Instant Pot Chicken Marsala

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Instant Pot Chicken Marsala with seared chicken, mushrooms, wine, and bacon is a richly flavored and super easy weeknight meal that’s elegant enough for a party. 

an overhead shot looking into a dark bowl on a wooden platter, filled with cooked chicken marsala ready to spoon onto pasta

❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe: This is a super flavorful chicken dish that’s much quicker than the stovetop method. It has a short ingredient list and is mostly hands-off, too!

This pressure cooker chicken marsala recipe gets a major flavor boost from bacon. It’s always a crowd-pleaser and you can even make it ahead of time for dinner or a party. 

This is one of the best Instant Pot chicken recipes, complete with smoky bacon in a savory chicken broth. Serve it over mashed potatoes, rice, or with a side of fluffy bread.

The original inspiration for this dish came from my friend Megan, from the blog Megan’s Cookin’. I adapted it to make things even faster and more hands-off using an Instant Pot / pressure cooker. 

An overhead shot of the ingredients needed to make Instant Pot Chicken marsala, including chicken breasts, mushrooms, bacon, broth, butter, salt, and pepper

INGREDIENTS YOU NEED

Here’s what you need to make the best Instant Pot chicken marsala:

  • Peppered bacon: You can use your favorite kind of bacon if you’re not a fan of pepper.
  • Chicken thighs: Use boneless, skinless thighs and remove any excess fat before you start cooking. 
  • Sweet Marsala wine: You can find this at most grocery stores that sell alcohol or at a liquor store. In a pinch, another sweet wine will work. 
  • Vegetable oil and butter: To brown the chicken and enrich the dish with extra flavor. 
  • Chicken broth: you can use low-sodium store-bought broth or make your own. 
  • Mushrooms: Feel free to use your favorite kind of mushrooms, or a mixture of a few varieties
  • Cornstarch: This will thicken up the stew once you’re done pressure cooking. 
an overhead shot looking into the bottom of an Instant Pot filled with browned chicken thighs, ready to add the broth

How to Make Chicken Marsala in an Instant Pot

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

The first step in making this easy chicken marsala is to brown the bacon, then the chicken thighs. When you render the bacon fat and it crisps up in the pressure cooker, you’ll have wonderfully flavorful fat to cook your chicken in. Don’t pour it out!

an overhead shot of the instant Pot chicken marsala sauce cooked and ready to serve

Brown the chicken thighs until they’re nicely seared on each side. Next, add your marsala to deglaze the pot and scrape up any browned bits stuck to the bottom. These add extra flavor too. 

Now you can add the chicken and broth back to the pot and start pressure cooking. While the chicken cooks, you’ll quickly sauté your mushrooms on the stove

Finally, when the pressure cooking time is done, release the pressure and use a slurry of cornstarch and water to thicken the sauce. Combine everything together and serve!

An overhead shot of the chicken marsala with a silver spoon, garnished by parsley on a wooden round serving plate

Important Tips for Making Instant Pot Chicken Marsala

Browning is an important step in this recipe. It adds a little extra time, but you’ll be glad you did it. When you brown meat, it develops a complex and rich flavor that’s impossible to replicate. 

You’ll want to cook the mushrooms on the stove because they’re so full of water. When you pressure cook, no moisture gets to escape, so the mushrooms would just swell up and stay rubbery, rather than golden brown and crisp. 

A vertical 45 degree shot of a white bowl filled with chicken marsala, garnished with bacon and parsley, served over a bed of yellow bowtie pasta

Frequently Asked Questions about Chicken Marsala 

What kind of wine should I use to make chicken marsala?

You can use either a dry marsala or a sweet marsala, depending on your preference. We prefer the sweet marsala since we’re cutting it with chicken broth as well, which keeps it the sauce from being too sweet.

What should I serve with chicken marsala?

We love to serve this hearty Instant Pot chicken dinner with a starch underneath. You could use mashed potatoes, pasta, rice or any grain you like. 

Can I use chicken breasts?

Sure, if you’d like to replace the thighs with boneless, skinless chicken breasts, that will work. Chicken breasts have a shorter cook time at pressure—I’d start with a 7 minute cook time and a 5 minute natural release. To check for doneness, I recommend using an instant-read thermometer. Make sure that chicken thigh or breast is at least 165°F in the thickest after cooking.

How long can I store leftovers?

Yes, store any leftover chicken and sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat leftovers on the stove or in the microwave to serve. 

A high shot of a bowl full of Instant Pot chicken marsala in a dark bowl with an Instant Pot in the background

MORE Instant Pot Chicken Thigh Recipes

Try these other family-friendly weeknight recipes next:


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an overhead shot of a white plate filled with

Instant Pot Chicken Marsala

Servings: 6 servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Additional Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Course: Chicken
Cuisine: American
Instant Pot Chicken Marsala with bacon and mushrooms is a savory and saucy weeknight dinner the entire family loves. 
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Ingredients

  • 4 slices peppered bacon diced
  • 3 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs, well trimmed
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1/2 cup sweet Marsala wine
  • 1 cup chicken broth
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 3 tablespoon butter divided
  • Chopped parsley or chives for garnish
  • 8 ounces mushrooms sliced
  • 2 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 3 tablespoon cold water
  • 2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Instructions

  • Select Sauté and add diced bacon to pressure cooker pot. Brown the bacon until crisp, stirring frequently. Remove bacon to a plate, leaving the bacon fat in the pot. Set aside
  • Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Add chicken to the pot and brown on both sides in the bacon fat. Cook the chicken in batches. Remove the chicken to a platter, leaving the fat in the pan.
  • Add the marsala to deglaze the pot and let it almost completely evaporate to concentrate the flavor and remove most of the liquid.
  • Add the chicken broth and browned chicken to the pot, along with any juices that have collected on the platter. Be sure to scrape the bottom of the pan to ensure no browned bits remain. Lock the lid in place.
  • Select High Pressure and 10 minutes cook time. (It will take about 10 minutes to reach high pressure.)
  • While the chicken is cooking, heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat until hot. Add oil and 1 tablespoon butter. When butter is melted, add the mushrooms and cook until golden. Season with salt and pepper.
  • When the cook time ends, use a quick pressure release. Carefully remove the lid and remove the chicken from the cooking pot to a serving dish.
  • Combine the cornstarch and water, whisking until smooth. Add the cornstarch mixture to the sauce in the pot, stirring constantly. Select Simmer and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Stir in remaining two tablespoons butter. Add mushrooms and stir to coat with sauce.
  • Taste, and adjust seasoning if desired. Combine sauce with chicken in the serving bowl. Serve topped with crumbled bacon and chopped parsley.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 504kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 58g | Fat: 28g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 17g | Cholesterol: 298mg | Sodium: 871mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g

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