Easy Instant Pot Chicken Breasts Great For Meal Prep

Juicy chicken breasts cooked in the instant pot are ideal to keep on hand for a quick lunch or easy dinner on a busy weeknight. Thanks to the Instant Pot and a little bit of meal prepping, you’ll always have delicious sliced or shredded chicken to put over salads, chop into pasta dishes or soup, or sprinkle on pizza. This instant pot chicken breast recipe is a terrific alternative to baking chicken, when you don’t want to heat up the oven and entire house. You can make just a couple or several at a time, and they cook up in less than 20 minutes! Fresh and tasty, way better than store bought processed chicken, your whole family will love this zesty recipe!

Ingredients in Instant Pot Chicken Breasts

Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts – you can also use boneless skinless chicken thighs Zesty Italian Salad Dressing – this is our favorite but you can definitely experiment with other dressings and sauces. Garlic – Use the fresh stuff for the best flavor but you can use garlic powder instead. Montreal Chicken Seasoning – you can use any blend of spices that you like. Use taco seasoning if preparing for a Mexican-inspired dish! Salt and Pepper Chicken Broth – You can use water if you don’t have chicken broth, you just need to add liquid to the pot so the chicken doesn’t burn

Frozen Chicken in the Instant Pot

This is a frequently asked question when preparing chicken in the Instant Pot. Yes, you can definitely throw in frozen chicken breasts and let the magic of the Instant Pot do the rest. However, they won’t be as flavorful if they’re not marinated. If you pressure cook frozen chicken, make sure to add at least three minutes to the cooking time. To add extra flavor, rub the frozen chicken breasts with oil and then with the dry rub (details in the recipe card below). The oil will help all those seasonings adhere to the frozen chicken breasts while cooking.

More Suggestions for this Recipe

To ensure even cooking, try to keep chicken in on single layer in the Instant Pot. Depending on how much chicken you want to make, you may need to do a couple of batches. If you want to layer the trivets, place the flat trivet on the bottom and then the trivet with handles upside down over the second layer, sort of making a table over the other trivet. That way you can get two layers. If it seems a little wobbly, don’t worry, it’s not going anywhere. Check out the recipe card below for a delicious marinade. It’s zesty, slightly sweet, yet mild enough for adding to so many recipes. Feel free to use your favorite marinades or dry rubs and just follow the same method of cooking. The possibilities for flavoring your chicken are endless! If you’re using larger chicken breasts, add 2 to 3 minutes to the cooking time, and always be sure to check the internal temperature and make sure it’s at least 165 degrees. Cooked fresh chicken breasts can stay nice and fresh in the refrigerator for up to five days. You can also freeze cooked chicken breasts to be used later. They’ll stay in the freezer for about two months. The easiest way to shred chicken breasts is by using two forks. For more information about making shredded chicken in this Instant Pot, check out our instant pot shredded chicken recipe.