Chicken Rendang Recipe (Instant Pot or Stovetop)

This Chicken Rendang Curry is rich, aromatic and packed with fragrant spices and rich coconut. Made with juicy chicken pieces instead of beef, this curry cooks faster and can be made on the stovetop or in the Instant Pot or pressure cooker. It's perfect for making ahead as the flavours develop beautifully over a few days.

About This Chicken Rendang Curry

Chicken Rendang is a chicken version of a classic beef rendang, the classic Indonesian curry. Instead of using beef we use chicken pieces in a gorgeously rich coconut sauce. Using chicken makes it a bit lighter and it takes less time to cook it. I'll also show you how to make this in the Instant Pot or pressure cooker as well as on the stovetop.

I love making chicken curries and if you're looking for more, try my Malaysian Chicken Curry, Thai Green Chicken Curry or Fijian Chicken Curry. You might also like my Balinese Chicken!

Why This Recipe Works and Why You'll Love It

I've made beef rendang using my mother's beef rendang recipe for many years even doing a beef short rib version but it's not just a matter of using the same recipe for chicken. Beef adds a lot of natural flavour to a dish while chicken adds a milder, different flavour. So we need to add some more spices to give it a robust flavour.
This chicken rendang can be done on the stovetop, Instant Pot or pressure cooker. After cooking the spice paste, the chicken takes 45 minutes to simmer on the stovetop plus 15 minutes to reduce the sauce, or 15 minutes under pressure plus 10 minutes to reduce the sauce. Allow extra time for the pressure cooker to come to pressure and release pressure. I personally prefer this in the Instant Pot because it is faster.
I'll explain the best cuts of chicken to use for chicken rendang (there's one cut you should definitely avoid!).
The spice paste sounds like it has a large range of ingredients but if you cook Asian food, you'll probably have quite a few of them in your spice pantry already.
This curry only gets better with time as the flavours develop!

Ingredients For Chicken Rendang Curry

Onions - Large brown, white or red onions.

Chillies - Use large red chillies if you want a mild curry, small if you want spicy. Dried chillies can also be used.

Ginger - Fresh ginger, minced on microplane or jarred minced ginger.

Lemongrass stalks - Use the white part as the green part is too fibrous.

Garlic cloves - Fresh garlic cloves.

Oil - I like to use coconut oil as it fits with the flavour profile but use your favourite type of oil.

Chicken pieces - I prefer chicken on the bone for curries but I get that some people (like Mr NQN!) don't want to struggle with bones. So use your favourite chicken cut as long as it is not chicken breast as that will dry out.

Coconut - Desiccated coconut. If you have dry shredded (unsweetened) coconut, you can blitz it in the food processor until you get a finer texture.

Chicken stock - Or chicken broth to flavour the curry and give it depth.

Coconut cream - Thick coconut cream and not coconut milk. Rendang has a richer, thicker sauce than other curries.

Spice Ingredient Spotlight

Galangal - Looks like ginger but is larger, shinier and more pink in colour. It has a distinctive menthol flavour. Because I don't use it that often and fresh galangal is very hard to cut, I keep dried galangal slices in my pantry. Don't overdo the galangal as it can be strong.

Makrut Lime Leaves - These fragrant leaves are essential to balance the richness of the coconut. These used to be called kaffir lime leaves but this is a derogatory term. The leaves are shiny, bright green and often attached in pairs. I like slicing them very thinly using scissors-avoid the spine if it is thick.

Tamarind Puree - Tamarind is a podded fruit that grows inside a thin, hard shell that resembles bean pods that you can find fresh in South East Asia (I love snacking on it!). Tamarind puree has the seeds removed and is made up of the tangy flesh. As tamarind is tangy, balance this with sugar at the end.

Cardamom - In this recipe we use green cardamom which is what is commonly used in South East Asian cuisine. To break the pods open use the flat end of a heavy chef's knife and gently bruise it. The pod should split open and you can use the tiny black seeds inside. You can also use ground cardamom, around 3/4 teaspoon in place of 5 green pods.

Star Anise - This is one of my favourite spices. As the name suggests it is a star shaped dried spice that you can either simmer whole in a sauce, or in this case you can grind it up to form a powder.

Ground Coriander Seeds - Coriander seeds are the tiny dried round fruits of the Coriandrum sativum plant and are light and hollow balls. They are citrusy and floral in aroma. They are very different from coriander leaves; while some people dislike coriander leaves and find them soapy in taste, they can eat the seeds.

Turmeric Powder - Turmeric powder is the dried powder form of the turmeric root. It is known for its bright yellow colour and antioxidant properties. Turmeric powder is more concentrated in antioxidants than fresh turmeric. Tip: if your silicon spatulas are stained yellow from cooking with turmeric, place them in the sun and the yellow will fade!

Video How To Make Chicken Rendang Curry

Video: Chicken Rendang Curry Recipe

Chicken Rendang Curry Recipe

An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott

Recipe Overview

Preparation time: approximately 20 minutes (allow another 15 minutes if rehydrating dried chillies or galangal)

Cooking time: 75-80 minutes on the stovetop, or 35-40 minutes in the Instant Pot plus time to come to pressure and release pressure

Serves: 6-8 people with rice

Ingredients Needed

For Spice Paste

3 onions, peeled and quartered (around 375g/13.2oz)
1-2 fresh red chillies (large if you want mild, small if you want spicy) or 4 dried red chillies *if dried see note
50g/1.7oz minced ginger
4 thin slices galangal, dried or fresh *if dried see note
70g/2.5oz lemongrass stalks, white part
6 garlic cloves, peeled
2 teaspoons ground coriander seeds
2 star anise
1.5 teaspoon turmeric powder
5 green cardamom pods, broken open, discard pod, keep seeds
1.5 teaspoons salt (or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
3 teaspoons coconut oil
2-3 teaspoons sugar to taste
1/2 cup water
8 makrut lime leaves, very finely cut, see note

For chicken

1.5kg/3.3lb chicken pieces (skin on or off)
150g/5.3oz desiccated coconut
3 teaspoons tamarind puree
2 teaspoons white sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups chicken stock
300g/10.6oz coconut cream

Step-By-Step Instructions

Step 1a PASTE STOVETOP - Blend the onions (3 onions, around 375g/13.2oz), chillies (1-2 fresh red chillies or 4 dried red chillies), ginger (50g/1.7oz), galangal (4 thin slices), lemongrass (70g/2.5oz white part), garlic (6 cloves), coriander (2 teaspoons), star anise (2), turmeric powder (1.5 teaspoons), cardamom seeds (seeds from 5 green pods), salt (1.5 teaspoons or to taste) and white pepper (1/2 teaspoon) until you get a smooth paste (Thermomix: speed #10, 15 seconds). Place a frying pan on medium high heat and add coconut oil (3 teaspoons) and cook spice paste for 15-20 minutes adding a little water at a time as needed to prevent burning.

Step 1b PASTE INSTANT POT - Blend the onions (3 onions, around 375g/13.2oz), chillies (1-2 fresh red chillies or 4 dried red chillies), ginger (50g/1.7oz), galangal (4 thin slices), lemongrass (70g/2.5oz white part), garlic (6 cloves), coriander (2 teaspoons), star anise (2), turmeric powder (1.5 teaspoons), cardamom seeds (seeds from 5 green pods), salt (1.5 teaspoons or to taste) and white pepper (1/2 teaspoon) until you get a smooth paste (Thermomix: speed #10, 15 seconds). Set instant pot to saute and add coconut oil (3 teaspoons) and saute for 10-15 minutes adding a little water at a time as needed to prevent burning.

Step 2 CHICKEN - While it is cooking, mix the coconut (150g/5.3oz), sugar (2 teaspoons), salt (2 teaspoons) and tamarind paste (3 teaspoons) together. Then toss the chicken (1.5kg/3.3lb) in this mixture and set aside.

Step 3a COOK STOVETOP - Place the chicken in the spice paste and turn to coat. Add the chicken stock (2 cups) and coconut cream (300g/10.6oz) and toss gently to coat in the sauce. Simmer with the lid on for 45 minutes. Add in lime leaves (8) and saute for another 15 minutes to reduce the sauce. Add sugar (2-3 teaspoons to taste) and then add more salt if needed.

Step 3b COOK INSTANT POT - Place the chicken in the spice paste and turn to coat. Add the chicken stock (2 cups) and coconut cream (300g/10.6oz) and toss gently to coat in the sauce. Set to pressure cook for 15 minutes. Release pressure and add the finely sliced lime leaves (8). Then saute for 10 minutes to reduce the sauce. Add sugar (2-3 teaspoons to taste) and then add more salt if needed.

Notes:

If using dried chillies or galangal, rehydrate them. Cover with boiling water and then cover and allow to hydrate for 15 minutes. Drain and use.

I find it easiest to cut the makrut lime leaves with scissors rather than a knife.

Tips For Making Chicken Rendang Curry

1 - I like using chicken wings for this as they are a good size. You can also use marylands or drumsticks but I would advise against using chicken breast as it can dry out. Bone in chicken pieces retain a juiciness to them so I prefer using them.

2 - Take the time to cook the spice paste down to develop the flavour of it. This can take up to 20 minutes to do. Also the higher the heat, the more your spice paste will brown and caramelise, and the darker your chicken curry will be in the end.

3 - Cook the spice paste for 10-15 minutes on the Instant Pot's saute setting, adding a little water as needed to prevent burning. Temperature controls vary between models, so keep an eye on the paste.

4 - One of the most important things to being a good cook is to taste and adjust seasoning and in curries like this, it is vital. Sometimes raw ingredients vary so a dish may be sweeter, less spicy or more sour so you need to adjust seasonings. Add more salt if it too sweet or mild, add sugar if it is too sour. And add more chilli if you want it spicier. I always start less spicy as you can always add chilli but its hard to take out.

5 - Make this chicken rendang 2 or 3 days ahead of time for a delicious, flavoursome curry. It lasts for up to 5 days in the fridge.

Personal Note

I was in Queensland a couple of weekends ago and I was trying out some restaurants with a group of media there. It was a really nice group of people and one girl sitting at our table worked in events at the restaurant group.

"What's your most underrated spice?" she asked the table and we all gave our answers. I told her that I thought that sumac was underrated and one of my favourite spices because it adds brightness like lemon without as much sourness. Her answer was coriander seeds.

She also said that she also uses MSG frequently in her cooking which I was surprised at. A lot of people still hold onto the idea that MSG is bad because it all started as a racist hoax (google it, it's crazy!).

So tell me Dear Reader, what is your most underrated spice? And do you use MSG in your cooking?

Chicken Rendang Recipe (Instant Pot or Stovetop) was written by Lorraine Elliott and published on Wednesday, November 11, 2026 in Chicken, Coconut, Curry Recipes, Everyday Dinners, Pressure Cooker, Thermomix and Delicious Recipes.