How Long To Cook Chicken Breast In The Instant Pot

Tip : Allow Extra Time For Coming To Pressure And For Cooking Freezer Meals In The Instant Pot

Weve found that freezer meals take almost twice as long to come to pressure than a thawed meal does. Make sure you allow for that time when prepping or youll have a hangry family. I wish there was a one size fits all pattern to freezer meal cooking times in the Instant Pot but there just isnt.

One trend we see is that the longer it takes a meal to come to pressure, the less additional time you need to add to cook a frozen meal. It seems counterintuitive, I know. Youll just have to trust us on this one. So for example, in our recipes for a large batch of soup, we dont add any additional cooking time when cooking from frozen. On the flip side, we add 10+ minutes to a small chicken recipe.

How To Make Instant Pot Chicken Breast

• Place chicken breasts in the inner pot of the instant pot and season with salt and pepper.
• Add in 1 cup pineapple juice or chicken stock and season with minced garlic or garlic powder.

• Place lid on instant pot and be sure vent knob is pointed towards sealed.
• Set pressure cooker to the cooking time based on the size of chicken breasts. NOT how many chicken breasts you are cooking.
• Once the cooking time has elapsed, let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes before doing a quick release of pressure. This is key to keeping your chicken breasts tenderdont be tempted to do a quick release of pressure.

• Remove the chicken breasts from the liquid and let rest for 5-10 minutes before serving or shredding.

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Here Are Some Tips And Tricks For Cooking Frozen Chicken Breasts In The Instant Pot:

• The exact cook time will depend on how large the chicken breasts are, although for me 10-12 minutes has always been plenty. This means that when I open up the pot they are well over the safe 165 degrees F. But Id rather be safe than have to go through the hassle of sealing it back up and letting it build the pressure back up.
• If youre in a rush, you can simply add water or chicken broth and season with salt and pepper, but feel free to get a little crazy with your seasonings here. Barbecue sauce, soy sauce, honey, different herbs and spices will all be fantastic
• All of my Instant Pot recipes are tested in the 6 quart Instant Pot with Bluetooth. The bluetooth is an unnecessary but handy tool because I can control the pot from my phone while Im out of the kitchen.
• If you want to jazz up your Instant Pot chicken breasts, try these Creamy Italian Instant Pot Chicken Breasts and serve them with the sauce over pasta you wont regret it!
• Looking for an easy side dish to go along with it? Try my Instant Pot Mac and Cheese so easy and so quick!

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Instant Pot Chicken Breast

Cooking chicken breast in the Instant Pot might seem intimidating, but its actually quite easy. In this post, were sharing all of our top tips and tricks for PERFECT Instant Pot Chicken Breast. Plus, well share some of our all-time favorite Instant Pot Chicken Breast recipes.

Here are some of the main reasons to make Instant Pot Chicken Breast

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Why Make This Recipe

• its made with simple pantry staples and budget friendly.
• ready in less than 20 minutes.
• can be made with fresh or frozen meat.
• Can be added to soups, stews, salads, sandwiches, pasta dishes, lunchboxes and more.
• great for meal prep and freezer friendly.
• Diet trends Suitable for Gluten free, Keto, Paleo and Whole 30 diets, or any diet with a focus on lean proteins and unprocessed foods.

Ready to learn how to make chicken breast instant pot? Gather up the ingredients and I will show you

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Easy Instant Pot Chicken Breast

This recipe might be perfect, but its also flexible you can skip one step if youre short on time, or you can swap one ingredient for another for a different flavour.

And like these awesome and easy Instant Pot Chicken Thighs or this can be prepped ahead and saved for later Instant Pot Shredded Chicken this recipe that will be in weeknight dinner rotation as the whole family will love it.

No matter what you change in this recipe, the technique produces a perfectly cooked chicken breast that is full of flavour, moist and tender.

Make these for dinner tonight or whip up a big batch to store in the fridge for your weekly meal prep or to have at the ready for super quick meal solutions.

Meal Plan Ideas And Serving Ideas

You really can pair this Instapot chicken with just about anything to create a wide variety of meals that taste amaaaaaazing and are good for you too. Here are a few of my favourites:

• Instant Pot chicken and brown rice: Make this easy Instant Pot brown rice for a quick side).
• Instant Pot chicken and Mashed Potatoes: How about a little Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes on the side? Crispy baby potatoes would work well too.
• In lettuce wraps: Cut up the chicken and serve with some salsa and serve in some Instant Pot Lettuce Chicken Wraps.
• In a salad: Serve sliced meat over a bed of mixed greens, Instant Pot Broccoli and whatever toppings you desire. I served mine with pomegranate seeds and chilli oil . The perfect healthy meal.

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Step Four: Cook On High Pressure According To The Cook Times Below

• The cook time will remain the same whether you have a small amount of chicken or a lot, but the time the Instant Pot takes to come to pressure will increase the more chicken you have. The time it takes to come to pressure will also be longer if youre cooking frozen chicken.

The below cook times are based upon average weights. If your chicken is smaller, decrease the cook time by 1 to 2 minutes depending upon the extent of the size variation. If they are larger, increase the cook time by 1 to 2 minutes. When in doubt, error on the side of less time. You can always cook the chicken for longer, but once its overcooked , you cant reverse the process.

Why Does My Instant Pot Say Burn

• A BURN warning on an Instant Pot occurs when the heat sensor reads a high temperature on the bottom of the pot, which can indicate scorching. This causes the pot to stop heating until it is resolved.
• Make sure you are using the required amount of water for your Instant Pot model. You shouldnt have a problem with this if you follow the instructions here, because this method uses enough water to prevent the warning.

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Cooking Chicken Breasts In The Instant Pot

Using a pressure cooker or Instant Pot to cook any ingredientespecially when youre meal prepping nutritious meals is a time saving game changer.

Using a pressure cooker shaves off valuable hands-on cooking time, and unlike cooking on the stove top, theres no monitoring with a watchful eye for liquids boiling over, or turning the temp down, or even stirringinstead, cooking can be a completely hands-off affair.

But the real beauty of cooking chicken breasts in the Instant Pot is you can use either fresh or still frozen chicken breasts and literally toss them into the Instant Pot with no defrosting needed.

Thats why this method has been my whats for dinner meal saver more than once.

see more: 20 Healthy Dinners to Make In the Instant Pot

What Size Instant Pot Can I Use

Thats the great thing, you can use any size. This will work for 3 quart, 5 quart, 6 quart or 8 quart. I have an 6 quart Instant Pot. With the smaller Instant Pots you may need to cook less chicken breasts at a time because you want to make sure they are in a single layer. Dont pile up the breasts, this could result in undercooked chicken.

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What People Are Saying About This Instant Pot Chicken And Potatoes

Ive been cooking recipes from the web for years. This is my first comment to any site because its the first time anything was this AMAZING! My picky family loved it! I plan on trying many more of your recipes. THANKS! Tamme

The chicken was so TENDER!! Will make this again soon for sure! Kayla

Im new to the instant pot and this was delicious! when all was cooked and removed from pot, i thickened sauce with a little flour and served over the chicken and potatoes. Then I sprinkled the parm cheese over all. also, i only had larger gold potatoes, so i quartered them and they turned out perfect. will definitely make again! thank you! Roseanne

This is a great recipe! My family loves it and I have made it once a week for at least a month! Riki

How Long To Cook Chicken In A Pressure Cooker

People have been asking me how long to cook chicken breast in a pressure cooker for making various amounts of shredded chicken. And thats such a great question!

Surprisingly, I couldnt find this information anywhere, not even from Instant Pot directly. I had tested my original recipe with 4 pounds, but what if you have 1, 2, 3 or 5 pounds of chicken instead?

Lucky for you, I did the testing myself! After a couple tests with each weight amount and over 20 pounds of shredded chicken later , I have your answers.

The chart below shows you exactly how long to cook Instant Pot chicken breast, so you can make it for any amount you have from one to five pounds of chicken breast!

Note that these are the times you enter on your Instant Pot, and dont include time required to build pressure.

A couple more notes about this

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Season The Chicken Breasts

Any combination of flavors will work in this recipe. However, you can consider sprinkling a generous helping of the classic chicken seasoning or a Mexican spice blend if you prefer such flavors. Other options include Old Bay seasoning, Italian seasoning, and even BBQ spices.

Liquid condiments like hot sauce can also work for your pressure cooker chicken breast and soy sauce. You can also use liquid seasoning or teriyaki sauce to boost the overall flavor of the recipe. But if youd prefer a balanced flavor thatll work in any recipe, consider the simple salt and pepper mix.

While water is the commonly used liquid base in instant pot chicken breasts, other flavorful options can also work. For more umami, think of chicken or vegetable broth as the liquid base. You can also use any juice from pineapple to grape or apple for a sweeter touch.

Tips For Making Instant Pot Chicken Breasts

Like any pressure cooker recipe, allow extra time for the pressure cooker to come up to temperature. This typically takes about 5 to 7 minutes, but depending on the thickness of your chicken breasts and how many you stack in the insert, it could take longer. I dont have the exact time for this since each of you are different, so you will have to play with it.

With this Instant Pot chicken breast recipe using 3 boneless chicken breasts, theres no need for any additional time needed for the instant pot to natural release the steam.

Also note that you can make chicken stock in an Instant Pot as well.

Stock from chicken cooked in the Instant Pot is incredibly delicious, especially when using bone-in chicken breasts for all that rich flavor that comes from bones. If youre interested in making homemade chicken broth in an Instant Pot instead of just chicken breasts, follow the directions in my recipe for the Best Chicken Stock ever.

Use the stock to make gravy or use as a soup base, by adding these additional ingredients:

• chicken boullion cubes
• root vegetables such as parsnip or turnips
• garni of herbs like parsley, thyme, bay leaves

• 5-6whole peppercorns

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How To Cook Chicken Breast In The Instant Pot

The first thing I suggest making in your brand new electric pressure cooker is hard-cooked eggs . The second? Basic chicken breast! This dinner staple cooks up perfectly every time in the Instant Pot. You can aim for firm but juicy chicken for cubing, or let it cook a little bit longer for tender shredded chicken.

Instant Pot chicken breast is also as ingenious for meal prep as it is for weeknight dinners. You can even cook frozen chicken breast this way while you figure out the rest of dinner. Ready for the simple steamed chicken breast technique youll use over and over again?

More Instant Pot Chicken Recipes

• Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken–The best method for cooking a whole chicken in the Instant Pot this recipe produces flavorful, juicy, tender “roast” chicken.
• Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken–Tender chicken that is perfectly spiced with buffalo seasoning, this recipe is a great base for numerous dishes.
• Instant Pot Chicken Tacos–Made with just 4 ingredients and a few minutes of prep, this is one of the easiest, tastiest Instant Pot chicken recipes.
• Instant Pot Chicken Thighs–This is a great basic recipe for cooking bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs.
• Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken–This easy instant pot recipe can be made with chicken thighs or chicken breasts and is coated in a delicious sweet and savory teriyaki sauce.

If you enjoyed this Instant Pot Chicken Breast recipe, please be sure to take the time to leave a comment and a review.

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Cooking Tips For Instant Pot Frozen Chicken

• Be sure to add the 1 cup of liquid to the Instant Pot. Pressure cooking requires liquid to create steam and pressure in the pot, which cooks your food.
• If you plan to shred your cooked chicken, add some of the cooking liquid and follow my tips for how to shred chicken.
• It is not recommended that you freeze food more than once, so if you cook chicken breasts from frozen you should not re-freeze the cooked chicken.
• Cooked chicken will stay fresh for 3-4 days in the refrigerator.
• Always be sure to turn the steam release valve to the sealing position when pressure cooking in your Instant Pot. Forgetting to do this is a common mistake.

More Instant Pot Chicken Recipes

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Why Cook Frozen Chicken Breast In Instant Pot For That Long

The main reason why it takes 10-15 minutes to cook frozen chicken breasts in an instant pot is its weight. Moreover, as the chicken is frozen, it takes more time to heat up and get cooked. But, frozen chicken cooked in an instant pot becomes unbelievably moist and delicious!

You can stock up on chicken breasts while theyre on sale and freeze them for later once you know how to cook frozen chicken in an Instant Pot. You can cook the chicken straight from the freezer when youre ready. Its incredibly simple and quick to do.

Before you begin cooking frozen chicken breasts, ensure that your chicken breasts arent all frozen together. If they are, the chicken will not cook evenly, resulting in overdone edges and uncooked chicken in the centre. You can place frozen chicken breasts in cold water until they get separated, and then cook them.

Allow 10 minutes for natural pressure release after the cooking time has expired. During this period, the chicken will keep cooking. Its always a good idea to verify that the internal temperature of the thickest section of the chicken has reached a safe 165 degrees F with an instant-read thermometer.

Cook for another 2 or 3 minutes at high pressure if your chicken is less than 165 degrees F when you check it after cooking. Because the Instant Pot is already hot, it will come to pressure significantly faster the second time. Close the lid and set the steam release valve to seal.