Craving a flavorful and effortless Mexican meal? This Instant Pot mexican chicken recipe is your answer! This dish is cooked to perfection in the Instant Pot with salsa verde, resulting in tender, juicy meat. Serve it over rice or tucked into warm tortillas, this Instant Pot salsa verde chicken is sure to be a hit.
This instant pot salsa verde chicken is a powerhouse of flavor and convenience. With a few simple ingredients, like Trader Joe’s salsa verde, boneless breasts or thighs, and a blend of spices, you can create a restaurant-quality meal at home. For an extra creamy twist, just stir in some sour cream after cooking. The pressure cooker makes this a go-to recipe for busy weeknights.”
Salsa verde is the star of this dish, bringing together the vibrant flavors of onions, garlic, tomatillos, and lime juice. You can use your favorite store-bought salsa verde, like Trader Joe’s Hatch Valley Salsa, or make your own. The combination of these flavors with the meat creates a truly magical culinary experience in this salsa verde chicken instant pot recipe.
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What’s the difference between Chicken Salsa Verde and Chile Verde
These are two similar-sounding dishes that taste quite different. They are both amazing in their own right, but it’s worth clearing up how they’re different.
- Salsa Verde is a lighter dish made with tomatillos, onions, garlic, spices, and chicken.
- Chile Verde has more of a deep Chile flavor. Most recipes use poblano peppers, jalapeños, Anaheim chiles, tomatillos, onions, and garlic. Traditionally Chile Verde is made with diced pork, but you’ll see recipes with thighs instead of pork. It’s a heartier dish that’s akin to a stew with shredded chicken.
Both Salsa Verde and Chile Verde can be made in the Instant Pot, slow cooker, or on the stove.
Why We Love This Instant Pot Salsa Verde Chicken
- Effortless flavor
It delivers incredibly rich and vibrant Mexican flavors with minimal effort. The salsa verde, combined with the pressure cooking, infuses the meat with a depth of taste that tastes like it took hours to develop, but it’s ready in minutes. - Versatility is the key
This recipe is a true kitchen workhorse. Whether we’re craving tacos, burrito bowls, enchiladas, or just a simple, flavorful dish over rice, this recipe delivers. It’s adaptable to so many different meals, making it perfect for any occasion. - Perfectly tender chicken
The Instant Pot makes the meat incredibly tender and juicy every single time. No more dry, overcooked poultry! Plus, the sauce keeps it moist and delicious, even when reheated.
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
What do you need to make this instant pot salsa verde? Here are the ingredient notes and some substitutions.
- Cooking oil: This can be canola or olive oil.
- Chicken: We used boneless breasts and thighs. Or feel free to use other cuts of chicken. However, thighs tend to be the most flavorful and juicy.
- Jarred salsa verde: I like Trader Joe’s Hatch Valley Salsa. You can also use Herdez Salsa Verde.
- Spices: We used ground cumin, dried, oregano, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. You can also add some smoked paprika, chili powder, or red pepper flakes for added heat.
- Sour cream (Optional): If you’d like to make this a creamy salsa verde chicken, you can add a little sour cream to the sauce.
Recipe Variation
- Creamy: Add 1/2 cup of sour cream or softened cream cheese after cooking and blend until smooth.
- Spicy chipotle Add a few chipotle peppers in adobo sauce to the Instant Pot for a smoky, spicy kick. Adjust the amount to your preferred heat level.
- Lime cilantro: After cooking, stir in a generous amount of fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice for a bright, refreshing flavor.
- Sweet Potato: Add diced sweet potatoes to the Instant Pot for a hearty and slightly sweet variation. The sweet potatoes soak up the flavorful sauce beautifully.
- Black bean and corn: Stir in a can of black beans and a can of corn during the last few minutes of cooking for a complete and satisfying meal.
- Creamy avocado: After shredding the meat, stir in mashed avocado for a rich and creamy texture.
Equipment Used in this Recipe
- Instant Pot (or any electric pressure cooker)
How to Make Salsa Verde Chicken Instant Pot
Here are the instructions on how to make this chicken Chile Verde instant pot meal. It’s only 10 minutes of cook time and 10 minutes to release the steam.
- Add a little oil to your pressure cooker pan to prevent sticking or getting a burn notice. It also cuts down on the amount of time for the pot to come to pressure, and pressure cooks faster. Add meat to the bottom of the Instant Pot. Pour the Trader Joe’s green salsa and spices over.
- Close the lid and turn the sealing lever to seal if needed. Cook at high pressure for 10 minutes cook time (12 minutes for frozen). Then allow the pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes before performing a quick release to release the pressure.
- Remove the meat from the pot and shred it with two forks. Stir in sour cream to make it creamy, and use an immersion blender to create a creamy salsa verde sauce.
If you pour it into a blender, use caution when removing the lid because of the hot liquid.
🎯 TFN Pro Tip
How to Shred Chicken in a Mixer or by Hand
- Shredding in a mixer
Did you know you can shred your chicken using a mixer? Here’s how:
Use a stand mixer or hand mixer to shred quickly and easily. Place the meat in the mixing bowl. Mix at low speed for up to 1 minute until the meat is all shredded. - Shredding chicken by hand
Another great way to shred chicken (and the most classic way) is to use two forks and a mixing bowl.
Before shredding the meat by hand, place them in a large bowl and cut the breasts in half.
Hand shred with two forks by placing them in the middle of the chicken pieces and pull each fork in opposite directions.
Serving Suggestions
Now that you have this delicious instant pot mexican chicken, the possibilities are endless! For a simple and satisfying meal, serve it straight from the pot in a bowl, sprinkled with crunchy pepitas, fresh cilantro, minced green onion, or a dollop of sour cream. Shredding the meat opens up even more options. Use it as a dip for chips, stuff it into creamy cheesy chicken enchiladas, or layer it in a casserole with pinto or black beans, rice a roni recipe, corn, and cheese. For a classic Mexican feast, use the shredded meat in corn tortillas for flavorful tacos or create vibrant burrito bowls with cilantro lime rice, beans, cheese, salsa, pico de gallo, sour cream, and tortilla chips. This salsa verde chicken instant pot is incredibly easy to make.
If you are craving some chicken recipes, Instant Pot chicken tenders recipe is another perfect meal for you. Want creamy and melt-in-your-mouth goodness? Instant Pot chicken thighs and potatoes are also a great recipe to try.
For Mexican stew that is hearty and zesty, try our Mexican hominy soup. For a quick, easy, tangy, and comforting dish, ranch chicken and potatoes are a must-try!
Recipe FAQs
Salsa verde is tangy from the tomatillos, and since they are cooked with onions and garlic, the flavors all come together to make a delicious sauce.
No, salsa verde is made by cooking tomatillos, onions, and garlic while chimichurri is made by blending fresh herbs like parsley, cilantro, and oregano with vinegar, oil, and other spices.
Regular red salsa is made with tomatoes and is not cooked. Salsa verde is made with green tomatillos and chiles and is cooked.
After you make the salsa chicken, you may have some leftovers. There are a couple of things you can do to keep it fresh and serve it later.
Store it in an air-tight container and in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat from the fridge, remove the container’s lid and place it sideways on the bowl so it lets a little air escape. Then heat it in 30-second increments until the temperature reaches 165º F.
To freeze the instant pot salsa verde chicken, put it in a freezer bag or air-tight container, and label it with its name and date. Freeze it for up to 3 months.
When you’re ready to eat it, let it completely thaw in the fridge or use the defrost function on your microwave to thaw.
When you’re ready to serve it, heat it in the microwave the same as above.
More Prep Ahead Recipes To Try…
If you tried this salsa verde chicken recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Instant Pot Mexican Chicken
Equipment
- Instant Pot (or any electric pressure cooker)
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons cooking oil
- 1 pound boneless chicken breasts fresh or frozen chicken
- 1 pound boneless chicken thighs (fresh or frozen chicke
- 1 jar (12 ounce) Salsa Verde I like Trader Joe's or Hatch Valley brands
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- salt and black pepper
Creamy Salsa Verde Chicken (optional)
- ½ cup sour cream
Instructions
- Add a little oil to your Instant Pot pan to prevent sticking or getting a burn notice. Add chicken to the bottom of the Instant Pot. Pour salsa and spices over the chicken.
- Close the lid and turn the sealing lever to seal, if needed. Cook at high pressure for 10 minutes (12 minutes for frozen), then allow pressure to naturally release for at 10 minutes before performing a quick release.
- Remove chicken from pot and shred (see notes below) or serve as boneless chicken breasts and thighs. Stir in sour cream for Creamy Salsa Verde chicken, and use an imersion blender to create a creamy salsa verde sauce. Serve over rice with tortillas, over tortilla chips and top with cheese to make nachos, make chicken tacos or burritos.Keep leftovers to use in another recipe like Chicken Enchiladas or green goddess salad with chicken.
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Notes
-
- Creamy: Add 1/2 cup of sour cream or softened cream cheese after cooking and blend until smooth.
-
- Spicy chipotle Add a few chipotle peppers in adobo sauce to the Instant Pot for a smoky, spicy kick. Adjust the amount to your preferred heat level.
-
- Lime cilantro: After cooking, stir in a generous amount of fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice for a bright, refreshing flavor.
-
- Sweet Potato: Add diced sweet potatoes to the Instant Pot for a hearty and slightly sweet variation. The sweet potatoes soak up the flavorful sauce beautifully.
-
- Black bean and corn: Stir in a can of black beans and a can of corn during the last few minutes of cooking for a complete and satisfying meal.
-
- Creamy avocado: After shredding the meat, stir in mashed avocado for a rich and creamy texture.
- Use a stand mixer or hand mixer to shred chicken quickly and easily. Place the chicken in the mixing bowl. Mix at low speed for up to 1 minute until the chicken is all shredded.
- Before shredding the chicken by hand, cut the chicken breasts in half. Hand shred with two forks by placing them in the middle of the chicken pieces and pull each fork in opposite directions.
- After you make the salsa chicken, you may have some leftovers. There are a couple of things you can do to keep it fresh and serve it later.
- Store it in an air-tight container and in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- To reheat from the fridge, remove the container’s lid and place it sideways on the bowl so it lets a little air escape. Then heat it in 30-second increments until the temperature reaches 165º F.
- To freeze the instant pot salsa verde chicken, put it in a freezer bag or air-tight container, and label it with its name and date. Freeze it for up to 3 months.
- When you’re ready to eat it, let it completely thaw in the fridge or use the defrost function on your microwave to thaw.
- When you’re ready to serve it, heat it in the microwave the same as above.
Nutrition
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Kris says
I love this recipe!! It has become a favorite for me and my husband. If I double it would I cook for the same amount of time? Thank you so much!
Karen Froehlich says
I used frozen chicken thighs and did get a burn notice, which made me stop the cooking. I will use fresh or thawed chicken pieces when I make this again. It was delicious and surprisingly not too spicy.
Renae says
I’ve made this countless times without getting a burn notice. When using frozen chicken, it helps if 1) your Instant Pot liner is shiny clean like it’s new, and 2) that you wipe the bottom of the pot with a little oil to keep it from sticking. If your Instant Pot liner is stainless steel, it’s just like cooking on stainless steel pans and they need a little oil (or deglazing) to keep them from sticking (burning). I hope this helps.