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Instant Pot Thai Peanut Tofu Pineapple Curry

By Manali

4.66 from 23 votes

Apr 06, 2017, Updated Jul 26, 2018

Vegan Thai Peanut Tofu & Pineapple Curry - all made in the Instant Pot!

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The next recipe in the Instant Pot series – Thai Peanut Tofu Pineapple Curry. The recipe is vegan and all made in the instant pot!

If you love all the Instant Pot vegetarian/vegan recipes that I share on the blog, please join me on this Facebook Group – Instant Pot Vegetarian Recipes. The group would share/feature vegetarian instant pot recipes and ideas from all around the web!

Raise your hands if you like thai flavors! Raise your hands if you like curry! Well if both your hands went up, then you need to try this recipe. It’s really flavorful and the best part is that it comes together so quickly in the instant pot. My IP has been working overtime these days, so much so that I have “almost” ditched my traditional Indian pressure cooker.

The concept of pressure cooker is deep rooted in Indian culture and cooking. We have been cooking our lentils, beans, rice in the pressure cooker since eternity. Have I told you guys my pressure cooker story? So this is one kitchen gadget which every Indian carries along when they leave India. Yes, we are almost handicapped without a pressure cooker in the kitchen.

So what happened was when I was going to Scotland for masters, my mom packed my tiny pressure cooker in my carry on luggage. I didn’t even check my bag and mom thought such an important thing cannot be placed in the check in baggage! (of course!!) Well the cooker ended up being taken out at the airport security. I remember requesting them to let me take it since I was a student and going to a new country but they didn’t budge.

I was so disappointed and then couldn’t cook anything there because a) I hardly knew any cooking! and b) without pressure cooker, whatever I knew was also a challenge. Mom dad ultimately couriered the cooker to me! Well now you understand the importance of a pressure cooker for an Indian!

Moving on to this curry, the inspiration for this dish comes from a dish that I ate at a local Thai restaurant. The curry had cashews and pineapple and I really liked it. So I thought of adding some tofu, peanut butter and making it more wholesome! Here’s the thing with peanut butter in curries, it can get really overwhelming.

For this recipe, I would suggest starting with 2 tablespoons of peanut butter. If you like a stronger flavor, you may add 2 tablespoons more. But don’t start with 4 tablespoons in the first place. This thai peanut tofu pineapple curry is a sweet and spicy curry. You may adjust the flavors to taste. Prefer a spicier curry? Add more of the dried red chili, thai red curry paste and sriracha. Like a sweeter curry? Add more pineapple and coconut sugar!

This instant pot recipe is vegan and can be made gluten-free by using tamari (gluten-free substitute for soy sauce). Now before someone says that the thai red curry paste has fish sauce so how come it’s vegan,? Well I use “Thai Kitchen” red curry paste and it’s completely vegan and easily available at most grocery stores and also on amazon.

Hope you guys give this curry a try and if you do, please don’t forget to share feedback with me and tag #cookwithmanali on social media.

PS: Thanks for all the feedback on the Instant Pot series! Because you guys really liked the idea of this series, I am going to continue doing it and also do videos, so stay tuned for that.

Method

Press saute mode on instant pot, once the pot heats up add olive oil. Break the dried red chili into two and add to the oil.

Add onion and saute for a minute. Add cashews and saute till they start changing color.

Add grated ginger and garlic and saute for a minute till you get nice aroma.

Meanwhile in a bowl whisk together peanut butter, coconut milk, water and thai red curry paste. You might need to heat this mixture a little so that the peanut butter mixes completely.

Add this mixture to the pot once ginger-garlic are fragrant. Give it a good stir.

Then add soy sauce, rice vinegar, sriracha, coconut sugar and salt. Stir to combine.

Now add cubed tofu pieces to the pot and mix. I used extra-firm tofu and pressed it with a hard object for 20 minutes prior to using it in the recipe.

Cover the lid, cancel the saute mode. Press the manual button, adjust pressure to high and and cook on manual high pressure for 2 minutes.

Quick release as soon as 2 minutes are up.

Cancel “keep warm” mode and press the saute mode again.

Add pineapple pieces and let it simmer for 1-2 minutes. You can adjust consistency of the curry at this point. Add water if it’s too thick for your liking.

Squeeze in some fresh lime juice.

Garnish with cilantro and serve the thai peanut tofu pineapple curry with rice!

* Adjust the spice levels of this thai peanut tofu pineapple curry to taste.

* I used canned pineapple here, if you use fresh pineapple, it might need some more time for cooking.

Instant Pot Thai Peanut Tofu Pineapple Curry

4.66 from 23 votes

By Manali

Prep: 10 minutes mins

Cook: 15 minutes mins

Total: 25 minutes mins

Servings: 3

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Vegan Thai Peanut Tofu & Pineapple Curry - all made in the Instant Pot!

Ingredients 

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• ▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 2 dried red chili broken into pieces
• ▢ 1 small white onion chopped
• ▢ 1/4 cup raw cashews
• ▢ 2 teaspoon grated garlic
• ▢ 2 teaspoons grated ginger
• ▢ 2-3 tablespoons peanut butter or more for a stronger peanut flavor
• ▢ 14 oz can coconut milk I use light you may use full fat
• ▢ 2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon thai red curry paste
• ▢ 1/2 cup water
• ▢ 1 teaspoon soy sauce or tamari if gluten-free
• ▢ 3 teaspoon rice vinegar
• ▢ 1.5 teaspoon sriracha adjust to taste
• ▢ 1-2 teaspoon coconut sugar adjust to taste
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
• ▢ salt to taste
• ▢ 200 grams extra-firm tofu cut into cubes
• ▢ 1/3 cup pineapple cubes I used canned pineapple cubes
• ▢ juice of 1 lime
• ▢ cilantro to garnish

Instructions 

• Press saute mode on instant pot, once the pot heats up add olive oil. Break the dried red chili into two and add to the oil.
• Add onion and saute for a minute. Add cashews and saute till they start changing color.
• Add grated ginger and garlic and saute for a minute till you get nice aroma.
• Meanwhile in a bowl whisk together peanut butter, coconut milk, water and thai red curry paste. You might need to heat this mixture a little so that the peanut butter mixes completely.
• Add this mixture to the pot once ginger-garlic are fragrant. Give it a good stir.
• Then add soy sauce, rice vinegar, sriracha, coconut sugar, turmeric powder and salt. Stir to combine.
• Now add cubed tofu pieces to the pot and mix. I used extra-firm tofu and pressed it with a hard object for 20 minutes prior to using it in the recipe.
• Cover the lid, cancel the saute mode. Press the manual button, adjust pressure to high and and cook on manual high pressure for 2 minutes.
• Quick release as soon as 2 minutes are up.
• Cancel "keep warm" mode and press the saute mode again.
• Add pineapple pieces and let it simmer for 1-2 minutes. You can adjust consistency of the curry at this point. Add water if it's too thick for your liking.
• Squeeze in some fresh lime juice.
• Garnish with cilantro and serve the thai peanut tofu pineapple curry with rice!

Nutrition

Calories: 354kcal, Carbohydrates: 19g, Protein: 10g, Fat: 25g, Saturated Fat: 11g, Sodium: 376mg, Potassium: 310mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 6g, Vitamin A: 1595IU, Vitamin C: 13.9mg, Calcium: 55mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Entree, Vegetarian

Cuisine: Thai

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Instant Pot Thai Peanut Tofu Pineapple Curry