Instant Pot Saucy Chicken is tender and flavorful chicken breasts that cook in just one pot. One-pot meals make for an excellent weeknight dinner because of the easy cleanup.
If you love easy chicken Instant Pot recipes then this is the recipe for you. This chicken recipe is family-friendly and will be a hit at dinner in your house.
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I love using chicken breasts for recipes because chicken is filled with protein and amino acids. This budget-friendly meat makes for a healthy dinner that can feed your entire family without breaking the bank.
Why I Love This Recipe
Instant Pot Saucy Chicken is so easy to make, and this pressure cooker recipe cooks up in under an hour.
- Ready in under 45 minutes
- Easy to make
- Fills the house with a delicious aroma
If you love Instant Pot recipes you may also enjoy this Instant Pot Chicken Fried Rice recipe.
Ingredients
You only need eight basic ingredients to make this sweet and savory pressure cooker chicken recipe. You may not even need to make a trip to the grocery store.
- chicken breasts – cut into pieces
- butter
- sugar
- chili powder
- Worcestershire sauce
- dry Mustard
- water
- Brown sugar
Substitutions
Yellow Mustard: Out of dry mustard? Yellow mustard will work in a pinch.
Steak Sauce: Are you out of Worcestershire sauce? Steak sauce will work in a pinch to avoid a trip to the grocery store.
Equipment Needed / Helpful Tools
You only need three kitchen tools to help you make this quick and easy chicken recipe.
- knife
- cutting board
- Instant Pot
How to Make Instant Pot Saucy Chicken
Are you ready to make this easy one-pot meal? Pull out your Instant Pot and follow these four easy steps and you will have this saucy chicken recipe ready for dinner in no time.
Step 1: Make the sauce
In the Instant Pot, place the butter, sugar, chili powder, Worcestershire sauce, dry mustard, garlic salt, Paprika, water, and brown sugar. Turn the Instant Pot to ‘SAUTE’, and melt all ingredients together. Bring the mixture to a boil, and boil for 1 minute. Turn off the Saute setting.
Step 2: Add in the chicken
Cut the chicken breasts into thirds, and place in the Instant Pot, turning the pieces of chicken in the spice mixture to coat the chicken. (you may need to turn the chicken three or four times to completely coat it) When the chicken is coated, place the lid on the Instant Pot, and make sure the pressure valve is set to sealing.
Step 3: Cook your Instant Pot Saucy Chicken
Press the manual button, and set the time to 16 minutes. Let the Instant Pot build and release the pressure naturally (this is not a quick-release). When the Instant Pot has finished cooking, and goes to OFF, leave the lid on the Instant Pot for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, turn the pressure valve to venting, and make sure all the pressure has been released, and the float valve is down.
Step 4: Thicken the sauce
Remove the lid to the Instant Pot, and stir the chicken and sauce. Turn the saute setting on, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, to thicken the sauce a little. Turn the Saute setting off, stir the sauce, and spoon over the chicken, and allow the chicken to cool for a few minutes.
Variations / Options / Add-Ins
Want some ideas to help you customize this recipe? Here are my favorite ways to change this recipe up.
Sriracha: Add in sriracha sauce to add some spice if you like spicy food.
Sweetness: Don’t like your sauce to be so sweet? Reduce the amount of brown sugar that you add to your sauce.
Serving Suggestions
Looking for ideas on what to serve with this chicken recipe? Here is a list of my favorite side dishes to serve with this dish.
- mashed potatoes
- corn on the cob
- green beans
- asparagus
- herbed potatoes
- rice
- salad
FAQs
Do you have questions about this recipe? Here are the answers to the most commonly asked questions.
Store leftover saucy chicken in the fridge for up to three days.
Reheat the leftover chicken in the microwave for one to two minutes or until warm.
Yes! Saucy chicken freezes well. Store in an airtight container for up to three months.
More Instant Pot Recipes
If you like Instant Pot recipes, give these recipes a try:
Ready to get cooking? Print off the recipe card below or toggle on Cook Mode to keep your screen from going dark while you follow along on your phone or tablet.
📋 Recipe
Instant Pot Saucy Chicken
Equipment
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 3 large chicken breasts cut into pieces
- 4 Tablespoons butter
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 Tablespoon chili powder
- 3 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 Tablespoons dry Mustard
- 1 Tablespoon Garlic salt
- 2 Tablespoons Paprika
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup Brown sugar
Instructions
- In the Instant Pot, place the butter, sugar, chili powder, Worcestershire sauce, dry mustard, garlic salt, Paprika, water, and brown sugar.
- Turn the Instant Pot to ‘SAUTE’, and melt all ingredients together.
- Bring the mixture to a boil, and boil for 1 minute. Turn off the Saute setting.
- Cut the chicken breasts into thirds, and place in the Instant Pot, turning the pieces of chicken in the spice mixture to coat the chicken. (you may need to turn the chicken three or four times to completely coat it) When the chicken is coated, place the lid on the Instant Pot, and make sure the PRESSURE VALVE is set to SEALING.
- Press the MANUAL button, and set the time to 16 minutes.
- Let the Instant Pot build and release the pressure naturally (this is not a quick release).
- When the Instant Pot has finished cooking, and goes to OFF, leave the lid on the Instant Pot for 10 minutes.
- After the 10 minutes, turn the pressure valve to VENTING, and make sure all the pressure has been released, and float valve is down.
- Remove the lid to the Instant Pot, and stir the chicken and sauce.
- Turn the SAUTE setting on, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, to thicken the sauce a little.
- Turn the Saute setting off, stir the sauce, and spoon over the chicken, and allow the chicken to cool for a few minutes.
- Serve with mashed Potatoes, and sauce ladled over chicken. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Need to run to the store for a few ingredients first? Don’t forget to pin this recipe so you can find it when you’re ready to cook!
This recipe is easy to make and yummy. I served it over rice and with mixed veggies. My family loved it. The chicken was tender and easily falls apart. Bet it would it would be great with chicken thighs.
Only change I would make would be to add some hot spice.
I’m so glad you liked it and your family loved it. Thanks for letting us know how you served it, some of my other readers might want to serve it that way also. Good idea to add some hot spice.
Love this recipe!❤ I did cut most of the sugar out. Used a packet of Stevia Monk Fruit sweetener and a Tbsp brown sugar! A little more spicey tasting and delish!
That’s the great thing about recipes, you can modify them to fit your diet or preferences. Thanks for sharing what you substituted because someone else might want to try it that way also.
Saucy chicken is what I am really loving about a lot and finally, after coming across this post I tried making it following your steps. It’s so yummy that I want to keep trying it again and again.
16 min is way too long for chicken breast pieces
They will turn to rubber
Jerry, How long do you suggest?