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Instant Pot Chicken Breasts are an easy protein to prep for your week ahead. Juicy chicken breasts cook with just the press of a button and are the perfect addition to practically any meal.
If you’ve ever tried cooking chicken in your Instant Pot before, you may have had rubbery, dry results. Because you can’t check on the chicken as it cooks (without waiting for the pot to de-pressurize, at least) the pressure cooker does require more of an educated guess when it comes to the cooking time.
It’s easy to overcook it if you’re not careful, which will result in chicken that’s not tender.
Because of this, I don’t recommend using your Instant Pot for cooking chicken breasts that you plan to serve to guests. Make oven-baked chicken breasts in that case, since you can check on those as you go.
Ingredients You’ll Need
This recipe is for boneless skinless chicken breasts, so that’s the only ingredient you’ll need, along with your favorite seasonings. My go-to chicken seasoning includes salt, black pepper, paprika, and garlic powder.
But you can use any other spices you prefer, like taco seasoning or Italian seasoning, depending on what you plan on serving this with. The flavor is up to you!
How to Cook Instant Pot Chicken Breasts
Start with chicken breasts that are roughly 8 to 10 ounces in weight and around 1 inch thick. This means you’ll get roughly 3 chicken breasts in a 1.5-pound package, give or take.
If you buy thinly sliced chick breasts or tenders, the cooking time will be shorter.
In a small bowl, stir together the salt, paprika, garlic powder, and black pepper. Arrange the chicken breasts on a plate and sprinkle half of the seasoning mix evenly over the tops. Flip the chicken breasts over and sprinkle the rest of the seasoning evenly over the other side.
Pour 1 cup of water into the bottom of your Instant Pot bowl. Arrange a trivet over that (I’m using the trivet that came with my 6-quart Instant Pot) then place the seasoned chicken breasts in a single layer on top of that.
Secure the lid and move the steam release valve to the “sealing” position. Use the Manual or Pressure Cook button to cook at high pressure for 8 minutes. It will take 8 to 10 minutes for the pot to pressurize.
Once the pot beeps to let you know the cooking cycle is complete, let the pressure naturally release for 5 minutes.
When the screen reads L0:05, move the steam release valve to “venting” to release any remaining pressure. (There shouldn’t be much pressure left at this point.)
When the floating valve in the lid drops, it’s safe to remove the lid. Use an instant read thermometer to check the chicken’s temperature in the thickest spot of the breast.
The FDA recommends chicken reach an internal temperature of 165ºF. If your thermometer reads at least 160ºF, the chicken should reach that safe temperature as it rests, thanks to carry-over cooking.
Use tongs to carefully transfer the chicken to a plate and let it rest for 5 more minutes. Then it’s ready to slice and serve! Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days if you plan on using it for meal-prepping this week.
Save the remaining liquid in the pot as “chicken broth” you can use for cooking this week. It’s the perfect addition to soups and can also be turned into a quick gravy using the saute button on your machine.
Want to make shredded chicken?
Drain the liquid from the pot (and save it for another use) then add the chicken breasts back into the bowl. Use an electric hand mixer fitted with 2 beaters to beat the chicken breasts until they start to shred. They should be done in about 60 seconds, so it’s faster than using 2 forks! This is perfect for chicken tacos, chicken salad, and more.
Looking for more Instant Pot recipes? Try Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes, Lentil Soup, or dairy-free Butter Chicken for more ideas.
Ingredients
Instant Pot Chicken Breasts
- 1 cup water
- 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts (roughly 8-10 ounces each/~1-inch thick)
Seasoning Blend
- ¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Pour the water into the bottom of the Instant Pot and arrange the handled trivet over that. (Use the trivet that comes with your pressure cooker.)
- In a small bowl, stir together the salt, garlic powder, paprika, and black pepper. Sprinkle half of the mixture evenly over the chicken breasts, then flip them over and season the other side. (Or use any other seasoning you prefer here.)
- Arrange the seasoned chicken breasts on top of the trivet in a single layer. Secure the lid and move the steam release valve to Sealing. Select Manual or Pressure Cook (depending on your machine) and cook at high pressure for 8 minutes. If your chicken breasts are sliced thinly, they might not require as much time, and larger breasts might require up to 10 minutes. The pressure cooker requires an educated guess since you can't easily take the temperature as it cooks.
- When the cooking cycle is complete, let the pressure naturally release for 5 minutes. Then release any remaining pressure by moving the steam release valve to Venting. When the floating valve in the lid drops, it's safe to remove the lid. Insert an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of each chicken breast. The internal temp should reach at least 160ºF, and as it rests it will continue to cook and reach a safe internal temperature of 165ºF. If it's below 160ºF when you test it, secure the lid and cook for another minute or two with a quick release.
- Use tongs to transfer the chicken to a cutting board, and let it rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing to help it retain its juices. Use the chicken right away, or store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 to 4 days.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
If you try these Instant Pot Chicken Breasts, please leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how they turn out for you.
My chicken breast came out dry and not tender. Can I put it back and pressure cook it again until it gets tender?
Sorry to hear that! I don’t know that cooking it longer will help, but you are certainly welcome to experiment with it! In my experience, chicken is dry in the Instant Pot when it is overcooked, and cooking longer doesn’t necessary help (unlike the slow cooker). Hopefully a good sauce can help, otherwise!
This recipe is a perfect lunch for a person like me who is always on the go. Thank you for sharing it.
So simple and easy! I love your recipes.
I cooked two medium boneless chicken breast with 1/2 cup of water for 12 minutes. I kept the frozen chicken in the refrigerator for one day and when I put it in the Instant Pot the chicken was almost thawed out. I did NR for 5 minutes and it came out great. Thank you very much.
I am making three pounds of boneless chicken breasts. Should I increase the time or water?
You just saved me from storing my Instant Pot on the top shelf! I have not enjoyed the texture of meat in the instant pot at all. I’d gone back to using my Crock Pot. Thanks for figuring out the perfect timing!
Could I use the same method if there is bone in it, for example, frozen chicken legs or frozen drumsticks? Thank you!
Could you cook larger amounts (4-5 lbs) of chicken breasts stacked on top of each other? If so, how long would you cook them? I do all my meal preps on the weekend and usually cook 4-5 lbs of chicken.
Thanks you and I love your blog!
I haven’t tried cooking that much chicken at once, but I imagine the cooking time could go up to 20 minutes if you want to be on the super-safe side. It will matter more how large each individual chicken breast is. So, if you have a huge chicken breast that is a full pound on its own, then you might want to do 20 minutes. If you have a bunch of small chicken breasts that are 4-6 ounces in size, the 12 minutes might be sufficient. Please report back once you try it so we can all know for future reference!
Cooked chicken 4 pieces of breast for 15 minutes , was tuff cooked 5 minutes more still tuff , help, also I have not been able to cook rice in instant pot at all , I have tried every thing same as the chicken
Good stuff.