Instant Pot Aloo Gobi

Aloo Gobi is a delicious Indian vegetarian stir fry that's easy to make, healthy, and absolutely delicious. In this easy 30-minute Instant Pot recipe, potato (aloo) and cauliflower (gobi) are cooked with onion, tomato, ginger, garlic, and fragrant Indian spices.

Enjoy this vegan and gluten-free Punjabi delicacy along with dal tadka and homemade roti.

Aloo Gobi is a popular north-Indian side dish. Its popularity can be judged by the fact that most Indian restaurants featuring North-Indian cuisine have it on their menu.

Aloo Gobi is on weekly rotation in my home. It's a versatile dish that makes for a simple, comforting meal, and is elegant enough to entertain with.

In this simple recipe, I saute cauliflower florets and cubed potato with aromatics, and lightly seasoned it with mild Indian spices like coriander and cumin.

Making this in the Instant Pot results in a semi-wet Aloo Gobi since the water released by the vegetables has no way to evaporate. But you can dry that with a quick saute after pressure cooking.

Let's check out how to make this flavorful Aloo Gobi in less than 30 minutes!

You Might Also Like: Top 20 Instant Pot Indian Vegetarian Recipes

Ingredients - Notes & Substitutions

All you need is a handful of easily available ingredients and commonly used Indian spices to make this delicious aloo gobi recipe. Here's what you need:

Cauliflower: Use 1 large head of cauliflower that yields roughly 4 cups of florets. Follow these easy steps on how to cut cauliflower.

Potatoes: Gold or red potatoes, both work in this recipe. Cube them into evenly sized chunks. If you're using baby potatoes, you can just cut them in half.

Onion: I use one medium-sized onion cut into slices. Red, white or yellow- all work well here.

Serrano Chilies or Jalapeños: either will work for this recipe to add a bit of heat. Remove the seeds and ribs for a mild flavor.

Oil: Use any clear oil like avocado or olive oil. You can also use ghee, just know that it won't be vegan anymore.

Garlic and Ginger: you can use store-bought pastes or make your own garlic paste and ginger paste, or a combined ginger garlic paste (recommended for better, fresher flavor.)

Roma Tomato: you'll need 2 Roma tomatoes, chopped.

Spices: We're using a blend of salt, turmeric powder, Kashmiri red chili powder (or a combination of paprika and cayenne), coriander powder, and roasted cumin powder (or regular cumin powder), and garam masala.

Spices Substitution: If you'd like to use curry powder, add 1-1½ tablespoon instead of all these spices.

Cilantro: A garnish of freshly chopped cilantro adds the perfect splash of color and balance to this dish.

Scroll to the recipe card for a detailed list of ingredients and quantities.

How to Make Aloo Gobi in Instant Pot

Here are the easy-to-follow step-by-step instructions with photos for the Aloo Gobi recipe in Instant Pot, or any electric pressure cooker.

Step 1: Saute Aromatics

Select Saute and heat the Instant Pot till it displays 'Hot'.  Add cumin seeds and wait for them to sizzle. Add onions, green chilies, and potatoes. Saute for 1 minute.

Add chopped ginger and garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add chopped tomato, salt, and all spices. Saute for 2 minutes.

Deglazing Tip: If the spices or aromatics start sticking at the bottom, add ¼ cup of water and scrape everything well. This prevents the burn error.

Step 2: Pressure Cook

Add cauliflower florets and gently stir.  If the cauliflower and tomatoes haven't released liquid yet, add ½ cup of water. Cancel SAUTE and seal the lid. 

Pressure Cook on Manual or Pressure Cook for 0 minutes.

What Does '0' Minute Cook Time Mean? What this zero minutes of cook time do is essentially steam-cook the food in the time it takes to build pressure. To learn more about it, check out my Instant Pot Terminology and FAQ blog post.

After cooking time is done, manually release the pressure and open the lid. Turn on Saute to dry any excess gravy. Do not stir the cauliflower during this time as it will break.

Cancel SAUTE. Garnish with cilantro and serve warm!

Want to make this in an air fryer? Try this: Air Fryer Aloo Gobi Recipe

Alternate Method: Stovetop Aloo Gobi

• Heat a heavy bottom stir-fry pan, or a deep skillet on medium-high heat for about 30-40 seconds.
• Add oil and cumin seeds. When the cumin seeds begin to splutter, add onions, green chilies, and potato cubes, and saute for 3-4 minutes.
• Add chopped ginger and garlic and saute for another minute. Add chopped tomato, salt, and all the spices. Saute for 2 minutes, until the tomatoes get soft and break down.
• Then add cauliflower and toss till all florets get coated with the masala.
• Reduce the heat to medium, cover with a tight lid and cook for 7-10 minutes, stirring once in between. Open the lid and check if the potatoes are cooked by inserting a knife. If it goes in without resistance, the potatoes are cooked. If not, cover and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
• Open the lid and increase the heat to medium-high. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes, till all the liquid has evaporated. Garnish with cilantro and enjoy.

What to Serve with Aloo Gobi

Since Aloo Gobi doesn't have any significant protein, I love to pair it with any protein-based Indian entree, and grain, like rice, roti, or naan. Here are some of my favorite combinations:

How to Store

Store Aloo Gobi in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. I don't recommend freezing it since it loses flavor and texture on thawing.

Recipe Tips & Notes

• Cauliflower: Cut the cauliflower florets about the same size so they cook evenly.
• Potato: Cut the potatoes into about ½-inch cubes or slices so they cook through in the short pressure cooking time.
• Water: This recipe doesn't call for extra water since the cauliflower and tomatoes release water while cooking. But if you are using an 8 qt, you can add ¼-1/2 cup water to this recipe. After pressure cooking, dry the excess liquid on saute mode. 
• Low Carb Variation: For a low-carb or keto version of this recipe, skip the potatoes and add another cup of cauliflower to the recipe.
• Deglazing Tip: If the spices or aromatics start sticking at the bottom, add ¼ cup of water and scrape everything well. This prevents the burn error.
• Spices Substitution: If you'd like to use curry powder, add 1-1½ tablespoon instead of all the spices. Add salt after checking the ingredient list of your curry powder.

Frequently Asked Questions

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📖 Recipe

Aloo Gobi in Instant Pot

Aneesha Gupta

Easy 30-minute Instant pot recipe for Aloo Gobi, a popular Indian vegetarian side dish in which potato and cauliflower are cooked with mild spices.

4.80 from 15 votes

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

QR 0 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Servings 6 people

Calories 91 kcal

Equipment

• ▢
  Instant Pot

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• ▢ 1 tablespoon ghee or olive oil for vegan
• ▢ 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• ▢ ½ cup onion sliced (half of 1 medium onion)
• ▢ 2 green chilies or 2 jalapeños, de-seeded for milder flavor
• ▢ 2 cups gold potatoes sliced or cubed (red potatoes work too)
• ▢ 4 cups cauliflower florets (about 1 large head)
• ▢ 1 teaspoon garlic finely chopped
• ▢ 2 teaspoons ginger finely chopped
• ▢ 1 cup tomato chopped, about 2 small tomatoes
• ▢ ¼-½ cup water use as needed

Spices

• ▢ ¾ teaspoon salt (or 1 tsp, adjust to taste)
• ▢ ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
• ▢ 1 teaspoon kashmiri red chili powder (or substitute 1 teaspoon paprika + ¼-½ teaspoon cayenne)
• ▢ 2 teaspoons coriander powder
• ▢ 1 teaspoon roasted cumin powder (can use regular ground cumin)
• ▢ ½ teaspoon garam masala

Garnish

• ▢ 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro for garnish

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

 

Instant Pot Method

• Select Saute and heat the Instant Pot till it displays 'Hot'.  Add cumin seeds and wait for them to sizzle. Add onions, green chilies, and potatoes. Saute for 1 minute.
• Add chopped ginger and garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add chopped tomato, salt, and all spices. Saute for 2 minutes. If the spices or aromatics start sticking at the bottom, add ¼ cup of water and scrape everything well. This prevents the burn error.
• Add cauliflower florets and gently stir.  Cancel SAUTE. Close the lid and set the pressure valve to the sealing position.
• Cook on Manual or Pressure Cook for 0 minutes. After cooking time is done, manually release pressure.
• Open the lid after the pressure pin drops. If there is any liquid at the bottom, you can turn on SAUTE for a couple of minutes to dry that up. Do not stir the cauliflower during this time as it will break.
• Turn SAUTE off. Garnish with cilantro and serve warm with rice, roti or naan!

Stove top recipe

• Heat a heavy bottom stir-fry pan, or a deep skillet on medium-high heat for about 30-40 seconds. Add oil and cumin seeds.
• When the cumin seeds begin to splutter, add onions, green chilies, and potato cubes, saute for 3-4 minutes.
• Add chopped ginger and garlic and saute for another minute. Add chopped tomato, salt and all the spices. Saute for 2 minutes, until the tomatoes get soft and break down.
• Then add cauliflower and toss till all florets get coated with the masala. Reduce the heat to medium, cover with a tight lid and cook for 7-10 minutes, stirring once in between.
• Open the lid and check if the potatoes are cooked by inserting a knife. If it goes in without resistance, the potatoes are cooked. If not, cover and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
• Open the lid and increase the heat to medium-high. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes, till all the liquid has evaporated. Garnish with cilantro and enjoy.

Video

Notes

• Cauliflower: Cut the cauliflower florets about the same size so they cook evenly.
• Potato: Cut the potatoes into about ½-inch cubes or slices so they cook through in the short pressure cooking time.
• Water: This recipe doesn't call for extra water since the cauliflower and tomatoes release water while cooking. But if you are using an 8 qt, you can add ¼-½ cup water to this recipe. After pressure cooking, dry the excess liquid on saute mode. 
• Low Carb Variation: For a low-carb or keto version of this recipe, skip the potatoes and add another cup of cauliflower to the recipe.
• Deglazing Tip: If the spices or aromatics start sticking at the bottom, add ¼ cup of water and scrape everything well. This prevents the burn error.
• Spices Substitution: If you'd like to use curry powder, add 1-1½ tablespoon instead of all the spices. Add salt after checking the ingredient list of your curry powder.

 

Note: The nutrition facts below are my estimates.  If you are following any diet plan, I recommend cross-checking with your preferred nutrition calculator.

Nutrition

Calories: 91kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 6mg | Sodium: 370mg | Potassium: 531mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 380IU | Vitamin C: 45mg | Calcium: 43mg | Iron: 3mg

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This recipe was updated recently with new photos, detailed information, tips, and step-by-step photos.