This Instant Pot Shredded Chicken is going to make dinners and meals come together so quickly! I prefer my air fryer to my Instant Pot generally in the kitchen, but the Instant Pot is hands down my favorite method for creating shredded chicken in one pot without a lot of work. (See THIS blog post for why I love my air fryer so much!)
Shredded chicken is an awesome base for so many Paleo, Whole30, gluten-free, and dairy-free recipes. Here are the simple steps as well as tips and tricks along the way for EASY shredded chicken!
Two Flavor Hacks You Need (That I Didn’t Know!)
- Cooking chicken on the trivet in your Instant Pot gives it more flavor. The chicken is steamed instead of boiled. Boiled chicken can poach out some of the flavor!
- Steaming your chicken with chicken broth instead of water can help increase the flavor as well!
Simple Instructions for Making Instant Pot Shredded Chicken
Steaming the Chicken in the Instant Pot
- Place 2-3 chicken breasts on the trivet in an Instant Pot. Don’t have a trivet? It will still work with just placing the chicken on the bottom of the Instant Pot. The trivet just helps the chicken steam instead of just boiling. Steaming helps the chicken retain flavor that will otherwise be poached by the water.
- Add 1 cup chicken broth (recommended for more flavorful chicken), or water, to the bottom of the Instant Pot.
- Cook on Manual on high or Steam for 10 minutes for 2 chicken breasts, 15 minutes for 4.
- Manually release the steam and they are ready to shred.
The EASIEST Way to Shred Chicken
The best way to shred chicken? Using a hand or standing mixer! No need to mess around with pulling two forks in a separate direction to shred. Though that is a good option if you don’t have a mixer, it’s tedious and always drove me nuts! Here is a better way:
- If you have a hand mixer, save yourself on dishes and shred the chicken within the Instant Pot! First, drain the liquid and remove the trivet. Then, stick your mixer right down into the Instant Pot and on low-medium speed “mix” the chicken until it is all shredded. Wow, that was easy!
- With a standing mixer, place cooked chicken breasts into the bowl. Insert mixer blade(s) and cover the mixer with a towel. The towel helps prevent bits of chicken from flying onto your kitchen backsplash (person experience, haha!). Then, mix on a low-medium speed until shredded.
Recipes We Love with Instant Pot Shredded Chicken
Shredded chicken is an easy protein to use in wraps, soups, casseroles and more! Here are our favorites, all of which are gluten-free and dairy-free:
- Whole30 Chicken Salad
- Whole30 Salsa Chicken Stew (Crockpot/Instant Pot)
- Whole30 Tomato Chicken and Basil Soup
- Whole30 Enchilada Dip Bake
- Paleo Pot Pie
- Gluten-free Dairy-free Enchiladas
Instant Pot Shredded Chicken
Equipment
- 1 Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 3 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast about 3 large
- 1 cup chicken broth can sub water
Instructions
- Place 2-3 chicken breasts on the trivet in an Instant Pot. Don't have a trivet? It will still work with just placing the chicken on the bottom of the Instant Pot. The trivet just helps the chicken steam instead of just boiling. Steaming helps the chicken retain flavor that will otherwise be poached by the water.
- Add 1 cup water or chicken broth (optional for more flavorful chicken) to the bottom of the Instant Pot.
- Cook on Manual on high or Steam for 10 minutes.
- Manually release the steam and they are ready to shred.
- If you have a hand mixer, save yourself on dishes and shred the chicken within the Instant Pot! First, drain the liquid and remove the trivet. Then, stick your mixer right down into the Instant Pot and on low-medium speed "mix" the chicken until it is all shredded. Wow, that was easy!
- With a standing mixer, place cooked chicken breasts into the bowl. Insert mixer blade(s) and cover the mixer with a towel. The towel helps prevent bits of chicken from flying onto your kitchen backsplash (person experience, haha!). Then, mix on a low-medium speed until shredded.
Would the timing be the same for two Costco size packs of chicken tenders?
Hi! These instructions are for 3 large chicken breasts, about 1.5-2 pounds. I am not sure how many pounds you are looking at cooking all at once, but the increased volume of chicken in the instant pot will definitely increase the amount of cooking time needed, as they will be laying on top of each other. I haven’t tried it, so I can’t say how long that would be. It might require a bit of trial and error (trying 20-30 minutes and opening, seeing if done, setting for more time as needed). Good luck!
I love your easy method of steaming the chicken in Instant pot using chicken broth! Using the mixer to shred is genius!! Thank you
I’m so glad those simple hacks are making a difference for you! So easy and helpful. Thank you!
The hand mixer is such an awesome trick! I’ve done this several times now to have shredded chicken for other recipes.
I agree – so dang handy and easy! I’m happy it was a game-changer for you. Thank you!
Love this…..so easy, esp when I forget to defrost my chicken. And the hand/stand mixer is a life saving hack!
I’m so happy this method + hack has been such a game-changer for you! I’m right there with you – makes such a difference in time and effort. Thank you!
Does this work with frozen breasts? I’m the worst at forgetting to defrost 🤪
You sure can! Increase the time to 14-16 minutes (16 minutes if they are really thick) and don’t manually release the dial when it’s done, wait 5 minutes before releasing the steam up top. Enjoy!