Instant Pot Lentil Curry

If you love Indian food and flavors you will love lentil curry made in a pressure cooker. It comes out perfectly tender made in less than 30 minutes and is a healthy choice to serve for dinner to your family tonight. One of many easy Instant Pot recipes on our site.

Yes you can make this in any brand of machine you have. We have made a lot of easy Ninja Foodi recipes recently, you just need to remember to use the lid that is not attached for this one.

Can you adjust the seasonings and/or heat to your liking? Of course! Love spicy food, then add some Sriracha or chili powder into the mix if you like. Keep it mild if you’d rather, either way this popular dish is packed with Indian flavors you love.

We first started loving easy Indian recipes when we visited a place in Utah that had the best food. It was my first experience with all these unique flavors and I had to make Instant Pot butter chicken at home. It was phenomenal and everyone else loved it too. Years later we are at it again with this one.

Ingredient Notes

Red lentils were used for this one but as you can see here they turn yellow when done. There are several colors and varieties out there but the cook time is appropriate for red.

What color lentils are best?

Red and yellow lentils are best for this and soups because they are split and break down easier. Brown lentils and green remain firmer in texture. SO it depends on what you’re making when making your decision and to which one or two you want to use. You could mix and match but stay with similar consistencies so they get done at the same time.

I like to add finely diced onions and minced garlic to add flavor to the dish, this is traditional but can be adjusted for your tastebuds.

A regular size of can of diced tomatoes is used, I like the petite variety so they are in smaller bits and you get a few in each bite.

Coconut milk is best to add a creamy rich flavor and texture to this dish. I buy another can to make Instant Pot coconut chicken later too.

Use broth of your choice, water and lentils won’t have a lot of flavor. Use vegetable, beef or chicken instead.

As far as the traditional seasonings added you are going to use some ground Curry powder, turmeric and some ginger

Season with salt and pepper to taste. If you want to make another with meat inside, try our Instant Pot lentil soup with ham. That is a great option after the holidays when you will likely have leftovers you’ll want to use up.

How Long to Cook Lentils in Instant Pot

It needs 18 minutes to cook to tender, but not mushy. With that said you will need to naturally release the steam once that is done for 10 minutes to create the best texture of all so don’t forget that extra time.

Do lentils need to be soaked?

No. You can just throw them in with the other ingredients under high pressure, sit back and wait until the time is up. If you do soak them you can typically reduce the cook time by half. That is not necessary or really recommended when using a Ninja Foodi or Instant Pot.

What setting do I use to cook Indian lentils?

I almost always use high pressure and set the timing accordingly. The other buttons such as steam, bake, rice etc…. are automatically set to this but with just a certain number of minutes saved. This can be adjusted but it is just easier to set your own cook time according to how tender you want them.

What to serve with lentils

I mean that is totally up to you and if you grew up eating these I am sure you have “your way”. If this is a new food to you these are super versatile. If you want to add diced proteins inside by all means throw those in when cooking so they can absorb the flavors too.

1. If you wanted to make this into a soup you’d just want to add more broth to begin with. OR you can cook as is and then thin it out at the end.
2. Serve them as a side dish with any type of protein like stuffed chicken or baked salmon.
3. For a vegetarian meal just enjoy as is for a bowl full of delicious protein, could serve with a side of Ninja foodi rice too.
4. You can add more seasonings inside or on top when served such as garam masala, some minced garlic or ginger.

Toppings that are commonly used and a great add on would be a squeeze of lime, fresh parsley and/or cilantro. For a more complete and heartier meal, dice up some veggies to go on top. Cucumber, zucchini slices, portobellos the list goes on and on depending on your taste buds.

Serve with air fryer naan and enjoy. I kid you not even kids love this. They may be hesitant at first because of the color and look of it but mine took a bite and are now believers.

If you blend it up really smooth at the end you could make it into more of an Instant Pot soup consistency if you wanted. This is an option for your leftovers too, so it is a bit different served up the next day. Texture is definitely a personal preference and can be adjusted easily with an immersion blender.

We love this recipe because it’s super easy to throw together and healthy. Want to make this without the curry? We have a recipe for plain Instant Pot red lentils you can follow here as well. Let us know what you add to yours so we can try your creations too.

How do you reheat lentils?

As always you want to wait until they are at room temperature before transferring to a container. Make sure all air is eliminated from the tupperware and then store in your fridge. It will be okay for up to 3 days but will become softer as it sits so keep that in mind.

When reheating lentils you will want to add a bit of liquid to your bowl. It will continue to thicken up as it sits, so adding a bit of broth or water will help to loosen it up a bit. Stir until it is the right consistency. Use a microwave bowl and heat for 30 seconds, then stir. Keep doing this until it is as warm as you’d like. Using a pot on the stovetop works the same too.

I wouldn’t put it back into your Instant Pot unless you used a PIP or pot in pot technique. That is when you put into a bowl, on a trivet with a cup of water underneath. Then you can cook on high for maybe 2 minutes just to essentially steam it nice and hot again. I’d still add some water to thin it out but the steaming will add a bit as is.