Instant Pot Mexican Chicken
Make flavorful Instant Pot salsa verde chicken with simple ingredients. This easy Instant Pot Mexican chicken is perfect for tacos, bowls, or enchiladas!
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 223kcal
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.
Video
Notes
How to shred chicken with a mixer or by hand:
- 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.
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- Creamy: Add 1/2 cup of sour cream or softened cream cheese after cooking and blend until smooth.
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- 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.
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- Lime cilantro: After cooking, stir in a generous amount of fresh cilantro and a squeeze of lime juice for a bright, refreshing flavor.
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- 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.
- 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
Serving: 4ounces | Calories: 223kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 92mg | Sodium: 81mg | Potassium: 245mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 91IU | Calcium: 17mg | Iron: 1mg