This Instant Pot Chicken and Noodles Recipe is an easy and comforting dinner made healthier with no cream soup! It’s made with real ingredients, requires very little prep, and makes the perfect weeknight dinner!
Table of Contents
If you ask me, chicken and noodles is one of life’s greatest comfort foods. Tender, shredded chicken coated in gravy and served over chewy egg noodles? It’s like the weeknight version of the ultimate chicken dinner.
This Instant Pot Chicken and Noodles Recipe is one of my favorite versions of the classic meal. It’s made with 6 ingredients, comes together in just one pot, and requires minimal hands on time.
The other best part? My kids gobble it up with zero complaints. And in spite of the fact that it’s a creamy pasta dish, it’s relatively healthy…especially if you sneak in a couple of veggies!
Looking for more “healthified” comfort foods? Try my Healthier Baked Mac and Cheese, Healthier Creamy Chicken Spaghetti Bake, or Healthier One Pot Skillet Lasagna!
Ingredients Needed:
- Chicken: you’ll need 3 boneless and skinless chicken breasts chopped into small pieces.
- Chicken Broth: I like to use low sodium chicken broth so I can add salt later on to taste. If you use regular chicken broth, you may want to reduce the amount of salt you add yourself.
- Seasonings: we’re seasoning this simple dish with Italian seasoning, salt, and black pepper.
- Egg Noodles: use extra broad egg noodles for the best texture.
- Cream and Cornstarch: creates a rich, creamy sauce.
How to Make Instant Pot Chicken and Noodles
This instant pot pasta dinner is so simple and quick to make! Here’s how:
- Brown the chicken: Heat oil over sauté in the instant pot, then add in the chopped chicken. Cook until browned on the outside, then stir in the seasonings.
- Deglaze the pot: Add the chicken broth and scrape any browned bits off the bottom. This helps to prevent a burn message.
- Cook the pasta: Add the egg noodles, then cover and cook on manual or pressure cook for 2 minutes. When the cook time is up, let the pressure naturally release for 5 minutes, then open the valve and release the rest.
- Add the slurry and serve: Whisk together cream and cornstarch, then add that into the instant pot. Cook on sauté for 2-3 minutes to thicken, then serve.
Instant Pot Chicken and Noodles FAQs
That depends on the size of the chicken. Since we’ve chopped the chicken first, it cooks super quickly. Just brown it for 2-3 minutes, then pressure cook it with the pasta for a few more.
The egg noodles cook in just 2 minutes! Well…sort of. You’ll set the timer on the pot for just 2 minutes. It will take about 10 minutes to come to pressure before it starts counting down. During that time, the noodles will be cooking.
We’re thickening the Instant Pot Chicken and Noodles with a cornstarch slurry made up of cream and cornstarch. Just whisk that up, stir it into the pot, then simmer until thickened.
Leftover chicken and noodles will last in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. To reheat, warm on sauté in the instant pot or on the stove with a splash of broth to thin.
Tips and Notes
- Chop the chicken. Don’t forget that you need to cut the chicken up into small pieces before you cook it. If it’s whole, it won’t cook all the way through.
- Use dry egg noodles. Fresh or frozen may become overcooked.
- Scrape the pot. I highly recommend scraping up any brown bits off of the instant pot after you brown the chicken. If you don’t, you may end up with a burn notice.
- Naturally release, then manually release. Once the cooking time is up, allow the pot to naturally release for just 5 minutes, then finish it out with a manual release. If you let it naturally release completely, you’ll end up with overcooked noodles.
- Don’t over-stir. Once the pasta is cooked, mix as little as possible or the pasta will become mushy.
- Use leftover chicken. If you already have cooked, shredded chicken like my Crockpot Shredded Chicken or Instant Pot Shredded Chicken, feel free to use that instead. Just follow the recipe starting and the second cook time and throw everything in the pressure cooker together.
Variations
- Swap the chicken. If you prefer a darker meat, try swapping the chicken breasts out for thighs. The recipe won’t change. Just be sure to use boneless and skinless.
- Add veggies. Add in extra veggies to round out the meal. I love frozen peas or carrots. Sautéed mushrooms or steamed broccoli are also both great additions. You’ll add those just before serving.
- Make it in the crockpot. This recipe is actually inspired by my original Crockpot Chicken and Noodles recipe, so feel free to check that one out instead!
- Don’t have chicken broth? You can substitute it for vegetable broth or combine water and chicken bouillon to make a chicken broth substitute. I don’t recommend using just water because the chicken broth adds the most substantial flavor to the sauce.
- Give it a flavor twist. This is a simple recipe, so feel free to mix it up by adding a spoonful of pesto, Cajun seasoning, Ranch seasoning, you name it.
Serving Suggestions
We love to serve this Chicken and Noodles with a side salad or fresh veggies if we’re short on time and don’t want to cook a side dish.
If you’re working with a little more time and motivation, try it with Easy Creamed Peas or Layered Broccoli Salad!
More Instant Pot Noodles to Try
Instant Pot Chicken and Noodles
written by Ashley Fehr
Ingredients
- 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1½ lbs)
- 2 ½ cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 4 cups extra broad egg noodles (180g)
- ¾ cup cream (any will do, the richer the cream, the richer the sauce)
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
Instructions
- Cut chicken breasts into small pieces.
- Heat oil in Instant Pot over saute and add the chicken, cooking and stirring until just cooked on the outside (2-3 minutes).
- Stir in Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Add broth and scrape any remaining bits of chicken off the bottom of the Instant Pot.
- Add egg noodles but do not stir. Simply press down into the liquid gently, but don't worry if they're not completely covered.
- Put the lid on, turn the valve to sealing, and select Manual or Pressure cook on high pressure, for a cook time of 2 minutes. It will take about 10 minutes to build pressure and begin counting down.
- Once the cook time is up, let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes, and then open the valve to release the remaining pressure. Letting the pressure release naturally completely will result in overcooked pasta.
- Whisk together the cream and corn starch. Add it to the pasta and cook on saute for 2-3 minutes until bubbly and thickened. Serve.
Notes
- You can swap the chicken breasts for boneless, skinless chicken thighs or pre-cooked Shredded Chicken.
- Feel free to add in veggies! Frozen peas, carrots and corn work well, as do broccoli (steam it separately if you like it more firm) and chopped spinach. You can saute onion and celery with the chicken if you like to add even more flavor.
- This is a simple chicken and noodles recipe, with chicken and egg noodles in a creamy chicken gravy. Feel free to mix it up by adding a spoonful of pesto, some Cajun seasoning, Ranch seasoning, or something else from your spice drawer you love.
- Be careful not to stir too much once the pasta is cooked — we don’t want it to become mushy!
- This recipe is for dry, uncooked egg noodles. Fresh or frozen egg noodles may become overcooked.
Nutrition Information
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Memaw says
No flavor, bland. Needed cream of chicken soup or something.
Ashley Fehr says
I’m sorry you didn’t enjoy it! Cream soups aren’t something you’ll find around here very much.
Van says
I am new to the instant pot and this is a perfect recipe. It’s the second thing I made in it. I did a couple changes to suit me. I added finely diced celery, carrots, onions & garlic to the first sautee step before the chicken. I use half & half w/butter & cornstarch. Here was 3/4 cup, 1 Tbsp butter, 2 tsp cornstarch. I used Pennoni pasta with cook time of 4 min to account for much thicker noodles. Perfect!
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks for sharing Van!
Brittney P says
What a dinner saver it was for me tonight, when all I had was frozen tenders and my instapot!
I mixed 3/4c milk w/ 1/3c melted butter for the cream, and as I said I used frozen chicken tender strips that I cooked before I started this recipe by cooking on high pressure, vent sealed, for 10mins for 1.5 lbs of chicken, and vented immediately when done.
So. Yummy.
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks for sharing Brittney!
Victoria says
Delicious! Staple recipe!!
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Victoria!
Nicole says
Could you add cream of chicken soup to this mixture?
Stephanie says
Added peas and 2 Tbls of ranch mix. Grt comfort food. Easy to make. Grt 1 pot (insta-pot)meal.
The Recipe Rebel says
Great to hear, thank you Stephanie
Jaime McCracken says
Last night I was looking for comfort food. I wasn’t sure what that was going to be, until I found this recipe! It was simple and delicious! It made enough to have leftovers for lunch today! Thank you for this recipe! I will be putting into our meal rotation!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Jaime! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Wendy says
I have a pressure cooker but not an Instapot. Do you know if the pressure times would be the same? I don’t want to risk ruining the meal by overcooking the noodles.
I guess this could be done just as easily boiling noodles? BUT messing up two pans instead of one! Ha!
You’re always my go to for quick and delicious meals for moms in a hurry. 🥰
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Wendy! The Instant Pot is a pressure cooker so the recipe should work in any pressure cooker. Hope you enjoy it!
Debbie says
Since it is just the 2 of us, I cut the recipe in half. When it was done, it sure didn’t look like it was enough, but it was. I had some leftover hot dog buns that I made into garlic bread. Waste not, want not. It was all delicious!
Paris says
I was wondering what the measurement of the serving size would be? I love this recipe but I just count my macros and have no idea how you measured your serving size
Paris says
Hi Ashley!
Im just curious as to what the serving size would be? Like cups wise oz etc
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Paris! I’m sorry but I didn’t measure it out in cups. It’s just 1/4 of the recipe.
Lisa says
I love this recipe, can I double the ingredients to make more? If so do I double it by equal amounts of the ingredients or less?
The Recipe Rebel says
Thanks so much Lisa! It will definitely work as long as it is not beyond the max fill line! I would not change the cook time.
Leslie says
Loved this! I added a bag of frozen vegetables (peas, corn, green beans, carrots) and it was amazing! I had to take it away from my one year old or else he would have eaten the entire batch!
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Leslie! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review!
Ellen Jaey says
Can you do rice instead of noodles?
The Recipe Rebel says
You can use rice! Here is my recipe for Instant Pot Chicken and Rice: https://www.thereciperebel.com/instant-pot-chicken-and-rice/
Carol says
How can I reduce the sodium and the potassium in this my husband was just diagnosed with kidney failure
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Carol, I’m sorry to hear that. I am not a registered dietitian or physician so I am not able to give you specific advice when it comes to medical issues. I will leave that to the experts. What I will say about this recipe is that broth has sodium, even if it is low sodium, so you may have to use water. It will change the flavor in the end but it might work for you.
April says
Can you substitute for the cream, cream cheese? If so an how much?
Also can you substitute corn starch for flour? f so how much
Where we live corn starch is very hard to come by.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hey April! You’ll need to substitute a liquid for a liquid in this recipe. Also you probably could use flour it’s just not something I’ve tested.
Candice says
If you substitute flour for corn starch, please let me know. I have a corn allergy and would love to make this but will have to sub flour for sure!! Thank you!!
Brandy says
I made this tonight and it was delicious. I only made a couple different alterations. I added some garlic powder and onion powder. At the end I added frozen broccoli at the end.
The Recipe Rebel says
Hi Brandy! So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thank you for this kind review and feedback on alterations you made!