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Instant Pot Salsa Chicken recipe is the way to go if you are a meal planner, or cooking for a crowd. With just a few ingredients, and less than 45 minutes, this pressure cooker Mexican shredded chicken will be ready for tacos, taco bowls, enchiladas, or salads!
Originally published on 12/20/2017
Instant Pot Salsa Chicken
This is a quick and easy Instant Pot meal to make. It’s one of the easiest in my Instant Pot recipe collection! You can make Instant Pot Salsa Chicken with as little as 2 ingredients, but I like to add extra seasoning so it comes out very flavorful.
You can make so many tasty recipes from Mexican shredded chicken, or freeze it for future delicious meals.
Season your chicken breasts and add them to the inner pot.
Pour the salsa over them and close the lid and cook. You will soon have tasty Instant Pot Salsa Chicken. Easy!
Shred and add back to the sauce and enjoy!
I’m a big fan of bringing my own lunch to work. Maybe splurging once in a while, but I like knowing what I’ll be eating, and being able to control the portions and ingredients.
Of course, the other big advantage of bringing your own lunch to work is the cost. If you make Instant Pot Salsa Chicken and shred it, you can get several lunches out of this recipe. Hooray for meal prep!
Add some cooked rice, black beans, corn, cheese, and sour cream for delicious taco bowls! Make chicken tacos, or add the meat to a salad.
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If you make this great salsa chicken recipe, please leave a comment below with a star rating. I’d love to know how you liked it!
Instant Pot Salsa Chicken
Ingredients
- 3 - 4 Chicken Breasts**, skinless/boneless (approx. 8 oz ea)
- Salt, to season meat
- Pepper, to season meat
- 2 tsp Garlic Powder, to season meat
- 1 Tbsp Taco Seasoning***
- 1 tsp Oregano (If you can get Mexican Oregano, it's really good)
- 16 oz Salsa*
Instructions
- Season chicken breasts on all sides with salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
- Put 1/2 cup of salsa in the inner pot of the pressure cooker. Then add the chicken breasts to the pot, setting them on the salsa.
- Sprinkle the oregano and taco seasoning over the chicken.
- Pour the remaining salsa over the chicken, covering it. *If your salsa is really thick, you can add 1/4 cup of water to help the pressure build, but I have never needed to. I use a salsa that is from the refrigerated section of the store, and it works nicely, with good flavor.
- Put the lid on the pot and set the steam release knob to the Sealing position.
- Press the Pressure Cook/Manual button (or dial) and then the + or - to choose 10-12 minutes** depending on the weight/thickness of the breasts. You don't need to add any additional liquid to the pot, the salsa and chicken have enough to bring it to pressure.
- When the cooking cycle has ended, let the pot sit undisturbed for 10 minutes to naturally release the pressure. Then, after 10 minutes, manually release any remaining pressure (there may not be any, and that's okay) by turning the steam release knob to Venting.
- Remove the chicken to a large bowl and shred it, using two forks. Then add it back to the pot. If there is too much liquid for your taste, just scoop some out. Leave some, as it has a lot of flavor, and will also keep the meat moist (the liquid is also great over rice).
- Now you are ready to use it in your favorite recipes!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Works great for my chicken enchiladas. As a tip, you can use a kitchen aid mixer to shred the chicken
Thank you! I love this recipe! Does anything change if you’re using frozen chicken?
The natural release time may need to be just a few minutes longer.
We make this over and over again – it’s what we feed a group when we’re hosting a fun/casual get together and it’s always a hit! We switched to a new salsa brand that has a bolder flavor and it really made this dish pop!
can you start with frozen chicken? Maybe cook longer? Haven’t made it yet, but will be doing shortly. 😍
Yes, just add about 3-5 minutes, depending on how thick they are.
This is absolutely delicious and my favorite new recipe. Thank you so much for the easy and healthy idea!
Made as is and was so tasty. Will definitely make again. Delicious
Hubby and I really like this recipe. We use it for chicken burritos and with Spanish rice. Thanks for sharing!
Such an easy dish and so yummy! I plan to use the leftover chicken broth/salsa for soup. I wont add extra water next time… Well let me see if the leftover broth is yummy! .
Absolutely fantastic recipe! I didn’t change a thing. Sautéed yellow peppers and onions on the side, and served with lime and grated cotija cheese. Soooo good!
So glad I found this recipe. It turned out perfectly. I made your taco seasoning too. Thank you
This recipe was easy, fast and delicious-though I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs as that was all I had on hand! I thought my salsa was a bit too thick so I added a bit of water. After the chicken was all done, I added that “extra leftover sauce” to a can of pinto beans. I drained them a bit first then added the sauce. Yummy!
Hi! I would love to make this but only have frozen thighs. Will that work?
Yes, there may be a little extra liquid, and the cook time needs 5 minutes longer, depending on the size of the thighs.
This is sooooo easy and yummy but it makes A LOT…..Can the leftovers be frozen??
Yes it can.
Out of habit, I season then sear the meat before cooking. This was really good and simple. Love recipes that use basic ingredients that I always have on hand. Did the pot inside the pot method for rice. Full meal with very little mess