Taco night just got a whole lot easier with these Instant Pot Chicken Tacos! This recipe for Instant Pot Chicken Tacos is simple and made with ingredients you probably have lying around–but the flavor is spectacular!
While we love these Chicken Tacos, you may be interested in Lentil Tacos, Easy Tacos with Ground Beef, or Pork Tacos, Buffalo Chicken Tacos for delicious Taco Night recipes as well. Serve Instant Pot Chicken Tacos with a Pina Colada, Mexican Rice, and Refried Beans for a restaurant-worthy meal made effortlessly at home.
Instant Pot Chicken Tacos
Chicken Tacos are hands down one of my favorite weeknight meals.
And while I have shared with you my Beef Taco Recipe, Taco Salad, and Pork Tacos, I have yet to share with you one of the EASIEST recipes for Chicken Tacos–and these are the tacos I make the MOST!
And let me tell you, YOU want this recipe!
Made with just a couple of pantry ingredients, this easy recipe for Chicken Taco Meat just can not be beat.
- Instant Pot Chicken Tacos can be made in less than 30 minutes.
- Instant Pot Mexican Chicken is gluten-free, dairy-free, Paleo, and Whole30 approved.
- Even picky eaters LOVE these Instant Pot Chicken Tacos.
- You can make these Chicken Tacos with fresh or frozen chicken.
Ingredients for Instant Pot Chicken Taco Meat
- Chicken Stock: For the cooking liquid use homemade chicken stock or quality store-bought stock for the best flavor.
- Chicken: Use boneless, skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs for this recipe. And the chicken can be frozen or fresh.
- Taco Seasoning: I always keep homemade taco seasoning on hand. It is simple to make, preservative-free, and tastes better. But feel free to use a store-bought Taco Seasoning mix or just add garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, paprika, and onion powder to the chicken.
- Salsa: For this recipe, I do prefer jarred salsa over fresh pico de Gallo.
- Limes: You do not want to overlook the fresh lime and zest in this recipe. The added lime juice and lime zest is what make my recipe for Instant Pot Chicken Tacos the best recipe!
How To Make Instant Pot Chicken Tacos
Step One: Cook Chicken in Pressure Cooker
- Place chicken stock and taco seasoning in Instant Pot and mix well.
- Place chicken breasts in chicken stock.
- Top chicken with salsa.
- Close lid on the pressure cooker, pointing knob to sealed.
- Cook on high pressure.
- For Fresh Chicken Breasts: 7 minutes for 8-ounce chicken breasts
- For Frozen Chicken Breasts: 11 minutes for 8-ounce chicken breasts
Step Two: Shred Chicken
- Once cook time has elapsed, let the pressure release naturally for at least 10 minutes.
- Using a hand-held kitchen mixer or 2 forks, shred the chicken right in the cooking juices. If you are worried about juice splattering, remove chicken from the pressure cooker, shred and then return back to cooking juices. Those cooking liquids help to season the chicken meat.
- Stir in zest and juice of fresh lime.
Step Three: Serve Instant Pot Chicken Tacos
- This Shredded Mexican Chicken is perfect for tacos, burritos, enchiladas, burrito bowls, or taco salad.
- A great tip is to use a slotted spoon to dish out Mexican Shredded Chicken to keep your taco from being soggy!
How to Double Recipe for Instant Pot Chicken Tacos
Shredded Chicken Taco Meat is great to have on hand for lunches, busy nights and to stock in your freezer. This is why I always double or triple my recipe for Instant Pot Chicken Tacos.
A few tips to making extra Instant Pot Mexican Chicken
- Use 1 cup chicken stock for up to 2 pounds chicken breasts, but double taco seasoning and salsa amount. One lime will still be enough to brighten this Chicken Taco Meat.
- For 3-4 pounds chicken breasts, use 2 cups chicken stock, and 3-4 times the amount of taco seasoning and salsa. You will also want to use 2 limes for this amount of chicken.
Storage Directions
- You can freeze leftover Instant Pot Mexican Shredded Chicken for up to 3 months in the freezer.
- The chicken meat will last 3-4 days in the fridge–making this recipe for Instant Pot Chicken Tacos great for meal prep.
More Instant Pot Chicken Recipes
- Instant Pot White Chicken Chili
- Instant Pot Chicken Wings
- Instant Pot Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Instant Pot Chicken Thighs
- Instant Pot Chicken Marsala
- Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken
- Instant Pot Chicken Breasts
Instant Pot Chicken Tacos
This recipe for Instant Pot Chicken Tacos uses pantry staple ingredients to create easy, healthy, chicken tacos.
Print Pin RateServings: 8
Calories: 92kcal
Ingredients
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 2 teaspoons taco seasoning
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs
- 1/3 cup salsa
- 1 fresh lime optional, but highly encouraged
Instructions
- Pour chicken stock into pressure cooker. Add in taco seasoning and mix well. Place chicken breasts in chicken stock and top chicken with salsa.
- Close pressure cooker and point vent knob to sealed position. Cook on high pressure for 7 minutes for fresh chicken breasts, 11 minutes for frozen chicken breasts. *See time guidelines in recipe notes.
- Let pressure release naturally.
- Remove the lid from the pressure cooker and shred chicken using handheld mixer or two forks. Add zest and juice of fresh lime to shredded chicken and mix well.
- Serve as base for chicken tacos, in burrito bowls or in enchiladas.
Equipment Needed
Notes
- Cooking Time for Chicken Breasts/Thighs
- 6 ounces each: 6 minutes on high pressure for fresh, 10 minutes for frozen
- 8 ounces each: 7 minutes on high pressure for fresh, 11 minutes for frozen
- 10 ounces each: 8 minutes on high pressure for fresh, 12 minutes for frozen
- For an 8 quart Instant Pot, use 1.5 to 2 cups chicken stock to cook your chicken breasts in.
- The chicken meat will last 3-4 days in the fridge or you can freeze leftover Instant Pot Mexican Shredded Chicken for up to 3 months in the freezer.
- In place of taco seasoning, add in 1/4 teaspoon each of salt, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, and chili powder.
Nutrition Facts
Instant Pot Chicken Tacos
Amount Per Serving
Calories 92 Calories from Fat 36
% Daily Value*
Fat 4g6%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Cholesterol 29mg10%
Sodium 149mg6%
Potassium 162mg5%
Carbohydrates 1g0%
Protein 10g20%
Vitamin A 90IU2%
Vitamin C 0.2mg0%
Calcium 8mg1%
Iron 0.5mg3%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
I would love to know how you enjoy this recipe!Snap a picture and tag #amindfullmom on Instagram or Facebook - I would love to see!
I am obsessed with this chicken! I made a double batch on Sunday and we had the bet tacos ever and then I used the remainder last night to make a Mexican lasagna and it worked so well! This is a keeper!
What a fabulous idea to use the leftovers for Mexican Lasagna–I am SO doing that myself! Great idea!
Hi! I don’t have a pressure cooker, how long would I pop this in the oven for in a casserole dish? Looks yummy!
Hi Zoe! You can prepare in a slow cooker and cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-7 hours and keep ingredients the same. OR you can make in the oven by spreading some salsa on bottom of the pan. Season chicken with taco seasoning and then sear in skillet. Place seared chicken on top of salsa and top with additional salsa. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until the chicken reaches 165 degrees. TOp with fresh lime juice after baking.
Thank you Kristen! I will do definitely try that!
If I want to make 2 pounds of chicken, should I double the cook time?
Hi Lauri! Cook time will remain the same–it will just take a bit longer to come to pressure. Enjoy!
These Chicken Tacos have insanely good flavor!! I made them using homemade Taco Seasoning, and I could not believe the flavors that came alive. My four picky eaters devoured these and asked for more. Everyone of them thanked me for making dinner which rarely happens. This recipe got placed on our family top ten list by the kids tonight. Very easy and quick to make on a busy evening!! Thanks as always.
I am honored that this recipe made it on your top ten! And since it is so easy, that is a great thing for you as well! Thank you so much taking the time to leave a review. And I hope you enjoy these tacos again and again 🙂
What is the white sauce on top?
Sour cream 🙂 Totally optional!
we had a “Spring Break” day at my Elementary School. We celebrated with lunch in the break room with a Taco Bar. I had googled recipes the night before and made this in an hour from start to cleanup!! Brought it to work the next morning and heated it on the crock pot setting! Rave, rave, rave reviews! Everyone loves it and want the recipe! DO NOT LEAVE OUT THE LIME!! (I did about 5 lbs adjusting the ingredients accordingly)
I am so so glad you all enjoyed Kathy! Thank you for sharing with us how much you enjoyed!
My kids (7 & 5) loved the chicken. They said I could make it again. Served it with whole black beans, cheese and sour cream.
YAY!!! When the kids are happy, and dinner is SO easy–it really makes for a successful night. Thanks for letting me know how this recipe went for you Michelle!
We make this for our family at least once a week!! It’s so fast and so good!
I am so glad this a family favorite Malia! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review 🙂
Made four lbs of chicken taco meat tonight. Some for dinner and extra to freeze. It was full of flavor and enjoyed by all. The lime does add a nice extra layer of flavor. Thank you for sharing!
I am so glad you enjoyed Trish! Thanks for taking the time to leave a review 🙂
My kids are grown and gone, but I still really love your site! SO many fun and delicious recipes to try that I can actually handle. This is a great one!! Wish I had access to these when my kids were young!
Oh I am so glad you enjoyed Lisa! I love providing easy meals!
I followed this recipe exactly and even made the homemade salsa! I was terrified of the instant pot and this was the first recipe I made! I’m a believer!! This recipe was delicious and I will never buy another taco seasoning packet from the store! Thank you so much for this recipe and keep them coming!
Homemade taco seasoning, not salsa 😂
WAHOO!!! Thank you so much for sharing your success with this recipe! I LOVE LOVE when I can help people make meals at home they love.
Chicken tacos are my absolute favorite and they have never been so easy! Thanks for the great recipe!
I am so glad you enjoy this recipe Milisa 🙂
This is a foolproof recipe for when you want something fast and flavorful on the dinner table with no fussing!
And we all need that now and then!! Glad you enjoyed Renee!