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Instant Pot BBQ Chicken is so tender, juicy and full of barbecue flavor. Using Chicken Tenders or Breasts, this BBQ Chicken is extremely versatile. Perfect pulled, sliced or served whole! BBQ Chicken is a perfect, quick weeknight meal that everyone in the family will love! Great all year too, it is just as much of a winter dinner as it is a summer meal.
Instant Pot BBQ Chicken – Fast, tender and kid-friendly!
BBQ Chicken is part of dinner at least once every week or so. I love to serve it as is, toss it in a salad, or make sandwiches with it.
This is the one protein I can generally count on my kids eating and wanting more of.
Last week I took some dinner to a friend who just had a (tiny, little, adorable) baby. I about melted to the floor when I saw her. So itty bitty!!
BUT, like usual, I was running out of time. A lunch meeting went (really) late and I had 1 1/2 hours to fix dinner and deliver it.
Thank you, Instant Pot, I made BBQ Chicken, Cheesy Mashed Potatoes, Corn on the Cob, and a yummy slushee for dessert all in 45 MINUTES!! I was early. *fist bump*
But you know what really saved my bacon? Chicken tenders.
I hadn’t cooked with tenders in my Instant Pot before. I just always have bought chicken breasts.
The day before I decided to buy tenders on a whim and OH MY HEAVENS. These little guys cooked up in lightening speed and were so stinking tender!!
Like, it broke while I was trying to get it out of the pot. That is how tender they were! I really might be a chicken tender convert now. I may never go back!
How to make BBQ Chicken in the Instant Pot
There are a lot of recipes out there that have a billion different ingredients but I think BBQ chicken should be one of those recipes that all of the ingredients are in my cupboards at any given moment.
To make BBQ chicken in the Instant Pot, all you’ll need is 4 ingredients.
- chicken broth
- chicken- I love tenders, but you could use breasts too!
- Dried chopped onion- I never have fresh onion on hand. If you happen to have one, go ahead and use that!
- Barbecue sauce- I like Baby Ray’s original)
The chicken broth goes into the Instant Pot first, followed by the chicken and onion.
The BBQ sauce is then squirted on top of the chicken. DO NOT STIR.
The reasoning behind that is because BBQ sauce is a burner. The BBQ sauce needs to be on the top so it doesn’t scorch to the bottom of the pot and give you the dreaded burn notice.
If using tenders (which I strongly suggest you do!!) Cook on Manual HIGH for 3 minutes, NPR 7 minutes.
If using chicken breasts, make sure that the chicken is no thicker than 1 inch. If it is thicker, either pound it to 1 inch thick or ‘butterfly’ the chicken breast by cutting it in half lengthwise. (Think like a hotdog bun.)
For chicken breasts, cook on Manual HIGH for 5 minutes, NPR 7 minutes then rest 5 minutes in the pot. If the chicken breasts are overlapping, you may have to add an additional minute or two.
The BBQ sauce is a very thin but flavorful sauce. I personally like the thickness of it.
I don’t like the texture of pulled chicken when it is shredded and then mixed with straight BBQ sauce. I think the BBQ sauce is extremely overpowering that way as well.
This recipe is the perfect balance of flavor and texture in my book!
Instant Pot BBQ Chicken
(Printable Recipe Below)
Instant Pot BBQ Chicken is so tender, juicy and full of barbecue flavor. Using Chicken Tenders or Breasts, this BBQ Chicken is extremely versatile. Perfect pulled, sliced or served whole! BBQ Chicken is a perfect, quick weeknight meal that everyone in the family will love! Great all year too, it is just as much of a winter dinner as it is a summer meal.
Ingredients
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 8 chicken tenders (Or 2 chicken breasts)
- 1 tbsp dried chopped onion
- 3/4 cup bbq sauce
Instructions
- Add the ingredients to the Instant Pot in this order: broth, chicken, onion then bbq sauce on top.
- DO NOT STIR. (see post for more details as to why)
- Cook on Manual HIGH for 3 minutes NPR 7 minutes. (For Chicken Breasts, take 1 inch thick pieces of chicken and cook on manual HIGH for 5 minutes, NPR 7 minutes, rest 5 minutes. See post for more detailed instruction)
- After the NPR, QR the remaining pressure.
- Serve and enjoy!
Try this Instant Pot BBQ Chicken with these other recipes!
Homemade Dinner Rolls
Cheesy Mashed Potatoes
Creamy Fruit Salad
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Instant Pot BBQ Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 8 chicken tenders, (Or 2 chicken breasts)
- 1 tbsp dried chopped onion
- 3/4 cup bbq sauce
Instructions
- Add the ingredients to the Instant Pot in this order: broth, chicken, onion then bbq sauce on top.
- DO NOT STIR. (see post for more details as to why)
- Cook on Manual HIGH for 3 minutes NPR 7 minutes. (For Chicken Breasts, take 1 inch thick pieces of chicken and cook on manual HIGH for 5 minutes, NPR 7 minutes, rest 5 minutes. See post for more detailed instruction)
- After the NPR, QR the remaining pressure.
- Serve and enjoy!
Newbie here!!
I’m going to have frozen tenders. Does this mean 4-5 min on the Manual setting OR 7 min on the NPR setting?
Hi Katie- Since that original comment I have totally tested frozen chicken tenders! For frozen tenders, cook for 6 min manual and then 7 min NPR. ?
Thanks!!!
I used half the amount of broth and it still turned out way too watery. Plus the sauce doesn’t stick to the meat. Thanks, but this one wasn’t a winner for me.
Hi Jessi- sorry this one wasn’t a hit for you! I personally don’t like thick bbq sauce with my bbq chicken. As stated in the post above, this recipe results in a very thin sauce. If you like it with a thicker sauce? I would cook the chicken in the broth and seasonings and then put the bbq sauce on each chicken tender after they have been cooked and removed from the Instant Pot. Hope this helps a bit! ?
Hello! I’m going to make this recipe tonight. I am curious…would you think reducing the chicken broth to 3/4 cup could help it thicken up? I also don’t know if it would be okay to reduce the liquid. I don’t want to burn my new Instant Pot. I am new to this and I have all the ingredients! I agree. Sometimes recipes have a lot of things I don’t have in my kitchen.
Hi there!! The Instant Pot needs 1 cup of thin liquid to come to pressure, so I wouldn’t recommend reducing the amount of broth. If you’d like the bbq sauce thicker, you could either thicken it afterward with a cornstarch slurry or pull the chicken tenders out after they cook and add some extra bbq sauce on top. Hope that helps!
Followed this recipe with 3 1 +1/2 inch chicken breasts. I have the 8 qt duo. I put the onions on top of the chicken because it only says to put them in after the chicken and the bbq sauce ontop. Came out amazing, though i read the comments before hand and that the sauce would come out thin. After the 5/7/5 i pulled the top off and stuck it on saute and continued to stir the chicken around and flip them. I used the spoon that came with the machine to keep scraping the bottom to make sure nothing would stick and burn. Once the steam was done rolling and the sauce was thick enough to start coating the chicken well i turned off the machine and continued to stir until it stopped bubbling. Chicken came out moist and amazing, after removal the sauce was drained into the same measuring cup that was used for the bbq sauce and we used it like normal bbq sauce ontop of our chicken. 10/10 even though i modified the recipe to make a thicker sauce and sautee the chicken after the pressured boil.
Great tip, Justin! Simmering down the sauce will definitely thicken it up. I am so glad your chicken was tender & amazing! 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to comment, I really appreciate it!
I want to double this recipe for a family of 4.
How much cooking time should I adjust?