Gather all the ingredients.

Cut 3 onions in half and cut each half into 5 wedges.

Peel 1½ carrots and cut into bite-sized pieces.

Peel 3 Yukon gold potatoes and cut them into quarters. Soak them in water for 15 minutes to remove the excess starch.

Mince 2 cloves garlic.

Grate the ginger with a microplane zester or ceramic grater and reserve 1 tsp ginger (grated, with juice).

Cut 1½ lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs into bite-sized pieces. Season with ⅛ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt and ⅛ tsp freshly ground black pepper.

Press the Sauté button on your Instant Pot or preheat a stovetop pressure cooker over medium heat. When the inner pot is hot, add 1 Tbsp neutral oil and evenly distribute it.

Add the onion wedges, minced garlic, and grated ginger with juice and quickly mix well.

Add the chicken pieces to the pot and mix until just coated with the oil.

Add the carrots and potatoes to the pot and mix well.

Add 3 cups chicken stock/broth and use a spatula to press down the meat and vegetables into the liquid.

Place the cubes from 1 package Japanese curry roux on top of the other ingredients. DO NOT MIX!

Cover and lock the lid. Make sure the Instant Pot‘s steam release handle points to Sealing.

Press the Keep Warm/Cancel button on the Instant Pot to stop sautéing. Then, press the Meat/Stew button to switch to pressure cooking. Press the “minus“ button to change the cooking time to 15 minutes.

When it is finished cooking, the Instant Pot will switch automatically to the Keep Warm mode. Slide the steam release handle to Venting to let out steam until the float valve drops down, OR let the pressure release naturally, which takes about 15 minutes.

Unlock the lid. Be careful with the hot steam. If you‘re using unsalted homemade curry roux, add it to the pot now and heat on Sauté mode for an additional 5 minutes until well blended into the stew.

Taste the curry sauce now and add salt to your liking.

Add 1 Tbsp ketchup and 1 Tbsp soy sauce now. Mix well, stirring to dissolve the curry roux.

Portion 6 servings cooked Japanese short-grain rice on individual plates and serve the curry on top. Serve with optional fukujinzuke on the side.