Instant Pot Shredded Chicken
This basic recipe for Instant Pot Shredded Chicken shows you how to cook chicken in a pressure cooker with fresh or frozen chicken and then store it so you always have it on hand for your favorite recipes!
We’re getting back to basics today with one of the recipes we use the most in our day-to-day lives. We’re going to walk you through how to cook chicken in the Instant Pot so you can make Instant Pot Shredded Chicken!
Shredded chicken is great for meal prepping because you can make a big batch and store it in the refrigerator or freezer to use for quick and easy weeknight meals and some of our favorite appetizer like this Keto Chicken Artichoke Dip, Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Dip, or Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken Dip.
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What Kind of Chicken Should I Use?
You can make shredded chicken in your Instant Pot or pressure cooker using fresh chicken, frozen chicken, chicken breasts, or chicken thighs.
New to using an Instant Pot? Make sure you read our beginner’s guide on “How to Use an Instant Pot” to get started!
Instructions
This recipe is for approximately 3 pounds of chicken and the steps are the same for fresh chicken breasts, chicken thighs, and frozen chicken breasts or thighs. If you’re looking for slow cooker instructions check out our Crock Pot Shredded Chicken recipe.
- Pour 1 cup of chicken broth into the bottom of your Instant Pot insert.
- Stir in the onion powder, garlic powder, and salt (see recipe below for measurements).
- Place chicken in the broth.
- Lock lid in place, turn the valve to SEALING, and set it to HIGH PRESSURE for 10 minutes.
- The pressure cooker will reach high pressure and cook for 10 minutes. Once done let it do a natural pressure release for 10 minutes then turn valve to VENTING to release the excess pressure.
- Remove the chicken breasts and pour the liquid out of the pot (I save mine and add it to a pot of Instant Pot Chicken Broth).
- Shred the chicken and use right away, or store in the refrigerator or freezer.
Note: If you are using frozen chicken make sure that the pieces are frozen individually and you don’t put the chicken in a frozen mass. If you do the outside edges will get overcooked and in in the middle the chicken will be raw.
Can You Stack Raw Chicken in Instant Pot?
Yes, as long as it is thawed, raw chicken you can stack the pieces on top of one another and they will be cooked through when the time is up.
How to Shred (or Pull) Chicken:
- By Hand – Place 1 cooked chicken breast on a cutting board and use two forks to shred the chicken. Place the forks into the chicken and pull them away from each other tearing, and pulling the meat apart into shredded pieces.
- Using a hand mixer – You can use a hand mixer or a stand mixer to shred your chicken. For the hand mixer place a piece of cooked chicken in a bowl and then press your mixer beaters against the chicken and turn on the mixer. The chicken will begin to shred. Keep going until it is completely shredded.
- Using a stand mixer – When using a stand mixer attach the bread hook attachment or paddle attachment to your mixer and then place a piece of cooked chicken in the bowl of your stand mixer. Place the paddle into the bowl and turn on the mixer. The chicken will shred easily.
Can I Freeze It?
This is the perfect make ahead ingredient for meal prepping!
- Use immediately for a quick weeknight dinner.
- Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Store in the freezer in an airtight container for up to 2 months. When you’re ready to use it thaw in the refrigerator overnight before adding to your recipe.
Recipes That Use Shredded Chicken
Here are just a few of our favorite recipes made with shredded chicken:
- Chicken Enchilada Casserole
- Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken Dip
- Keto Chicken Artichoke Dip
- Shredded Chicken Taco Bowl
- Keto Chicken Parmesan Roll Ups
- Chicken Tortilla Casserole
- Chicken Alfredo Lasagna Roll Ups
- Low Carb Chicken Alfredo Zucchini Lasagna
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Instant Pot Shredded Chicken
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts, approx 3lbs You can substitute thighs if you prefer.
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Pour chicken broth in the insert of your Instant Pot.
- In a small bowl combine onion powder, garlic powder, and salt.
- Sprinkle chicken with onion powder, garlic powder and salt. If the chicken is frozen you can just stir this blend into the broth instead.
- Add the chicken breasts to the Instant Pot. It is ok to stack them on top of one another. If they are frozen make sure to separate them into individual pieces before adding to the pot so they will cook evenly.
- Lock the lid in place and turn the valve to SEALING. Set to cook on HIGH PRESSURE for 10 minutes.
- When the timer goes off let it do a natural pressure release for 10 minutes before turning the valve to VENTING and releasing the excess steam.
- Remove the chicken from the pot and discard the liquid ( I freeze mine to add to chicken broth at a later time). Let the chicken cool until you can handle it and shred.
- Use immediately or follow the instructions in the blog post for how to refrigerate or freeze.
I would like to double this recipe. I have a 6 quart instant pot. Can I cook it all at once?
Cut the chicken into smaller pieces so they fit a little more snug. As long as it doesn’t go above the overfill line, it will be fine.