Instant Pot Thai Green Curry is a creamy coconut curry with the flavors of green chilies, Thai Basil, lime, coriander, and cumin. This spicy curry is as good as your favorite restaurant Thai green curry but is so quick and easy that it can be ready in less than 30 minutes. Serve it with Instant Pot Jasmine Rice for an amazing flavor combination!
Table of Contents
Introduction
My family loves Thai food and we used to go out to Thai restaurants all the time, but now we hardly ever do. I’m usually my own worst critic, and for me to say this is not easy: I think the Thai curries that I make at home are as good as restaurant Thai curries.
Best of all, they are so quick and easy that I can have dinner on the table in 20 minutes if I prep the ingredients ahead of time and cook the Jasmine rice and curry in the Instant Pot at the same time (together!) using the pot-in-pot method.
If you want to find out more about my quest to create the best Thai curries at home, please read my Instant Pot Thai Red Curry with Chicken. The bottom line is that ingredients make a big difference.
I usually like to use Thai eggplants in my Instant Pot green curry but I visited the Asian store three times in the past week and they were all out! So I made the curry with zucchini and bell peppers.
I like to use green vegetables just for aesthetics, but you can substitute any vegetables of your choice.
Thai green curry paste has a wonderful combination of flavors including green chilies, garlic, galangal ginger, shallots, lemongrass, lime leaves, coriander, cumin, cardamom, turmeric, and black pepper.
Out of all the Thai curries, massaman curry is the mildest and green curry is the hottest/spiciest. Even at Thai restaurants, I get the other curries medium or spicy, but I like to order mild green curry because it’s still pretty spicy!
Here are some Thai recipes you might like to try out
– Instant Pot Thai Red Curry
– Instant Pot Thai Massaman Curry
– Instant Pot Thai Panang Curry
– Instant Pot Thai Yellow Curry
– Instant Pot Thai Peanut Noodles
– Instant Pot Thai Coconut Soup (Tom Kha Gai)
– Instant Pot Thai Grilled Chicken (Gai Yang)
– Instant Pot Jasmine Rice
TIPS AND SUBSTITUTIONS
Green Curry Paste
Maesri and Mae Ploy are my two favorite Thai curry paste brands. I can’t emphasize enough how much of a difference the brand makes. You can find them at Southeast Asian grocery stores or on amazon.
In my experience, getting the brand of Thai green curry paste available at regular grocery stores does not produce great flavor.
If the curry is too spicy at the end, add some more coconut milk when you’re cooking the vegetables.
Lime Leaves
Lime leaves (also known as k-lime, makrut or kaffir lime leaves) add unique flavor to Thai curries.
You can find them at Asian grocery stores. I highly recommend using them. They keep very well in the freezer!
I like to either scrunch up the lime leaves and bruise them before adding them to the curry or chiffonade them by cutting them into very thin strips. This releases the oils from the leaves and adds a stronger flavor.
If you can’t find lime leaves, add an extra teaspoon or two of lime juice. Taste as you go.
Thai Basil
Thai basil is another ingredient you can find at an Asian grocery store. It, too, adds a unique flavor to Thai recipes and I recommend trying to find it. But if you can’t locate Thai basil, substitute with regular Italian basil.
Fish Sauce
I really like the quality of Red Boat fish sauce which you can find at Asian grocery stores or on amazon. But it is more expensive than other fish sauce brands. Tiparos is another brand of fish sauce I’ve used – it’s more affordably priced.
There’s no substitute for fish sauce. It adds that depth of flavor, the umami, to dishes. I’ve had vegetarian readers recommend the Fysh brand of sauce. But I haven’t tried it. You may need to add a little extra.
Soy sauce is also a substitute for fish sauce, but there is a flavor difference.
Also note that Thai curries are generally eaten with rice. If you’re not planning on eating the curry with rice, you might need to adjust the salt by reducing the quantity of fish sauce.
Palm Sugar
Palm sugar is more authentic to a Thai curry than brown sugar is. However, I frequently use brown sugar without sacrificing taste.
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.
I frequently get questions about the coconut milk curdling after being pressure cooked in the Instant Pot. Yes, it will appear to be curdled when you open the Instant Pot. But once you stir it up and cook the vegetables in the curry sauce, the curry should be very smooth.
Meats and Tofu
You can easily substitute other meats or tofu for the chicken, but you’ll have to adjust the cooking time – here are some approximate times. Note: the timing for meat is for bite-size strips!
- Pork shoulder: 8 minutes Natural Pressure Release (NPR)
- Beef chuck: 12 minutes NPR
- Extra-firm tofu, cubed: 2 minutes, Quick Release (QR)
Vegetables
I sometimes choose to decrease the quantity of chicken and double the quantity of vegetables, so we eat less meat and more veggies.
Spiciness
This recipe makes a green curry that’s fairly spicy, but not extreme. If you’re unsure, start with just 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons of the green curry paste, and next time you can adjust the heat.
Doubling the Recipe
You can double all the ingredients in the recipe and pressure cook for the same amount of time. Just make sure your ingredients don’t go past the 2/3-full mark.
Splatter Screen
When you’re sauteing ingredients in the Instant Pot, the bubbling mixture can splatter. I like to use a splatter screen to cover the inner pot during this saute process.
Burn Message
If you regularly encounter the ‘burn’ message, feel free to add 1/4 cup of chicken broth when pressure cooking the coconut milk.
[Read more: Instant Pot Burn Message]
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 Thai Green Curry – Ingredients
- Zucchini
- Chicken
- Onion
- Water/broth
- Bell pepper
- Bamboo shoots
- Thai basil
- Coriander
- Cumin
- Brown sugar
- Green curry paste
- Fish sauce
- Coconut milk
- Lime juice (missing from photo)
How to Make Green Curry in the Instant Pot (Step by Step Instructions)
- Turn on Saute Mode
- Saute spices and coconut milk
- Add remaining coconut milk and chicken
- Pressure cook
- Quick-release pressure
- Add vegetables and seasonings and saute
How to Turn on Saute Mode
- Instant Pot DUO: Select the Saute function.
- Instant Pot ULTRA: Select the Saute function and press Start.
Saute Spices and Coconut Milk
- Stir together green curry paste and 1/2 can of coconut milk and saute until mixture is bubbly, a minute or two. Use a splatter screen if necessary, to guard against splatters from the coconut milk.
- Stir in coriander and cumin and cook for 30 seconds.
Add Remaining Coconut Milk and Chicken
- Press Cancel to turn off Instant Pot.
- Stir in chicken, remaining coconut milk, and chicken broth or water.
Instant Pot Duo Pressure Cook 4 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 4 (4 minutes).
Instant Pot Ultra Pressure Cook 4 minutes
- Close the lid.
- Select Pressure Cook mode and adjust the time to 4 minutes (00:04).
- 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 Quick Release Pressure (QR) on the DUO
- Move the steam release handle to Venting. Steam will come out of the steam release handle.
- When your Instant Pot is depressurized, the float valve will be in the down position.
- Press Cancel and open the Instant Pot.
How to Quick Release Pressure (QR) on the ULTRA
- Press down on the Steam Release Button until it locks into place, and steam begins to come out of the Steam Release Valve.
- When your Instant Pot is depressurized, the float valve will be in the down position.
- Press Cancel and open the Instant Pot.
[Find out more about the pressure release methods and how and when to use them. ]
Add Vegetables and Seasonings and Saute
- Select Saute mode.
- Stir in fish sauce, brown sugar, lime juice, bell pepper, zucchini, onion, bamboo shoots, and lime leaves.
- Cook until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 3 to 5 minutes. Don’t overcook, as the vegetables will continue to cook in the residual heat.
- Taste and adjust with more fish sauce, brown sugar or lime juice.
- Stir in the Thai basil leaves.
Instant Pot Thai Green Curry with Chicken
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp Thai Green curry paste preferably Maesri or Mae Ploy brand
- 14 oz. coconut milk (1 can), preferably Aroy D or Chaokoh brand
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs sliced into thin bite-size pieces
- 1/4 cup chicken broth or water
- 2 Tbsp fish sauce more to taste
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar or to taste
- 1 Tbsp lime juice
- 1 cup green bell pepper cubed or strips
- 1 cup zucchini sliced or strips
- 1/2 cup onion cubed
- 1/2 cup bamboo shoots canned, sliced
- 4 lime leaves slightly bruised *
- 1/4 cup Thai Basil leaves
Instructions
- Select Saute mode and stir in green curry paste and 1/2 can of coconut milk until mixture is bubbly, about a minute or two.
- Stir in coriander and cumin and cook for 30 seconds.
- Press Cancel.
- Stir in chicken, remaining coconut milk, and chicken broth.
- Close Instant Pot and pressure cook on High Pressure for 4 minutes.
- Do a Quick Release of pressure (QR) and open the Instant Pot. [Read More: The Different Pressure Release Methods]
- Add in fish sauce, brown sugar, lime juice, bell pepper, zucchini, onions, bamboo shoots, and lime leaves.
- Select Saute and cook until vegetables are crisp-tender, 3 to 5 minutes. (Be sure not to overcook. Vegetables will continue to cook in the residual heat.)
- Taste and adjust with more fish sauce, brown sugar or lime juice.
- Stir in the Thai basil leaves.
- Serve with Instant Pot Jasmine Rice.
Notes
- Prep time does not include steps that are already accounted for in the ingredient list, e.g. chopped vegetables, diced chicken, etc.
- Use a
splatter screen if necessary, in the first step, to guard against coconut milk splatters. - You can choose to substitute the vegetables with your choice e.g. green beans, Thai eggplant, peas.
- You can also increase the quantity of vegetables to suit your tastes.
- My chicken was thinly sliced. If your pieces of chicken are larger, you’ll need to add on a few more minutes of cooking or just do a natural release of pressure.
- * Lime leaves are also referred to as k-lime, makrut or kaffir lime leaves.
- See the blog post for more detailed recipe tips.
splatter screen if necessary, in the first step, to guard against coconut milk splatters.Nutrition
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.
If you loved this recipe, please give it a five ⭐ rating in the comment section below and please share it on social media using the social media share buttons at the top and bottom of this post. Thank you so much!
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Random kitchen
I doubled the recipe and it was perfectly delicious. Used 3 large zucchinis, 2 large bell peppers, and a whole onion.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Very happy to hear it – thanks for taking the time to comment 🙂
Michael
2 Tablespoons of fish sauce is way too much. It was starting to smell really good and then adding in all the fish sauce ruined everything.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Michael, I’m sorry to hear that the recipe didn’t meet your expectations. Fish sauce can vary from brand to brand. I hope you’ll give the recipe another chance and reduce the fish sauce quantity to meet your tastes. Thanks for the feedback.
Toni
Absa-bloody-lutely gorgeous! (I’m Australian!)
I look forward to making more of your recipes.
And, I love my Instant pot!
X Toni
Paint the Kitchen Red
Toni, haha thanks for the terrific compliment. I’m really glad you liked the recipe and am sure you’ll like the Thai curries at the very least.
Nikita
It turned out delicious. Although I did add some hot thai chili pepper paste to make it little more spicy..
Paint the Kitchen Red
Wow, Nikita – you must like it SPICY! I’m really happy you liked the recipe 🙂
Monica
I’ve made this and the red curry recipe and I learned something. If your coconut milk is all milk and no solids, prepare for a curdled mess. I had been using some store brand that was half solid and half water at room temperature, but I thought I’d try Chaokoh this time. It was all milky, no solids.
When I let the pressure out, a lot of the curry came out of the release valve. When I opened the lid, it was pretty disgusting with curdled nastiness all over the inside of the lid. And the sauce looked gross but it tasted good. I had to add about a cup of chicken stock to have enough to cover the veggies. The end result was decent but I think it would have been better if I had used the store brand.
How do I use the other cans of Chaokoh so I don’t get the same issue? Perhaps pressure cook at Low for a bit longer? Please help, and thanks!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Monica – I use Aroy D usually but also use Chaokoh and although it does seem curdled when I open the lid, I just give it a good stir and it looks and tastes great. You should use the brand that you prefer if you like the results 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to comment and good luck!
Monica
Thank you! It makes me feel better that it would also happen to you. If I see a can of coconut milk that doesn’t have any solids in it at all, should I not use it? I’m not sure if that’s where I went wrong. I’m still eating it but it definitely doesn’t look very good (it’s still delicious).
Paint the Kitchen Red
I’m sorry, Monica but I’m not sure what happened. I would stick to the brand that worked for you before or you can give Aroy-D a try. If you continue to have issues then I would say you should try the low pressure method. I have seen a copycat brand that looks almost identical to Chaokoh and I’ve even used it and didn’t like it – is it possible you got that brand? It’s spelled slightly differently….
Molly
Making this tonight, could I use lime zest instead of lime leaves? I can’t find the leaves anywhere. And could I use regular eggplant if I can’t find the Japanese? Or do you recommend using zucchini instead? Thanks!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Molly – yes, you can substitute lime zest. I would add it after pressure cooking is complete and taste as you add a little at a time. Thai eggplant is very different from regular so it’s not a straight substitute. I would maybe do zucchini…. Hope you like the recipe.
Molly
Thank you for your reply, I did use zest and both zucchini and a small amount of regular eggplant and OMG this knocked my socks off! Better than takeout! Can’t wait to try the rest of your recipes!
Kathleen Garner
So delicious! Easy too.
I’d like to make Thai hot and spicy soup (Tom Yum soup)-the kind without coconut milk.
I feel like that could be an instapot soup—any ideas?
Paint the Kitchen Red
Kathleen – yes, it can be made in the Instant Pot – you can pressure cook the aromatics (galangal, lemongrass, lime leaves) with the soup ingredients and get a flavorful broth. I have Thai soup on my list of recipes to post!
Chris
This is a fabulous recipe and so much simpler/faster than my regular green curry recipe. My son requested green curry for dinner, but I didn’t have the time to spend to make my regular recipe, so I found Neena’s. My family loved it and we didn’t have any leftovers, so I made it again 4 days later:). Just as delicious and easy the second time around. I put carrots, red pepper, (instead of green), bamboo shoots and pea pods the first time, and used eggplant the second. Flavor is great no matter what veggies you use.
I borrowed the instant pot to make this. I had never used one. Neena’s directions were so easy to follow. You do a great job!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Awww, thank you for your comment, Chris! It’s nice that you could compare to the traditional method – I too, love how easy Thai curries are in the IP.
Anjali Chugh
I made this today it’s delicious and very flavorful but a bit bland what do you recommend to add a bit more authentic taste and a bit more spice? The jasmine rice turned out perfectly!!! Thanks for the great recipes… this was very easy to follow! I am trying to master Thai food and this is the closest I have gotten!!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Anjali, did you use the brands of Thai curry paste that I recommend? If not, then that’s the reason for the lack of flavor. If you did, then you probably need to increase the quantity of curry paste by one to two more teaspoons. Thanks for your question!
Anjali Chugh
Unfortunately where I live I can only get those brands on amazon…. they messed up my Panang paste order I am waiting for them to send correct item! I used a different curry paste which explains it!
Katherine Ferris
Best green curry recipe of the MANY I have tried
Paint the Kitchen Red
Katherine, thanks for the comment – what a great compliment!
Valerie Peacock
We love Thai and we are very excited to try this recipe, as I just got an Instant Pot for Christmas. I’ve tried many recipes and have gotten close, but not close enough, so I’m excited to try yours!!! We love extra sauce/gravy, how can I get the most amount of sauce without diluting the flavor? Thanks! Can’t wait!!!!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Valerie, if you like it spicy, I would add an extra 2 teaspoons of paste and extra cup of coconut milk. This curry is spicy enough that you could just add some extra coconut milk and it would be milder but still tasty. I think you’ll like it 🙂
Danielle
This is my new comfort food. We make the green, red, and panang curries all the time.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thank you Danielle, for your comment and review. I’m happy to see others enjoy my favorite recipes!
Rachel
Just finished cooking this recipe and it turned out very thin. What could have gone wrong? 🙁
Paint the Kitchen Red
Rachel, there are a couple of possibilities: your chicken may have given off liquid, your coconut milk may have been a thinner kind – buy the best quality (I recommend a couple of brands in the recipe). You might not need to have the 1/4 cup of liquid. I suggest the 1/4 cup water to prevent any issues with sealing the Instant Pot. I frequently omit it and have no problems with sealing.
Shauna Zunino
My 29 yr old son came to stay with me this week and wanted my cooking, I told him pick ANYTHING! He wanted this dish from his favorite restaurant, I’ve never cooked Indian food before and he was beside himself. Thank you for making me look so good! It was amazing.
Shauna and Kyle
Paint the Kitchen Red
Hi Shauna – this is actually a Thai curry, so quite different flavors from an Indian curry. If you wanted to try an Indian flavored recipe, give the Instant Pot Chicken Curry Soup a try. Thanks for your lovely comment.
Kelly
Forgot to mention that I added 1/2? tsp cornstarch mixed with a bit of water to get that silky mouthfeel I find in my local Thai restaurant.
Donna
I think that’s what I need to do. Mine came out a little watery for my tastes. Next time I want to try with Thai eggplant and make it a bit spicier. But all in all, this was great.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Donna, just wanted to mention that the quality of the coconut milk is essential to the success of this recipe. If you used the brands I recommend, then you might need to thicken as you planned to but if not, I would suggest you try those brands. I’ve had less than optimal results with some other brands. Thanks for your comment!
Donna
Thank you! I will make sure to try your recommendations. Green Curry Chicken is my absolute favorite dish when going out for Thai so nailing it at home would be awesome!
Kelly
Made this today. My chicken thighs were over a pound so I upped the rest of the ingredients.
Used Aroy-D coconut miilk. Used 2.5 Tbls Mae-Ploi green curry, nicely spicy for me. Found Japanese eggplant and used red pepper because I prefer it to green and it added nice color. Increased all vege by about 1/2.
The lady at the local asian store recommended leaving the lime leaves out until the last couple of minutes and slicing them thin. I liked that tip.
Since it’s just me, I only added enough Thai basil for one serving. Will take fresh basil for my left-overs.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thanks, Kelly, for telling us your modifications. That’s always nice for other readers. Yes, it’s a good idea to have some fresh basil to add to leftovers!
Suzanne
I can’t wait to try your recipe…but need to know, do you live near sea level? I live at 8200 feet, so I am supposed to add 30% cooking time…which I definitely need to add (maybe even more than 30%) because so far all of the dried beans I have tried even adding the 30% have still not been soft enough…still too crunchy…so either my Instant Pot is not getting hot enough…or the altitude charts are off. It does cook steel cut oats perfectly adding the 30% (and usually I can’t cook steel cut oats at our altitude). Please let me know as I’d love to try your recipe asap!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Suzanne, for this dish I don’t think you’ll need to adjust the recipe, but you can add 30% if you want to. I live at 5000 feet and most people can make my recipes with no changes.
Jessica
So far I’ve made both this and your red curry and they have both been outstanding. I can’t wait to try the rest of your recipes.
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thank you, Jessica! I’m so glad you like them – I think you’ll love the other Thai recipes too!
RonansMama
This recipe is a “WOW”!
A longtime Instant Pot fan, I was skeptical the coconut milk would break under pressure; it didn’t!
I followed your recipe exactly, it was perfect.
I added (because I live in SF and we have great Asian supermarkets):
2-3 slices galangal
2-3whole Thai chilis
1/2 stalk lemongrass battered & sliced 1”
I added these items first, about 1-2 minutes before I added the other vegetables – to which I added 2” pieces of haricots verts.
This recipe is absolutely spectacular, a knockout – and like another contributor, I hope you/you’ve added a yellow curry.
Thank you so much for what will be an Instant Pot dinner staple!
Following!
Paint the Kitchen Red
Thank you, thank you for your kind words. And for sharing what changes you made. I’m so happy you enjoyed the recipe.
HeathenIbis
We made this last night and it was wonderful. Any chance you have a yellow curry recipe? We’re big fans and can’t seem to make a good replica at home.
Paint the Kitchen Red
It’s on my list of recipes to do! I’ve made a note of your request, will try and get it out!