This Instant Pot Shredded Chicken is perfectly moist, perfectly seasoned, and it freezes perfectly for your weekly meal prep! The easy way to cook Instant Pot chicken breast for shredding, from fresh or frozen! It’s a healthy addition to soups, salads, pastas or sandwiches throughout the week.
Table of Contents
I know. Instant Pot Shredded Chicken? We hardly need a recipe for that!
It’s not even really a recipe.
But since this here is not just a food blog full of delicious things for you — it’s also a collection of some of my favorite things — I get to say what goes here.
Plus, there are so many delicious shredded chicken recipes that I know we’ll never run out of ways to use it.
The seasoning on this Instant Pot Shredded Chicken is mild but so, so flavorful. It’s not too spicy or too salty or too peppery or too herby. It’s just right.
We all know that Instant Pot chicken breasts are one of my favorite things this year (check out these Creamy Italian Instant Pot Chicken Breasts, Instant Pot Pineapple Chicken Breasts, How to Cook Frozen Chicken Breasts in the Instant Pot if you were unsure!), so I’m keeping it.
This flavorful pressure cooked Shredded Chicken is one of my favorite meal prep hacks to have stashed in the freezer. Make a double batch, divide it up into smaller portions and dinnertime is that much easier!
I can guarantee you we will not regret it 😉
No Instant Pot? Check out my Crockpot Shredded Chicken and my stovetop Shredded Chicken instead!
Ingredients Needed:
- Chicken broth: I prefer to use low sodium broth and adjust my seasonings as desired. If your broth is salted, you may want to omit the salt and season at the end of the cook time. Vegetable broth also works great!
- Italian seasoning: A simple blend of herbs that adds subtle, versatile flavor
- Seasoning salt: My secret weapon! Seasoning salt includes a variety of other herbs and spices that give this pressure cooker shredded chicken a hit of flavor. You can use salt and add in paprika, onion powder and garlic powder.
- Pepper: to round out the flavor profile
- Chicken breasts: boneless chicken breasts or boneless chicken thighs are preferred for this recipe. Any bone-in cuts of meat do require a longer cook time.
How to Make Instant Pot Shredded Chicken:
Yes, it’s simple — but here are a few step by step photos to guide you! You can find the detailed instructions down in the recipe card.
- Combine broth and seasonings — this helps to ensure everything is evenly distributed.
- Add the chicken to the instant pot.
- Put the lid on and pressure cook — it will take about 10 minutes to come to pressure and begin counting down.
- When the cook time is up, allow the pressure to release naturally (be patient!). Then open the lid and shred the chicken.
Tips and Tricks:
I know that this is such an easy recipe that most of you probably don’t need tips on how to make shredded chicken, but there are a few things that I think are key so I’m going to drop some hints anyway!
- Make sure you add enough liquid. The liquid is what makes for a tender, flavorful shredded or “pulled” chicken. Broth adds so much more flavor than water, and more liquid = more moisture in your chicken!
- Season well. You don’t want to go overboard, but keep in mind that meat is best seasoned during the cooking process and not after (as is pasta, grains, vegetables, the list goes on). You will drain most of the liquid afterward, so you will not be consuming the full amount of salt, etc. as is listed in the recipe.
- Breasts or thighs? You can use either boneless chicken breasts or chicken thighs, or throw some of each in all together! Thighs have a richer flavor, and breasts are leaner. You choose.
How to shred chicken:
There are a couple ways to shred the chicken once it is cooked. Chicken breasts coming out of your pressure cooker are pretty much falling apart without you having to do anything, so you don’t need to get fancy.
I prefer to use two forks, because I’m lazy and I’m not into extra dishes. They do a fine job!
A lot of people will use a hand mixer or stand mixer to shred chicken, but I think it’s overkill. Who wants a huge stand mixer bowl to wash just for a few chicken breasts? Maybe if you’re doing a few pounds at once, it would be worth it.
Be sure to shred the chicken breast in the liquid (or at least some of it!) as it the chicken will reabsorb some of the broth and seasoning as you are pulling it, and it will give you the best results by far!
Pressure Cooker Shredded Chicken FAQs
Absolutely! Boneless chicken thighs will cook in about the same amount of time as breasts. You can even use a mix of both!
Shredded chicken can be store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Just be sure it is in an airtight container so it does not get freezer burnt.
Some people do, but I do not. I think that the chicken gets even more moist and more flavorful sitting in those delicious juices.
Overcooking chicken can dry it out quickly, especially when we are using white meat. That’s why I recommend a shorter cook time than some — with the time to build and release pressure, 10 minutes cook time is plenty for a few chicken breasts.
What can I make with shredded chicken?
This chicken is great for meal prepping because it can be turned into so many different meals! Here are a few of our favorites:
- Add it to this Garlic Parmesan Orzo Pasta or this Creamy Cavatappi Pasta.
- Swap it for meat in this Rigatoni Pasta Bake
- Swap it for the beef in this Dorito Taco Salad or use it in this Crockpot Chicken Taco Soup
- Use it in this Chicken Corn Chowder, Easy Chicken Vegetable Soup or this Chicken Wild Rice Soup.
Staring with frozen chicken breasts?
I recommend adding 3-4 minutes to the cook time.
See my post here on cooking frozen chicken breasts in the Instant Pot.
Looking for more Instant Pot recipes?
You might want to start with The Best Instant Pot Chicken Recipes! Then check out these other favorites:
- Instant Pot Pork Chops with Bacon Apple Glaze
- Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin with Garlic Herb Rub
- Creamy Italian Instant Pot Chicken Breasts
JUICY Instant Pot Shredded Chicken
written by Ashley Fehr
Ingredients
- 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
- ¾ teaspoon seasoning salt
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (2 lbs of chicken)
Instructions
- Place broth, seasoning salt, Italian seasoning and pepper into the Instant Pot inner pot. Stir.
- Add the chicken breasts (no trivet necessary!) and put the lid on.
- Turn valve to sealing, and select Manual (or Pressure Cook), high pressure for 10 minutes (they will be cooked at 7-8 minutes, but a couple extra minutes makes them fall apart tender). It will take about 10 minutes to come to pressure and start counting down.
- Once the cook time is over, turn the Instant Pot off and let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes (i.e., don’t touch it!).
- Open the lid and drain about half of the liquid. Shred the chicken breasts with the remaining liquid in the pot, and serve as desired. To freeze, let cool to room temperature before placing in freezer bags.
Notes
Nutrition Information
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Lisette says
Awesome!!!👌
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks!
Carla McBride says
What do you do to freeze? Keep it in the liquid? Or just shredded the way it is in tubberware?
Ashley Fehr says
You can really do either! It’s not a bad idea to store it in some liquid and reheat it in the liquid, as it will be nice and moist.
Skyler says
Chicken came out really tough. I followed the recipe exactly like it said
Ashley Fehr says
I’m sorry to hear that! There are a lot of different factors that could result in tough chicken, but without more details it’s hard for me to say what might have gone wrong
Cj says
Thanks for sharing your recipe. I had 4 chicken breasts and put them in for 10 and let the ip natural release for 10 minutes..I felt like I was ripping the chicken apart instead of it coming apart easily. Does this mean it was undercooked? I can’t seem to get it right and it’s so frustrating!
Thank you for your help.
Ashley Fehr says
hi CJ! I’m sorry to hear that. It could mean a couple of things, and probably depends on the size of the chicken breasts you were using. Tough could mean overcooked or undercooked, so we’re trying to hit the sweet spot in the middle. If your chicken breasts are very large, adding 2-4 minutes to the cook time probably isn’t a bad idea.
Jenny says
This always happens to me too!! Its not tender. I have to rip it apart.
Ashley Fehr says
I think that might have more to do with the quality of the chicken, as different stores and different products can give very different results. I would try purchasing your chicken somewhere else and see if you have better results.
Terri Larkin says
What is time for “thin cut” cutlets?
Ashley Fehr says
You could likely reduce by a minute or two depending on how small they are
Bonnie says
Hi, do I change the amount of time for 2.5 lbs of chicken?
Ashley Fehr says
You shouldn’t need to change the time to add extra chicken!
Anne says
Do I need to add extra time if using frozen chicken?
Ashley Fehr says
All the information you need is in the blog post 🙂
Bonnie says
Hi does it matter how much chicken you have? I have 2.5 lbs chicken. Do I add more time for this amount of chicken?
Loren says
This is such a fantastic and simple recipe. Chicken was moist and flavorful and very easy to shred! Thanks for sharing:) I now put it on soups and salads 🙂
Ashley Fehr says
Thank you Loren! I’m glad you liked it!
Brandi says
How is total time 13 minutes when prep is 5 and cook is 10? Also, does that include the natural release time?
Ashley Fehr says
Sorry, there was a hiccup with my recipe card. It does not include time to release pressure, that will add another 10-15 minutes.
Ariel S. says
I’m currently waiting the outcome of this dish but a thought popped in my head after I started the instant pot. Should the liquid come over the top of the chicken? Or does that not matter? I put in 2 cups of broth but it didn’t cover the chicken. I used more liquid because I have an 8 quart instant pot.
Ashley Fehr says
No, it doesn’t have to cover! It should be great
Stacey says
This recipe has become my go to for just about anything with chicken. I usually buy a large amount of chicken breasts whenever they’re on sale, then I cook them in several different batches with different seasonings in each. That way I have a variety of flavors to choose from on nights when I want to be a little lazy.
Ashley Fehr says
That is such a great idea, I love it!
Hope says
I’ve gone back and referenced this recipe more times than I can count. My family uses shredded chicken for so many things (enchiladas are our favorite) that we usually just have frozen chicken breasts ready, on-hand in our freezer. I was nervous about putting frozen chicken breasts straight in the instant pot the first time I tried this recipe, but I was hopeful because it would cut down my cooking time significantly. Thankfully, they came out perfectly! Not under-cooked or super dry but tender and moist. Thank you so much for a simple, versatile and straightforward recipe! It’s a life saver!
Ashley Fehr says
Thank you so much Hope! I’m so glad they turned out well for you
Rachel says
I cooked two chicken breasts which weighed a little over a pound for 10 minutes in the instant pot with 2 cups of broth and I actually think I may have almost overcooked it. The chicken is kind of moist but also kind of dry/tough. It’s hard to explain. They both reached a temperature of 170-175 though, so maybe that’s why. Everyone saying theirs is undercooked did not do it right.. or had massive chicken breasts.
Ashley Fehr says
Hi Rachel, it definitely depends a lot on the size of your chicken breasts! I don’t think 170-175 is so far past recommended that it should be tough. How was the texture once you shredded it?
Japor says
If the instant pot takes 10 minutes to pressurize, 8 more minutes of “cook” time, and 10-15 minutes of natural pressure release, we’re already at 28-33 minutes between when I press buttons and when I open the lid. Advertising a 13 minute cook time is a bit disingenuous
Ashley Fehr says
The cook time is 13 minutes. When looking at an oven recipe, the time to preheat the oven is not included and this is the same. I try to include that information in the recipe instructions to be helpful, but it is not part of the cook time.
SUSAN F. says
I’m new to Instant Pot (mine’s a knockoff, didn’t want to spend too much in case it didn’t work for me) and used your recipe mostly for the instructions. Breast meat tastes like cardboard to me, so we always use dark meat– I used 2 lbs of thawed chicken leg meat (no bones), and the marinade I froze the meat with (mostly soy sauce, orange juice, and garlic), added a little more liquid and followed your IP instructions.
After 10 mins “natural release”, I finished with manual release and opened it up. MAGIC, basically instant shredded chicken! Yielded total of 3 cups of liquid (some of it must be “chicken juice”) that I can use for making sauces.
Thank you so much for your very clear instructions.
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Susan! I’m glad to hear that!
Nicole T says
I see so many instant pot recipes with these short cook times and I don’t understand. Every time I use my instant pot, in order to get tender shreddable meat, I have to cook things for at least an hour on high. I’ve never had anything cook faster than that. My instant pot always take forever to natural release. Maybe I’m doing something wrong, but when I made this recipe, the chicken took like at least 45 minutes to get super tender.
Ashley Fehr says
Hi Nicole! That doesn’t sound right at all. I would worry about your lid not being sealed, or maybe needing to replace your sealing ring. It shouldn’t take 45 minutes for chicken breasts in any Instant Pot.
Jamie says
I did this exactly as it says. With just 2 chicken breasts. It did not fully cook the chicken.
Ashley Fehr says
My internal temperature of my chicken is always well over 165, so I would make sure you use a meat thermometer to check and ensure your pressure cooked is set to high pressure.
Jessica says
I too only put 2 breast in and the meat was raw in the middle
Ashley says
It came out good the second time, but the first time the chicken was tough. I think I needed to open the valve and let it release that way – because the natural way it was over 30-minutes and the valve still hasn’t dropped, so I manually released it and it was way overcooked.
Ashley Fehr says
Generally you never want to do a quick release with meat as it can dry them out. I’ve never had the natural release take 30 minutes with something like this though, so I’m wondering if that has something to do with why they were overcooked. But yes, after 10 or 15 minutes of natural release I think it is usually fine to open it.
Irma Scherer says
Such an easy and tasty recipe! I add this chicken to just about anything, soups, pasta, salads, it’s perfect quick weeknight meaL staple.
Thanks!
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Irma! It’s a staple here too!
Erin says
I’d like to double the amount of chicken (to 8 chicken breasts or even more). Do I then also double the broth and all the spices? How long should I cook it (not frozen)?
Ashley Fehr says
I would double the spices for sure and the broth you wouldn’t have to, but you could. I would cook it the same amount of time!
Steve says
I did 8 breasts for 10 minutes with 10 minute natural release. Chicken was undercooked.
Ashley Fehr says
You may have had some unusually large chicken breasts — I’ve never had undercooked chicken breasts at 10 minutes high pressure!
Jamie says
I have 4 LG. Breast..Total weight 4.58 lb. …. So I should increase the seasoning but not the liquid? I have a 6qt….also am at 6500 feet..does altitude matter?
Ashley Fehr says
I think if your chicken breasts are that large you will likely want to increase the cook time and the seasoning. I’m not experienced in pressure cooking at high altitude so I’m not sure if that will affect your cook time as well
Tony Davis says
I made this last night, and boy!! Was it good! I used double the broth and it came out fantastic! Thank you so much for providing such a good, easy, and fast recipe!
Ashley Fehr says
Thanks Tony! I’m so happy to hear that!