Instant Pot Chicken Breast and Gravy
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Instant Pot Chicken Breast and Gravy hit all the right notes: fast, easy, moist, juicy chicken smothered in smoky, salty, herby gravy. Perfect over rice or noodles when you need some comfort food, and fast!
Looking for more Instant Pot recipes? Look no further than three of my favorites: Instant Pot Pot Roast and Potatoes, Instant Pot Parmesan Chicken and Rice with Mushrooms, and Instant Pot Honey Teriyaki Chicken.
When I first got my Instant Pot, I had no idea I would use it as much as I do and that I would have fun testing all the Instant Pot recipes I’ve tested over the years. I really thought, “Oh, here’s another kitchen appliance fad that I will use once and never touch again.” AKA the bread makers, the salad shooters, and the George Foreman grills of the world.
But this one, this miraculous kitchen gadget seems it’s here to stay! I mean, who doesn’t love food cooked as quickly as it is in an Instant Pot? Plus, you can go from frozen to plated in less than an hour. Ah-mazing!
This chicken is one of those recipes that just came together in a pinch. I needed to cook some chicken breasts and, well, you know, while I was at it decided I might as well go ahead and make gravy too (I mean, the juices are just right there begging to be eaten). A little of this, a pinch of that, and about 15-20 minutes later: Dinner is served!
HOW DO YOU MAKE INSTANT POT CHICKEN BREAST AND GRAVY?
Are you ready for the easiest Instant Pot Chicken and Gravy recipe ever? Get all your ingredients out and your pressure cooker and get to it.
The first thing you do is hit the “Saute” function of the pot. Drizzle chicken with a tablespoon of olive oil and give it a good rub all over. Then, add salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, and Italian seasoning to the chicken, making sure to coat it all over as well.
Next, drizzle another tablespoon of olive oil to the inside pan liner of your Instant Pot and use a spatula to spread the oil along the bottom so it’s coated evenly. Add the chicken and brown for 1-2 minutes on each side. Take the chicken back out and pour in 1 cup of the broth. Then, return the chicken to the bottom of the pot.
Lock down the lid of your Instant pot and turn the valve to sealed. Change the setting from “Saute” to “Pressure Cook” or “Manual” and set the timer for 8 minutes. (Should you find yourself with larger than normal chicken breasts, make that 10 minutes).
When the timer is up, you want to quick release the vent until the steam is all done coming out. Then you can take the lid off and remove the chicken as well. Cover the chicken with aluminum foil or a lid to keep it warm.
Change the setting once again to “Soup.” Add the other 2 cups of chicken broth into the pot. Whisk together the cold water and cornstarch in another bowl until it’s combined, then put that mixture into the chicken broth once it has come to a boil to make your gravy. Stir the whole thing together and turn the pressure cooker off.
Add salt and pepper to the gravy to suit your tastes. The gravy will thicken as it cools. If you want a more chicken-y flavor to your gravy, add in a chicken bouillon cube.
HOW DO YOU MAKE HEALTHY CHICKEN AND GRAVY?
This dish isn’t unhealthy. In fact, we used no unhealthy methods for cooking. Other than a little bit of olive oil, you really can’t go wrong with this dish if you’re looking for a healthy chicken dish. However, if you want to slim it down even further, you can use cooking spray to coat the bottom of the Instant Pot before putting in the chicken breasts to cook. You can add less salt, and use low-salt or low-fat chicken broth. Another option is to use low-sodium bouillon cubes, if you’re going that route.
WHAT SIDES GO WITH INSTANT POT CHICKEN?
- I feel like you know what I’m going to say here as my first pick, but I’m going to say it anyway: Mashed Potatoes! Nothing complements gravy like potatoes. In the slow cooker, with garlic, with herbs, with butter, make the potatoes, make no apologies.
- For a veggie side, try something roasted, like green beans, Roasted Brussels sprouts with Balsamic Glaze, Honey Brown Sugar Roasted Carrots, or broccoli and cauliflower. You can roast these veggies while you wait for your chicken to cook. Skip the potatoes if you are looking for a low-carb meal. Gravy over veggies? Can’t say I haven’t tried it!
- Side salads are always a fan favorite in my house. No muss, no fuss, put one together with whatever ingredients and greens you have in your crisper. Make this Simple Tossed Green Salad if you aren’t sure how to put one together.
- Another favorite way of mine to eat this easy chicken recipe is to add the chicken and gravy right over some cooked wide egg noodles or white or brown rice.
Instant Pot Chicken Breast and Gravy
Ingredients
- 4 medium, boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt, more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon pepper, more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon paprika , or smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon Italian herb seasoning blend
- 3 cups chicken broth, divided
- 4 tablespoons cold water
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
Instructions
- Set your pressure cooker to the SAUTE setting. Drizzle chicken with 1 tablespoon olive oil and rub all over to coat. Season all over with salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, and Italian seasoning.
- Drizzle remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the pan, use a rubber spatula to spread the oil around to coat the bottom of the pot. Immediatley add chicken and cook for 1-2 minutes on each side to brown the chicken. Remove chicken, pour in 1 cup broth, return chicken to pot.
- Place lid on the pot and slide into the locked position. Turn the venting valve to the SEALED position. Set your pressure cooker to PRESSURE COOK or MANUAL and set time to 8 minutes (for large chicken breasts do 10 minutes).
- Once cook time is up, do a QUICK RELEASE by turning the vent valve to the VENT position. Once float valve drops, remove lid and transfer chicken to a plate and cover to keep warm.
- Set pressure cooker to SOUP. Add remaining 2 cups chicken broth to the pot. In a small bowl whisk together cold water and corn starch til dissolved. When the chicken broth comes to a boil, stir in the corn starch slurry. Turn pressure cooker OFF.
- Season gravy generously with salt and pepper to taste. As it cools the gravy will thicken slightly. Serve over chicken.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Thank you, Great recipe!
You should join this Instant Pot Tips & Recipes Facebook group. I got a lot of new ideas and recipes. highly recommended! Here is a link to the group –
The trick for me to use 1/2 the amount of chicken broth to achieve a nice end result with thicker gravy.
Chicken came out great, chicken has such a different texture when NOT overcooked, but I had the same issue as others with the gravy. It was too thin, even after adding the cornstarch slurry as written in the instructions. Could it be that I let it come back to a boil after adding the slurry, then shut off and removed the inner pot?
Any idea how I might adjust time for chicken breast tenders? Many thanks!
Tastes very good with the Italian seasonings. I love this gravy recipe too. I also like that it is simple and quick.
I have 4 ounce chicken breasts. I’m cooking for two so would only cook two breasts. How long would I pressure cook them?
After sauteing the chicken do i use the trivet For the actual cooking of the chicken?
It is not required for this recipe!
How many more minutes to cook for double the chicken breasts
Hi Jennifer! You made need a few extra minutes. But honestly, the instant pot adjust for the added volume by taking longer to come up to pressure.
the chicken was delicious. but I did something wrong because my gravy didn’t thicken. it stayed in chicken stock consistency. (I’m sorry; i can’t change to lowercase here. ) i was on the phone & when it was time to do a quick release, I didn’t immediately do that. so, does that create more broth in the pot at end of cooking? thanks
That shouldn’t have changed your gravy/broth. If this happens again, you could use a corn starch slurry to thicken it up if needed!
The exact same thing happened to me too! I thought maybe I did something wrong, but maybe it’s meant to be really thin. My fiance ended up stepping in and making a roux to thicken it.
I’ve got bone in chicken breasts that i can remove the skin and fat.How long should these cook? I’dlove to make this tonight with what i’ve got on hand already
10 minutes, natural release for 5 minutes would be my guess! I haven’t tried this with bone in breast before.