Curried rice or curry rice is a quick and easy side dish that can be served on its own, with stir-fries or any other homemade sauce. The rice is fluffy, delicious and packed full of flavour from the staple pantry ingredients used.
Learn how to make this rice side dish in your instant pot pressure cooker and on the stove top in easy steps.
Easy homemade curry rice recipe
I have made this Indian curry rice recipe in my pressure king pro pressure cooker, it can be made on the stove top following the same steps. The only caveat is that the one made in the pressure cooker cooks faster than the one made on the stove top. Pressure cooker rice is completely hands-free too.
A true confession, ever since I got on the pressure cooker wagon, I've hardly ever cooked my rice dishes differently. I do make an exception for Jollof rice though, who wouldn’t?
The star spice in making this recipe is curry! While you can use any curry you have, I prefer to use curry powder made for the Nigerian market. My choice is the Ducross brand, this can be found in any African/Asian store around you. In case this brand is not available, then by all means use what you have.
Why you will love this curried rice as a complete meal or side dish
- It is easy to make
- Packed full of flavour
- A family favorite, my children call it yellow rice.
- So delicious
- You can bulk it with vegetables to make it a complete meal for vegetarian or vegan
- You only need a handful of ingredients
- Serve it with any protein of choice.
What you will need to make it
To make this super easy yet delicious and flavourful curry rice recipe, you will need the following
Raw rice: This could be long grain rice or basmati rice. Jasmine rice would also work for this recipe too.
Curry powder
Cayenne pepper: for a little bit of kick
Onion
Chicken stock: to make this rice dish vegan or vegetarian friendly, use vegetable stock instead.
Garlic: Check my garlic paste recipe for how to make a batch of garlic paste that stays for up 3 months in the fridge and even longer in the freezer.
Frozen peas
Carrots
Vegetable oil: swap this for ghee
Dried coriander leaves: you can swap this for fresh ones.
How to make easy curried rice
Heat up olive oil over medium heat in a pot, then sauté the onions, garlic and carrots until soft and fragrant, this should take about 3 minutes.
Add curry powder and coriander to the sauteed aromatics and stir to combine, add rinsed rice, stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste then cover with the chicken stock, stir and ensure that no grains are sticking to the bottom of the pan.
Cover the pan with the lid, reduce the heat and cook between 15 to 20 minutes. The time spent to cook the rice would depend on the type of rice used. I used golden Sella basmati rice and it can take anywhere between 15 minutes to 20 minutes, depending on the quantity being cooked.
Once the rice is cooked, Add the frozen peas, place the lid back on for another 5 minutes, take the lid off and fluff the rice with a fork. Garnish with chopped parsley or coriander and some crushed cashew nut. Serve and enjoy!
Pressure cooker curried rice
To make curry rice in your instant pot, pressure king pro or other brands of electronic pressure cooker, follow all the steps mentioned above. Make sure you deglaze the bottom of the pan properly to avoid getting the BURN notice.
Cook on high pressure (or meat function if using PKP) for 6 minutes, then leave to natural pressure release for 5 minutes. Carefully do a quick release, open the lid, fluff the rice with a fork, add the frozen peas, stir to combine. Place a lid on the pressure cooker for another 3 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
How to serve curried rice
Sweet potato and chickpea curry
How to store
This curry rice pilau can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days. Let it cool completely before storing in the fridge.
I am not a fan of frozen rice, but that said, you can freeze this curried rice for up to 3 months. It is best to let the rice thaw overnight in the fridge but if you can’t wait, simply reheat in a microwave.
More rice recipes
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Curried Rice Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup basmati rice: This could be long grain rice or basmati rice. Jasmine rice would also work for this recipe too
- ½ tbsp curry powder
- ½ cup onion chopped
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper use according to taste
- 3 garlic chopped
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 1 cup carrots chopped
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- ½ tbsp dried coriander leaves you can swap this for fresh ones.
- Parsley and cashew nut to serve.
Instructions
- Heat up olive oil over medium heat in a pot, then sauté the onions, garlic and carrots until soft and fragrant, this should take about 3 minutes.
- Add curry powder and coriander to the sauteed aromatics and stir to combine, add rinsed rice, stir to combine. Add salt and pepper to taste then cover with the chicken stock, stir and ensure that no grains is sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Cover the pan with the lid, reduce the heat and cook for between 15 to 20 minutes. The time you cook the rice for would depend on the type of rice used. I used golden Sella basmati rice and it can take anywhere between 15 minutes to 20 minutes, depending on the quantity being cooking.
- Once the rice is cooked, Add the frozen peas, place the lid back on for another 5 minutes, take the lid off and fluff the rice with a fork. Garnish with chopped parsley or coriander and some crushed cashew nut. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? PLEASE RATE IT AND LEAVE ME A COMMENT. USE #MYACTIVEKITCHEN OR TAG @MYACTIVEKITCHEN ON INSTAGRAM SO I CAN SEE YOUR PHOTOS, I WOULD LOVE TO SEE YOUR CREATIONS. THANK YOU!
This was a great recipe. We really enjoyed it. I varied it a little bit in that I only had boil in the bag, so cooked that separately and then added it to the mixture in the pan. I also added some chopped red pepper along with the onions etc. it was delicious.