If you are looking for an easy weeknight dinner idea, Instant Pot Chicken Breast is the answer! You can prepare frozen or thawed chicken in the Instant Pot in minutes.
With this super simple guide to Instant Pot Chicken Breast, you can deviate flavors and ingredients to create the most delicious Instant Pot Chicken Recipes.
Instant Pot Chicken Breast- It’s So Easy!
Cooking chicken breast in the Instant Pot might seem intimidating, but it’s actually quite easy. In this post, we’re sharing all of our top tips and tricks for PERFECT Instant Pot Chicken Breast. Plus, we’ll 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
- Instant pot chicken breast is a great way that you to prepare a lot of chicken at one time for meal prep!
- You can free up the oven or stove top because the Instant Pot does it all.
- You can prepare chicken for some of these delicious chicken recipes and just add the fixings and sauce after the chicken is all cooked.
- Clean up is a breeze when you cook chicken breast in the Instant Pot.
Become a Pro at Cooking Chicken!
We’ll teach you everything you need to know on how to cook chicken perfectly every time + we’ll share our top chicken recipes when you subscribe to our emails today!
Fresh or Frozen Chicken Breast
You can use fresh or frozen chicken breasts in the Instant Pot! Believe it or not, chicken breasts turn out the same whether you use frozen or fresh chicken breasts.
The only difference is how you cook the chicken and what your cook time is.
Why would you ever use frozen chicken breast in the Instant Pot? Think of those nights when you get home and realize you haven’t planned dinner.
All you have to do is remove frozen chicken from its packaging and cook it on high pressure for 18-20 minutes. While the frozen chicken breast is cooking, you prepare a side and sauce for your chicken and BOOM. Minutes later your chicken is ready to be chunked or shredded!
How to Make Instant Pot Chicken Breast
The beautiful thing about Instant Pot Chicken Breasts is that you have options. Fresh or frozen, shredded or cubed, spicy or saucy.
Below are best practices for preparing fresh or frozen chicken breast in the Instant Pot. Otherwise, check out the recipe card for ALL the details and get cooking!
Fresh Instant Pot Chicken Breast
Cook Time–> High Pressure > 8-12 minutes > Quick Release.
When preparing raw, fresh chicken breast in the Instant Pot, there are a few things to keep in mind before you begin.
- The bigger the chicken breast, the longer the cook time will be.
- Be sure to check the internal temperature of the chicken breast (it should be 165ºF) before eating it. If it’s not done, cook it for a few more minutes in the Instant Pot.
- Don’t skip using the metal trivet and water. If you skip these steps you will most likely end up with a burn notice!
- If you want a little extra flavor use the sauté function of your Instant Pot, add olive oil, and brown the outside of your chicken before you pressure cook.
- For a faster pressure cook time, sauté your chicken first!
Frozen Chicken Instant Pot
Cook Time–> High Pressure > 18-20 minutes > Quick Release
Preparing frozen chicken breast in the Instant Pot is similar to cooking unfrozen chicken breast, but there are some differences!
- If you are cooking more than one chicken breast at a time be sure the chicken breasts are not frozen together. They will not cook evenly.
- To separate the chicken breasts, run the chicken under water to remove any frost or to separate chicken breasts from each other.
- Don’t skip using the metal trivet and water. If you skip these steps you will most likely end up with a burn notice!
- Cook time for frozen chicken takes a little bit longer than thawed chicken, remember to be patient!
- Be sure to check the internal temperature of the chicken breast (it should be 165ºF) before eating it. If it’s not done, cook it for a few more minutes in the Instant Pot.
- Seriously, frozen chicken Instant Pot is so easy.
Things You Need
What recipes can I make with Instant Pot chicken breasts?
There are so many ways to use Instant Pot Chicken Breasts in a meal. You can also simply season the chicken breasts before or after cooking them in the Instant Pot for a quick meal. You can use your chicken breast and make:
- Loaded Sheet Pan Chicken Nachos – either cube or shred your IP chicken and add it to sheet pan nachos!
- Chicken Tacos – probably the easiest meal ever. You’ll need to shred this chicken.
- Chicken Salad – we have 4 super simple chicken salad recipes that call for shredded chicken.
- BBQ Chicken Pizza – add shredded chicken to your bbq pizza and then add caramelized onions.
- Chicken Enchiladas – instead of rotisserie chicken, use IP chicken.
There is a ton of chicken recipe inspiration on FFF, you’re options are endless! Don’t fret if you’re stuck, we have seasonings, marinades, and more to help you make your Instant Pot chicken breast everything you want it to me.
Check it out!
6 Baked Chicken Breast Recipes
You are going to love these 6 oven baked chicken breast recipes. Check out how to bake chicken breast perfectly every time and get 6 delicious flavor variations!
Homemade Seasonings
Seasonings are a great way to add great flavor to your chicken breasts and to end up with a simple meal after you cook your chicken.
Add any of these homemade spice rubs to your chicken breast instead of salt and pepper before you put the chicken in the Instant Pot. After the chicken is cooked eat your spiced chicken in a bowl, in a taco, or on a sandwich!
More Homemade Spice Blends
- Homemade Chili Seasoning
- Homemade Ranch Seasoning
- Homemade Taco Seasoning
- Homemade Dry Rub for Chicken
- Homemade Fajita Seasoning
- Everything Bagel Seasoning
Easy Marinades + Sauces
If you would rather eat your chicken breast with a sauce or a marinade, we have so many to choose from.
Here are few ways to use our famous chicken marinades with your Instant Pot chicken breast.
- Marinate your chicken breast before cooking for at least 2 hours and then transfer the chicken breast and marinade into the Instant Pot and cook as directed.
- After your chicken breast is cooked, shred it right in the Instant Pot and add 1/4 – 1/2 cup of any of our famous marinades to the shredded chicken and enjoy!
Delicious Marinade Options
- Chicken Fajita Marinade
- Homemade Italian Chicken Marinade
- Balsamic Chicken Marinade
- Teriyaki Sauce/Marinade
Our Favorite Instant Pot Chicken Breast Recipe
No matter what the chicken breast is seasoned with, our most favorite way to prepare chicken breast in the Instant Pot is SHREDDED!
Prepare the Instant Pot Chicken Breast, shred it, and add it to any recipe you would like!
check it out!
We wrote all about the ins-and-outs of Instant Pot Shredded Chicken here if you need more information.
Can I make more than 1.5 lbs. of chicken breast at once?
You can make as much chicken as your Instant Pot will hold. If you’re going to stack your chicken breast, we recommend shredding at the end as they will sort of stick together while cooking.
Do note that you Instant Pot will take a bit longer to build pressure if you have more than 1.5 lbs. chicken breast in there.
Do I have to use the trivet for IP Chicken Breast?
While we’ve made this recipe countless times without the trivet, it will for sure prevent the burn notice from happening. All Instant Pot’s are different, so just to be safe, we recommend using a trivet.
What if my chicken is still raw in the middle?
If your chicken is still raw in the middle, it’s likely that your chicken breast is larger than medium-sized which should only take around 8 minutes from thawed. Simply close the lid and cook for 2-5 more minutes on high.
Storage
Store Instant Pot Chicken in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-5 days.
Can I freeze Instant Pot Chicken Breast?
Once you’ve cooked your chicken breast, you can absolutely freeze it. You can even dice it up or shred it and freeze that.
Transfer into a freezer-safe gallon-size bag and remove as much air as possible. Seal and freeze for up to 3 months.
Instant Pot Chicken Breast
Ingredients
- 1 - 1.5 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast frozen (3 medium chicken breasts)
- 1/2 cup water
- optional: salt and pepper
Instructions
Instant Pot Frozen Chicken Breast
- First, place the metal trivet in the bottom of the Instant Pot and pour the water into the pot.
- Place frozen chicken breast on top of the trivet. Be sure the frozen chicken breasts are not touching. Season with salt and pepper.
- Turn the valve to seal and turn the Instant Pot to manual > high pressure > and set the timer to 18-20 minutes (depending on the size of the chicken breasts and how frozen they are).
- When the timer goes off, quick release the pressure. When pressure releases, check the internal temperature of the chicken breast. It should be at least 165ºF. If it's not, you'll need to continue cooking.
- Once chicken breast is fully cooked, prepare chicken any way you please (diced, shredded, or etc.)
Instant Pot Chicken Breast (thawed)
- First, place the metal trivet in the bottom of the Instant Pot and pour the water into the pot.
- Place raw chicken breast on top of the trivet. Be sure the frozen chicken breasts are not touching. Season with salt and pepper.
- Turn the valve to seal and turn the Instant Pot to manual > high pressure > and set the timer to 8-12 minutes. For a 4-oz. chicken breast, 8 minutes should do the trick, but for a large chicken breast, you will need to go up to 12 minutes.
- When the timer goes off, quick release the pressure. When pressure releases, check the internal temperature of the chicken breast. It should be at least 165ºF. If it's not, you'll need to continue cooking.
- Once chicken breast is fully cooked, prepare chicken any way you please (diced, shredded, or etc.)
Tips & Notes
- Note: we updated this recipe on January 5, 2021 to use the trivet. The video does not reflect this.
- If Instant Pot flashes the word 'burn,' quick release, add more water and reset it. The reason your Instant Pot is probably flashing the word burn is because it needs more moisture. Read more about it HERE.
- This recipe is for 2-3 medium-sized chicken breasts, not one massive 1 lb. chicken breast. Cook time will vary depending on the size of your chicken breasts. The larger the breast, the longer it will take to cook.
I really loved this recipe
Very good recipe
Thank you for this recipe
This is very lovely.
very affordable
great pot cant wait for my bb to use it
Thank you for sharing this delightful recipe. I can hardly wait to try it.
Thank you so much for this recipe
Thank you so much for this recipe, it turned out perfectly! I was getting so discouraged and frustrated trying several different instant pot chicken breast recipes, that continued to come out dry or chewy. I knew there had to be a recipe out there that would give me the chicken I so badly craved. Finally, your recipe, with a quick release, resulted in chicken breasts how they should be, tender and juicy, thanks!
YAY!! Quick release for life. We hate waiting for that natural release 😛
I’m new to the Intant pot and am a little confused. I thought that there had to be liquid in pot to use the pressure cooker option? I do not see any liquid used in this recipe.
Hi! Chicken gives off a lot of liquid, which is why none is needed! Feel free to add a few tablespoons if you’d like.
I have 6 lbs to cook. How does that change the recipe?
Hey Carrie! You should not have to change the cook time or temp!
Thanks you so much for the recipe. Its a helpful tutorial and very healthy
Such a helpful tutorial and perfect for meal prep!