Chicken Curry Soup is an Indian curry-flavored creamy chicken soup that’s going to have everyone going back for seconds. Serve this curried chicken soup with crusty bread or over rice. If you’re a fan of chicken mulligatawny soup, this soup is very similar. [Instant Pot and Stovetop instructions included.]
[This post was completely updated in March 2021 with clear instructions and new images.]
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Table of Contents
Introduction
This is one of my favorite soups. This chicken curry soup is going to be a part of your regular meal rotation if you like the flavor of curry and are looking for a hearty and satisfying curry soup recipe.
This curry chicken soup recipe contains an ingredient that I don’t use very often: curry powder. Confession time: I once was a curry powder snob, as in “no one who cooks authentic Indian food would EVER use curry powder!”
But that was before I tried it out in this curry soup, and I realized that there are definitely occasions when curry powder is a great option.
Most Indian cooks don’t use curry powder in their cooking, but rather use individual spice flavorings (like coriander, cumin, turmeric, garam masala) or prepared spice mixes (available at Indian grocery stores) that are specifically tailored for each dish.
Curry powder was invented back when India was a British colony and the British prepared it as a spice mix to duplicate the intricate flavorings they liked in Indian cuisine. There are many different brands of curry powder, and you can find one that suits your tastes.
I think you’ll agree with me that curry powder is the star of this delicious curry soup recipe! And if you’re looking to try an authentic curry, give my Instant Pot chicken curry or my Instant Pot chana masala a try.
Here are some Soup Recipes you might enjoy:
– Thai Coconut Curry Soup Recipe
– Chipotle Shrimp Soup
– Italian Wedding Soup
– Pork and Hatch Chile Soup
Tips and Substitutions
Butter
I tend to use either butter or ghee in this recipe. I love the flavors, especially that of homemade ghee. If you wish to avoid the calories, feel free to use vegetable oil instead.
Curry Powder
I’ve tried McCormick, Spice Islands, and Simply Organic curry powder in this chicken soup curry recipe and all have worked out great. If you’re using another brand, check the ingredients for salt and adjust the quantity of added salt in this recipe.
The amount of curry powder called for in this recipe can be increased if you want a stronger flavor. If your curry powder has been sitting in your cupboard for a long time, do yourself a favor and get a fresh new bottle; you’ll be glad you did!
Coconut Milk
I use full-fat coconut milk. I find some coconut milk brands don’t do well during pressure cooking, including some brands that are widely available at grocery stores. My two favorite brands are Aroy-D and Chaokoh. Some readers recommend Trader Joe’s brand coconut milk.
If you’re not a fan of coconut milk, substitute with ½ cup of heavy cream for this curry chicken soup. Many recipes for mulligatawny soup use heavy cream.
Spiciness
If you like things spicy, you can add some more jalapeno. Or here’s a tip: I frequently use serrano chili peppers instead of jalapenos because they have more heat, and I find their spice to be more consistent.
Some jalapeno peppers can be really hot while others can be milder. And if you don’t like a lot of spice, you can omit the jalapeno.
Tomatoes
I find that canned diced tomatoes work great in this Indian curry soup recipe, but I do use fresh diced tomatoes on occasion.
Chicken
I always prefer to use chicken thighs over chicken breast, especially because the Instant Pot cooks them so well. If you’re a fan of chicken breast and wish to use it instead, feel free to do so.
If you’re new to the Instant Pot and aren’t familiar with how to use it, you might find it helpful to first read one of the following guides and then come back here to learn how to make this recipe.
- Instant Pot DUO Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot ULTRA Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO EVO PLUS Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO NOVA Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO GOURMET Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO CRISP Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot PRO Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot PRO CRISP Beginner’s Manual
Curried Chicken Soup – Ingredients
- Chicken
- Onion
- Tomato
- Spinach
- Jalapeno
- Salt
- Garlic
- Curry powder
- Ginger
- Chicken broth
- Butter
- Black pepper
- Coconut milk
More details in the recipe card at the bottom of this post
How to Make Chicken Curry Soup in the Instant Pot (Step by Step Instructions)
- Turn on Saute Mode.
- Saute onion mixture.
- Saute spices and deglaze.
- Saute chicken and add broth.
- Pressure cook.
- Release pressure.
- Stir in coconut milk.
- Sprinkle with cilantro.
How to Turn on Saute Mode
- Instant Pot DUO: Select the Saute function.
- Instant Pot ULTRA: Select the Saute function and press Start.
Saute Onion Mixture
- Once Instant Pot has heated up, melt butter or ghee in the inner pot.
- Stir in onion, garlic, ginger, and jalapenos, and saute the onion mixture until onions are light golden brown, about 5 minutes.
- Press Cancel. The spices will cook in the residual heat.
Saute Spices and Deglaze
- Add curry powder, salt, and pepper; stir till fragrant.
- Deglaze with a small amount of broth if you find that the spices are burning or food is sticking to the bottom.
Saute Chicken and Add Broth
- Add the chicken and stir to coat with the onion spice mixture.
- Deglaze with a small amount of broth and scrape up all the brown bits.
- Stir in remaining broth.
- Add the tomatoes but don’t stir.
Instant Pot Duo Pressure Cook 5 minutes
- Close the lid and make sure steam release handle is in Sealing position
- Press Manual (or Pressure Cook) and + or – until the display reads ‘5′ (5 minutes).
Instant Pot Ultra Pressure Cook 5 minutes
- Close the lid.
- Select Pressure Cook mode and adjust the time to 5 minutes (00:05).
- Press Start.
Pressure Cooking Process (Duo and Ultra)
- Instant Pot display will change to On.
- Once the Instant Pot is pressurized, the float valve will go up.
- The display will count down to 0; it will then switch to Keep Warm mode and display ‘L0:00’ or ’00 00′ and begin to count up the number of minutes since pressure cooking completed.
How to Naturally Release Pressure (NPR) on the DUO and ULTRA
- Allow the pressure to release naturally (NPR). The float valve will be in the down position. This may take 15 to 30 minutes. [Find out more about the pressure release methods and how and when to use them. ]
- Press Cancel and open the Instant Pot.
Stir in Coconut Milk, Spinach and Cilantro
- Stir in Coconut milk and spinach.
- Select Saute mode and heat until spinach wilts and soup is heated through.
- Press Cancel and stir in cilantro.
- Serve soup in individual soup bowls over Instant Pot Rice or with crusty bread.
Stovetop Directions for Chicken Curry Soup
To make this recipe on the stovetop:
- Saute onion, garlic, ginger, and green chilis.
- Saute curry powder.
- Stir in broth, tomatoes, and chicken.
- Simmer until the chicken is cooked through.
- Stir in spinach and coconut milk and heat through.
- Garnish with cilantro.
See the recipe card below for detailed instructions.
More Chicken Favorites
Love cooking chicken in the Instant Pot but looking for new recipes? Here are a few of my favorite Instant Pot chicken recipes that are easy, delicious, and fast to make.
- Instant Pot teriyaki chicken wings
- Instant Pot sous vide chicken breast
- Instant Pot chicken curry
- Instant Pot chicken shawarma
- Instant Pot chicken stew
For more chicken recipes, be sure to head over to my list of amazing Instant Pot chicken recipes you need to try!
Coconut Chicken Curry Soup
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon ghee or butter
- 1 cup onion chopped
- 2 tablespoon garlic minced
- 2 tablespoon ginger finely chopped
- 1 jalapeno sliced (optional)
- 2 Tbsp curry powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon salt (or to taste) *
- 1 tsp black pepper powder
- 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs (1 kg) cut into 1 inch cubes
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth low sodium
- 1 cup diced tomatoes canned or fresh
- 1 cup coconut milk preferably Aroy-D or Chaokoh brand
- 3 cups baby spinach chopped
- ¼ cup cilantro chopped
Instructions
Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Instructions
- Select Saute mode and allow the Instant Pot to heat up. Once the inner pot has heated up, add the butter or ghee.
- Once the ghee has heated up, add onions and saute until light golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add garlic, ginger, and jalapeno and cook mixture until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Press Cancel. The spices will cook in the residual heat.
- Add curry powder, salt and pepper and stir till fragrant, about 30 seconds**
- Add chicken and stir to coat with the spice mixture.
- Stir in ¼ cup of broth to deglaze. There should be no brown bits stuck to the bottom of the inner pot.
- Stir in remaining broth. Add the tomatoes, but don't stir.
- Close the Instant Pot lid and pressure cook on High Pressure for 5 minutes.
- Allow the pressure to release naturally (NPR). If you're pressed for time, after 10 to 15 minutes, release any remaining pressure. [Read More: The Different Pressure Release Methods]
- Press Cancel and open the Instant Pot.
- Stir in spinach and coconut milk.
- Cook soup in Saute mode until spinach wilts and soup is heated through.
- Stir in cilantro and serve soup in individual soup bowls over rice or with crusty bread.
Stovetop Instructions
- Heat butter or ghee in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat.
- Add onion, garlic, ginger, and jalapeños to the pot. Saute for a couple of minutes or until the onion is lightly browned.
- Add curry powder, garlic and salt and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds to a minute.
- Stir in chicken broth, tomatoes, and chicken. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to medium. Simmer for 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
- Stir in the coconut milk and heat till the soup thickens.
- Add the spinach and heat through till the spinach wilts.
- Garnish with cilantro.
Notes
- Prep time does not include steps that are already accounted for in the ingredient list, e.g. chopped onions, minced garlic, diced chicken, etc.
- See the blog post for more detailed recipe tips.
Nutrition
Thank you for visiting Paint the Kitchen Red. All photos and content are copyright protected. Please don’t use any content without prior written permission. If you’ve made this recipe and would like to share it with your friends, please link back to this recipe. Thank you!
I am not a certified nutritionist. I provide my best estimate of nutritional information merely as a courtesy to my readers. If you depend on nutritional information for dietary or health reasons, I suggest using your favorite online nutrition calculator to confirm the nutritional value of this recipe based on the actual ingredients that you use.
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Tracy Greenfield
Very good. Really enjoyed it.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thank you, Tracy, for your comment – I’m so happy you enjoyed it.
Michele
My family loves this! I added mushrooms and carrots too.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thank you, Michele!
John
Made this tonight and it was a BIG hit. Even my 10 year old son who is a very picky eater (and was very suspicious as he watched me prepare it) raves about it.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Woo hoo! Happy kid is the best compliment for the chef!
Bia
Thank you for this recipe. I happened to have most of the ingredients and tweak things just a bit for a fabulous soup. I put the soup over a bowl of orzo and could not stop eating this rich and filling meal.
This is now s a family favorite for sure 🙂 I am officially in love with curry powder now!!!!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hey Bia, I love orzo – great idea, thanks for sharing!
Kim B.
If I used Golden curry (the kind you buy in a big block), what other substitutions do you think i would need to make other than not using the curry powder? Thanks in advance!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hi Kim, thanks for your question. My main concern using the Japanese curry block is that it contains fillers like flour. This could prevent the Instant Pot from coming to pressure. You might need to add the curry blocks to the Instant Pot after pressure cooking is completed. You would omit curry powder add salt to taste since the blocks have some salt.
Lynda S
Oh. Em. Gee!!!! This was amazing and my family LOVED it! My husband went as far as to say that he could eat it once a week. That’s saying a LOT. Thanks for creating and sharing your recipe.
BTW, it was so great meeting you at the conference in California. You’re such a sweet and inspirational woman.
While we were at the conference, I checked out Paint the Kitchen Red and printed out this recipe while still at the hotel. I KNEW that it was one that I had to try. It’s a winner for sure!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Lynda! Thank you for touching base and I’m so glad you liked the recipe. It was so great to meet you too, that Turkish meal was fun! I’m sure we’ll meet again.
Allison
We eat this almost every other week it’s so delicious! Thank you for this recipe.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hey Allison – thanks so much for your kind words! Glad you like it.
Anne
P.S. Ate it over cauliflower rice, which soaked the curry broth too. YUM!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Oh, sounds yummy actually – I love cauliflower! Thanks for your comment.
Anne
Made it with curry powder from somewhere in Asia (yep, I know that’s a tad broad – my parents have been traveling EVERYWHERE and bringing me spices, and it’s a blur now!) – probably Vietnam. Anyway, only used half the jalapeño and wish I had added the whole thing, but the recipe is simple and fantastic and it’s DELICIOUS!! I’m new to the IP and love how tender the chicken is – better than plain boiling in a soup. I bet it’s going to be stop-the-bus amazing tomorrow after the flavors bloom overnight!
Paint the Kitchen Red
It will be very tasty the next day; and wow, that’s so wonderful that your parents bring you these exotic spices from the source!
Honor
I only have Thai red curry paste but I feel like I could substitute it and it would work. I’m going to try today and I’ll let you know if it’s successful.
Paint the Kitchen Red
I think that would work fine, just watch out for burning – you could mix the curry paste with a bit of coconut milk and fry like I do in my Thai red curry. Yes, do keep me posted!
Jen
My whole family loved this! I made the soup ahead of time and added spinach at the last minute before serving with premade naan. To stretch the leftovers, ,we added a can of chickpeas and served over rice. Definitely adding to our regular rotation!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hi Jen – thank you for your comment. Great idea to add chickpeas to make it stretch out. I also add extra veggies with the spinach sometimes. Glad you liked the recipe!
Radha
I made it today and itwas a big hit !
Thank you for sharing this recipe
Paint the Kitchen Red
You’re welcome Radha! I’m happy that you liked it.
E.D.
Great recipe! I used hot curry powder, seeded the jalapeno, and used a block of frozen spinach instead of fresh.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Sounds great – frozen spinach is very convenient. You probably could even pressure cook it for 0 minutes to get it thawed and cooked. Thanks for commenting!
Melissa
This soup is amazingly delicious!! I will be adding this to our list of favorites! I cheated and used cilantro paste and ginger paste and I only had a can of diced tomatoes with green chilis but it’s so good I will continue making it that way in the future! Love love loved it!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Wonderful, Melissa! I’m really happy you liked it and thank you for taking the time to post a comment!
Nikki Isakson
Just wondering, could you swap out TJ’s Red Argentinian Shrimp for the chicken? Would make a lovely, slightly fancier dish for a special occasion, I think?
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hi Nikki, shrimp sounds great to me. However, you need to reduce to pressure cooking time to 0 or 1 minute. You could also just skip the pressure cooking part and cook it on saute mode. Add the shrimp with the coconut and spinach and heat till shrimp is cooked. This way you can control the cooking of the shrimp and avoid overcooking. I think it will be delicious.
Tara
I made this tonight, just finished eating, and it is amazing! I love all the flavors. I think next time I will add some potatoes =) Thank you for your wonderful pictures and step by step guide.
Paint the Kitchen Red
The addition of potatoes would make it really hearty, great idea! You’re welcome, and thank YOU for sharing, Tara!
Katie
How much time to add for sweet potatoes?
Paint the Kitchen Red
Katie, sweet potatoes (cubed) will cook very quickly. They might get overcooked if you cook them with the chicken and do a natural release. It will still taste good though…
Elizabeth
I substituted 2 cans of chickpeas for chicken and added all the random veggies in the fridge (yellow squash, bell peppers – green and red) in addition to everything in the recipe. Cooked on high for 4 min. The flavor combination was very nice. Thanks for sharing!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Sounds great Elizabeth. Nice option for those who want a vegetarian option. Thank you for sharing!
E.D.
Good thought. Maybe even a combination of chick peas and gold potatoes. I have a vegan potluck coming up and sauteeing in olive oil and doing this could really work.
Joanna
I wonder with my 8 qt pot can I double the recipe for a pot luck? Thanks
Paint the Kitchen Red
Joanna – yes, I think you can easily double it in the 8 quart. Hope you enjoy it!
Natelie Hiser
Made this for dinner and my husband loved it. I enjoyed it too. Looking forward to more recipes from too.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hi Natelie – so glad y’all liked it, thanks for commenting.
Monica Bell
Made this for dinner tonight. When my son came home from school he said “it smells like heaven”. I knew this dinner was going to be a hit with the family. This is a wonderful Intstant pot weekday dinner, so fast and delicious. This is another Paint the Kitchen Red staple for our family. Thanks Neena, your recipes are always spot on.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Monica, you’re welcome! And thank you so much for sharing; what a great feeling it is when your family loves what you’ve cooked!