Instant Pot Chicken and Potatoes

Enjoy a hearty meal of chicken and potatoes made quick in your Instant Pot. This recipe is a true time saver, steaming the potatoes and pressure cooking the chicken at the same time in the same pot.

We wanted to make a really easy, really flavorful meal that cooks the main dish and the side dish at the same time using ingredients we often have on hand. This one turned out perfectly and will be on regular rotation at our house.

Using whole chicken breasts and new potatoes helps to cut down on the prep time. That means you can have dinner on the table in under 30 minutes.

The rich, flavorful gravy, tender chicken, and fluffy potatoes mean it is sure to be a hit at your house!

✅ This easy recipe will work in any brand of electric pressure cooker, including the Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi, or Power Pressure Cooker XL.

Frequently Asked Questions about Instant Pot Chicken and Potatoes

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Chicken and Potatoes Instant Pot recipe

Servings: 6 people

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes minutes

15 minutes minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes minutes

Course: Chicken

Cuisine: American

Simplify your cooking by making your main dish and side dish at the same time. Juicy chicken and tender potatoes cooked up quick and easy.

5 from 3 votes

Print Pin Recipe Rate

Equipment

• OXO Good Grips Stainless Steel Steamer with Extendable Handle
• Instant Pot RIO, 6 Quart

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 ranch seasoning packet 1 oz (We used Hidden Valley)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
• 2 pounds baby red or gold potatoes washed and cut into 1-inch pieces if needed
• 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts 2 to 3 pounds total
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 to 2 tablespoons cold water
• 1 to 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Instructions

• In a small bowl, stir together Italian seasoning, pepper, and ranch packet and set aside.
• In a large ziplock bag, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and all of the potatoes. Add about half of the seasoning mixture and shake until the seasoning is evenly distributed. Pour the potatoes into a steamer basket. Set aside.
• Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the same ziplock bag and add the chicken. Pour in the remaining seasoning mixture and shake until the seasoning is evenly distributed over the chicken.
• Add the chicken broth to the pressure cooking pot. Add the chicken in an even layer. Place the steamer basket on top of the chicken. Lock the lid in place. Select High Pressure and set the cook time for 5 minutes.
• When the cook time ends, allow the pressure to release naturally for 5 minutes, then finish with a quick pressure release. When the valve drops, carefully remove the lid. Remove the steamer basket and cover the potatoes.
• In a small bowl, dissolve the cornstarch in cold water. (Start with 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 1 tablespoon water. If there’s quite a bit more liquid in the pot than there initially was, you may need to use 2 tablespoons of each.) Push the chicken to one side of the pot and add the cornstarch mixture, and stir to combine. Select Sauté and stir constantly until the sauce thickens.
• Serve the chicken and potatoes, with a drizzle of gravy on the chicken and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese on the potatoes.

Notes

* The chicken breasts we used were 1.5 to 2 inches thick at the thickest part of the breast, and 5 minutes with a 5 minute release got it to exactly 165°F. If you’re using thicker chicken breasts, you may need to increase the cook time by a minute or two. If you’re using much thinner breasts, you may need to reduce the cook time by a minute. 

**If desired, you can broil the potatoes in the air fryer or oven to crisp them up. Preheat to 400°F and cook until they start to brown. (We rarely do this step, but they do look prettier this way.)

Nutrition

Calories: 249kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 17g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 40mg | Sodium: 233mg | Potassium: 870mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 71IU | Vitamin C: 30mg | Calcium: 73mg | Iron: 2mg

INGREDIENTS YOU NEED

Just 10 ingredients for both your main dish and side!

• Italian seasoning blend: This is a great way to add a blend of herb flavors without having to measure out a bunch of spices.
• Pepper: Use fresh ground pepper if you want a richer flavor.
• Ranch seasoning packet: We love using the ranch packet on this recipe because it adds a lot of flavor.
• Olive oil: We recommend extra virgin.
• New potatoes: These are also packaged as “baby” potatoes. We tested this recipe with baby reds and baby gold potatoes.
• Chicken: You want to fill the bottom with chicken—about three breasts, 2 to 3 pounds total should do it. The chicken breasts we used were 1½ to 2 inches thick at the thickest part of the breast, and 5 minutes with a 5 minute release got it to exactly 165°F.
• Chicken broth: We use reduced-sodium broth. You can substitute water if you prefer, but we like the flavor the broth lends to the potatoes and gravy. 
• Cornstarch: Use this to thicken the cooking liquid into a light gravy.
• Parmesan cheese: Adds a great touch to finish off your meal as you plate it up.

Helpful Tips for Making Instant Pot Chicken and Potatoes

Having similar sized potatoes is important. Look for a package with mostly small, round potatoes, about 1-inch thick. This size, you can just cook whole. If you have a mix of large and small, cut the potatoes in half to get them close in size. Cut larger potatoes are more likely to fall apart, but they’ll still taste good.

The recipe is fairly forgiving, but if you’re using thicker breasts, you may need to increase the cook time by a minute or two. If you’re using much thinner breasts, you may need to reduce the cook time by a minute. When the cook time is done you will want to double their temperature with an instant read thermometer. 

Products

None of these are sponsored, just items that make it easier to make this meal!

For potatoes that steam on top of the chicken, you’ll need a steamer basket with feet that are tall enough to fit over the top of the chicken. We used our Oxo Stainless Steel Steamer, which has held up for 6 years (and counting).

If you prefer silicone, we also like this Oxo Silicone Steamer.

More One-Pot Meal recipes

Looking for more easy one-pot meals where mains and sides cook together at the same time! Try one of these recipes next:

• Cacciatore Chicken and Polenta
• Kung Pao Chicken
• Old Fashioned Pot Roast
• Pesto Chicken and Quinoa, from InstaFresh Meals
• Cajun Chicken Pasta, from Paint the Kitchen Red

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