These basic Instant Pot Chicken Thighs will change your meal prep game. Simple to make and so many ways to utilize them.
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Today’s recipe is basic in all the best ways. It’s simple to make, seasoned with spices you’ll already have on hand and super versatile. Make a big batch of these Instant Pot Chicken Thighs on Sunday for great meals throughout the week.
Simple Preparation
These chicken thighs could not get easier to make. You only need a handful of pantry ingredients in addition to the chicken to get these made up. Oh, and less than 30 minutes.
Start by heating your Instant Pot on the saute mode. While it’s warming up, evenly season both sides of the chicken with kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and paprika.
Add olive oil to the hot Instant Pot and sear the chicken until golden, about 3 minutes per side. You’ll probably need to do this in two batches.
Once all the chicken is seared, remove it and pour in a cup of water. Use a whisk to scrape up all those good bits and stir. This is an important step for an optional addition later.
Place the trivet in the Instant Pot and place all the chicken on top. It may overlap a bit which isn’t an issue.
Close and seal the IP and set it to cook for 5 minutes. Proceed carefully with a quick release of pressure and it’s ready to enjoy.
A Delicious Addition
Once the chicken has cooked, you’ll have a flavorful liquid underneath. All those delicious drippings from the chicken combined with the browned bits you scraped up and stirred into the water before cooking.
You can use this liquid and cornstarch to make a super flavorful gravy.
All you need to do is whisk a little cornstarch into some fresh water. Set the Instant Pot back to saute mode and stir in your slurry. It will thicken to a delicious, glossy gravy.
If you’re going this route, I definitely recommend serving the chicken and gravy with these Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes.
Meal Prep Perfection
I kept these Instant Pot Chicken Thighs super simple and basic so that you have the option to use them for meal prepping. They are super versatile and can be added to salads, soups, sandwiches or on their own.
Keep them in the refrigerator throughout the week for that night you don’t feel like cooking. We all have them.
You could even freeze them after cooking for easy meal preparation in the future.
More Simple Chicken Recipes:
Instant Pot Chicken Thighs
Equipment
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp. onion powder
- 1/4 tsp. paprika
- 1 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 cup water
- 1 1/2 Tbsp. cornstarch (optional)
Instructions
- Heat instant pot to saute mode. While it's heating up, season both sides of chicken thighs with kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and paprika.
- Add olive oil to the instant pot. Sear chicken for 3 minutes per side. you may need to do this in two batches. Once chicken in browned, remove from the instant pot to a plate.
- Turn off saute mode and add 1 cup of water. Stir and scrape the bits off the bottom. Add the trivet to the instant pot. Place chicken on trivet, place lid on instant pot and seal. Set to cook for 5 minutes on high manual mode. Once done, quick release the pressure.
- Optional gravy: remove chicken and trivet from instant pot. Turn it back to saute mode. Whisk together cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water in a small bowl. Add slurry to instant pot and whisk until thickened to a gravy.
January 29, 2021 at 8:27 pm
This was very good. The gravy was phenomenal. I loved that it’s healthy, versatile (- as indicated, chicken can be used in other recipes, put in salads, and be a game-saver for a fast meal/prep), simple to prepare and consistent results. Easy peasy :o)