This tasty recipe for Instant Pot Salsa Chicken is perfect for a busy night.
Prep Time10 minutesmins
Cook Time10 minutesmins
Reaching/Releasing pressure20 minutesmins
Total Time40 minutesmins
Servings: 6
Ingredients
2chicken breasts *see notes for instructions on using chicken thighs
1cupsalsa
1/2Tablespoonsaltor to taste
Instructions
Put the 1 cup of salsa into the bottom of your Instant Pot.
1 cup salsa
Season the chicken breasts with salt and lay them on top of the salsa. Try to keep the chicken in a single layer with little to no overlap.
2 chicken breasts *see notes for instructions on using chicken thighs, 1/2 Tablespoon salt
Put the lid on the Instant Pot, making sure the sealing ring is in place and the valve is closed. Set it for Manual, high pressure, for 10 minutes.
It will take about 10 minutes for the Instant Pot to reach pressure. Once it finished cooking let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes of natural release turn the valve to release any remaining pressure. Let the chicken cool briefly and then shred in the Instant Pot it with two forks or with a hand mixer.
If your salsa chicken seems watery use tongs to put it in a serving bowl and pour some of the liquid over top of the chicken. Stir it to mix.
Serve the chicken on tacos, salads, nachos, or on top of a rice bowl.
Notes
Use any kind of salsa as long as it isn't extremely thick. Or if you really love a salsa that is thick add 1/2 cup of water to the pressure cooker.
If you use large chicken breasts (over 10 ounces) increase the cooking time by four minutes.
Using chicken thighs - Boneless chicken thighs are thinner than chicken breasts, but need to cook to a higher temperature for food safety. So cooking for 10 minutes works fine for chicken thighs too.
You can use frozen chicken breasts or chicken thighs if you increase the cooking time to 14 minutes and if the chicken is frozen in individual portions. Don't try to make this recipe with a big clump of frozen chicken.