Instant Pot Soy Ginger Chicken

5 from 3 votes

Instant Pot soy ginger chicken is crowd pleasing and ready in under 30 minutes. Juicy chicken breasts are smothered in a sticky soy ginger sauce that is perfect for spooning over rice and veggies!

Prep Time10

Cook Time15

Total Time25

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Chinese

Diet: Gluten Free, Low Fat

Servings:

Calories: 231kcal

Author: Denise Bustard

Equipment

6 Quart Instant Pot

Ingredients

⅓ cup soy sauce see note 2
⅓ cup water or stock
¼ cup brown sugar see note 3
2 tablespoons fresh ginger grated finely on a box grater or microplane
1 clove garlic minced
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts roughly 2 large chicken breasts; see note 1

After cooking

2 tablespoons water
2 teaspoons cornstarch see note 4

Instructions

Assemble- In the stainless steel insert of your Instant Pot, stir together the soy sauce, water, brown sugar, ginger, garlic and sesame oil. Stir until the sugar is dissolved, then add the chicken breasts and turn to coat.
Cook- Place the lid on the Instant Pot and set the steam release handle to the 'sealing' position. Pressure cook on high pressure for 8 minutes. When the Instant Pot has completed its cooking cycle, perform a quick pressure release: carefully transition the steam release handle to the 'venting' position.
Thicken Sauce- Remove the lid from your Instant Pot, and check that your chicken has reached 165°F with an instant read thermometer. Transfer chicken to a cutting board to rest. Select the 'sauté' function of the pot, and stir together a slurry of cornstarch with water. Add the slurry to the pot, and stir with a spatula.
Simmer the sauce for 1-2 minutes, until bubbly and thickened. Use oven mitts to remove the stainless steel insert from the Instant Pot so the sauce doesn't over-reduce.
Toss chicken with sauce- Once the chicken has rested for 5 minutes, slice it against the grain into strips or cubes. Return it to the pot and toss in the sauce. Enjoy!

Notes

1- you may swap for boneless skinless chicken thighs; increase the cook time to 10 minutes with a quick pressure release. For pork tenderloin see this recipe.

2- I recommend using reduced sodium soy sauce; for gluten-free, swap the soy sauce for tamari, coconut aminos or liquid soy seasoning.

3- an equal volume of honey or maple syrup may be subbed; alternative sweeteners have not been tested

4- you may swap for ½ the volume of arrowroot starch for a paleo version of this recipe

Instant Pot size- this recipe has not been tested in an 8 quart Instant Pot. If you try it, drop us a comment below!

Storage

Cool completely, then store in an air tight container in the fridge (4 days) or the freezer (3 months).

Reheating

Heat in the microwave until steaming hot; do not reheat more than once.

Freezer Instant Pot meals

Add all ingredients (except cornstarch/water slurry) to a sturdy freezer bag or reusable silicone bag (½ gallon). Squeeze out as much air as possible and freeze for up to 3 months.
Thaw 24 hours before you intend to cook.
Dump bag contents into the stainless steel insert of your Instant Pot and cook as directed in the recipe card.

Frozen chicken

individually frozen- 12 minutes with a quick pressure release
frozen as a block- try doing 5 minutes high pressure with a quick pressure release, then pry them apart. Cook for a further 7-10 minutes, until they are all 165°F.

Nutrition