Instant Pot Chicken is one of the quickest (and easiest) ways to cook chicken!
Just a few simple ingredients (and fresh or frozen chicken) are tossed into your electric pressure cooker, push a button and voila, dinner is ready!
You can barely prepare all of the toppings in the time it takes to make perfect Instant Pot Chicken breasts!
©SpendWithPennies.com
Pin it to your DINNER BOARD to SAVE it for later!
Follow Spend With Pennies on Pinterest for more great tips, ideas and recipes!
I love my Instant Pot (and if you don’t have an instant pot, you need one)! If you’re asking yourself, what is the Instant Pot you’re going to love this! It’s an easy to use (aka super safe) pressure cooker that takes all of the “scary-ness” out of pressure cooking. (Check them out on Amazon here).
I love being able to grab chicken breasts right from the freezer, pop them into the Instant Pot and have a meal ready to go in just a few minutes. Not only is it healthy, it’s delicious and crazy tender!
If you use a crock pot regularly, you know you need to thaw frozen meat first and then the recipe usually takes several hours to cook (like my Crockpot Chicken Tacos).
Cooking chicken in the slow cooker is perfect for when I’m gone all day and want to come home to a meal that’s ready to go but the Instant Pot cooks a meal from frozen in just minutes. I mean, I do TRY to plan meals but sometimes it’s 5pm and I really haven’t even thought about dinner (please tell me I’m not the only one)!
In this recipe, you cook fresh chicken for 12 minutes and frozen chicken for 16! Are you beginning to see what I mean when I want to call it the Miracle Pot?
4 ingredients, that’s all it takes to get started. Chicken breast, taco seasoning (I prefer homemade taco seasoning), chicken broth and salsa – that’s it! Once cooked, you simply shred the chicken and you are ready to serve!
Traditional taco fillings and hard shells are perfect, but I also love to use soft tortilla shells or even to serve this over a bed of lettuce for the perfect taco salad!
We set out a whole tray of toppings, sour cream, Homemade Salsa, lettuce, tomatoes, guacamole… pretty much whatever you want! Have a little fun with your toppings to see what you can create!
I love to make this recipe not only because it is so simple, but because everyone in my family is satisfied! Seriously, who doesn’t love tacos?!
If you’re serving a crowd, this makes the perfect taco bar… and putting the Instant Pot on warm means your guests can serve themselves whenever they want.
Add in a simple tossed salad while the chicken is cooking and you have a complete meal ready in minutes!
This recipe both freezes and reheats perfectly! Left overs can be frozen in freezer bags to use later (if there is actually any left-over!) and microwaved until hot for a quick meal. We’ve also used this chicken to make a Nacho Platter for last minute guests!
Instant Pot Chicken is so easy to make and truly one of the most versatile recipes I have ever come across (and one you’ll pull your pressure cooker out for any day of the week). Super-fast, incredibly delicious and crowd pleasing…all reasons to whip up Instant Pot Chicken Tacos tonight!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts fresh or frozen
- 1 ounce taco seasoning 1 packet, or 2 tablespoons homemade taco seasoning
- ⅓ cup chicken broth
- 1 cup salsa
For Serving
- 12 taco shells or small flour or corn tortillas
- toppings as desired see notes
Instructions
- Place chicken breast in the bottom of the Instant Pot. Add chicken broth.
- Sprinkle taco seasoning over chicken breasts. Top with salsa.
- Press “Poultry” and cook for 15 minutes if frozen and 12 minutes if fresh.
- Once done, release pressure and shred chicken with two forks. Combine with sauce in Instant Pot and serve as desired.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dinner
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
REPIN This Instant Pot Taco Recipe Here
More Recipes You’ll Love
Slow Cooker Chicken Enchilada soup
Disappointed. Took the lid off the pot and it’s full of liquid. Now I have to put it in a skillet to cook it out before I can eat it. Not sure if I’ll make it again. And the chicken wasn’t tender enough to shred.
There should be liquid in the bottom of the Instant Pot as you can see from the 3rd image in the post. You can add some or all of the liquid (depending on how much you have, I usually add all of it) into the shredded chicken. Once shredded the chicken will absorb a lot of it.
I haven’t had trouble shredding my chicken but a hand mixer or stand mixer can help to shred it quickly and easily. I hope that helps!
Yaaaassssss!!! This was the second ever recipe I’ve attempted in my pressure cooker (I’m using Elite brand, but it’s basically the same as Instant Pot) and I’m officially in love with this method of cooking! In the time it took to prepare all the toppings, the chicken was finished cooking! Tender, flavorful, my boyfriend joked that he wanted to drink the juices that were left over in the pot, and also said that was the best meal he had all month! As toppings, I served shredded romaine, shredded purple cabbage, cooked quinoa, green onions, cilantro, fresh homemade salsa, sharp cheddar, Greek yogurt, fresh homemade guacamole, black olives, raw onions, and taco sauce! It was quite a meal!!
I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe Nikki!
Do the chicken breasts sit on the bottom of the pot or on the rack with the broth on the bottom?
No need for the rack for this recipe Joe! Just pop the chicken breasts right into the pot. Enjoy!
I had a bad experience with an instant pot last year and packed mine away for good… or until I found this recipe! So happy I braved the instant pot one more time for this one! It was beyond delicious and so fast to make! My husband basically licked the pot clean!! :0 SWP Employee
Yay Samantha, I’m so glad this worked out for you (we love this recipe too)!
If I wanted to make this with bone in chicken thighs (as that is what I currently have in my freezer), how should the cooking time be adjusted? Please advise, thanks.
While I have only tried this recipe as written, other readers have had success with chicken thighs. Frozen chicken will add 4 minutes to the cook time. Enjoy Garrett!
I love the homemade seasoning. It tastes great. This is such an easy and quick meal, it’s definitely my favorite to make now!
So glad you enjoyed it Natalie, our family loves these too!
Made this yesterday and both my kids loved it. They said this is the best taco ever, even better than restaurant :-) I think I need to double the quantity next time. Thanks a lot Holly for such an easy recipe.
I’m so glad this was a big hit for your family Prinitha!
Simple, easy and delicious!
I am so glad you liked this recipe Tree!
If you want to double or even triple this, do you need to adjust the cook time?
How would you modify the cook time if you have a whole chicken?
This can vary based on the size but I usually cook a whole chicken (4 to 4.5 lbs) in the IP for about 20-25 minutes on high pressure. Allow to natural release for 15 min.
what the crap is with the preface to the recipe? I dont care about the trip to Santa Anna’s tomb or your grandmothers cure for syphilis. homt crap just post the recipe.
There are actually no personal stories included in the preface to the recipe, only tips to ensure success or answers to common questions.
There is also a “jump to recipe” button at the top of each page. If you click it, it’ll skip you past the writing right to the recipe. Hope that helps and enjoy!
Holly, you are a saint and Jeff Gross is appropriately named. God Bless You.
Wow , seriously? Angry much?
The recipe is for free… And there is a little button called jump to recipe…
Trying this today for a Mexican themed party… Using whole Chicken..
That sounds like a fun party Gwen! Have fun.
I made this recipe for my husband for lunch and he’s STILL raving about how wonderful it turned out, and he doesnt even know how simple it was to make, but that will be our little secret ;) thanks for posting.
We’ll keep it to ourselves for sure Wendy :)
These look great! When I make a recipe using boneless, skinless chicken breasts that need to be shredded, I put them in my Kitchen Aid stand mixer after cooking and it shreds them in seconds and I don’t have to handle the hot food. Hopefully a tip someone else can use.
Great tip Shannon!
I put 2 partially frozen chicken breasts
1 cup salsa
1/2 cup water
1 pack of fajita mix
Set to poultry setting and it said BURN before coming to pressure. I took everything out of the pot and cleaned the burnt stuff off the bottom of the pot. I’m trying to recook it. Not sure if it’s going to turn out?
I think it has to do with the Instant Pot size. Looking at the ingredients, I knew right away it wasn’t enough liquids for mine because the minimum liquid amount for my 8qt pot is 2 cups. Anything less than that and whatever is inside will burn. I didn’t have salsa at the time, so I just used two cups of chicken broth!
Thanks for the feedback Danielle!
I used fresh boneless chicken breast tenderloins. Brought them home from the grocery store and froze them last weekend thawed them a bit but they were still a little frozen when I put them in the pot. Set the timer for 14 minutes and it came out perfect! Didn’t even need forks to shred, just used a plastic slotted spoon! Perfect! Thanks for the recipe!
Thank you for sharing your tip Jenni! We love this Instant Pot Chicken Taco recipe so much!
I have cooked boneless frozen chicken breast would that work in this receipt?
I am trying to find dinner ideas using cooked frozen boneless chicken breast.
Yes, add 4 minutes to the cook time for frozen chicken breasts. Enjoy!
Can you double this recipe? Would it change the cooking time? I like to have enough left over for work lunches the next day.
Yes, it can be doubled, I would leave the cook time the same.
Love this recipe, quick, easy and delicious! I used a package of fresh chicken thighs because that’s what I had on hand, and 12 minutes with a quick release was perfect, the chicken was juicy and tender, and shredded up perfectly. This is my new go-to recipe for chicken taco night, thank you!
So glad you loved it Melissa!
Do not use quick release pressure on this. I did exactly as the recipe here said and my chicken was not done in the middle.
If the chicken breasts are extra large or cold from the fridge, they can take a bit more cook time. I usually use a chicken breast approximately 6oz in this recipe and they are cooked through.
I followed this recipe with fresh chicken but did not do quick release. My chicken still wasn’t done in the middle. Author should re-evaluate her cook times because they are wrong.
I’ve made this recipe many times and it works for me as written. It is possible that your chicken breasts were bigger than mine and required extra cooktime.
This is a new favorite recipe!! So simple and so yummy!
We tried the 12-15 times and on a couple occasions actually had to restart the whole process to cook the chicken longer because it wasn’t done. We now do 20-25 depending on frozen or fresh and it’s perfect!
We like to then mix in a can of corn and black beans once it is shredded.
Thank you!!
I’m so glad you loved it Tara! Thank you for sharing your cook times, chicken breasts can vary from 5oz to 10oz so size can definitely affect cook times. Love the corn and bean additions!
How would I double this?? And how long would it take in the pressure cooker?
This recipe can be doubled, I would leave the cook time the same.
I just made this and followed the instructions exactly. The chicken turned out so dry and rubbery that I could barely swallow it. I’m not sure what to do with it now, actually. The chicken was also lacking flavor. Any idea what went wrong (or ideas for how to save it)?
How disappointing for you! I can’t say for sure why this didn’t work out for you as I’ve had great success with this recipe. If your chicken breasts were on the smaller side, did you reduce the cook time as mentioned in the recipe? Did you use homemade or store bought taco seasoning/salsa or low sodium products?
Can I make it without salsa?
I have only made the recipe as written. Omitting the salsa would change the taste and you may need to add more liquid for the Instant Pot to cook correctly.