Instant Pot Frozen Chicken Breast
One of the fastest dinners I’ve found is an Instant Pot Frozen Chicken Breast. It only takes about 15 minutes to cook and can make many dinners.
🍽️ Recipe Name: Instant Pot Frozen Chicken Breasts
⏰ Ready In: 33 minutes
⏳ Prep Time: 1 minute
🔥 Cook Time: 12 minutes (plus pressurizing and depressurizing time)
👥 Serves: 4
🥕Main Ingredients: Frozen chicken breasts, chicken stock or water, salt, black pepper.
🍳 Special Equipment: Instant Pot or electric pressure cooker.
⭐ Why You’ll Love It: One of the easiest ways to cook chicken straight from frozen. No thawing required, minimal prep, and you’ll have tender, juicy chicken ready for salads, sandwiches, meal prep, and quick weeknight dinners.
👇 Full measurements and instructions are in the recipe card below.
You can use the chicken sliced, cut in chunks, or, if you cook a few more minutes, you can even pull the chicken.
Your instant pot will produce the most juicy chicken breast you have ever eaten, even from frozen.
What You Need
- Frozen chicken breast
- Water or chicken stock
- Salt and pepper
- Spices (optional)
Optional Spices and Flavorings
Depending on what you are in the mood for, you can tweak the flavor of your chicken in a hundred different ways.
- For a Mexican flair – use garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, chili powder.
- For an island flair – use garlic powder, onion powder, pineapple juice, or chunks of pineapple, and five-spice powder.
- Mediterranean flair – use thyme, rosemary, basil, and tomatoes.
How to Make It
- Place frozen breast in pressure cooker.
- Salt and pepper both sides.
- Add water or broth.
- Affix lid to instant pot. Turn the lever to sealing position. Press the pressure cook button on high pressure for the specified time. Time will depend on the size of your breasts. See chart below.
Size Matters When Pressure Cooking
The size of your breasts is important. Larger breasts will take longer to cook through than smaller ones.
Weigh them with a kitchen scale, or approximate their weight by taking the weight of your package and dividing by the number of breasts in it.
I buy halal breasts from our local restaurant store. They weigh 15-19 oz. each and take 25-30 minutes to cook. So if yours are larger than 12 oz., add some time.
These are the estimated times for cooking boneless skinless breasts.
For pulled chicken, after the cycle is done, let it naturally release (leave it alone) for about 10 minutes before releasing the remaining pressure.
The chicken will continue to cook while the pressure is releasing. Manually release the remaining pressure. Carefully remove the lid.
Check the internal temperature of the chicken in the thickest part of the meat using an instant read thermometer to ensure it has reached at least 165°F (74°C).
Let chicken rest about 5 minutes before pulling.
To shred chicken, use two forks to pull the meat with the grain.
When using the chicken for pulled, mix a bit of the cooking liquid with the meat to keep it ultra-moist.
Why Should You Try This Instant Pot Frozen Chicken Breast?
- Instant pot frozen chicken breasts are juicy and tender every time.
- So quick and easy.
- Totally customizable to what you need them for.
- It’s great for a quick dinner, but it’s also perfect for meal prep so that you can cook once and make several different meals throughout the week.
- No need to brown chicken first.
What Dishes to Use Them In?
Use this easy delicious chicken for;
- Chicken salad
- Chicken tacos
- Chicken enchiladas
- Nachos
- Quesadillas
- Casseroles
- Pot pies
- Pulled chicken sandwiches or sliders
- Pizza topping
- Soups
- Shawarma
- Quick spaghetti
- Add for protein to a fresh salad and make it a meal
What If Your Chicken Is Thawed?
If you remembered to thaw your chicken in the morning, you will use the same times specified. Just use a quick release to release the pressure in the pot.
To do a quick release, carefully press the quick release button down until it clicks. Use the handle of a wooden spoon so there is no danger of burning yourself with the hot steam.
Wait until the float valve drops into the lid before attempting to release the remaining pressure manually by pressing the release button. When opening, always remove the lid away from you so that the remaining steam will not go in your face or on your hands.
If you love easy chicken recipes, try this Instant Pot Hawaiian chicken.
Pro Tips for Your Success
- Always add water or broth when pressure cooking. The liquid is what builds up pressure in the pot.
- Season with just salt and pepper if you are short on time. Or add your favorite spices.
- Feel free to add your favorite sauces or salsa in place of, or in addition to the liquid.
- If using frozen chicken breasts, allow a ten-minute natural pressure release before manually releasing the additional pressure.
- When you are freezing your chicken breasts, be sure that you freeze them separately on a parchment-lined baking sheet for a couple of hours. Then add as many as you need for a meal to your freezer bag or containers, and place them back in the freezer. This way you won’t have a huge block of breasts that you can’t get apart. These will take much longer to pressure cook if they are not separated.
- Cook them according to size using the chart above for cooking times.
- When using the chicken for pulled, mix a bit of the cooking liquid with the meat to make it ultra-moist.
Tools That Make This Recipe Work
If you don’t already have these, this is where most people struggle.
- Instant pot – Locks in pressure and cooks frozen chicken evenly in a fraction of the time. Without it, you lose the speed and consistency that makes this method work in the first place.
- Chef’s knife – Helps you trim and portion the chicken cleanly before or after cooking. A dull knife can tear the meat, making it harder to get even slices for serving.
- Instant Read Thermometer – Confirms the chicken has reached a safe internal temperature without overcooking. Skipping this often leads to dry edges or undercooked centers.
- Kitchen Scale – Ensures you’re working with the right portion sizes for even cooking. Uneven weights can cause pieces to finish at different times, affecting texture and consistency of doneness.
This cooker speeds up dinner prep by building pressure to cook food quickly. It helps turn frozen or tough ingredients into tender meals.
Use this to check chicken doneness after pressure cooking. It gives a quick reading so you don’t cut into meat too early or overcook it.
How to Store Leftovers
Store leftover chicken in airtight containers and refrigerate once it has cooled. It will stay fresh for 3–4 days in the refrigerator. For best texture and quality, avoid refreezing cooked chicken, as it can affect moisture and overall taste.
FAQs
Can I cook frozen chicken breasts in the Instant Pot without thawing?
Yes. The pressure cooking method is designed to handle frozen chicken directly. Just make sure the pieces are not stuck together so they cook evenly.
How do I know when the chicken is fully cooked?
Use an instant read thermometer and check that the thickest part reaches a safe internal temperature of 165°F. This is the most reliable way to avoid undercooking or drying it out.
Can I double the recipe in the Instant Pot?
Yes, as long as you don’t go past the max fill line. The cook time stays the same, but thicker stacks of chicken may take slightly longer to come to pressure.
Other Easy Instant Pot Recipes
Instant pot Frozen Chicken Breasts
Ingredients
- 2 chicken breasts
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 cup chicken stock or water
Instructions
- Place frozen chicken breasts in your instant pot.2 chicken breasts
- Salt and pepper chicken. Then add one cup of water or chicken broth to pot.salt and pepper to taste, 1 cup chicken stock or water
- Set pot to manual/ pressure cook on high. Set timer for allotted amount of time. (See infograph in notes below.)
See all of my favorite tools and gift ideas on my New Amazon Store!Check out Binky's Amazon Store!Notes
Recommended cooking times by size of chicken breast
Good morning Beth, I made this last night and they were by far the best, moist, flavorful chicken breasts ever! I never made anything frozen in my IP, which is my go-to favorite appliance and have made many of your recipes—THANK YOU!
I seasoned the breasts first with salt/pepper and Italian seasonings and had the chicken stock already in the pot. I did high pressure for 10 minutes and let natural release for 11 minutes since the float valve hadn’t dropped yet.
This is such a great, easy, quick meal—you won’t be disappointed if you try it! I served them with roasted Brussel sprouts.
Thank you again for a great recipe!
Thank you so much Susan! I’m so glad you liked them. We’ve made them a bunch of times and are never disappointed!