Instant Pot General Tso's Chicken | A 30 Minute Classic Chinese Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Why does chicken get rubbery in Instant Pot? ›

Why is my Instant Pot shredded chicken rubbery? Rubbery Instant Pot shredded chicken is usually the result of overcooking the meat.

This dinner staple cooks up perfectly every time in the Instant Pot. You can aim for firm but juicy chicken for cubing, or let it cook a little bit longer for tender shredded chicken.

Place the frozen chicken breasts in the Instant Pot inner pot. If you are cooking more than one, make sure they are separated to achieve even cooking throughout. To separate frozen chicken breasts, place them in cool water until they have thawed enough to pull apart. Add one cup of chicken broth to the pot.

Yes, you can! Pressure Cookers don't work the same as slow cookers, where longer cooking times equal more juicy and tender meat. Too much time in a pressure cooker will create dry tough meat.

While all cuts of chicken are fair game for the Instant Pot, thighs are the most forgiving. Because chicken breast is so lean, just a couple of extra minutes of cook time turns them from juicy to overcooked and dry.

Safe Chicken Temperature and Resting Period

For chicken breasts always aim for rather 155F. Within 4-5 minutes the temperature will rise to 165F. If you aim for 165F right after opening the lid, you'r chicken will overcook during resting time.

Note: You can submerge your chicken directly in the cooking liquid, especially if you want to make chicken stock. However, the steamer basket method ensures crispy skin and won't wash away the seasoning. Individual chicken pieces can be cooked in much the same way as a whole chicken.

So can a Crock-Pot cook better chicken than an Instant Pot? Well, it really depends on what you're making. The Instant Pot cooks chicken much faster than its non-pressure counterparts, but the resulting texture isn't going to be the same as what you'd get with a slow cooker or Dutch oven.

For even cooking stack your chicken breasts on top of each other cross ways. Or if possible lay the chicken in one even layer on the trivet. If you don't have a trivet you can lay your chicken directly in the bottom of the pot with the liquid. Lots of liquid releases from chicken.

I typically cook 3 breasts at at time for my little family, which yields about 6 cups of shredded chicken. To cook more chicken breasts at once, layer the chicken side by side if frozen or stacked if fresh. Add 1 cup of water plus kosher salt and black peppercorns. Set the cooking time for just 10 minutes.

Why does my chicken come out rubbery in the Instant Pot? ›

If your boneless chicken breast winds up with a weird, rubbery texture, it probably means that you need to cook it longer. In general, the Instant Pot does better with longer cook times for meat.

Open the pot, then use a digital thermometer to check the thickest part of a piece of chicken—it should be at least 165oF. If the chicken is not quite up to temperature, put the lid back on with the vent closed and cook for another minute or two.

If I want to cook a lot of chicken breasts quickly, I do them in the Instant Pot like this recipe. This gives your chicken a poached or stewed texture. If I just need 2 or 3, I turn to my air fryer. The texture from the air fryer is more like a traditional roasted chicken breast, which I prefer for most uses.

The key to getting perfectly juicy boneless chicken breasts is to cook them on a trivet, above the liquid. I find that this results in a better texture than cooking them on the bottom of the pot. I also think their texture is best when you quickly release the pressure, rather than letting it naturally release.

Overcooking might play a role in your chicken's tire-like texture. Leaving chicken in a pan, oven, or grill for just a little too long can suck the moisture right out and leave you with a dry, rubbery bird. Without moisture, the protein fibers in the chicken become elastic.