unattended, besan burns quickly.
Something about TANDOORI MASALA POWDER - You may use any brand that you prefer however our first choice is the Tandoori Masala Powder from the Whole Foods Market (USA), they have a fresh deck of dry spices available and you can scoop out as much as you want. These spices are repeatedly stocked fresh and taste so much better than the regular shelf stocked spices in jars (they are old and does not get re stocked fast). Our second preference is RAJAH brands Tandoori Masala Powder from any Indian grocery store.
How to make Hung Yogurt? It's way simple than you think. In a muslin cloth hang any regular full fat yogurt for 10-15 mins and use it in the recipe. If you have Greek Yogurt use it in place of Hung Yogurt.
Why use Beet root powder? It gives the recipe a gorgeous, a very appetizing fiery red hue NATURALLY just like the street food varities and your favorite restaurant varities.
You can totally skip using the beet root powder. In that case you'll have a golden yellow colored Tandoori chicken. Do not expect fiery, red color.
If you do not mind using food color you can use them according to your prefernce.
If you prefer SPICY Pressure Cooker Tandoori Chicken do use red chili powder in the recipe according to your preference. I didnot add any!
To keep the Chicken Tandoori moist and juicy for a long time keep the meat lightly covered with a light plate or an aluminum foil once the tandoori chicken is out from the oven.

Calorific details are provided by a third party application and are to be used as indicative figures only.

Nutrition Facts

Instant Pot Tandoori Chicken

Amount Per Serving

Calories 697 Calories from Fat 477

% Daily Value*

Fat 53g82%

Saturated Fat 13g81%

Cholesterol 254mg85%

Sodium 218mg9%

Potassium 717mg20%

Carbohydrates 7g2%

Fiber 2g8%

Sugar 2g2%

Protein 47g94%

Vitamin A 2499IU50%

Vitamin C 5mg6%

Calcium 70mg7%

Iron 3mg17%

* Read our privacy policy - Calorie information is provided as a courtesy only and should be leveraged as an estimate rather than a guarantee.Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutrition