Easy Hawaiian Haystacks is a family favorite Dinner Recipe! A creamy chicken gravy served over rice topped with diced chicken and all sorts of toppings! Mandarin Oranges, pineapple, olives, green onions, carrots, and (my favorite) Chow Mein noodles. This is a dinner everyone will love!
What are Hawaiian Haystacks?
That, my friend, is a very good question. Odds are, if you don’t live in Utah, Idaho, or have ties to either one of those places.. you probably have no clue what Hawaiian Haystacks are. It’s okay. There are a lot of food native to Utah and Idaho.. like Funeral Potatoes, Fry Sauce and Navajo Tacos. 😉
We are our own kind of special over here but hey, no one can knock Idaho because they supply the majority of potatoes for Chick-Fil-A’s waffle fries. I know, we all just gained a little more respect for Mr. Idaho.
Hawaiian Haystacks really have nothing Hawaiian about them besides the pineapple. Honestly, I have no idea why they are called that.. they just are. 😉 Hawaiian Haystacks are a Chicken and gravy dish served over rice and topped with all the things. Literally. Cheese, chicken, olives, mandarin oranges, green onions, carrots, pineapple and (my personal favorite) chow mein noodles. (See, chow mein noodles.. remind me again why these are HAWAIIAN Haystacks? 😂) I don’t care what they are called, just know that they are GOOD!
How to make Hawaiian Haystacks in the Instant Pot
(See the recipe card below for Crock Pot details. 😊)
Making Hawaiian Haystacks in the Instant Pot could not be easier! There are just a few important things to note.
- Layer those ingredients!! Broth on the bottom first, then the chicken, cream of chicken soup dolloped around on top of that. DO NOT STIR!! If they are stirred together, the mixture will be too thick and will burn.
- Use chicken tenders. If you haven’t started using tenders yet, jump on the bandwagon! They are SO much better than chicken breasts for ALL the reasons.
- Let the gravy cool for a few minutes before serving. It will thicken as it cools.
Remember, when cooking with chicken tenders, we know the cook times for both frozen and fresh. Because chicken tenders come in a pretty standard size, we know exactly what the cook time should be.
For frozen cook them for 6 minutes on Manual with a 6 min NPR. If using fresh or thawed tenders cook for 3 minutes on Manual with a 6 minute NPR.
Once the chicken is cooked, pull the chicken out of the gravy and set aside while we finish the gravy. Sour cream and shredded cheese go into the gravy to thicken it up & add amazing flavor!
Dice the chicken and either stir into the gravy, or serve as a topping.
Serve the gravy over a bed of rice and top with all the things!
Hawaiian Haystacks Topping Ideas
- chicken
- shredded cheese
- pineapple
- mandarin oranges
- coconut
- matchsticks carrots
- olives
- green onions
- chow mein noodles
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Hawaiian Haystacks
Ingredients
- 1 14 oz can chicken broth
- 8 chicken tenders fresh or frozen
- 1 22.6 oz can cream of chicken soup
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Topping Ideas
- shredded cheese
- green onions
- olives
- mandarin oranges
- pineapple chunks
- chow mein noodles
Instructions
- FOR THE INSTANT POT: add the ingredients in this order, DO NOT STIR. Add the chicken broth, chicken tenders and then spoonfuls of the cream of chicken soup on top of the chicken tenders.
- For frozen, cook on Manual HIGH for 6 minutes with a 6 min NPR before releasing the pressure. For fresh or thawed tenders, cook on Manual HIGH for 3 minutes with a 6 minute NPR before releasing the pressure.
- Remove and dice the chicken tenders and set aside.
- Whisk in the sour cream and shredded cheese.
- Serve the gravy over rice and top with the diced chicken and other desired toppings.
- FOR THE CROCKPOT: Add the chicken broth, chicken tenders and cream of chicken soup to the crockpot. Cook on LOW for 6-8 hours or on HIGH for 3-4 hours or until the chicken is cooked through.
- Remove and dice the chicken tenders and set aside.
- Whisk the sour cream and shredded cheese into the sauce.
- Serve the gravy over rice and top with the diced chicken and other desired toppings.
Notes
Hawaiian Haystacks
Easy Hawaiian Haystacks is a family favorite Dinner Recipe! A creamy chicken gravy served over rice topped with diced chicken and all sorts of toppings! Mandarin Oranges, pineapple, olives, green onions, carrots, and (my favorite) Chow Mein noodles. This is a dinner everyone will love!
Course Instant Pot, Main Course
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 6 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 14 oz can chicken broth
- 8 chicken tenders fresh or frozen
- 1 22.6 oz can cream of chicken soup
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Topping Ideas
- shredded cheese
- green onions
- olives
- mandarin oranges
- pineapple chunks
- chow mein noodles
Instructions
- FOR THE INSTANT POT:add the ingredients in this order, DO NOT STIR. Add the chicken broth, chicken tenders and then spoonfuls of the cream of chicken soup on top of the chicken tenders.
- For frozen, cook on Manual HIGH for 6 minutes with a 6 min NPR before releasing the pressure. For fresh or thawed tenders, cook on Manual HIGH for 3 minutes with a 6 minute NPR before releasing the pressure.
- Remove and dice the chicken tenders and set aside.
- Whisk in the sour cream and shredded cheese.
- Serve the gravy over rice and top with the diced chicken and other desired toppings.
- FOR THE CROCKPOT: Add the chicken broth, chicken tenders and cream of chicken soup to the crockpot. Cook on LOW for 6-8 hours or on HIGH for 3-4 hours or until the chicken is cooked through.
- Remove and dice the chicken tenders and set aside.
- Whisk the sour cream and shredded cheese into the sauce.
- Serve the gravy over rice and top with the diced chicken and other desired toppings.
Notes
If using chicken breasts, I would suggest cutting the chicken breast into ‘tender sized’ strips and then following the directions as written.
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Patsy says
Hi there , this is a great variation on a recipe my family has enjoyed forever.Very tasty! However, is your amount listed for the cream of chicken soup correct (1-22 OZ can of cream of chicken soup)? With the sour cream and cheese, this made way too much liquid. I used more chicken than called for and it was still too much gravy. Should it have been 1- 10 oz. can and called it good? I know I will have leftover sauce so think I will improvise and turn it into soup with leftover green onions, chicken, etc. Thanks for the great recipes!
karlibitner says
Hi Patsy! My family likes this how it is written. We like to use the chicken as one of the many toppings and only put 4 or 5 diced pieces on each haystack. Feel free to use less cream of chicken soup to make it more to your family’s liking, though! ❤️
Brittany says
This recipe is great. We had a ton of leftover gravy because it’s just me and my husband – could I freeze the extra for later? Have you tried this?
Karli Bitner says
Yes! You could definitely freeze for a later day. This works well with this recipe!