Instant Pot Chicken Breast
Tender chicken breasts cooked in a sweet and savory honey garlic sauce, all made quickly in your pressure cooker.
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup water or low-sodium chicken broth 80 ml
- ¼ cup honey 60 ml
- ¼ cup low-sodium soy sauce 60 ml
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 ½ pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts (2-3 medium), 680g
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon cold water
Instructions
- Pour the water or chicken broth, honey, soy sauce, garlic, and pepper into the inner pot of your Instant Pot. Whisk until the honey is dissolved.
- Add the chicken breasts to the pot, turning to coat them in the sauce.
- Secure the lid, move the steam valve to the 'Sealing' position. Select the 'Pressure Cook' or 'Manual' setting on high pressure. Cook for 8 minutes for small breasts (7-8 oz), 10 minutes for medium (10 oz), or 11 minutes for large (12 oz).
- Once the timer finishes, carefully perform a quick release by moving the steam valve to 'Venting'. Wait for the float valve to drop before opening the lid.
- Check the internal temperature of the thickest part of the chicken with a meat thermometer. It must be at least 165°F (74°C).
- Remove the chicken to a plate or cutting board and let it rest.
- Select the 'Sauté' function. In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and 1 tablespoon of cold water to make a slurry.
- Once the sauce in the pot is bubbling, stir in the cornstarch slurry. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes until the sauce has thickened.
- Slice the chicken against the grain. Serve immediately, topped with the thickened honey garlic sauce.
Notes
For food safety, always ensure chicken is cooked to a minimum internal temperature of 165°F (74°C).
Cooking times are for fresh chicken. For frozen chicken breasts, add 3 minutes to the cook time and perform a 10-minute natural release before venting the remaining steam.
The total time includes about 10 minutes for the Instant Pot to come to pressure before the cooking countdown begins.
Ensure your chicken breasts are of a similar thickness for even cooking. If one is much thicker, you can pound it slightly to a more even thickness.