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Delicious and Moist Instant Pot Chicken for Sandwiches, Salads, Etc.

Delicious and Moist Instant Pot Chicken - I'm really a lover of chicken thighs because they are so moist, but by brining the chicken breasts first, then cooking them in the Instant Pot, these breasts remain tender. If you've never brined a chicken before, don't worry! It's super easy! Basically you just let the chicken and salt sit for an amount of time in the refrigerator.
Weight Watchers Points: 0 Freestyle Smart Points
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Brine Time at least 1 hour 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Calories 46 kcal

Equipment

  • Instant Pot

Ingredients
  

Brine:

  • 1 c. kosher salt
  • 3 qt. water
  • 1 pack of chicken breasts I buy the big pack at Costco, fresh, not frozen about 8 pounds

Other ingredients:

  • 3 c. chicken broth
  • 1-2 T. seasoning I like the Cajun seasoning from Costco, but whatever you prefer
  • 3 garlic cloves minced

Instructions
 

  • In a big plastic container with a lid, or bowl mix 3 qts. of water with the salt.
  • Add chicken. Cover with lid or plastic wrap.
  • Allow to brine overnight or at least 1 hour in the refrigerator. Overnight is best.

Cooking the chicken

  • Remove chicken from brine.
  • To your Instant Pot, add chicken broth, minced garlic and chicken pieces.
  • Push the,  "Poultry," setting on the Instant Pot and decrease time to 8 minutes, if it doesn't decrease that low, push, "Manual," or on some models, "Pressure Cook," and set for 8 minutes on high pressure.
  • When Instant Pot is done, allow at least 10 minutes before releasing pressure.
  • Remove pieces from pot, allow to cool, then chop and freeze and use as needed.

Notes

If chicken is frozen, cook in Instant Pot about 10 minutes. Allow to sit at least 10 minutes before releasing pressure. Check to see that it's at least 160° (it will raise to 165 after sitting a bit). If not, put the lid back on, set timer for an additional 2-3 minutes. Wait again at least 10 minutes before you release pressure.
If you aren't doing that much chicken, feel free to cut the brine recipe in half.
This recipe doesn't take the sodium from the brine into the nutritional account, so if you are on a low sodium diet, please check with your doctor about brining before you make it.

Nutrition

Serving: 1ozCalories: 46kcalCarbohydrates: 0.1gProtein: 8.6gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 27.7mgSodium: 58mgVitamin A: 5.3IU
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!