Lamb Dhansak
, Published Apr 16, 2026
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This Lamb Dhansak is rich, hearty, and packed with flavor. Tender lamb, red lentils, and warming spices come together in an easy, family-friendly curry that’s perfect for busy weeknights.
If you love a cozy curry that delivers big flavor with minimal effort, this Pressure Cooker Lamb Dhansak is about to become your new go-to.
It’s rich, gently spiced, and naturally thickened with lentils—giving you that signature dhansak texture without any extra work. Even better? The pressure cooker does all the heavy lifting, transforming simple ingredients into a deeply comforting curry in under 40 minutes.
Let’s be open and upfront about one thing here… I can’t claim this Dhansak recipe is in any way authentic. I only know that it tastes really good and it is really easy, especially in a pressure cooker.
It uses spices that I always have handy: ground cumin, turmeric and coriander, along with one I use relatively rarely, cardamom pods. You can buy ground cardamom, but it really doesn’t taste even remotely similar to grinding the little seeds from the pods yourself.
Lucy’s Pro Tip
Get to Know Dhansak
This beloved Indian curry dish that comes from the Parsi community in Gujarat. It uses meat, lentils and warming spices that create a rich, sweet and tangy dish. Dhansak is traditionally made with mutton or chicken and known for its thick, hearty texture, thanks to the red lentils that break down as the curry cooks.
How to Make Lamb Dhansak
- Sear the lamb either in the Instant Pot or in a large pan, in batches, so it has a chance to really brown instead of stew. Set the lamb aside.
- Add more oil in your Instant Pot and cook the onions for 5 minutes, stirring often so that they don’t stick. Add the minced garlic, spices, salt and ginger and stir for a couple of minutes – your curry will start smelling amazing.
- Return the browned lamb to the pot and add the split red lentils, tinned tomatoes, stock, chili, cinnamon stick and bay leaf. Give it a little stir, cover and cook at high pressure for 20 minutes.
- Let the steam release naturally for 10 minutes, then manually release the rest. Taste and check the seasoning – I found that my curry needed a touch of sweetness, so I added a little honey. This is just my personal preference though and entirely optional.
- Your curry will be now ready, delicious and naturally thickened by the red lentils – no cornstarch required here!
Recipe Notes
- Serving suggestions: Pair your lamb dhansak with a generous helping of fluffy basmati or pilau rice to soak up all that rich, flavorful sauce. I love adding a spoonful of cooling yogurt or raita on the side to balance the spices, plus some warm naan or flatbreads for scooping everything up. If you’re going all in, a little mango chutney or a simple onion salad on the side really rounds things out.
- Storage: If you have leftovers (and honestly, this is one of those dishes you hope you do), store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3–4 days. The flavors deepen overnight, making it even better the next day. When reheating, add a splash of water to loosen the sauce and bring it back to life. It also freezes beautifully for up to 2 months—perfect for future curry cravings.
HAVE YOU MADE MY DHANSAK CURRY RECIPE? Please leave a rating, post a photo on my Facebook page, share it on Instagram, or save it to Pinterest with the tag #supergoldenbakes and make my day!
Pressure Cooker Lamb Dhansak curry
Ingredients
- 10 pods cardamom seeds only
- 3 tbsp canola oil or any neutral oil
- 2 lbs (900g) lamb diced (lamb shoulder ideally)
- 2 large onions finely diced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- ½ tbsp ground coriander
- ½ tbsp ground turmeric
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp ginger paste or freshly grated ginger
- ½ cup (100g) split red lentils rinsed well
- 14 oz (400g) crushed tomatoes
- 1 cup (240ml) chicken stock or low sodium chicken broth
- 1 red chili roughly chopped (with seeds)
- 1 stick cinnamon
- 1 bay leaf
- 1-2 tbsp honey or to taste (optional)
- 2 tbsp cilantro (coriander) to serve
- salt and pepper to season
Instructions
- Split the cardamom pods and reserve the little seeds. Crush them in a pestle and mortar.10 pods cardamom
- Heat 1-2 tbsp oil in your Instant Pot using the ‘sauté’ function or in a large pan and brown the lamb, in batches. Set aside.3 tbsp canola oil, 2 lbs (900g) lamb
- Add a little more oil in the pressure cooker and sauté the onions for 5 minutes, stirring.2 large onions
- Add the garlic, all the spices, salt and ginger and stir.4 cloves garlic, 1 tbsp ground cumin, ½ tbsp ground coriander, ½ tbsp ground turmeric, ½ tsp salt, 1 tsp ginger paste or freshly grated ginger
- Return the lamb to the pot and stir in the lentils.½ cup (100g) split red lentils
- Add the tomatoes, stock, cinnamon stick and bay leaf and stir to combine.14 oz (400g) crushed tomatoes, 1 cup (240ml) chicken stock, 1 red chili, 1 stick cinnamon , 1 bay leaf
- Cover, set vent to sealing and cook for 20 minutes at high pressure.
- Let the pressure release manually for 10 minutes, then manually release the rest.
- Taste the curry and season with salt and pepper. Add a little honey if it needs a touch of sweetness.1-2 tbsp honey
- Serve over rice garnished with coriander.2 tbsp cilantro, salt and pepper to season
Nutrition
Nutritional information is always approximate, and will depend on quality of ingredients and serving sizes.
This was absolutely delicious and the sauce was perfect thickness ❤️
Very glad to hear it! Thanks for your comment Sarah x
Do you think this dish would work with lamb offcut pieces?
I don’t see why not – worth a try anyway
I Cannot comment on how traditional this is, but I can say this is one of the best. No sorry, this is THE best curry recipe I have ever made. Will be a go to recipe from now on. Top Marks!
You made me blush 🙂 thank you so much you really made my day!
I have used Cauliflower and chicken in place of the Lamb, and both times it came out excellent!
Sounds like an awesome variation might try that thanks Brenna 🙂
Excellent and very tasty however, I had to cook in on the stove as I got the BURN message due to the lentils and not matter what I did ie deglazed it etc it would not pressure back up. Shame, I will never use lentils in the IP again.
Hi – that surprises me as I cook lentils in my IP all the time and never had this issue. Will do another test, thanks for letting me know!
Also got the burn notice despite deglazing. New to Instant Pot. This is my third recipe. Smells great!
I read that with tomato or thick bases, the best thing to do is to deglaze with the broth, and DO NOT stir, but simply pour the thicker sauces over the top. Hopefully that will help anyone getting the burn notice.
Thanks for the feedback – haven’t had that problem myself for some reason.
so good! I needed something for dinner that didn’t require a big shop – I had everything for this, so winner-winner! Really tasty, will make again!
We do have some leftovers (just two of us) – wonder if it would freeze ok?
Hiya – sorry for late reply was away for a week. I think it would freeze well!
The best curry I have cooked so far and I’ve cooked a few….thank you I’ll be doing this again.
So glad you liked it 🙂
This was the first thing I made with my new instant pot and I keep getting the burn error despite deglazing the pot. Feeling pretty deflated. Hopefully it’s cooked enough to be good though as the lamb wasn’t cheap
I am so sorry to hear that. I didn’t have any issues when I cooked it so I am perplexed. Let me know how it turned out.
Oh goodness….. yes please! Do you think it would work as well slow-cooked? x
Yes I am pretty sure it would be perfect for the slow cooker!
This lamb looks as authentic as it can get. Absolutely love the images. such a cozy and delicious looking curry
Oh Esha thank you so much! It tastes pretty amazing thats the important thing!