Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot Chicken Tacos
This Easy Instant Pot Chicken Taco Filling recipe is so versatile! It’s great for taco salads, enchiladas, burritos, and more! And these pressure cooker shredded chicken tacos are SO convenient for busy nights—you don’t even have to remember to thaw the frozen chicken!
This chicken taco recipe is one of our quick pressure cooker dinner for busy nights! This recipe was one of the first I developed for the electric pressure cooker, and nearly a decade later, it’s still my go-to recipe when I’m making chicken tacos.
It is SO quick to throw this meal together! Chop an onion, toss in a can of tomatoes and spices, and throw in some chicken breasts.
It also makes a big batch, so I can have individual portions ready and waiting in my freezer for a quick lunch or easy dinner!
How to Make Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot Chicken Tacos
This Instant Pot Chicken Tacos recipe will work in any brand of electric pressure cooker, including the Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi, and Mealthy MultiPot. Pressure cookers are perfect for cooking chicken quickly. Plus, your meat will be fall-apart tender. (See more of my favorite Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot Chicken Recipes here.)
Make These Shredded Chicken Tacos Your Way
These Easy Instant Pot Shredded Chicken Tacos are so versatile! Think of this recipe as a starting point and substitute ingredients until it’s just right..
Like it spicy? Use the hottest Ro-tel tomatoes or sub your favorite spicy chicken taco seasoning in place of the chili powder.
Walk on the mild side? Use the Ro-tel mild tomatoes, half the chili powder, or add a few tablespoons of cream cheese.
You can also mix up the flavors to match your family’s favorite. For example, use chipotle chili powder or add a little adobo sauce to change it up. Or stir in your favorite enchilada sauce after you shred the chicken!
Can I Use Frozen Chicken for Instant Pot Tacos?
YES! You can use fresh or frozen chicken breasts in this recipe, since you don’t need to brown the meat in this recipe.
Remember, if multiple breasts are frozen together, those breasts will cook like one very thick piece of meat and will NOT be cooked in the time below. Be sure to separate your chicken breasts before attempting to cook from frozen.
Chicken breasts with very thick parts may need an additional few minutes to cook. Be sure to check the cooked chicken with an instant-read thermometer to make sure they reach an internal temperature of 165°F.
Learn more about how to pressure cooker frozen chicken breasts.
How to Shred Chicken for Shredded Chicken Tacos
If you have a stand mixer like a KitchenAid or Breville, put your cooked chicken breasts in the mixer bowl and use the paddle attachment to shred it. You’ll shred all 6 breasts in just a few minutes!
(Just make sure to keep an eye on it while it shreds—if you let it go too long, the meat can get really finely shredded.) I love shredding it this way because I can warm up the tortillas while the mixer is running.
However, these chicken breasts are also easy to shred by hand with two forks, if desired.
What to serve with Instant Pot Chicken Tacos?
In my family, Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Rice is our go-to side dish for any Mexican-flavored recipe. Or if you love green salsa, you’ll love this Mexican Green Rice.
Another option is chips and my 7 layer bean dip, with homemade refried beans.
And, if you’re looking to stretch the meat, you can always add Pressure Cooker Black Beans and rice.
What toppings are best for chicken tacos?
My family prefers soft flour tortillas, so that’s what we use at our house. Lately we’ve been into the little street taco size.
However, remember that this chicken taco filling recipe is more like a guideline—if you prefer hard shell or corn tortillas, use those!
No matter what, I like to use lots of fresh vegetables like shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, avocados, spinach, or cilantro. Plus lime wedges and sour cream or Mexican Crema.
How to Freeze Leftover Pressure Cooker Chicken Taco Filling
This chicken taco meat freezes so well! I like to freeze it in 1/2 cup portions in snack size freezer bags. For my family, this is the perfect amount for one individual serving.
When you’re freezing a big batch, I like to use a quarter-size baking sheet. I’ll lay one ziplock down and press the meat flat to fill out most of the bag. I’ll layer the bags flat on each other, then place the whole baking sheet in the freezer.
Once frozen, you can stand up the bags in a freezer-safe container so they’re easy to grab and go without having to dig around your fridge.
Get a list of pressure cooker / instant pot frozen chicken recipes at my how-to post.
How long will cooked chicken taco filling last?
According to the USDA, frozen chicken is best within 4 months of freezing. (Somehow at my house it always gets eaten much quicker than that!)
What’s your favorite way to serve chicken tacos?
Instant Pot / Pressure Cooker Chicken Taco Filling
This Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot chicken taco filling is so versatile! It's great for taco salads, enchiladas, burritos, and more! And it's SO convenient for busy nights—you don't even have to remember thaw the frozen chicken!
Ingredients
- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 6 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, frozen*
- 1 can (10 ounces) diced tomatoes with green chilies (Rotel Original)
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- Tortillas, shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, shredded cheddar cheese, diced avocado, and sour cream for serving
Instructions
- Select Saute to preheat the pressure cooking pot. Add the oil and onion. Saute for about 3 minutes, until tender.
- Add the chicken, tomatoes and green chilies, chili powder, salt, and pepper.
- Lock the lid in place. Select High Pressure and 12 to 15 minutes cook time.*
- When cook time ends, turn off the pressure cooker. Use a quick pressure release. When the valve drops, carefully remove the lid.
- Remove the chicken from the cooking pot, but do not discard the juices in the pot.
- Shred the chicken and return it to the cooking pot, stirring to combine it with the tomatoes and juices.
- If needed, select Sauté and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until all the liquid is absorbed.
- Serve in warmed tortillas, topped with diced tomatoes, shredded lettuce, cheese, and avocado, with a dollop of sour cream.
Notes
*This cook time is a range because it depends on a number of factors—the size of your chicken breasts, whether your chicken breasts have a very thick part, whether your chicken breasts are fresh or frozen. The thicker they are, the longer cook time you'll need.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 131Total Fat: 5gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 51mgCarbohydrates: 3gFiber: 0gSugar: 1gProtein: 19g
Nutrition information is calculated by Nutritionix and may not always be accurate.
Other Amazing Instant Pot Mexican Food Recipes
Tacos, burritos, and are a mainstay in my meal plans. I make some variation of these at least once a week. Here are some of my favorites:
Instant Pot / Pressure Cooker Green Chile Pork Carnitas
Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot Pork Tamales
Instant Pot / Pressure Cooker Green Chile Chicken and Rice
Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Chicken Taco Salad
Plus, I have several exclusive recipes in my Electric Pressure Cooker Cookbook
- Shredded Chicken Taco Filling (page 49)
- Sweet Pork Tostadas (page 48)
- Cheesy Baked Chicken Taquitos (page 57)
- Barbecue Beef Brisket Tacos (page 55)
- Ground Beef Tacos (page 54)
- Carne Asada Tacos (page 52)
- Chicken Quesadillas with Avocado Salsa (page 58)
- Carnitas Street Tacos (page 50)
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When I made chicken breasts for multiple use recipes in my crockpot, the recipe said they had to be in a single layers, which made me do my 7 breasts in 2 cook times.( My crockpot is 7 quart, horizontal). Do I need to do the same thing in the pressure cooker? The recipe didn’t seem to indicate that. I have an 8 quart power cooker.
I love your website, and most days I send the recipes to my son who has an InstantPot. He likes them too.
Thank you!
Hi Patti – so fun to hear you’re loving my recipes and sharing them with your son. No, the chicken breasts don’t have to be in a single layer, just try and arrange them so they’re not pressed together like a thicker cut of meat because that will increase the cook time needed. Enjoy!
People, I learned on a slow cooker video on U Tube that you could shred chicken in an electric mixer right after it cooks while it is still hot. I tried it last week and it was amazing! Less that 10 seconds for one large chicken breast!
It’s one of my favorite ways to shred chicken! (Although, once I was distracted by my kid and my chicken for chicken soup was totally pulverized!) Still, SO much quicker and easier than hand shredding!
I want to use Costco’s frozen thin cut boneless skinless chicken breasts in a 6qt instant pot duo. I’m super new to pressure cooking (I’ve only cooked soft boiled eggs this morning new). But planning to use this recipe tonight. My can of tomato is just diced tomato’s as I don’t have ones with chilies in the pantry right now. Other than that I was going to follow the recipe but not sure as to the number of breasts and the time to cook. I will be feeding a family of 4 tacos. Can you help me?
Hi Julia – I’d try a cook time of 6 minutes with thin cut boneless skinless chicken breast (frozen or thawed). Maybe use 12 thin breasts in this recipe. Enjoy!
Hi Barbara,
I mentioned on Barbara Bakes that this recipe, while a hit with everyone else, didn’t make my mouth sing. I’m writing now to follow up and tell you how well the leftover sauce worked (with a little more chili powder and some cumin) for ground beef tacos. It adds a brightness that’s usually missing in ground beef tacos and was a welcome change from my usual homemade taco seasoning mix. So I’m calling this recipe a success!
I’m planning to replicate it very soon with a chuck steak instead of the chicken. But I’ve got to say that your Chili Colorado is a tough act to follow. That one still blows me away every time. And I’ve yet to find a carnitas recipe to rival the one you posted almost 4 years ago. I’ve tried a few others (why do I even bother?), but yours is still the best.
Thanks! I’ll have to try it with a variety of meats too.
Hi Barbara,
I have a general question about cooking frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts. The first recipe I made used frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts. It called for quick release but the chicken was dry and tough. I notice that usually with meat a natural release is indicated. Can you please tell me in general what you think went wrong with my first recipe? I’ve been reluctant to use frozen chicken breasts since then. Thank you for your time.
Hi Joann – generally if the chicken was dry and tough it was overcooked. If the chicken is in a liquid I generally haven’t found any detrimental effects from a quick release. But if you prefer to do a natural release, just reduce the cook time. How long the chicken breast takes to cook depends on the thickness of the breast. If your breast aren’t very thick, you’ll want to reduce the cook time for sure.
Hi, I’m really new to this pressure cooking method but so far, so good. These recipes look delish!! I’ve just printed out 3 or 4 to try. Is there a chart or rule of thumb for cooking times/liquid needed for different types of meat (beef, chicken, pork)? My chuck roast came out perfect but the pork roast after about 45 mins was still tough. Thanks for your wonderful recipes!
Hi Audrey – so glad to hear you’re enjoying my site. Was it a pork loin roast? They can be more difficult to get right in the pressure cooker. A pork shoulder is a great cut for the pressure cooker. If your manual didn’t have a cooking chart, Hip Pressure Cooking has some good charts. https://www.hippressurecooking.com/pressure-cooking-times/ However, I don’t find charts super helpful because the method you use to cook the meat, and the thickness of the meat make such a difference. I prefer to find a recipe and adapt it to the ingredients I want to use. Here’s a post that may help as well https://www.pressurecookingtoday.com/how-to-convert-a-recipe-into-a-pressure-cooker-recipe/ Have fun!
If I cut the recipe in half (3 chicken breasts) do I cut the time in half?
I did chicken thigh recipe once but used full recipe and was great
Thanks, Terri
Thanks Terri! No, as long as the thickness of the meat is the same, you don’t need to adjust the cook time when cutting a recipe in half.
thanks!
This was the first thing I made in my Instant Pot a few weeks ago. Best recipe ever and so simple and quick. I have it in my Instant Pot again right now. Family can’t wait to eat it again! I substituted Taco Seasoning for the Chili Powder and I added some corn too. I had to laugh out loud though because you said, “Select High Pressure and 12 – 15 minutes cook time (depending on how large your breasts are).” I thought…”Well, gee…in that case I probably only need like 5 minutes”. Ohhh, you mean how large the chicken breasts are. OK..got it. LOL! But seriously, this chicken taco meat is so juicy and delicious. Thank you!
lol – your comment cracked me up and brightened my day. Thanks Tracy for letting me know it’s a big hit with your family. Have fun with your new Instant Pot.
Can you answer a question for me? I’m using the Instant Pot Duo also. This recipe calls for no liquid except the juice from the tomato w/chilies. I see in some other recipes it calls for no less than 1 cup of liquid.
This holds me back from converting my old recipes into pressure cooker ones. I either don’t use enough liquid to build up steam or too much liquid and everything turns into a soupy mess.
Any tips or advice on how much liquid? Does tomato sauce count as a liquid? P.S. I’ve said it before, I love your site and recipes. It’s my Go To.
Hi Todd – so glad you’re loving my site and my recipes. It’s always a pleasure to hear. The tomatoes with chilies is enough liquid in this recipe because chicken releases a lot of liquid as it cooks, especially when it’s frozen. Generally I assume 1/2 cup of liquid in the Instant Pot is enough to come to pressure and cook, unless it’s an ingredient that will absorb the liquid instead of release liquid, such as pasta or rice. Or if there’s a long cook time, you may need more liquid unless the item(s) being cooked will release a lot of liquid – like a pork shoulder. Hope that helps 🙂
Thank you Barbara! I am new to Instant Pot cooking and just getting a feel for how it works, and how to convert recipes. I’m printing out your advice to Todd and taping it up where I can see it. Now I feel so much more confident, thanks for your recipe!
This is the first dish I made with my pressure cooker. I had pressure cooker for 8 months and finally tried it. My family loved the shredded chicken taco filling. The second meal I made was the pulled pork barbecue. Both meals were delicious. I look forward to trying more of your receipes.
Hi Kathy – I’m so glad my recipes inspired you to get out your pressure cooker and start cooking. Thanks for letting me know your family loved the recipes. Have fun!
Barbara, I just wanted to tell you, I made this a couple of weeks ago for chicken taco salad and it was great…It was a lot of chicken, so I froze half of it and pulled it out and used it to make off the charts the best shredded chicken sandwiches ever, we just reheated it in the microwave and then drained the extra liquid added a slice of reduced fat swiss cheese and put on a rosemary and olive oil Foldit….OMG! Loved It! The absolute best shredded chicken sandwich we have ever had and so much healthier…..Thank you for a great recipe! A regular rotation from now on.
Thanks Tina! Sounds like a great way to use the chicken. I’ll have to give it a try.
Hi Barbara! I am new to pressure cooking and I love your site!!! I think my favorite recipe so far has been the chicken sausage chili. Lately though I’ve been having some trouble with my electric Cuisinart, and I was wondering if you might have had a similar experience and solution. Sometimes when I use it steam just keeps leaking out of the float valve, and then starts to leak out of the side so it never gets to pressure. I had this problem yesterday when I was trying to make the black beans. Then today it worked fine for the coconut rice, but then started doing it again when I tried to make the taco filling. Do you have any idea what my problem might be/what I can do to fix it? It’s very new and the O-ring seems fine.
Hi Bara – so glad you’re loving my site. Sorry you’re having trouble with your pressure cooker. Laura from Hip Pressure Cooking recently did a great troubleshooting guide http://www.hippressurecooking.com/infographic-the-pressure-cooker-trouble-shooter/ Hope that helps.
Thanks, Barbara! They’ve been helping me figure it out through the forums. They also posted a great guide for beginners that shows how the process works and what you should expect along the way. Also I want to add that even though it took a little while longer to cook this chicken since I never got fully to pressure, it was delicious… and surprisingly mixed very well with the coconut rice and black beans.
Hello Barbara…love your site! I have a problem question. I have a stove top Fagor 8Qt pressure cooker and when I made this dish, the bottom burned. :0) Is it because of not enough water? Did I not scrape the bottom before I closed it? Help!!?!?
Thanks – so glad you like my site. Yes, you probably do need more water with an 8 qt. stove top pressure cooker. It will take longer to come to pressure than a 6 qt. Also, be sure you turn down your heat to the minimum needed to maintain pressure. Hope you were still able to enjoy the taco meat.
When reading Diane’s blog (linked by you) she did 6 lbs of breasts in 12 minutes not counting coming to pressure time, but she didn’t say they were frozen.
This recipe says 6 large FROZEN breasts 12 minutes and 5-6 minutes if not frozen. I’m a bit confused or have I read something wrong. One is 6 lbs unfrozen for 12 minutes and the other is 6 large frozen for 12 minutes.
HI Sybil – Diane cooks her breasts with 4 cups of water so she can also get chicken stock for her meals. So with the added liquid and the additional chicken, it will require a longer cook time.
You don’t want to over cook boneless, skinless chicken breasts, or they get dried out, even in the moist environment of the pressure cooker. So if you’re unsure of the cook time with chicken, cook it for less time than you think it will take. Let the pressure release for 10 minutes and check the temperature with an instant read thermometer. It should be 165°. If it’s not at temperature, it’s easy to lock the lid in place and cook it for a minute or two more. Since the food is already hot, it comes to pressure really quickly.
Thank you for your reply. It’s good to talk to someone who knows about pressure cooking since I’m fairly new to it. I didn’t realize it’s not just about frozen vs. fresh but that the amount of liquid is also a factor. I guess I’ll do some trial with hopefully not too much error.
I’m sure you’ll get it without much error. Have fun!
Sybil – I just made another batch to check the timing. Four of six frozen chicken breasts were cooking to at least 165° after 12 minutes. Two extra large breasts need two minutes more. Hope that helps. Have fun!
Thanks again. Can’t wait to try it!
Just a note because I’m sure we’ll do this again: thawed boneless chicken will only take 5-6 minutes (at least according to Frieda’s post). I totally thawed the chicken without reading the recipe first. 🙂
May I ask if the chicken breasts are bone-in or boneless? Thank you.
Hi MJ – boneless, skinless chicken breasts. I’ve updated the recipe. Thanks!
Is this recipe for an electric pressure cooker, I have the Instant pot DUO 6 qt. I’m just asking because of the amount of liquid. I’m assuming the frozen chicken will add liquid as well though along with the can of diced tomatoes and chilies. It sure looks good! I had a recipe here I had found earlier on for crock pot, it consisted of taco seasoning, pkg., frozen chicken breasts and a 16 oz. jar of Salsa. I wasn’t sure about doing this either in my Instant pot pressure cooker.
Thank you!
Hi Dianna – yes, all my recipes are created using the electric pressure cooker, usually the Instant Pot Duo.