We’re simmering corn and chicken in a creamy masala sauce! This corn and chicken curry is a Pour and Cook recipe that’s loaded with flavor and takes minutes to make.
What’s Corn and Chicken Curry?
If you like Butter Chicken (and who doesn’t?) then you’ll love this corn and chicken masala. Both have a similar flavorful, creamy, tomatoey sauce. This recipe is much faster to make, as it’s a pour and cook recipe.
If you have chicken in the fridge, spices in the pantry, and frozen corn and Onion Masala in the freezer, then you’re ready to make this restaurant-worthy chicken dinner.
I say restaurant-worthy (because it is), but you won’t actually find this dish in a restaurant (because I made it up). That said, it is absolutely good enough for any restaurant menu. It’s easy enough to whip up for your family on a weeknight and delicious enough to serve at your next dinner party.
Corn and chicken masala is an easy-breezy recipe that’s so rich and flavorful your family/friends will think you spent forever making it. No one has to know that you actually just tossed a few ingredients into the instant pot and then sat on the couch for a few minutes while waiting for your dinner to finish cooking itself. Let them think it took you ages, lol.
Not only is this dinner a dream to make it’s also going to be a hit with your entire family. My picky 4-year-old and my 2-year-old love this dish (they’re crazy about anything with corn). My picky 35-year-old also loves this dish (my husband, just in case that wasn’t obvious, lol).
“This is the perfect recipe for busy days. It was delicious and everyone loved it. By the way, it tastes just like my mother in law’s go to salen recipe that takes her several hours to make. Thank you for sharing this.”
Safa
“Delicious! I made this with Trader Joe’s roasted frozen corn and served it with basmati rice and a side of your chickpea chole recipe. My husband Roger and I both enjoyed it very much! Your recipes are wonderful!“
Jill
Ingredients in Corn Chicken Curry:
- Chicken: boneless and skinless chicken thighs, cut into quarters or chunks
- Corn: frozen sweet yellow corn
- Onion Masala: 1 cup onion masala (4 frozen cubes)
- Spices: garam masala, paprika, salt, roasted cumin powder, cayenne, crushed fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi)
- Water
- Heavy Cream
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How to Make Corn Chicken Curry
This is the simplest recipe ever. Dump the chicken into the pot and sprinkle spices on top (to give the chicken some color), then dump in the frozen corn, onion masala, and water. Pressure cook for 5 minutes.
Naturally release pressure for 10 minutes, then open the lid. Add heavy cream, fenugreek leaves, and mix well. Garnish with cilantro and serve!
Tips to Making this Chicken Curry:
- In case you’re not familiar with dried fenugreek leaves (also known as kasoori methi), you crush them with your fingers before using. They don’t need to be completely powdered, just crushed.
- You’ll need roasted cumin powder for this recipe. It looks and tastes very different than regular cumin powder. I use this spice, also known as bhuna jeera, in many of my recipes – it adds a unique flavor that really makes a difference in the flavor profile of a dish.
- This recipe calls for premade frozen onion masala, which is a gamechanger for Indian cooking. Make this masala once and you’ll be able to quickly make Indian recipes for weeks.
This corn and chicken masala is in regular rotation at our house, along with some other chicken favorites (like my pour and cook Coconut Chicken Curry and my Thai chicken curry). I’m sure that if you make this corn and chicken curry, it’ll be a regular at your table too. Give it a try, and let me know what you think!
What to Serve with Chicken Curry:
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds boneless and skinless chicken thighs quartered
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon roasted cumin powder
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne
- 1 16 ounce package frozen sweet yellow corn
- 1 cup onion masala 4 frozen cubes
- ½ cup water
Add later:
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon crushed fenugreek leaves kasoori methi
- Cilantro garnish
Instructions
- Add the chicken to the instant pot. Sprinkle the spices on top of the chicken (this will give it color). Then add the frozen corn, onion masala, and water to the pot.
- Secure the lid, close the pressure valve and cook for 5 minutes at high pressure.
- Naturally release pressure for 10 minutes, then open the lid, add the heavy cream, fenugreek leaves and mix well.
- Garnish with cilantro and serve.
Sheila Jordan says
I made the onion masala this morning, as written except no red pepper. I pretty much got each ingredient prepped just as it was needed to add to the pot, so it moved right along. It has a wonderful flavor, and may try as a meat loaf top sauce, or use it to poach fish fillets in this sauce.
Then I moved on to the Chicken Corn Curry; the chicken was still frozen in a big mass but I went ahead as instructed. When the time was up The mass of chicken breast was raw but not frozen in the middle so I was able to separate it into the breast pieces, stir it in, then set the pot for another 5 minutes plus 10 min NR and the dish is perfect. Had to use ground fenugreek, had no leaves. Both of us thought this is a great recipe, and easy. Used an 8qt IP, no burn notice (!). Froze the Onion Masala in small baggies, 1/4 c each.
Shivani Patel says
My family loved this (we love everything we’re tried from the blog to be honest)! Any tips on adjusting the recipe to use frozen chicken instead of fresh? I’m doing some freezer stock up and appreciate the guidance!
Amina says
Hi Ashley! Several of us are curious how to sub for onion and tomato masala? I’ve been wanting to make this recipe for ages but haven’t gotten around to making the onion/tomato base (to be honest, I don’t mind prepping my onions and tomatoes for cooking – I also have absolutely no extra space in my freezer!) Hope you can share the conversion so I can try this out with the fam!
Priyanka says
Thanks for this recipe! If I don’t have onion masala, how many fresh tomatoes and onion would you suggest using and when/how would I add them into the recipe?
Sonam says
This is the same question I have.
Pooja says
I’m also wondering the same thing!
Bonnie says
Ashley, this was wonderfully satisfying for our family! Especially easy with the onion masala pucks, which I finally made (and am kicking myself for not making sooner)!
Your White Chicken Chili, Beef Chili and Masoor Dal instant pot recipes are staples in our household over the past year. As a busy mom of two kids, I am so grateful for your recipes. Thank you!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Bonnie, that’s so great to hear! Thanks for letting me know how much you liked the corn and chicken curry – glad you made the onion masala too! Happy to hear you like so many recipes you’ve tried from my blog 🙂 Let me know what other recipes you try using the masala!
Safa says
This is the perfect recipe for busy days. It was delicious and everyone loved it. By the way, it tastes just like my mother in law’s go to salen recipe that takes her several hours to make. Thank you for sharing this.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Safa, I’m so happy to hear that this was a hit! Thanks for letting me know how much you liked it 🙂
Mark Jonker says
Hi Ashley, I am a huge fan of your recipes but there is a big ‘but’. I don’t have a pressure cooker and lately I only come across your (loved) pressure cooker instructions. Is there an easy “translation table” or similar to rejig your recipe to oven/slowcooker so I can also make what look to be delicious recipes?
Thanks for all the wonderful designs you share with us.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Mark, thanks for the kind words! I hope to one day include both Instant Pot and Stovetop directions for my recipes, but haven’t gotten there just yet!
Rajinder says
Hi Ashley, very yummy recipe, made it with chicken mince and turned out very well, tried with my grandkids and they loved it, they hadn’t tried mince yet!..…. reduced the spice for them….we all enjoyed it 🙂 thank you.
Your recipes are always worth trying.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
That’s so great to hear! Thanks for letting me know how the grandkids enjoyed it! 🙂
Mel says
Hi Ashley, I haven’t tried this recipe yet but just thought I would tell you that it comes up in the list of vegetarian recipes even though it has chicken.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Mel, thank you for letting me know! I’ve made the fix – appreciate it!
Michelle says
Can we use leftover tandoori chicken in this?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Michelle, I’m sure that’d be fine – if it’s already cooked you can probably just mix it all together on the stovetop or saute mode.
Sarah says
Hey Ashley,
This was excellent! I ended up using more onion masala and less water (it just worked out that way because of the amount of onion masala that I had frozen), coconut cream instead of cream and Kashmiri chili powder instead of paprika. I love good recipes that don’t depend on fresh veggies 🙂
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
That’s awesome! Glad it worked out well, thanks for letting me know how it turned out 🙂
Brandy says
Oh, and regarding Padma’s question, I didn’t have dairy cream so I used a few tablespoons of Savoy coconut cream (not coconut milk, although I’m sure that would be fine) and it was very good.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Brandy, that’s great to hear! Glad it worked well with coconut cream 🙂
Brandy says
My family loved this. I only had a pound of chicken breasts on hand, but I know your recipes are great anyway, so I used those instead of thighs and just increased the corn to make up for the lower quantity of chicken.
Super FAST, easy and tasty!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Brandy, that’s awesome! I’m so glad your family loved this 🙂 Thanks for letting me know how this recipe turned out for you!
Padma says
Is there a non-dairy alternative to the cream? Or, do you think the recipe would taste ok without it?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Padma, it’s good even without the cream but I think coconut milk would be great with it too – I have yet to try this though.
K Marie Tyler says
Ashley, tell me again WHY you are not my neighbor? I want to grow the all veggies and bring them to you to cook! ha ha. Seriously – I love your food so much and I know I have said it before, but you make the mysterious, exotic, fabulous flavors of India accessible to the everyday cook. I love your recipes and I have shared your site so many times because as a celiac person, I can eat the vast majority of what you post! You are a gift to those wanting to experience more of what the world cuisines have to offer.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
This is so nice of you to say – I really appreciate the kind words! Thank you for sharing my site with others 🙂 Also, I’d love a neighbor that did that – I can cook but can’t grow anything myself. I’m currently attempting to keep my second curry leaf plant alive haha.
Maneesha says
What a unique recipe! Looking forward to trying it!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Thanks, Maneesha! Can’t wait to hear what you think 🙂
Jill Kelly says
Delicious! I made this with Trader Joe’s roasted frozen corn and served it with basmati rice and a side of your chickpea chole recipe. My husband Roger and I both enjoyed it very much! Your recipes are wonderful!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Jill, that’s so great to hear! Thank you for letting me know how much you both liked this recipe 🙂
Maneesha says
Amazing recipe yet again, Ashley! What a unique combo! I added yogurt instead of heavy cream, and it turned out great! Thank you for another hit recipe!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
That’s so great to hear! I’m glad you liked it, Maneesha!