Instant Pot Chicken Tacos

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These Instant Pot Chicken Tacos are your next favourite supper! Made from pantry staples, they’re fresh, flavourful and so easy to make thanks to the Instant Pot.

 

Suitable for Gluten-Free diets. Post includes WW points.

A potrait image of instant pot chicken tacos on a table

Folks, are you ready for some easy chicken tacos??? How about tacos loaded with flavourful shredded chicken breast made conveniently in the Instant Pot which you will then top with your favourite taco toppings for taco perfection?

Instant Pot Chicken Tacos are really easy to make using pantry staples, with minimal prep and effort. So easy that you can totally make these for dinner tonight, for any taco night gathering, potluck, a game day eat and Cinco de Mayo any Mexican celebration.

I love making this for a crowd, especially in the form of a simple taco bar, put everything out, and guests can dip in and out with what they want. You can also use the shredded chicken for a nachos bar or platter or salad, burritos and enchiladas .

Easy Instant Pot Shredded Chicken Tacos

Like the Instant Pot Chicken Fajitas and 2 ingredient Instant Pot Salsa Chicken, this is a simple fuss free recipe – simply add meat and seasoned salsa to the pressure cooker, cook for a few minutes and shred. Then add that shredded chicken breast to every thing and anything.

Add a simple salad and some rice to this shredded chicken tacos for a more complete meal for dinner tonight.

If you love tacos then you certainly want to give this easy Instant Pot version a try.

assembling instant pot chicken tacos

Why Make This Recipe

  • Prep ahead – The shredded Mexican Chicken is great for prep ahead and weekly meal prep.
  • Flexible – you can easily make this using fresh or frozen chicken.
  • Customizable – make sure to have lots of toppings so everyone can customize their dinner. 
  • Budget friendly – made with affordable ingredients you probably already own.

Ingredient Notes

  • Chicken breasts – this recipe calls for boneless skinless chicken breasts. I have also made this with chicken thighs (which require a little more cook time). You can use frozen chicken breasts but you would need to add a couple of minutes to the cook time compared to fresh chicken breasts and make sure the chicken pieces are added separately not as a big lump since they would not cook through like this.
  • Chicken stock – to cook the meat in. Feel free to use vegetable stock or chicken broth instead.
  • Taco seasoning – this can be store bought or homemade. Add more or less to you taste.
  • Tortilla – this recipe uses warm tortillas. To keep it gluten free these are corn tortillas but you can use flour tortillas or hard taco shells.
  • Tomato salsa – alternatively you can use flavored diced tomatoes of your preference.
  • Lime zest – this optional ingredient adds a little citrus lift.
  • You favorite toppings – get creative and add all your favorite toppings.

Does it get any better than that?? I don’t think so. Now that I’ve convinced you that you MUST make Instant Pot Chicken Tacos, let me show you …

Instant pot quick start guide image

How to Make Instant Pot Chicken Tacos Step by Step

Get the complete ingredients list and instructions from the recipe card below. 

  • Add stock to the Instant Pot insert and add meat into the stock.
  • Mix together, salsa, seasoning, coriander (cilantro) and lime zest (if using – highly recommended for the best flavour).
  • Top meat with the salsa mixture.
  • Close pot, set valve to sealing, select the manual or pressure cook button (dependent upon IP model), select high pressure and set the timer to 8 minutes for thin breasts or 10 minutes for thick breasts. (Note: My chicken breasts were 4 cms/0.4 in thick and I used the 10 minute timing.)
  • Do a natural pressure release and then take meat out of the electric pressure cooker and shred chicken with two forks.
  • Sauté the remaining liquid till it reduces in about half, switch off heat and add the shredded meat back in. Chef’s Tip: This step adds moisture to your shredded chicken and helps better infuse flavour.
  • Assemble tacos with your desired toppings.
tutorial of how to make Instant pot tacos

Look at that shredded chicken…

shredded chicken breast in Instant Pot, for instant pot chicken tacos

Tips for Making Instant Pot Shredded Chicken Tacos

  • For a lighter option, omit the tortillas and serve over a bed of lettuce (romaine is a good choice). This will also make the recipe Keto and Paleo.
  • If you’re not gluten-free, you can use wheat flour tortillas if you prefer.
  • If you want to make your own corn tortillas (easy to do), follow my How to Make Corn Tortillas tutorial.
  • The leftover cooking liquid makes a great base for cooking rice, pasta, soups and more.
  • Cooking time does not include time needed for the Instant Pot to come up to pressure or for the pressure to release.

Delicious Variations

  • Add heat – with cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, chili powder, chipotle, hot salsa or chipotle.
  • Add citrus – using added lime juice or lemon juice. You can also try pineapple juice. This lifts up the flavor.
  • Vary the seasonings – you can add in things like garlic powder, onion powder, oregano etc.
a plate of instant pot chicken tacos surrounded by toppings

Toppings for Instant Pot Chicken Tacos

Some Instant Pot tacos topping ideas for you:

  • Corn
  • Shredded lettuce
  • Shredded red cabbage
  • Greek yogurt
  • Radishes
  • Limes
  • Sour cream
  • Cheese like cheddar and Monterey jack and queso.
  • Coriander (cilantro)
  • Avocado slices
  • Avocado sauce
  • Cut up tortilla chips

Storage

  • Storage – store cooled cooked shredded meat in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
  • Freeze – freeze in meal prep containers or flat layed ziploc bags with all the air removed and freeze for up to 3 months.
  • If you’re lucky enough to have leftovers, you can use as a base for meal prep. Add to sandwiches and rice or pasta dishes and taco bowls throughout the week.

FAQs

Can I Make This With Frozen Chicken Breasts?

Absolutely you can for this Tex-Mex recipe. You will need to cook the frozen chicken for 12-14 minutes instead.

Can You Double This Recipe?

Absolutely, double it and cook time stays the same. As long as this does not pass the max fill line on the pressure cooker.

Can You Make This In A Slow Cooker?

Yes you can. Head on over to this easy Crockpot Shredded Chicken Salsa Post to find out how to.

More Instant Pot Chicken Recipes

For more chicken recipes why not try these below

What to Serve with Instant Pot Chicken Tacos

A bowl of instant pot chicken tacos

Happy taco-eating, folks.

Weight Watchers Points

(Chicken Only)

I have included the Weight Watchers points for the shredded chicken below. For the tacos, calculate additional points based on the toppings you use.

  • 0 Blue Plan Smartpoints per serving
  • 3 Blue plan smartpoints per serving

Originally published July 2018.

GET THE CHICKEN TACOS INSTANT POT RECIPE:

Don’t forget to tag #recipesfromapantry on Instagram or Twitter if you try Instant Pot Chicken Tacos! It is really, really awesome for me when you make one of my recipes and I’d love to see it. You can also share it on my Facebook page. Please pin this recipe to Pinterest too! Thank you for reading Recipes from a Pantry.

A potrait image of instant pot chicken tacos on a table
Print Recipe
5 from 7 votes

Instant Pot Chicken Tacos

Whip up a quick weeknight meal with this Instant Pot Chicken Tacos recipe. Chicken:
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Total Time15 minutes
Course: Main
Cuisine: American, Western
Servings: 4
Calories: 277kcal
Author: Bintu Hardy

Ingredients

  • 80 ml 0.75 cup chicken stock
  • 3 large chicken breast about 500g/1.1 lbs
  • 235 ml 1 cup tomato salsa
  • 1 tbsp taco seasoning
  • 2 tbsp chopped coriander cilantro, optional
  • 1/4 tsp lime zest optional

To serve:

  • 8 Corn tortillas,
  • corn, radishes, limes, sour cream, cheese , coriander , avocadoes

Instructions

  • Add stock to Instant Pot insert.
  • Add chicken breast in the stock.
  • Mix together, salsa, seasoning, coriander and lime zest.
  • Top chicken breast with mix.
  • Close pot, set valve to sealing, select the manual or pressure cook button (dependent upon IP model), select high pressure and set the timer to 8 mins (thin breast) or 10 mins (thick breast).
  • Do a NPR and take out chicken and shred.
  • Sauté the remaining liquid till it reduces in about half, switch off heat and add the shredded chicken back in.
  • Assemble tacos.
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Notes

Tips
” Cook time does not include time to come up to pressure or for pressure to release.
” For a lighter option, omit the tortillas and serve over a bed of lettuce (romaine is a good choice). This will also make the recipe Keto and Paleo.
” If you’re not gluten-free, you can use wheat flour tortillas if you prefer.
” If you want to make your own corn tortillas (easy to do), follow my How to Make Corn Tortillas tutorial.
” To make vegan or vegetarian tacos, try substituting the shredded chicken with my Instant Pot Lentil Soup with Mexican flavours. This is a thick soup that will hold up fairly well in tacos, although you may want to use a slotted spoon to release some of the liquid.
” Highly recommended: serve your tacos with a delicious Ginger Beer.
++ Weight Watchers Points in Instant Pot Chicken Tacos (Chicken Only) I have included the Weight Watchers points for the shredded chicken below.
For the tacos, calculate additional points based on the toppings you use.
” 0 Freestyle points per serving ”
3 PointsPlus points per serving

Nutrition

Calories: 277kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 54mg | Sodium: 242mg | Potassium: 414mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 215IU | Vitamin C: 5.8mg | Calcium: 70mg | Iron: 1.8mg

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10 Comments

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  2. 5 stars
    Chicken chicken for din din. We absolutely love this. Those tacos looks absolutely delicious! The crunch in the tacos are simply wonderful addition.

  3. 5 stars
    You sold me not only on this yummy shredded chicken recipe (especially for my hubby), but also on the use of an instant pot. I never owned an instant pot. Sara, do you think this recipe could work with a regular pressure cooker too?

  4. 5 stars
    You sold me not only on this yummy shredded chicken recipe (especially for my hubby), but also on the use of an instant pot. I never owned an instant pot. Sara, do you think this recipe could work with a regular pressure cooker too?

  5. 5 stars
    I love the pop of pomegranate and the crunch of radish!!!
    I just LOVE tacos and am firmly in the camp that #tacotuesday should be banned as tacos are for everyday!

  6. It’s winter here for me in Australia right now, and my mind is all about slow cooking. You are so right!! Summer… pop everything in a instapot, walk away and not slave over a hot stove. This is a recipe for all season.