Instant Pot Chicken Taco Recipe
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Posted: 08/10/20
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With only three ingredients you can have the BEST shredded taco meat for taco night! This Instant Pot Chicken Tacos recipe starts with a delicious chicken mixture that’s made in your Instant Pot. Just throw your chicken, taco seasoning, salsa and water in the pressure cooker and let it cook. Then pile it into taco shells and add your favorite toppings for a quick and easy dinner recipe!
You are going to want these easy chicken tacos for your next taco night! You only need FOUR ingredients and just under 30 minutes to make them in your Instant Pot. Super easy tacos for the win, right?!
I should mention one of the ingredients is water so does it even count? You may already have the other three on hand, which means you could have tacos for dinner tonight. No need to wait until Taco Tuesday!
Add some homemade guacamole, pico de gallo and icy cold margaritas for a perfect taco dinner everyone will love!
This is the Easiest Chicken Taco Recipe!
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, jarred salsa, your favorite taco seasoning and water. That is all you need for this simple recipe.
The ingredients are always something I have on hand, which means a yummy taco dinner is about 30 minutes away! It’s perfect for busy weeknights when there’s no time to think about what to make. Which, for me, is most nights of the week!
The Instant Pot makes the cook time a breeze for this recipe, but if you don’t have one you can try my crockpot chicken tacos – it’s a really easy recipe, too!
Ingredients for Shredded Tacos
- Chicken Breasts – Make sure they are boneless and skinless.
- Taco Seasoning – We like to use make our own homemade taco seasoning or use a low-sodium version store bought taco seasoning. This is an easy way to control your spice level of the chicken too. Mild for less spicy and hot for more spice!
- Salsa – Grab the thick and chunky salsa for best results.
- Water – Another option is chicken broth.
Optional Ingredient
Another great option to add to this recipe is a can of black beans. Just rinse them and add it to the mixture before you cook it in the Instant Pot.
How to Make Chicken Tacos in Instant Pot
I love my pressure cooker! It just makes everything so easy and it’s great for making shredded taco meat.
- Place the chicken breasts in the Instant Pot. Sprinkle the taco seasoning over the top and then pour the salsa and water over the top.
- Secure the lid, close the steam vent, and cook on high pressure for seven minutes.
- When it’s done, let the steam vent naturally for five minutes and then open the steam vent to release the rest of it.
- Remove the lid and shred the meat with two forks.
Pile that tender, seasoned meat in taco shells or tortillas and load them up with all of your favorite toppings! We love shredded cheese, sour cream, hot sauce and cilantro.
Toppings for Instant Pot Chicken Tacos
Here’s a few great ideas for what to top your chicken tacos with!
- Lettuce – The easiest is to grab a bag of chopped romaine or shredded iceberg lettuce. Feel free to chop your own.
- Tomatoes – We recommend diced Roma tomatoes because don’t have as much liquid as other tomatoes.
- Pico de Gallo – Grab store bought pico or make your own. It’s adds perfect mixture of flavors to your tacos.
- Guacamole – We love our homemade version, but you can also grab it pre-made at the grocery store.
- Avocados – Skip the guacamole and dice up an avocado. Make sure it’s ripe!
- Sour Cream – You could also substitute Greek yogurt. Add a little water to thin it out so it’s easier to drizzle over your tacos.
- Cheese – For a Mexican flair top with cotija or queso fresco cheese. Other great options are shredded cheddar, Monterrey jack or pepper jack cheese.
- Cilantro – If you skip the pico de gallo add a garnish of chopped cilantro.
- Hot Sauce – Want a little more spicy? Hot sauce is an easy way to adjust the spiciness for each person.
- Jalapenos – Another great option to amp up the heat level is diced jalapenos. Leave the seeds in for even more spice.
Instant Pot Chicken Taco FAQs
Can I Use Frozen Chicken?
Yes, you can! I’ve tested this recipe with thawed and frozen chicken and both work great.
If you are using frozen, increase the cooking time to 11 minutes total. It works great!
Can I Make These Tacos in a Slow Cooker?
Yes, here is our Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken Tacos recipe that’s a great crock pot dinner!
How Can I make These Tacos Spicy?
A quick an easy way to make these chicken tacos spicier is to use a spicy packet of taco seasoning or salsa. You can also top them with diced jalapenos or add cayenne to the chicken when cooking it in the slow cooker.
What chicken is best for shredding?
The best chicken for shredding is using boneless chicken breasts or thighs. Thighs are naturally moister, but either option works great to shred. You don’t want skin or bones in the chicken when you want to shred it.
Can you shred raw chicken?
Raw chicken is not easy to shred. I recommend cooking it first and then shredding it. You can shred it with two forks, but the easiest way is to put it in a bowl and using a hand mixer to shred it or a stand mixer.
What is the easiest way to shred chicken?
The easiest way to shred cooked chicken is by placing it in a bowl and using a hand mixer to shred it. Another option is to place it the bowl of a stand mixer and shred it using the paddle attachment. If you don’t have a mixer shred it with two forks.
How much liquid do you put in an Instant Pot for chicken?
You need at least one cup of water in the Instant Pot to cook chicken.
Why use the instant pot for this recipe?
This recipe is great for a last-minute dinner when you don’t plan ahead. The result is fall apart chicken that is tender and moist with a ton of flavor from taco seasoning and salsa. Plus, the prep time is minimal and a dump and go recipe!
How Long Does Leftover Shredded Chicken Keep?
- Leftovers will keep well in the refrigerator for three to four days!
- Cool leftover meat and place in a resealable plastic bag and squeeze all the air out. Then place it in the freezer for up to 3 months for an easy dinner!
This is a great recipe to make ahead, too! Make a big batch and keep it in the refrigerator for easy lunches and dinners during the week.
Other Ways to Serve Instant Pot Chicken Tacos
You can use this recipe in so many ways!
- Use it to make a taco salad – just toss it with lettuce, corn, chopped bell peppers and your other favorite veggies. Add some shredded cheese and dressing, too!
- Make some quesadillas – grab your tortillas, pile on the meat and cheese and cook them in a skillet until they’re nice and crispy.
- It’s great for nachos, too! Tortilla chips, cheese sauce and all of your favorite toppings – yum!
This is such a great recipe to have on hand – trust me, I’ve turned to it many busy nights when I had no idea what to make for dinner! Your family is going to love it!
Want More Easy Dinner Recipes?
- Crock pot steak fajitas are the perfect quick, easy weeknight recipe!
- My ground beef taco meat is perfect for tacos, too! It’s super easy – it hardly takes anytime at all to make.
- Easy Mexican casserole is the perfect mix of textures and flavors. Full of hearty beef and beans and topped with cheese and corn chips, it’s a family-pleasing meal great for any night of the week!
- Crispy corn tortillas, crunchy fish sticks, layers of guacamole and Pico de Gallo topped with Lime Dressing make these easy fish stick tacos a quick and easy dinner recipe!
- This Instant Pot Chicken Taco Soup is a great, easy, dinner that the whole family will love.
MORE RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE!
- How to Make Crock Pot Spaghetti
- Roasted Broccoli Air Fryer
- How to Make an Alabama Slammer
- Easy Chicken Marinade for BBQ
- Chicken Green Bean Potato Recipe
- Homemade Cannoli Dip
- Crescent Chicken Taco Pinwheels
Did you make this? If you snap a photo, please be sure tag me on Instagram at @julieseatsandtreats or #julieseatsandtreats so I can see your yummy treat!
Instant Pot Chicken Tacos Recipe
Shredded chicken made in your Instant Pot with taco seasoning, salsa and water! Make quick and easy taco meat for dinner!
Video
Ingredients
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts about (1 ½ – 2 lb)
- 1.25 ounces packet low-sodium taco seasoning
- 1 ½ cups thick and chunky salsa
- ½ cup water or chicken broth
- Taco Toppings: Corn or Soft Shell Tortillas and optional toppings such as: shredded lettuce diced tomatoes or pico de
Instructions
- Place chicken breasts in the bottom of an Instant Pot.
- Sprinkle taco seasoning on top of chicken breasts.
- Pour salsa over the top followed by water or chicken broth.
- Cose pressure cooker, making sure the vent knob is pointing to a sealed position. Cook on high pressure for 7 minutes for fresh chicken breasts, 11 minutes for frozen chicken breasts.
- After it is done cooking allows it to release naturally for 5 minutes, and then do a quick release if needed.
- When the chicken is done cooking shred with two forks in the Instant Pot. Stir to mix all ingredients together.
- Serve on corn or soft shell tortillas and top with favorite taco toppings.
Tips
Nutrition calculated with chicken taco meat only.
HOW LONG DO LEFTOVERS KEEP?
- Leftovers will keep well in the refrigerator for three to four days!
- Cool leftover meat and place in a resealable plastic bag and squeeze all the air out. Then place it in the freezer for up to 3 months for an easy dinner!
- Use it to make a taco salad – just toss it with lettuce, corn, chopped bell peppers and your other favorite veggies. Add some shredded cheese and dressing, too!
- Make some quesadillas – grab your tortillas, pile on the meat and cheese and cook them in a skillet until they’re nice and crispy.
- It’s great for nachos, too! Tortilla chips, cheese sauce and all of your favorite toppings – yum!
Nutrition Information
Calories: 114kcal (6%), Carbohydrates: 7g (2%), Protein: 17g (34%), Fat: 2g (3%), Saturated Fat: 1g (6%), Cholesterol: 48mg (16%), Sodium: 981mg (43%), Potassium: 447mg (13%), Fiber: 2g (8%), Sugar: 3g (3%), Vitamin A: 861IU (17%), Vitamin C: 5mg (6%), Calcium: 22mg (2%), Iron: 1mg (6%)
Eve says
Could you use tenderloins instead of breasts?
Courtney says
I have only tested the breasts, but tenderloins should work! You may have to adjust the cooking times. Let me know how it turns out.
Jane Potthoff says
Made this chicken and made chicken nachos with it! I added cheese, black bean & corn salsa, sour cream and lime wedges- it was a hit! It was quick, easy, saucy and the perfect chicken base! Thank you!!!
Lisa Amezquita says
I love that it only took 8 minutes to cook. I left it to sit so when I was ready to serve it shred itself. I used pace medium thick n chunky salsa and a taco seasoning packet along with the other ingredients and it came out perfect! It was a huge hit with my family. I definitely recommend this if you are busy or need to whip up something quick for dinner. I will be making this again!
Julie Evink says
Wonderful to hear Lisa! Thanks for commenting and rating the recipe!
Dani W says
If I wanted to double this recipe, could I do it in one instant pot? And would liquid amounts or timing change?
Laura says
This is the only way we do chicken tacos anymore-easy and delicious! In fact, I’m using this recipe to introduce chicken taco in a bag (walking taco) to our summer swim team tomorrow! Thanks for the recipe! And sorry that people rated the recipe poorly based on cooking times-which definitely vary, especially when using frozen meat.
Really easy and delicious!!
Julie Evink says
I love this! I hope they enjoy it as much as you have!
Jessica C says
This recipe is fantastic! I followed the ingredients in the recipe exactly except I made a larger batch (6 chicken breasts) so I increased the amount of each ingredient by around 50% and it was perfect. I increased the cooking time to 12 minutes and that was great. When it’s done there is a lot of “juice” in the pot but that’s a very good thing because it keeps the chicken from drying out. Also, if you have a stand mixer with a dough hook that shreds the chicken breasts perfectly and it’s quick and easy for you. I also think this same cooking method would work well for pork carnitas if you used a pork roast and carnitas flavoring instead of taco seasoning. Thank you for sharing this recipe — it’s a keeper!
Julie Evink says
Wonderful to hear!! Thanks for commenting and rating the recipe!
Heather says
I’ve made this before with no problem but my instant pot keeps say food burn.
Julie Evink says
Oh no! Maybe add a little bit more water!
Kris says
Used 2 frozen chicken breasts at 11 minutes high pressure 9 minute natural release and the chicken was RAW
Julie Evink says
Were your chicken breasts large? If they were in the 6-8 ounce range they should have cooked through.
Kracinda says
Mine too, added 5 more minutes and still not hot all the way through. Doing another 5 now.
Tammy says
Can I use a crock pot? I don’t have a pressure cooker.
Julie Evink says
Here’s our Crock Pot version – https://www.julieseatsandtreats.com/crockpot-chicken-tacos/
Lex says
There’s calories but no amount for the calories to be calculated with? It’s a serving one cup of chicken ?? 4 oz??
Julie Evink says
We recommend using your own nutrition calculator and exact amounts of ingredients you use because the chicken breasts amount can vary.
Amanda says
Great recipe. I will be making this again for my family. Thank you. I now like chicken tacos.
Julie Evink says
Awesome to hear!
Heidi says
Fantastic Tacos!! The best I ever made. Loved this recipe, thanks Julie <3
Julie says
Awesome! I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Laurie says
Can I substitute Rotel for the salsa?
Julie says
Yes that should be fine!
Taryn says
Absolutely delicious!! Thanks for the recipe!
Julie says
You’re welcome!
Gina says
I will definitely be making this again!
Julie says
Excellent! I’m so glad it was a hit!