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Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken

Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken

This Instant Pot teriyaki chicken is so quick and easy to make. It’s the perfect weeknight meal – fast, easy, and everyone loves it!

Teriyaki chicken is one of our favourite meals. It’s so easy to make, I always have the ingredients I need for the sauce, and everyone loves it.

pressure cooker teriyaki chicken

There are a lot of different versions of teriyaki sauce. I even have several different versions on my site, and we love them all.

This teriyaki chicken stir fry has a healthier version of teriyaki sauce with less sugar in it. And this slow cooker teriyaki chicken is a sweeter version, with a honey teriyaki sauce that is quite sweet tasting.

This Instant Pot teriyaki chicken uses a sauce that has the same flavour as this teriyaki chicken marinade. It isn’t overly sweet, but we love it.

easy instant pot chicken thighs with teriyaki chicken

Can you put frozen meat in the Instant Pot?

Yes, you can put frozen meat in the Instant Pot! It’s actually one of my favourite things about it.

I have found that the cook time for frozen meat is usually about 1.5 times what it is for fresh meat. For this Instant Pot teriyaki chicken, it takes 10 minutes at high pressure for fresh, boneless chicken thighs, and 15 minutes for frozen.

instant pot teriyaki chicken thighs

What is teriyaki sauce made of?

Teriyaki sauce is made of ingredients that you likely already have. I never buy it already made because it is so quick and easy to mix up.

All you need is soy sauce, honey, brown sugar, rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger. It’s so easy to make and so delicious.

The teriyaki sauce in this recipe is not overly sweet. If you prefer a teriyaki sauce on the sweeter side, use the sauce recipe in this Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken instead. The cooking directions will be the same, but that teriyaki sauce has more honey in it and tastes sweeter than this one does.

easy instant pot teriyaki chicken

How do you make teriyaki chicken from scratch?

Making teriyaki chicken thighs from scratch is very easy. Place some chicken in the Instant Pot, whisk together a simple sauce from ingredients you likely already have, and pour it over top of the chicken.

Cook at high pressure for a few minutes, and then thicken the sauce with a corn starch slurry using the saute function. It’s a super fast and easy meal to make and everyone loves it!

easy instant pot teriyaki chicken

What goes well with teriyaki chicken?

We like teriyaki chicken served with rice or quinoa, and some steamed broccoli. Any simple steamed vegetable would be tasty with it though, or a salad. This broccoli salad would go well with it too.

instant pot teriyaki chicken

How to make Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken:

  • If you prefer your teriyaki sauce on the sweeter side, use the sauce recipe in this Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken instead. The cooking directions will be the same, but that teriyaki sauce has more honey in it and tastes sweeter than this one does.
  • You can use fresh or frozen chicken thighs in this recipe, but the cook time will be longer if your meat is frozen.
  • Chicken breasts would be good here too if you prefer. Cook them for 8 minutes if they’re fresh, and 12 minutes if they’re frozen.
  • I sometimes shred the chicken up in the sauce and serve it over rice instead of leaving the pieces whole. Either way is delicious!
chicken thighs with teriyaki sauce

Here are some more great Instant Pot chicken recipes for you:

Yield: serves 6

Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken

chicken thighs with teriyaki sauce made in the pressure cooker

This Instant Pot teriyaki chicken is so quick and easy to make. It's the perfect weeknight meal - fast, easy, and everyone loves it!

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 8-10 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (fresh or frozen)
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  • 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 3 tablespoons corn starch
  • Green onions, sliced (optional)

Instructions

  1. Place the chicken thighs in the pot of the Instant Pot.
  2. In a bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, honey, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, sesame oil, garlic, and ginger.
  3. Pour the sauce over top of the chicken in the Instant Pot.
  4. Place the lid on the Instant Pot, and turn it to the locking position. Make sure the vent is in the sealing position. Cook at high pressure for 10 minutes for fresh chicken or 15 minutes for frozen chicken. The Instant Pot will come to pressure and then start counting down the time.
  5. When the pressure cooking cycle is complete, quick release the pressure and then remove the lid.
  6. In a small bowl, stir together the water and corn starch until smooth. Add this slurry to the Instant Pot and stir to combine it with the sauce.
  7. Press the saute button and cook, stirring occasionally, for 1-2 minutes, until the sauce has thickened.
  8. Serve the chicken and teriyaki sauce over cooked rice or quinoa, with sliced green onions sprinkled on top.

Notes

If your chicken thighs are frozen together into one big lump, they will take longer than 15 minutes to cook. 15 minutes is the cook time needed for chicken thighs frozen individually. If they are all frozen together, cook at high pressure for 5 minutes and then release the pressure and separate the pieces. After the pieces are separated in the Instant Pot cook for another 10-15 minutes until they are cooked through. The Instant Pot will come to pressure more quickly the second time.

Cook time does not include the time it takes for the Instant Pot to come to pressure.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 394Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 12gCholesterol: 228mgSodium: 1501mgCarbohydrates: 15gFiber: 0gSugar: 10gProtein: 47g

Nutrition Information is estimated based on ingredients used and may not be exact.

Alison

Monday 12th of September 2022

Can you give me an indication of how much 8-10 chicken thighs weigh please? Thank you!

Stacey

Tuesday 13th of September 2022

About 2-2.5 pounds, or 900-1100 grams.

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