Instant Pot Asian Chicken

I mean you could call this whatever you want but Instant Pot Asian chicken recipe came to mind. A little like General Tso’s from Panda Express, but so easy you can make this and more Instant Pot recipes at home yourself.

We started with Instant Pot sesame chicken and it was amazing so we kept going. Maybe because I was born and raised in Hawaii, I just love those deep savory sauces with protein on top of rice. We know you will love these bites of deliciousness too

I have use similar flavors in all sorts of different Ninja foodi recipes. It doesn’t matter what brand of pressure cooker you have as long as it is electric and not the old fashioned model. Crockpot express is another name that works well too.

Let’s talk about a few tips to start with shall we? I have been pressure cooking since the IP was brand spanking new and there were NO recipes for it online, so I created them myself.

I learned quickly a few tricks of the trade. Mostly I will tell you these came with a lot of trial and error and I want to save you the headaches. The first came when making our pressure cooker chicken and rice.

At first I put the breasts in whole and after a few rounds of that not working out, it sticking, not getting done in the middle and I was frustrated….. The hack was to cube or dice them up as you see above. Use thighs or boneless breast pieces, either way. This is what you’re going to need to take out:

Ingredient Notes

You could use either cubed chicken breasts or chicken thighs, that is your choice. I feel the latter comes out more tender and is typically cheaper as well. Everyone has their preferences though.

Can you use frozen chicken?

If all you have for meat is still rock hard, no worries. I have the answer to that one too. What you will want to do is follow the directions in our frozen chicken in the Instant Pot post but for 10 minutes instead of 12. Then take it out and dice. Throw it in and you can skip the sautéing step. Add sauce and go from there.

Soy sauce will give the sauce a deep salty flavor ou would expect in Asian cuisine. Aminos are a gluten free option that taste almost identical.

We like some honey to keep it sweet, organic and local is your best choice. Agave is another option but it isn’t as thick as the real thing. Use light brown sugar to sweeten it further but with a deeper tone to the flavor

Garlic powder and ground ginger are used for seasonings typically

Rice vinegar provides a bit of a tang to the marinade that is usually found with this type of cooking.

Red pepper flakes gives it a kick of spicy. Adjust as you wish to keep mild to medium or more. Sriracha is the best alternative to this.

You will add a bit of tomato paste to thicken it

And if you have never had hoisin sauce it is a thick paste sort of that is sweet but has a bit of soy sauce flavor to it too

Use a bit of cornstarch at the end to thicken your sauce. You can do this inside the same pot with the meat removed. Just set to saute and it will cook down and become a wonderful “gravy”.

Can you make it spicy?

As directed below this does have a kick to it. When you make it homemade like this you can make it as hot or mild as you wish though. Just adjust the amount of red pepper flakes or you could use Sriracha instead like we do with our Instant Pot spicy teriyaki chicken thighs.

How Long to Cook Asian Chicken in Instant Pot

You don’t need long!! Using high pressure it not only cuts down the cook time immensely but it also gives it the most flavor as it pushes the flavors of this great sauce inside each piece. You’ll want to cut into bite size pieces so it is done in just 6 minutes!

Keep in mind it takes about 10 minutes for the machine to reach pressure and start the timing, and you want a 2 minute natural release. SO in total you need about 20 minutes start to finish. If you have two pots I will cook Ninja Foodi rice at the same time so everything is done at once.

Tips for Success

When it comes to Instant Pot dinnerslike this I love cubing chicken. Not only does the marinade really seep in but the cook time is very short. AND it’s easier to eat too, especially if you have little hands at the table. 1″ pieces are perfect. Discard bones and fat while you’re trimming it all up and then you’re set to serve once it is done.

I don’t bother sauteeing the meat before cooking. I have tried this and our Instant Pot spicy honey chicken both ways and feel like I want it as tender as possible so I prefer to start with raw meat cooked right in the sauce.

You could make this similar crockpot sesame chicken but 6 minutes vs. 6 hours just doesn’t make sense. When done sprinkle with some diced green onions or a drizzle of sesame oil and enjoy in a bowl.

Other one pot meals you’ll love

We love Instant Pot shredded chicken served up as sliders or for taco Tuesdays. I have made this on the stove top as well when I am batch cooking A LOT of meat too. Add some spice to your life wit Instant Pot pad thai too!

If you have a Instant Pot air fryer lid you should try our air fryer teriyaki chicken too. Jump to recipe below and let us know if you tweaked it at all so we can try your add in as well. Nutritional information with calories and saturated fat is available to you too.

Looking for other easy Instant Pot chicken recipes? We have made tons in our 6-quart Instant Pot, Crockpot Express and Mealthy pots over the years. You can make any and all of them with breasts or thighs, either works fabulous.

No, not always. Many times such as when I am making this copycat General Tsos Instant Pot chicken I will throw all the ingredients into the pot with the sauce and start. It is an easy one pot chicken dinner we all love that takes just 6 minutes to cook to tender perfection.

Not really. The meat will emit some liquid and juices so you don’t need to add more than 1 cup or so but in order to create high pressure to steam and get tender you do need to add broth or water with your frozen chicken or defrosted meat.