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Instant Pot Chicken Thighs
How to cook chicken thighs in an Instant Pot? This brown sugar garlic chicken is the perfect recipe to make chicken thighs in an Instant Pot.
The pressure cooking of Instant Pot ensures that the chicken thighs are perfectly cooked, stay juicy, moist and tender.
The combinations of garlic and brown sugar work like magic with chicken, making it one of the easiest instant pot chicken recipes you can make for the entire family.
Other Recipes You Might Like
- Instant Pot Honey Garlic Chicken
- Instant Pot Creamy Garlic Mushroom Chicken
- Instant Pot Honey Sesame Chicken
How Long Does It Take to Cook Instant Pot Chicken?
It takes about 5 -10 minutes to cook chicken in an Instant Pot, depending on the chicken parts used in the recipe.
Below are the general guidelines on the time for cooking chicken in an Instant Pot, based on my past experiences:
- Wingettes and drumettes – 5 minutes
- Whole chicken wings – 6 minutes
- Chicken drumsticks and chicken thighs – 8 minutes
- Chicken breasts – 10 minutes
Can you cook frozen chicken in an Instant Pot? Yes, you can cook frozen chicken thighs, chicken breasts, wings and legs in an Instant Pot.
Just add 2 minutes to the time above if you use frozen chicken from the refrigerator.
How Do You Pressure Cook Chicken in an Instant Pot?
You need at least 1/2 cup of liquid in an Instant Pot to pressure cook chicken. You may also use up to 1 cup of liquid but 1/2 cup is enough to cook chicken.
1 cup is too much liquid as the process of pressure cooking doesn’t vaporize the liquid, instead, it forces the moisture of the chicken out of the meat, creating more liquid in the Instant Pot.
How Many Calories per Serving?
This recipe is only 477 calories per serving.
What Dishes to Serve with This Recipe?
For a wholesome meal and easy weeknight dinner, I recommend the following recipes.
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Instant Pot Brown Sugar Garlic Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 - 2 lbs. bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
- salt
- ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1/2 - 3/4 cup chicken broth
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 3 dashes cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon salt or more to taste
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
Instructions
- Season the chicken thighs with salt and ground black pepper on both sides of the chicken. Turn on the Saute mode on your Instant Pot. As soon as the pot is fully heated and hot, add the olive oil. Pan sear the chicken thighs (skin side down first) until both sides turn nicely brown.
- You can also pan-sear the chicken in a skillet and then transfer them over to the Instant Pot. Add the minced garlic and saute until light brown. Add the chicken broth, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, cayenne pepper and salt.
- Cover the pot and select Manual and set to High pressure for 8 minutes. When it beeps, turn to Quick Release. When the valve drops, remove the lid carefully and turn to Saute mode to reduce the sauce if it's too watery.
- Add the chopped parsley and serve immediately.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
If I make a double recipe, how much do I need to increase cooking time?
If cooking in the instant pot, then do not double the cooking time. It will adjust with how long it takes to come up to pressure. Make sure you don’t go over the max fill line and you may or may not need to add extra liquid. That is up to you, but you won’t need much to cook chicken.
If using skin on, is it crispy?
Not really. Instant pot pressure cook so skin is not crispy.
Can I use boneless, skinless chicken thighs? And if so, how long would you cook them?
Yes, you can. Same time.
Can I use Frozen boneless skinless thighs?
Yes.
Can I use chicken breast instead of thighs?
Can I add pasta?
Yes you can!
Someone asked if chicken breasts could be used, but I didn’t see a reply immediately following that question, so I am not sure if your “yes” after the next question answers BOTH questions, or just the question about adding pasta…
I am hoping to make this for a friend’s family tomorrow (3/2/23) so will need to thaw chicken today. Hoping for a quick reply! ;)
Yes you can use chicken breast.
Can I start with frozen boneless chicken thighs? And if so do I cook it longer?
Yes.
Do you need to remove the chicken to saute the garlic?
You don’t have to.
Approximately how long should 6 thighs sauté in IP?
Add 5 more minutes.
What would you recommend for instructions if using 8 quart IP and about 6lbs of thighs?
Just increase the ingredients accordingly.