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Instant Pot Salsa Chicken is Mexican flavored shredded chicken breast that you can use for tacos, burrito bowls, and casseroles. Lots of flavor, and this pressure cooker shredded chicken is so useful! simplyhappyfoodie.com #instantpotrecipes #instantpotsalsachicken #instantpotshreddedchicken #Instantpotchickenbreast #pressurecookerchicken

Instant Pot Salsa Chicken

Instant Pot Salsa Chicken is Mexican flavored shredded chicken breast that you can use for tacos, burrito bowls, and casseroles. Lots of flavor, and this pressure cooker shredded chicken is so useful!

Course Dinner, Lunch, Main Course
Cuisine Mexican
Keyword pressure cooker shredded chicken
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 6 - 8 servings
Calories 160 kcal
Author Sandy Clifton

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

  1. Season chicken breasts on all sides with salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

  2. Put ½ cup of salsa in the inner pot of the pressure cooker. Then add the chicken breasts to the pot, setting them on the salsa.

  3. Sprinkle the oregano and taco seasoning over the chicken.

  4. Pour the remaining salsa over the chicken, covering it. *If your salsa is really thick, you can add ¼ 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.

  5. Put the lid on the pot and set the steam release knob to the Sealing position.

  6. 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.

  7. 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.

  8. 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).

  9. Now you are ready to use it in your favorite recipes!

Recipe Notes

**If your chicken breasts are the really large (11 oz or more) sized, increase cook time by 3 minutes.

***Try my Easy Taco Seasoning recipe. It's great in so many recipes, even pasta!