This perfectly cooked lamb will melt in your mouth! Rogan Josh is a popular mild curry that is easy to make in an instant pot. The meat is cooked in an onion and yogurt gravy, making it both flavorful and tender.
Don’t let the fiery red color of this dish mislead you.
Rogan josh is actually a mild curry that isn’t meant to be spicy. It’s so mild that I introduced this curry to my baby Tony even before he turned one. It’s very flavorful, but there’s very little heat to it.
In the United States (and perhaps the UK too?), I’d say rogan josh is slightly less popular than butter chicken and about equally as popular as vindaloo. You can typically find both rogan josh and vindaloo on nearly every Indian restaurant menu. Just be sure not to mix the two when ordering, as vindaloo has a reputation for being very spicy!
A Kashmiri dish with Persian origins
Rogan Josh is a popular Kashmiri dish with Persian origins. So how did a Persian dish become an Indian (Kashmiri) one? Historian Lizzie Collingham writes in her book, Curry: A Tale of Cooks and Conquerors, that during India’s Mughal empire, the Mughals, who were heavily influenced by Persians, would travel to the mountains of Kashmir to escape the heat. It was during their time there that they developed this dish.
According to Collingham, the ingredients of this dish changed depending on the cook’s religion. She writes, “Kashmiri Brahman’s are unusual in that they eat meat without any qualms, but they do avoid onions and garlic,” whereas a Muslim version would call for plenty of garlic and onion. She also writes that a dried flower native to Kashmir gave the dish a bright red color. These days, I think most use either Kashmiri chili powder (and perhaps tomatoes) to achieve this dish’s signature red color.
My rogan josh recipe is similar to one you might find at a restaurant (though I’m biased and think my version is better). It calls for onions and garlic, and a handful of other ingredients.
To give this dish its signature red color, my recipe calls for the use of tomato sauce as well as Kashmiri chili powder, which is mild and is typically used in Indian recipes for the color it imparts. Kashmiri chili peppers are very mild and taste similar to paprika, and I find the two to be interchangeable. So if you can’t find Kashmiri chili powder, go ahead and use paprika.
Serve this rich and flavorful lamb rogan josh with basmati rice or matar pulao and a vegetable side like aloo beans or aloo methi. Meat, rice, and potatoes. A perfect meal.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons ghee
- 2 onions diced
- 2 pounds boneless lamb shoulder cut into 1.5 inch cubes
- 6 teaspoons minced garlic
- 2 teaspoons minced ginger
- 1 bay leaf
Spices
- 4 teaspoons Kashmiri chili powder OR paprika
- 3 teaspoons coriander powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt adjust to taste
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 15 ounce can tomato sauce
- 8 tablespoons yogurt or dairy free yogurt if paleo/whole30
- Cilantro garnish
Instructions
- Press the sauté button and add the ghee to the pot. Once the ghee melts, add the onions and lamb and stir-fry for 6-7 minutes, or until the outside of the lamb pieces are no longer pink.
- Add the garlic, ginger, bay leaf and spices and give everything a good mix.
- Add the tomato sauce to the pot and cook for 2-3 minutes. Then stir in the yogurt one tablespoon at a time.
- Secure the lid, close the pressure valve and cook for 20 minutes at high pressure.
- Naturally release pressure.
- Open lid, press the sauté button and cook for 4-5 minutes to boil off some of the liquid and reduce the gravy to a stew-like consistency.
- Garnish with cilantro leaves and serve.
Harriette says
Delicious! Straightforward and easy to follow recipe. Tweaked the measurements a bit because I had 3 lbs of lamb instead of 2.
Thanks!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Thanks, Harriette!
Tony Nugent says
This is my fifth time on this one, easy to follow and always yummy 😋
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Glad to hear that 🙂
Anna says
Made this tonight, it was fantastic! Looking forward to trying more of your recipes. Thank you so much
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Anna, great to hear! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
Anil says
Ashley do you think i can substitute lamb of chicken? Any changes to the receipe if i do that?,
Aaron Scott says
Excellent recipe. I like a bit more spice so added some chili powder, although I’m not too familiar with how Indian recipes typically become extra spicy.
Do you have a Chicken Tikka Masala recipe?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Aaron, I’m so glad you like it! If you’d like to make it spicier, I’d suggest adding more cayenne. You can also sauté green chilies when adding onions to the recipe. I have an older recipe on the blog for slow cooker chicken tikka masala, and it’s good, but I prefer my Butter Chicken recipe if you’re up for trying that instead: https://myheartbeets.com/instant-pot-butter-chicken/
Paul says
Love this recipe. Made it three times now and it’s always delicious. Twice, however, I received the burnt food warning. I’d suggest adding some water, about 1/2 or so, to help prevent that from happening. Any excess water can be boiled off at the end.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Paul, I’m so glad to hear that you like this recipe! Sorry to hear you’ve had burn issues – glad you found a good solution 🙂
Ian says
Am new to your blog and this was your first recipe that I tried out. IT TURNED OUT GREAT!!
I am a huge Instant Pot fan and this was extremely simple and I couldn’t imagine how tasty it turned out!!
Pretty sure this will be repeated several times over and am looking forward to trying out many more of your recipes.
Thankyou!!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Ian, happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of other recipes you try 🙂
Peter says
Great recipe! We used premium cuts of lamb, and it turned out fall off the bone tender and super flavourful. Perfect over basmati rice! The only difference is the colour of the dish was more brown than red, even though we used paprika to measure.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Glad to hear that, thanks Peter!
Katherine M says
Another terrific recipe!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Thank you! 🙂
Ellis says
What is the equivalent to tomato sauce? I live in the UK and tomato sauce usually refers to tomato ketchup or pasta sauce.
Regards,
Ellis
Craig Sutherland says
I would use Passata sauce, here in the UK
Mohua Lahiri says
I don’t use the tomato sauce in this recipe and comes out equally good.
Paul says
Crushed tomatoes would also work.
Nayab says
Hi! Thanks for this recipe it looks great. If I were to use frozen lamb how would that change the pressure cook time? Thanks!
My Heart Beets says
Hi Nayab, I haven’t tried this with frozen lamb so I’m not sure – maybe try adding an additional 5 minutes to the cook time?
Instant Pothead says
Hi! How many does this serve? Thanks for sharing the recipe!
My Heart Beets says
Hi, there are 2 pounds of meat here, so depending on what else is being served, I’d say it serves 4-6. Hope you enjoy the dish!
Tim Kay says
I added more ginger and garlic (half-again) and everything else to plan. Superb expressions of robust and fulfilling flavours. ++++++
Thank you so much !!
My Heart Beets says
Tim, that’s great to hear! I’m so glad you liked the dish 🙂
Scott says
Can I use a small boneless leg roast instead?
Paul Wykes says
I used boneless lamb leg and it came out great. Wonderful recipe – very similar to what would get in a restaurant.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Happy to hear that!
Jordan says
Great recipe!!
If anyone is interested this, Pinot noir was an amazing pairing with this dish!! Wine usually doesn’t pair that well with Indian food but this was an exception!
My Heart Beets says
Thanks, Jordan! Thanks for sharing the wine tip – that’s great to know 🙂
Jasmine says
DELICIOUS!
My Heart Beets says
Jasmine, I’m so glad you liked it!
Paul Hughes says
Absolutely gorgeous recipe. We made a couple of minor changes, cooked for 25 minutes because we were using a fatty cut of lamb and used a can of tomatoes, plus tomato puree, rather than tomato sauce. Also did a taste test at the end and added a bit more salt and some sugar to counter the acidity of all the tomatoes. The Instant Pot really did a great job of mellowing the spices – my usual home made curries seem harsh compared to restaurant ones, but this was right up there with the best.
My Heart Beets says
Thanks, Paul! I’m really glad you liked this!
Vrinda Arora says
Hi Ashley.I am about to make the onion masala.Can I use the frozen masala instead of onion and tomato separate for this dish?Thanx in advance!
Tasha says
After leaving Asia, I have not been able to find a really good Rogan Josh (even in a restaurant to say) so I’m so happy to have come across this recipe!!! Not only is it super simple, but the flavour is amazing. This has definitely become a family favourite – Thank you for sharing it with us! x
My Heart Beets says
Tasha, that’s so great to hear! Thank you for letting me know how much you and your family like this dish 🙂
Jen says
Do you think this would work with your onion masala? If so, how much would you recommend using? Thanks!
Janie says
Hi from New Zealand! Could I use your frozen “Onion Masala” recipe in this dish? If so, would I leave out the tomato sauce, ginger and garlic? Thanks and can’t wait to taste this! I love all of your recipes!!! AND..how much Masala would you use if possible to use it?
Ren says
Made this receipe today and it came out great .. Gravy was rich and creamy .. this is going to be our go to beef receipe from now on ..
Thank you … You are amazing
My Heart Beets says
Ren, so happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how the rogan josh turned out for you 🙂
Jeff says
I’ve made this a ton now. It is fabulous.
My Heart Beets says
Jeff, that’s so great to hear 🙂
Nancy says
umm… im kashmiri and this is not how you make rogan josh. Rogan josh does not have ginger, garlic, onion, or tomato in it. A lot of indian resturants put these ingredients into the dish, but that’s not real or authentic.
My Heart Beets says
Nancy, ah are you from Kashmir? if so would love for you to share your recipe – please feel free to share in a comment (also, totally mean this sincerely!).
Cal says
Hey,
I was wondering how much time would I need to cook it if I substitute the lamb with pork?
Thank you! I love your recipes!!!
My Heart Beets says
Hi Cal, if you’re using pork shoulder cubes just add an extra 5 mins – so make the cook time 25 mins. Hope you love it!
Samantha says
I would love to make this (and many other recipies of yours). I don’t have an instant pot. Other than the time of cooking, does this change anything in the recipe? Any good notes for cooking this on the stove top?
Tamra says
I’m excited to try making this! Will Greek yogurt work as well as regular yogurt or is it too thick?
My Heart Beets says
Tamra, I can’t wait to hear what you think! Greek is fine you just may need a little less of it – since you add it 1 tbs at a time you can stop whenever you think it looks like it’s creamy enough. let me know how it goes!
Deewa Shrestha says
How long do you need to pressurize it for goat meat?
Farah says
Hi Ashley – made this yesterday and it turned out great! I was wondering if it would be possible to substitute the ground cardamom, cinnamon and cloves for whole spices added at the beginning when frying the onions and meat? Thanks.
My Heart Beets says
Farah, I’m so happy to hear that!! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂 That’s a good question and while I can’t say for sure my thought is that it likely won’t be as flavorful as if you were to use the ground spices since the ground spices cover the meat and the whole spices will mainly just flavor the oil and infuse the meat with aroma. Let me know if you try it please – very curious!
Farah says
Hi Ashley – I made this using whole spices instead of the ground cinnamon, cloves and cardamom and it turned out great! Love your recipes – thank you!
My Heart Beets says
Farah, that’s awesome! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
Patricia says
If I want to use the Kashmiri chili powder, do you have a brand you would recommend?
My Heart Beets says
Hi Patricia! I don’t have a favorite brand for this – I just buy whatever is available at my local Indian grocery store. Just make sure it’s listed as Kashmiri chili so you get the mild chili 🙂
Karen says
I made this with beef instead of lamb and it was lovely! Will make it again for sure.
My Heart Beets says
Karen, I’m so happy to hear that!! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
AYW says
Hi, if I were to use beef short ribs, how long would i need to Pressure Cook it in the IP?
Farah says
Hi – if I double the quantity of lamb do I also need to double all the other ingredients and increase the cooking time? Would 4 pounds of meat fit in a 6 quart IP? Many thanks.
My Heart Beets says
Hi Farah! I haven’t doubled the recipe but when I do I typically I double all of the ingredients and keep the pressure cook time the same. That said just know that step 1 will likely take you longer and the time it takes to reach/release pressure will also take longer due to the contents in the pot. Hope that helps!
Liz says
Hi Ashley, would you recommend this recipe for the mini IP? If yes, would halving the ingredients suffice?
Thank you!
My Heart Beets says
Hi Liz! I don’t own a mini so I can’t say for sure – sorry! If you want to ask in my FB group (Instant Pot for Indian Food), I’m sure someone can help! Or hopefully a reader will reply to this comment! If you try, please let us know how it goes 🙂
Maneesha says
Woww!! This is awesome!! Ashley, if we were to use chicken instead of lamb, would you recommend a 9-10 minute pressure cooker time? Can’t wait to try this!
My Heart Beets says
Thanks Maneesha!! For chicken thighs, I’d probably reduce the cook time to 8 minutes – especially since you’re sautéing it all a bit in step 1. Let me know how it goes!
maneesha says
What a fantastic recipe! This was my first time EVER cooking with lamb, and this recipe was a HIT!! Two thumbs up from the hubby! We like spice, so I also added 3 serrano peppers, minced with the garlic/ginger. Thanks so much!
My Heart Beets says
Maneesha, that’s so great to hear!! Thanks for letting me know how this turned out for you guys 🙂