Easy Instant Pot Chicken Tacos

Instant Pot chicken tacos make a great weeknight meal! These shredded chicken tacos combine chicken, spices, and a little sweetness for one of the best chicken tacos recipes you can make at home!

My family is a huge fan of tacos. Most nights we make this super popular homemade taco meat and just do regular beef tacos but sometimes our taco Tuesday night needs a little shakeup.

These chicken tacos aren’t just a little shakeup, they’re a big change from our standard beef tacos but oh my goodness, they’re so good.

The recipe is inspired by one of our favorite places to eat in Anna Maria Island – a taco shop that has the best shredded chicken I’ve personally even tried. Their quesadillas are to die for.

The best thing about these Instant Pot chicken tacos is that you probably already have everything on hand to make these right now. Except maybe not all the toppings – but those are all easily found in your local grocery store!

• Chicken – I love using boneless skinless chicken thighs in this recipe because the dark meat gives it really rich and juicy flavor. You can also use boneless skinless chicken breasts, and I’ve added a note about how to do that in the recipe.
• Garlic granules – garlic powder totally works as well, we just always have granules on hand so that’s what we used
• Ancho chili powder – chipotle powder works as well!
• Kosher salt – note that we recommend kosher salt, not regular salt. You’ll use this for seasoning the chicken and kosher salt gets into the meat better.
• Ghee – if you don’t have ghee, you can use another cooking oil like olive oil, avocado oil, or even butter. We recommend avoiding coconut oil so it doesn’t change the flavor.
• Chicken bone broth – chicken broth works just fine as well
• Lime juice – either fresh-squeezed or jarred lime juice
• Honey – we typically use raw, unfiltered honey but again, use what you have

The beauty of this recipe is that because the shredded chicken is made in the Instant Pot – it’s easy AND it only gets one dish dirty. Kind of this our favorite Instant Pot basmati rice!

1 – Combine your spices

The first thing you’ll need to do is combine all of your spices (not including the salt). Make sure they’re well combined so that when you add them to the chicken, they’re evenly distributed.

2 – Salt the chicken

Season both sides of each piece of chicken generously with kosher salt.

3 – Combine the chicken and spices

Put the salted chicken into a large bowl (or in the Instant Pot) then sprinkle the spice mix over the chicken. Gently rub the spice mix into the chicken so that it coats every part of the chicken – don’t skip this part, it’s super important to getting the flavorful chicken!

If you put it in the Instant Pot to spice your chicken, take the chicken (and wipe out any excess spices) and set it aside.

4 – Saute the chicken in the Instant Pot

Press the “saute” button on the Instant Pot and allow it to heat up until the display reads “hot.”

Add the ghee (or other cooking oil), stir with a wooden spoon, and make sure it coats the bottom of the Instant Pot.

Add the chicken top down in a single layer (you may have to do multiple batches depending on how many pieces of chicken and what size Instant Pot you have) and brown for three minutes.

Remove the chicken after three minutes and set aside. Continue with any remaining chicken pieces until everything has been browned. This gives it a really nice flavor and color.

5 – Pressure cook the chicken

Once all of the chicken is removed, add the chicken broth and lime juice to the Instant Pot to deglaze, making sure to scrape up all of the little bits of chicken.

Hello all that yummy flavor!

Once you’ve deglazed the pot, add in the honey and stir until the mixture is well combined.

Press the “Keep Warm/Cancel” button then add the chicken back into the Instant Pot seasoned side up (this will allow the other side to brown during pressure cooking).

Press the “Manual” button and program the Instant Pot according to the instructions in the recipe card below – different lengths of time for different types and sizes of chicken.

Close the Instant Pot, making sure it’s sealed – I’ve made that mistake before – then allow it to pressure cook.

6 – Release the pressure

Once the chicken is done cooking, do one of two things:

• For chicken thighs – allow the pressure to release naturally
• For chicken breasts – allow the pressure to release naturally for five minutes then immediately release any remaining pressure manually

7 – Remove and shred

Remove the lid from the Instant Pot (only after pressure is released) then shred the chicken with two forks, your hands, or a hand mixer.

8 – Serve warm

Serve in hard or soft taco shells with the toppings mentioned above!

Instant Pot chicken tacos are just the beginning –  add it to nacho bars, put it in quesadillas, in chicken bowls, make your own chicken burritos, or even in these white chicken enchiladas!

Serve these Instant Pot shredded chicken tacos with any of these for a full dinner!

• Fried plantains – these sweet plantains are the perfect complement to the tacos!
• Guacamole – tacos aren’t the same without guacamole and this recipe is easy and delicious!
• Cilantro lime dressing – I love adding this right on top of the tacos and taco bowls!
• Mexican appetizers – there are tons of options that would make great side dishes for these tacos!
• Sopapilla cheesecake – the perfect Mexican dessert to go with these tacos!

If you like chicken, make sure to try out these other chicken recipes too!

• Almond chicken – this almond encrusted chicken is tender on the outside and crunchy on the outside.
• Coconut chicken tenders – chicken breaded with a coconut mixture that’s baked until golden brown then dipped in a pina colada sauce.
• Lemon chicken thighs – chicken thighs with incredible Greek inspired flavor with a hint of lemon!
• Balsamic chicken – chicken grilled with balsamic vinegar for an incredible favor!
• Teriyaki chicken bowls – chicken marinated with Asian flavors then grilled to perfection!