Instant Pot Aloo Gobi
Instant Pot Aloo Gobi is a quick and easy one-pot recipe inspired by the flavorful curries served at Punjabi dhabas. It comes together in about 30 minutes, making it perfect for busy weeknights. Serve it with roti, paratha, naan or steamed rice.
About Instant Pot Aloo Gobi
This Instant Pot Aloo Gobi is inspired by the simple and flavorful potato and cauliflower curries served at Punjabi dhabas. These roadside eateries across North India are known for their hearty, homestyle food, and this recipe brings those comforting flavors to your kitchen with much less effort.
Unlike my restaurant-style richer and creamier versions, this recipe is lighter, simpler and designed specifically for the Instant Pot. It is perfect for everyday meals when you want a satisfying curry without spending much time.
The gravy gets its flavor from onions, tomatoes, ginger, garlic and everyday Indian spices. Tomatoes add a pleasant tang, while the blend of spices gives the curry its characteristic dhaba-style taste.
The only preparation needed is blending the onions, tomatoes, ginger and garlic into a smooth paste. Once that is done, the Instant Pot does the rest. After sautéing the masala, simply add the potatoes and cauliflower, pressure cook, and the curry is ready in about 30 minutes, including the preparation time.
I usually make this curry moderately spicy, but you can easily adjust the heat by increasing or reducing the green chilies and red chili powder to suit your taste.
Serve Instant Pot Aloo Gobi with roti, paratha, naan or plain steamed rice. It also tastes delicious with jeera rice.
If you are looking for a richer curry for entertaining or special occasions, do try my restaurant-style Aloo Gobi, which is cooked on the stovetop in a creamy onion, tomato and cashew gravy.
More Indian Instant Pot Recipes To Try
How to make Instant Pot Aloo Gobi (Stepwise)
Blanch Cauliflower
1. This step of blanching the cauliflower is optional and can be skipped. I do it to get rid of any worms or insects in the florets.
Firstly chop the cauliflower to get medium-sized florets. The cauliflower florets should measure about 1.5 to 2 cups.
I have used around 250 grams of cauliflower. You can easily use 200 to 250 grams of cauliflower.
2. In a colander rinse them in running water a few times. Drain all the water.
4. Boil 2½ to 3 cups of water in a pan with ½ teaspoon salt. Once the water is boiling, close the burner.
5. Add the cauliflower florets in the salted hot water and keep covered for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes drain all the water and keep the cauliflower florets aside.
More Prep
6. Rinse, peel and dice the potatoes in small to medium sizes cubes. The diced potatoes should be around 1½ cups.
I used 4 medium-sized potatoes. To prevent the browning of potatoes, place them in water in a bowl.
7. Chop 1 large onion, 1 large tomato, 1.5 inches ginger and 5 to 6 small to medium garlic cloves.
You will need about 1 cup chopped onions, 1 cup chopped tomatoes, 1.5 teaspoons chopped garlic and 1.5 teaspoons chopped ginger.
8. Add the chopped onions, tomatoes, ginger and garlic in a blender jar.
9. Blend to a smooth and fine consistency making sure there are no chunks of the veggies and herbs. No need to add water while blending.
Sauté
10. Switch on the 6 quart instant pot. Press the sauté button on less mode for 10 minutes.
11. When you get the sign of hot on the display, add 3 tablespoons oil in the steel insert. Then add the ground onion-tomato paste. The onion tomato paste may splutter so be careful.
12. Mix and stir well.
13. Now press the sauté button again so that the mode becomes normal. This will increase the heat in the instant pot.
14. Sauté the onion-tomato masala paste stirring often. A lot of steam will be felt while stirring so if your are sensitive to heat, then use a long spoon or wear oven mittens.
15. Sauté on normal mode for 8 to 10 minutes till the masala paste thickens. Stir often while sautéing. You will see oil leaving the sides of the masala paste.
You have to continue to sauté the masala till it thickens, comes together and changes color with some oil leaving the sides.
16. When the masala paste thickens and is sautéed very well after 8 to 10 minutes, press the cancel button. With me after 10 minutes of the sauté mode the masala paste had cooked well.
If unable to handle the heat, then use the less mode while sautéing.
17. Add 1 to 2 green chillies or serrano peppers and all the spice powders listed below one by one. Keep the spice powders ready on the kitchen countertop before you begin to add them.
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chilli powder or ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon garam masala powder
18. Mix very well. The spice powders will get cooked with the residue heat.
Make Instant Pot Aloo Gobi
19. Add cauliflower, potatoes and salt as required.
20. Combine the sautéed masala base with the veggies and mix very well.
21. Pour 1 cup of water. Again mix very well. This is a curry version. For a less gravy add ½ to ¾ cup water.
You can even simmer later (once the potatoes and cauliflower are pressure cooked) to thicken the gravy using the sauté mode for a few minutes.
22. Close the IP with its lid and turn the valve to the sealing position. Press the pressure cooker switch and set the time for 3 minutes. Use high-pressure mode.
24. Do a quick pressure release (QPR) once you hear the beep and the timer goes off. Check the consistency of the curry.
If you find it thin, then using the sauté function, simmer for some minutes until the gravy thickens.
Mashing a few potatoes will also help in thickening the gravy sauce. This curry has a medium consistency, though you can make it slightly thick if you prefer.
25. Lastly add ½ teaspoon of crushed kasuri methi (dry fenugreek leaves) and 2 tablespoons of chopped coriander leaves. Mix again.
Serve this Instant Pot Aloo Gobi curry hot with roti, naan or steamed rice or jeera rice. While serving you can add a few chopped coriander leaves for garnish.
My Recipe Tips
- Cut the vegetables evenly: Chop the cauliflower into medium florets and the potatoes into small to medium cubes so both cook evenly during the 3-minute pressure cooking time.
- Adjust the consistency: This recipe makes a curry with a medium consistency. For a thicker curry, reduce the water to ½ to ¾ cup. If you prefer medium gravy, follow the recipe as written.
- Pressure cook longer if needed: Cooking time can vary slightly depending on the size of the vegetables. If the potatoes or cauliflower are not tender, pressure cook for 1 to 2 minutes more.
- Adjust the spice level: Make the curry milder or spicier by reducing or increasing the green chilies and red chili powder according to your taste.
- Scale the recipe easily: You can easily halve the recipe for fewer servings or double it for a larger family meal. Keep the pressure cooking time the same.
Step by Step Photo Guide Above
Instant Pot Aloo Gobi
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
- 1½ to 2 cups (200 to 250 grams) cauliflower – chopped
- 2½ to 3 cups water – for blanching cauliflower
- 1½ cups (250 grams or 4 medium) potatoes – chopped
- 3 tablespoons oil – use sunflower oil, peanut oil or any neutral tasting oil
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder (ground turmeric)
- 1 teaspoon kashmiri chilli powder or ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper or paprika
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder (ground coriander) – optional
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
- 1 to 2 green chillies or half of a serrano pepper, slit or sliced
- 1 cup water – for pressure cooking
- ½ teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi), crushed, optional
- 2 tablespoons coriander leaves – chopped, (cilantro)
For Blending
- 1 cup onions – roughly chopped
- 1 cup tomatoes – roughly chopped
- 1½ teaspoons ginger – chopped
- 1½ teaspoons garlic – chopped
Instructions
Preparation
- Firstly chop cauliflower in medium-sized florets. Rinse them in running water.
- Then boil 2½ to 3 cups of water in a pan with salt. Close the burner.
- Add the cauliflower florets in the salted hot water and keep covered for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, drain all the water and set the blanched cauliflower florets aside.
- This blanching step is optional and can be skipped.
- Rinse peel and dice the potatoes in medium-sized cubes or pieces. Place the potatoes in a bowl of water so that they do not discolor.
- Make a smooth paste in a blender with the onion, tomato, ginger and garlic. No need to add water while making the paste.
Making Instant Pot Aloo Gobi
- Switch on the 6 quart instant pot. Press the sauté button on less mode for 10 minutes.
- When you get the sign of hot on the display, add 3 tablespoons oil in the steel insert. Then add the ground onion-tomato paste. The paste may splutter so be careful.
- Mix and stir well.
- Now press the sauté button again so that the mode becomes normal. This will increase the heat in the instant pot.
- Sauté the onion-tomato masala paste stirring often. A lot of steam will be felt while stirring so if sensitive to heat, then use a long spoon or wear oven mittens.
- Sauté on normal mode for 8 to 10 minutes till the masala paste thickens. Stir often while sautéing. You will see oil leaving the sides of the masala paste. You have to continue to stir and sauté the masala till it thickens, comes together and changes color with some oil leaving the sides.
- When the masala paste gets cooked and is sauteed well after 8 to 10 minutes, press the cancel button.
- Add the green chillies and all the ground spice powders one by one – turmeric powder, red chilli powder, coriander powder and garam masala powder. Keep the spice powders ready on the kitchen countertop before you begin to add them.
- Mix very well. The spice powders will get cooked with the residue heat.
- Add cauliflower, potatoes, water and salt as required. Mix very well.
- Close the instant pot with its lid and turn the valve to the sealing position. Press the pressure cooker button and set the timer for 3 minutes. Use high-pressure mode.
- Do a quick pressure release (qpr) once you hear the beep and the timer goes off.
- If the consistency looks thin to you, then press the sauté button and simmer for a few minutes till you get the desired consistency. Mashing a few potatoes with the spoon will also help to thicken the curry.
- Lastly, add ½ teaspoon of crushed kasuri methi (dry fenugreek leaves) and 2 tablespoons of chopped coriander leaves. Mix very well.
- Serve instant pot aloo gobi gravy hot with roti, naan or steamed rice or jeera rice or rumali roti. While serving you can add a few chopped coriander leaves for garnish.
Dassana’s Notes
- Chop cauliflower into medium pieces and potatoes into small to medium cubes or pieces, so that they get cooked in the 3 minutes time setting.
- You can adjust the quantity of spice powders, as per your preferences.
- This recipe yields a curry version. For less gravy, add ½ to ¾ cup water.
- If in case, the potatoes and cauliflower are under cooked, then pressure cook for 1 to 2 minutes more.
- You can even simmer to thicken the gravy using the sauté mode for a few minutes, after the potatoes and cauliflower are cooked.
- This recipe of Instant Pot Aloo Gobi can easily be halved or doubled to make for less or more servings.
Nutrition
This Instant Pot Aloo Gobi recipe from the archives was first published on August 2009.
This recipe seemed intimidating at first but once I got going it was very easy to follow and it turned out AMAZING! will be making this again!
How many whistles for pressure cooker?
2 whistles should be fine.
Tried this recipe today.the ground paste alongwith the spices made for a delicious curry.loved it.
thanks again winnie. glad to know that you liked the curry.
I am big foodie. I love Cooking. I learned a lot Vegrecipesofindia.
Thank you for such a wonderfull recipes..
Welcome Dipankar
Why don’t you give an app of veg recipes of India.. that will be very helpful instead of browsing coz i follow ur recipes and use to try
we had an app earlier and we used to have many issues related with it. so, for now, we do not plan to have an app. may be in the future we will look in to this. thank you.
Its a nice recipe…came out quite well! Thank u..
thanks and welcome.
Sorry Actually it’s vermecilli (saviya) I want that vermecilli spicy recipe.. with onions, chilli powder hope u got me but plzz can u
Fazila. Its alright. You can check this recipe and add more green chillies if required – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/vermicelli-upma-seviyan-upma/
Loved it … I’ll definitely try this today ????.. can u plzz add semolina(sooji) spicy recipe I found sweet recipe but I want spicy ..can u upload or have u uploaded ?? I couldn’t find it in ur site.. thnx
Welcome Fazila. Could you tell in more detail which spicy semolina recipe you are looking for?
Hello, can I skip grinding onion tomatoes etc and chop and cook them instead ? Will it taste just as good ?
if you chop them, then the taste will be different, but will be good. so you can chop them. but finely chop both onions and tomatoes.
nice one nice Resupply
Thanks Reshma
Hi Dasanna ji..I love ur recipes. Infact 5 star rating is very less to appreciate u.I prepared so many recipes of urs and they r awesome.can u plz upload recipes of marwari homemade cuisine.I love to eat in RAJASATHAN BOJANALAY only bcoz of their homemade curries.so plz share those recipes…love ur recipes again..
thanks a lot aishwarya. i know only a few marwari recipes but have not yet added them. i have had rajasthani thalis in restaurants and love it. i do plan to cover each regional indian cuisine one by one. so i will add marwari recipes also. you can let me know what recipes you are looking for. so that i can add them in my recipe requests notes. these days i am only adding recipe requests more often than the recipes which i make at home.
Very nice recipes I find so much help from your veg recipes. ..thanks a lot…
thanks and welcome.
Was very tasty…. Me and my family liked it …
glad your family liked it and thankyoy anupama 🙂
Thank you. It seems easy.i am trying it today
thanks sujatha and hope you like the recipe.
Excellent!!! Five stars for you. As always.
thankyou sari for your positive words and five star rating.
I tried ALU gobi …dhaba style and it turned out good….thanks so much for receipe
thanks for the feedback sheetal.
Hi,
I am about to try the receipt but confused about the potatoes. Should I boil them before putting it together with the gravy? In the process of cooking potatoes, cauliflower get over cooked?
no need to cook the potatoes before. chop the potatoes in slightly larger pieces and then they won’t get overcooked, by the time the cauliflower cooks.
Hi dassana. I have only recently started cooking and I love your recipes. Just made this recipe and it was delicious. Thanks so much!
welcome johanna. glad to know this.
Hi, I love your recipies! I follow the same recipe, and cook it in a pressure cooker to save time. It comes out delicious. All the best.
thanks sharmishtha for sharing your positive feedback. good to know this.
Thank you for this extremely simple, easy and delicious recipe…came out quite good:-)
welcome ashwini
Hello! If I don’t have blender – can I put onion, tomato, garlic, ginger finally chopped by knife ?
sveta, yes you can. you can also mince them.
Do you stir the tomato/onion/garlic paste while you are waiting for the oil to come out? Or do you just let it be? Thanks!
welcome alexis. stir occasionally.
this is the second recipe i tried from your site (the first was medu vada). loved both the recipes and it came out excellent. thank you for posting these recipes such a help to get the taste of home where we live (canada). going to be more daring and try the pav bread. from an avid website reader
thanks jasmin for sharing positive feedback on recipes. glad to know this. i hope you like the pav bread.
Dear sister…curd and cashew kismis paste is good for this ..waiting for ur reply…..
jayanthy, you can use cashew paste and add just 1 or 2 tbsp of curd. because tomatoes are also added to this recipe. kismis you can garnish.
all good..except… I misread, and boiled the cauliflower.. #ScholBoyError.. I thought it sounded a bit too British!
Nice tip on the colour change and cook until the oil starts leaving the sides
will check out your other pages
Rice and peace
thanks mark. it happens at times.
I have a question, in step 12 when you say to add water, do you mean the water that the cauliflower was soaking in?
matt, i mean fresh water and not the soaked cauliflower water.
hmmm yummy and easy to cook…
thanks shabina
m surely gonna try this out .. this seems delicious …. nowadays I hav developed a great liking for cooking
thanks anargha
very nice recipe
thanks sunil
Absolutely delicious! Thank you for sharing your recipe. I added a tablespoon of tomato paste and a half can of chick peas. Scrumptious!
welcome roz. thanks for sharing your positive feedback and your variation to make this aloo gobi recipe.
Dear Friend,
I cooked JEERA RICE yesterday night for my daughter. She liked it so much. She asked me to share the recipe. I had told her visit http://www.vegrecipesofindia.com.
I had downloaded many recipes to cook for my colleagues and friends. Ofcourse, it goes without saying, for my daugther.
Thanking you very much my dear friend.
I pray to GOD to bless you always with a very healthy life so that we too get benefit from your recipes.
all the best
Musunuri V.N.Rao
regards
welcome musunuri. big thanks for this sweet feedback and also for your prayers. we are fortunate to have caring readers like you.
Thank you very much dassana for ur reply…Thanks a lot….
welcome snehal.
Hi dassana, l love this recipe…I’m big fan of yours…I’ve learned good cooking from u…I’m bit confused about onion tomato paste…. just wanted to know…can I use raw onion to make a paste or I’ve to fry it little bit…which is better….
snehal… thanks a lot first. onion tomato paste is just onions, ginger, garlic and tomatoes ground to a smooth puree in a grinder or blender. thats it. no need to add any water while grinding as the juices from the tomatoes suffice. saute the masala in oil till you see the oil releasing from the sides. this takes quite some time.
Great recipe!
Felt like we are travelling in India 🙂 Thanks!
welcome reut
Very nice and easy to prepare also different
thanks.
Very nice recipe.I tried it and it was really good.thanks.
welcome bharti
My new favorite aloo gobi recipe. I love how the onion/ginger/garlic/tomato paste combined with all the spices creates such an irresistible gravy. I think I now prefer this method over my usual “dry” recipe (which has been tricky for me to cook the aloo & gobi just right).
For kicks, I added a pinch of asafoetida (hing) with the gravy–this was ground from the resinous, chunk form. OMG, love the depth that it adds.
I also added 1 tsp Amchur (dried mango) powder at the end, which gives a pleasant hint of sour as a result. Similar to adding lemon juice, but a subtle shade of difference.
I’ll be on the lookout for dried fenugreek leaves and corriander leaves the next time I make this. Thank you for this recipe, and I look forward to trying more recipes from this site!
welcome bee. glad to know that you liked this recipe and also for sharing your inputs. dried fenugreek leaves is added in many indian recipes as it adds lot of flavor to the dish. keep visiting.
Another awesome dish!! I moaned as I was eating this the curry is so yummy! All of your recipes do not have overpowering heat, so think it’s very kid friendly!
thanks babs for the positive feedback. keep visiting.
Great recipe! Very Punjabi. I have been cooking Indian for 20 years and you have some great recipes.
thanks Tj
The recipe is ok, I think I used too much of tomato. Still not very Punjabi I feel
K, its a very simple dhaba style recipe.
Nice recipe.. Looks yum