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Chicken thighs are the hero of the dinner. Cheap and easy recipes like this will save you from potential dinnertime hassles. For this reason, you should always buy boneless, skinless chicken thighs from the supermarket, even if you don't have a specific plan to do so.
The honey garlic sauce packs a punch and the Instant Pot saves time so you can make sides like roasted bok choy and coconut rice. You could even add some halved baby potatoes and sliced carrots to the mix and let them cook along with the chicken. No matter what you serve with these sweet, savory and salty chicken thighs, they're sure to be a hit.
“The honey garlic chicken thighs were a simple and delicious meal with some crispy rice. To avoid burning, be sure to deglaze the pan and scrape up any stuck-on bits before adding the sauce and pressure cooking. The recipe worked well in my 6-quart Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus. –Diana Rattray
6 cloves Garlicchopped
1/2 Cup I am willow
1/3 Cup Honey
1/4 Cup Ketchup
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon mushroom powder
1/2 teaspoon Onion powder
1 1/2 tablespoon rapeseed oil
1 Pound Boneless chicken thighswithout skin, about 4
3 tablespoon Water
sesame seeds, for garnish
Green onionssliced, for garnish
Gather the ingredients.
The spruce eats / Eric Kleinberg
In a medium bowl, combine garlic, soy sauce, honey, ketchup, rice vinegar, sesame oil, mushroom powder and onion powder and stir well.
The spruce eats / Eric Kleinberg
Turn on the Sauté setting on the Instant Pot. Once hot, add the rapeseed oil and coat the base. Add the chicken and sear the thighs on each side, about 2 minutes per side. Deglaze the pan with 3 tablespoons water, scraping up any residue stuck to the pan.
The spruce eats / Eric Kleinberg
Add the honey garlic sauce to the pot and turn off the sauté function. Close the lid.
The spruce eats / Eric Kleinberg
Set the pressure cooker/manual setting to 10 minutes. Once the cooking time is up, allow the Instant Pot to naturally release pressure for about five minutes, then manually release any remaining pressure.
The spruce eats / Eric Kleinberg
Transfer the chicken to a serving plate and spoon the sauce over the top or into a small serving bowl next to it. Garnish with sesame seeds and sliced spring onions and serve immediately.
The spruce eats / Eric Kleinberg
Tips
- You can buy mushroom powder online. If you don't have mushroom powder, you can grind some dried mushrooms (such as porcini or shiitake mushrooms) in a coffee or spice grinder, or add 2 dried shiitake or porcini mushrooms to the Instant Pot before putting the lid on to pressure cook.
- To prevent the skinless, boneless chicken thighs from sticking while browning, pat them dry beforehand and make sure the Instant Pot and oil are hot before adding the chicken.
Recipe variations
- If you prefer skin-on chicken thighs, simply preheat the Instant Pot to the sear function and sear the chicken, skin side down, for three to four minutes instead of two minutes per side. Don't force the chicken to turn over – if it still feels like it's sticking to the bottom of the pot while it's browning, you need to brown it some more. The chicken should easily pull away from the bottom of the pan when done and fully browned.
- For bone-in chicken thighs, increase the time to 15 minutes.
- Make a slurry of 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch and 2 teaspoons water to thicken the sauce. When the cooking time is up, remove the cooked chicken from the sauce and keep warm. Select the sauté function and add the cornstarch mixture – cook until thickened, about 1 to 2 minutes.
Here's how to store it
- Refrigerate remaining chicken thighs and sauce in a covered container and consume within 4 days.
- To freeze the chicken and sauce, allow to cool completely, place in zip-top freezer bags, and label with name and date. Freeze honey garlic chicken for up to 3 months. Thaw the chicken in the refrigerator overnight.
- Reheat gently on the stove or in the microwave.
Can I use frozen chicken legs instead of fresh?
Yes, you can use frozen chicken thighs in the Instant Pot. If your chicken thighs are frozen, separate them, skip the browning step, and increase the pressure cooking time by 2 minutes.
| Nutritional Information (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 428 | Calories |
| 21g | Fat |
| 33g | carbohydrates |
| 32g | protein |
View full nutrition label
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| Nutritional Information | |
|---|---|
| Servings: 3 to 4 | |
| Amount per serving | |
| Calories | 428 |
| % Daily Value* | |
| 21g | 27% |
| Saturated fat 4g | 20% |
| 138 mg | 46% |
| 2092 mg | 91% |
| 33g | 12% |
| Fiber 2g | 6% |
| Total sugar 26g | |
| 32g | |
| Vitamin C 3 mg | 15% |
| Calcium 108 mg | 8th % |
| Iron 3 mg | 16% |
| Potassium 566 mg | 12% |
| *The % Daily Value (DV) indicates how much a nutrient in a food portion contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories per day is used for general nutritional advice. | |
(Nutritional information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)
