Instant Pot Shredded Chicken is the perfect start to just about any chicken recipe! It is flavorful, tender and juicy and cooks in only minutes with very little effort, thanks to your Instant Pot or Electric Pressure Cooker.
This chicken can be turned into Chicken Enchiladas, Chicken Noodle Soup, BBQ Chicken Sandwiches or Chicken Tetrazzini… 100 ways to have chicken for dinner!!
Jump to:
Just 6 Ingredients Added
Of course you are going to start with chicken, then to make really great flavor you will add some seasonings and cooking liquid:
Chicken – We like to use boneless skinless chicken breasts for shredded chicken, but you can absolutely throw some boneless skinless chicken thighs in there too! If you want guaranteed flavorful chicken that has great texture and never turns out “weird” IFYKYK, opt of an air chilled chicken!! It will be a tad more expensive, but trust me it is worth it. The air chilled method for cooling the chicken after processing creates WAY better flavor and WAY better texture.
Chicken Broth – This is the cooking liquid that makes your Instant Pot or Electric Pressure Cooker work! You can save this liquid after cooking if you want to use it in another recipe.
Worcestershire Sauce – Adds that extra something-something to the cooking liquid that will infuse the chicken.
Kosher Salt, Black Pepper, Garlic Powder & Onion Powder – seasonings for the chicken.
No Instant Pot, No Problem
If you don’t have an Instant Pot but still want yummy shredded chicken, pop over to this post for Making Shredded Chicken. It includes a few different methods for cooking and shredding the chicken.
Shredded Chicken…
without an Instant Pot!
How To make Shredded Chicken in Instant Pot
This “recipe” comes together really quick so you can get dinner made!
Step 1
Cut the chicken breasts in half place in the Instant Pot with all the liquid and seasonings.
Step 2
Set to cook on normal heat high pressure for 7 minutes, do a 6 minute natural release.
Step 3
Shred and serve or store in the fridge/freezer.
Shredding Tips
There are several ways to shred cooked, warm chicken. Everything from using a shredding plate to shredding claws. But some traditional ways that don’t require new equipment are:
Stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or whisk attachment: Turn the mixer on to low speed and let it run for 20-30 seconds, or until the chicken is shredded to your desired consistency. (the chicken must be warm for this to work)
Using a hand mixer is another easy method for shredding chicken. Just like the stand mixer, make sure the chicken is warm or hot.
Using two forks to shred chicken is the most common method.
Storing & Freezing
You can keep the shredded chicken in the fridge in an air tight container for up to 4 days. Use it in any and all recipes that call for cooked chicken.
To keep the cooked shredded chicken for longer you can let it cool completely and then pop it in a freezer safe container for 3 months.
Recipes for your Cooked Chicken!
Instant Pot Shredded Chicken Recipe
Ingredients
- 3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 ½ cups chicken broth
- 2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Cut the chicken breasts in half, widthwise.
- Place the chicken breasts in the Instant Pot. Pour the chicken broth and Worcestershire over the chicken.3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, 1 ½ cups chicken broth, 2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
- Then sprinkle with remaining seasonings.1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon pepper
- Close the lid and turn the pressure valve to seal. Cook on Pressure mode, normal heat – high pressure, for 7 minutes.
- At the end of 7 minutes let the pot do a natural pressure release for 6 minutes. To finish turn the pressure valve to vent to quick release the remaining pressure.
- Take the chicken out of the pot and let it rest for 5 minutes.
- Shred the chicken using 2 forks, clean hands OR the quickest method is with a hand mixer or stand mixer! If using a hand mixer, place the chicken in a large mixing bowl, and blend the chicken until it is to the shred that you like (it will go quick, 20-30 seconds!).
- Pour 1 cup of the juice from the bottom of the Instant Pot over the chicken before storing in the fridge.
- Keep in the fridge for up to 4 days or according to your chicken expiration date.
- To keep for longer pop in a freezer safe container and keep frozen for up to 3 months.
Emily Erkmann says
Definitely trying this. I make pulled chicken a lot in my instant pot but it’s alwasy too dry. This looks way better!
Susie says
Oh good! I hope you love it.
Chris T Fox says
Hi Susie!
Just cooked your chicken. I made it for some Thai peanut chicken & vegetables. Took a turn towards Asia and subbed 1/4 cup soy sauce for the salt and added 1/2 tsp of ground ginger. Soooo gooood, thank you!
Laineey says
Wow. This pulled chicken looks amazing! I love my instant pot and am always looking for other things to make in it! I can imagine how versatile the pulled chicken is and it can go in so many dishes. The wheels are turning! I’m trying this real soon.
Susie says
I got my IP this past Christmas, so I am really excited to try making some summer recipes too! This chicken recipe is the great for weekly meal prep- it stores really well in the fridge.
Kate Veggie Desserts says
It never fails to surprise me how useful an Instant Pot can be. Looks like such a versatile recipe too!
Susie says
I absolutely love my Instant Pot! This recipe is a great start to a lot of chicken recipes.