Bowl-style or burrito-style, this salsa chicken recipe is one you’ll want to make again-and-again
If you need a family-friendly, weeknight dinner that doesn’t require hours in the kitchen to prepare, you’ve come to the right place. As The Real Food Dietitians, all of us being moms of young children that understand the chaos which tends to occur around the dinner hour, it will always be our mission to share recipes that are short on ingredients, delicious, wholesome, approachable, and simple. This Instant Pot Salsa Chicken fits the bill on all accounts. The chicken salsa portion of this recipe is made with just 8 ingredients including a few budget-friendly pantry staples like canned black beans, canned corn, broth, taco seasoning, and a jar of your favorite salsa. And while the Cilantro-Lime Crema is technically optional, we highly recommend you give it a try. It makes for an easy and flavorful addition to the recipe and is made with just 5 simple ingredients. As far as how you serve Instant Pot Salsa Chicken, we leave that up to you but do give some of our favorite suggestions below.
Ingredients for Instant Pot Chicken Salsa
Olive oil or avocado oil – We like Primal Kitchen oilsYellow onion and garlic cloves – sautéed to bring out their best flavorsBoneless skinless chicken breasts – You may also substitute boneless skinless chicken thighs. Butcher Box is our go-to when it comes to a source for quality meatsSalsa – choose your favorite salsa, mild or mediumCanned black beans – we recommend no salt addedCanned sweet corn – we recommend no salt addedLow-sodium chicken broth – our homemade bone broth is perfect for this recipe and adds a boost of nutritionTaco seasoning – any taco seasoning will work. We always have our Homemade Taco Seasoning which works wonderfully in this recipe and is made with real food ingredientsFine salt and black pepper
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How to make Instant Pot Salsa Chicken
Select the ‘saute’ function on the Instant Pot. Once hot, add the oil and diced onion. Stir occasionally cooking for 3-4 minutes or until onions start to become tender. Add the garlic and continue to cook for 1 minute. Next, place the remaining ingredients in the Instant Pot. Put the lid on and make sure the vent is sealed.Set Instant Pot to ‘High Pressure’ setting then set the cooking time for 10 minutes.Once cooking is completed, allow natural releasing of pressure for 3-5 minutes then switch the valve to ‘vent’.When all of the pressure releases and the lid unlocks, remove the chicken and shred the chicken with two forks. Toss chicken back into the pot to coat with sauce.
Note: You can make this in your slow cooker as well! We recommend sautéing the garlic and onion on the stove top before adding to the slow cooker. Then place all ingredients in the slow cooker and cook for 3-4 hours on high or 5-6 hours on low! Confused about poultry labeling? Check this post out to learn all about how to choose the best chicken in the grocery store.
Ingredients for Cilantro-Lime Crema
Cilantro-Lime Crema makes for an especially delicious addition to this salsa chicken recipe as well as any of your favorite Mexican-inspired recipes! We love it on our our Instant Pot Barbacoa, Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos, and Instant Pot Salsa Verde Chicken
Sour cream – for dairy-free use a dairy-free sour cream such as ForagerLime – juice of 1 lime + ½ teaspoon lime zestFresh cilantro leavesHoney – may substitute agave or maple syrupGarlic clove – may substitute ¼ teaspoon garlic powder Fine salt
How to make Cilantro-Lime Crema
Cilantro-lime crema is easy to make. Simply add the ingredients to a small blender cup or small food processor and blend until smooth.Store in a mason jar or airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
How to serve Instant Pot Salsa Chicken
As noted above, there are endless ways you can serve Instant Pot Salsa Chicken. We like to serve them bowl-style on a bed of cooked rice or cauliflower rice with all kinds of fixings (or whatever we have on hand). A couple of other options include serving the tender, shredded chicken, burrito-style, or tucked into lettuce wraps and again topped with your favorite fixings.
Fixings to serve with Instant Pot Salsa Chicken:
To give you a little ‘fixing’ inspiration, here are some of our favorites:
Avocado or guacamoleCilantro-lime cremaThinly sliced or pickled jalapeñoLime wedgesFresh chopped cilantroPickled red onion or sliced red onionCrushed blue corn tortilla chipsShredded cheese or your favorite cheeseFresh diced tomatoes
How to store or freeze Salsa Chicken leftovers
To store the salsa chicken leftovers, simply place the cooled meat in an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Other Instant Pot weeknight dinner recipes you’ll love:
Salsa Verde Chicken in the Instant PotInstant Pot Taco SoupInstant Pot Beef Barbacoa
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1 tablespoon olive oil or avocado oil 1 cup diced yellow onion 4 garlic cloves, minced 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts 1 (14-16 ounce) jar of your favorite salsa (mild or medium) 1 (15 ounces) can no salt added black beans, drained and rinsed 1 (15 ounces) can no salt added sweet corn, drained (may sub 1 1/2 cups frozen corn*) ½ cup low-sodium chicken broth or water 2 tablespoons Homemade Taco Seasoning (or taco seasoning of choice) 1 teaspoon fine salt ¼ teaspoon black pepper
For the Cilantro-Lime Crema
1 cup sour cream 2–3 tablespoons lime juice (juice of 1 lime) + ½ teaspoon lime zest ¼ cup fresh cilantro leaves ½ teaspoon honey 1 small garlic clove or ¼ teaspoon garlic powder ⅛ teaspoon fine salt
Optional for serving: serve chicken salsa over cooked rice or cauliflower rice, top with sliced avocado, cilantro-lime crema, thinly sliced jalapeno, lime wedges, fresh chopped cilantro, pickled red onion, and side of blue corn tortilla chips
Select the ‘saute’ function on the Instant Pot. Once hot, add the oil and diced onion. Stir occasionally cooking for 3-4 minutes or until onions start to become tender. Add the garlic and continue to cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally to prevent garlic from burning. Next, place the remaining salsa chicken ingredients* in the Instant Pot. Put the lid on and make sure the vent is sealed. Set Instant Pot to ‘High Pressure’ setting then set the cooking time for 10 minutes. Once cooking is completed, allow natural releasing of pressure for 3-4 minutes then switch the valve to ‘vent’. When all of the pressure releases and the lid unlocks, remove the chicken and shred the chicken with two forks. Toss chicken back into the pot to coat with sauce. To make the cilantro-lime crema: Add the ingredients to a small blender cup or small food processor and blend until smooth. Assemble the bowls with suggested serving options.
*If using frozen corn, add corn to the Instant Pot in step 5, with the shredded chicken. Photo Credit: The photos in this blog post were taken by Jess of Plays Well with Butter.
