Instant Pot Mexican Shredded Chicken for tacos, burritos, burrito bowls, enchiladas, and more! This simple 5-ingredient shredded chicken recipe is so easy to make and may just be the only recipe for shredded chicken you’ll ever need.
You’re looking at my family’s favorite Mexican shredded chicken recipe!
This Instant Pot Mexican Shredded Chicken is identical to my 5-Ingredient Crock Pot Mexican Shredded Chicken, but is simply made in the pressure cooker instead of the slow cooker.
This is the same recipe my family makes each and every time we get together for family dinner and are having burrito bowls.
And let’s face it, the majority of the time we gather, burrito bowls are what’s on the menu, because everyone can build their own bowl, leaving the whole family happy and satisfied.
This to say, this amazing shredded chicken recipe turns out delightfully tender and thoroughly blasted with flavor.
The secret ingredient is enchilada sauce, which is generously seasoned with mild spices and also serves as the liquid for cooking.
All things considered, this is such a versatile recipe.
Use this easy Mexican shredded chicken for your tacos, burrito bowls, burritos, enchiladas, tostadas, nachos, and more!
Let’s discuss the basic ingredients needed to make this recipe.
Ingredients for Instant Pot Mexican Shredded Chicken:
Boneless Chicken Thighs or Breasts: Pick up three pounds of boneless skinless chicken thighs, boneless skinless chicken breasts, or chicken tenders from the grocery store. I recommend using chicken thighs or chicken tenders for the best results, as the meat turns out very tender. Larger chicken breasts will work but they won’t turn out as tender.
Onion: Rounding out the flavor of the chicken, we use one fresh small yellow onion. White onion and red onion work too.
Enchilada Sauce: The all-star ingredient that serves as both liquid and a tremendous amount of flavor, one can of enchilada sauce goes a long way in creating the absolute best shredded chicken. I use organic red enchilada sauce, but green enchilada sauce works great too.
Salsa: Pick your favorite store-bought or homemade salsa to add to the chicken. I like using a standard tomato salsa or a green tomatillo salsa (also known as green salsa or salsa verde).
Canned Green Chilis: Mild canned green chiles bring fresh flavor to the chicken.
Sea Salt: Add salt to your personal taste. I wait until the chicken is fully cooked to add salt because the enchilada sauce and the salsa both contain a decent amount of sodium.
Recipe Adaptations:
- If you love the flavor of chili powder or homemade taco seasoning, add in 1 to 2 tablespoons.
- Chop up 3 to 5 cloves of garlic and toss it in with the rest of the ingredients.
- If your Instant Pot is giving you a burn notice, add ½ cup of chicken broth or more salsa or enchilada sauce.
- For smoky, spicy shredded chicken, add 2 to 4 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce.
- Toss in 2 to 3 teaspoons of garlic powder if you have it on hand.
Now that we’ve covered the simple ingredients, let’s make it!
Is This Recipe Spicy?:
Enchilada sauce is already pretty mild, and unless you’re using a spicy hot salsa and hot canned green chilis, the whole recipe is mild. I keep it mild by sticking with mild salsa and mild green chilis.
For those who love spicy food, use hot salsa, hot canned green chiles, and if you still want more heat, chop up a jalapeno or serrano (or two or three) and toss it in with the seeds.
How to Make Instant Pot Mexican Shredded Chicken:
Plug in your pressure cooker and press the Sauté button and add the oil. Allow it to heat up for a few minutes, then add chopped onion. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onion has softened, about 5 to 8 minutes.
Add all of the remaining ingredients to the Instant Pot.
Stir everything until all of the ingredients are well-distributed.
Secure the lid on the Instant Pot and pressure cook on High pressure in the manual setting for 20 minutes (in other words, press “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” and set the timer for 20 minutes, making sure the pressure is set to High heat, not Low heat) Turn the steam valve set to the sealed position (or ‘sealing’) if it isn’t already shut. If you’re using frozen chicken, increase the cook time 4 extra minutes for a total of 24 minutes.
The pressure cooker will take about 5 to 10 minutes to heat up. Once it has come to pressure, it will run its 20-minute pressure cook course.
Once finished, allow the Instant Pot to go into natural release all the way and go into Keep Warm mode for at least 15 minutes (ideally one hour if you have the time).
After 15 minutes, you can use the quick release to release any remaining pressure, although I recommend allowing it to naturally release completely for the most tender chicken.
Open the lid of the Instant Pot and use tongs to transfer the chicken to a cutting board. Use two forks to shred it.
Transfer the chicken back to the Instant Pot with the juices so that it soaks up more flavor.
Use chicken for Instant Pot chicken tacos, burritos, enchiladas, tostadas, chicken quesadillas, or taco salad. I love making a big burrito bowl with brown rice or Mexican rice, black beans, cheese, sour cream, pico de gallo, guacamole or diced avocado and a drizzle of lime juice. I also like pouring some of the cooking liquids over my steamed brown rice for more flavor.
You can make a low carb meal by using low-carb tortillas or making a bowl with cauliflower rice.
Store any leftover chicken in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
This Mexican chicken recipe is even better the next day and several days following preparation, so if you’re able to make it in advance, there’s no reason not to.
And that’s it! The best shredded Mexican chicken that is relatively quick and majorly tasty!
It’s a perfect easy dinner for meal prep and for whipping up whenever the craving strikes for Mexican cuisine.
This easy Instant Pot shredded chicken recipe works as a freezer meal. Simply store the chicken in a large freezer bag that’s double wrapped for up to 3 months.
Make it the next time you’re partaking in Taco Tuesday, craving Mexican food or are serving friends and family dinner. If you’re serving more than 6 individuals, you can easily make a double batch as a great option for feeding many people.
Looking for more Instant Pot recipes? Try out these reader favorites!
More Instant Pot Recipes:
- Instant Pot Whole Chicken
- Asian-Inspired Instant Pot Chicken Thighs
- Instant Pot Lentil Soup
- Pressure Cooker Green Curry
- Instant Pot Chile Colorado
- Pressure Cooker Korean Beef Bulgogi
- Instant Pot Turmeric Chicken and Root Vegetables
What will you do with your chicken??
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp avocado oil
- 1 small yellow onion, or ½ large yellow onion, diced
- 3 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs*
- 1 7-oz can diced green chilis
- 1 15-oz can enchilada sauce
- 1 cup salsa of choice
- Sea salt**
Instructions
- Plug in your pressure cooker and press the Sauté button and add the oil. Allow it to heat up for a few minutes, then add chopped onion. Sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onion has softened, about 5 to 8 minutes.
- Add all of the remaining ingredients to the Instant Pot.
- Stir everything until all of the ingredients are well-distributed.
- Secure the lid on the Instant Pot. Press “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” and set the timer for 20 minutes, making sure the pressure is set to High heat, not Low heat. Turn the steam valve set to the sealed position (or ‘sealing’) if it isn’t already shut. If you're using frozen chicken, increase the cook time 4 extra minutes for a total of 24 minutes.
- The pressure cooker will take about 5 to 10 minutes to heat up. Once it has come to pressure, it will run its 20-minute pressure cook course.
- Once finished, allow the Instant Pot to go into natural release all the way and go into Keep Warm mode for at least 15 minutes (ideally one hour if you have the time). After 15 minutes, you can use the quick release to release any remaining pressure.
- Open the lid of the Instant Pot and use tongs to transfer the chicken to a cutting board. Use two forks to shred it.
- Transfer the chicken back to the Instant Pot with the juices so that it soaks up more flavor.
- Use chicken for Instant Pot chicken tacos, burritos, enchiladas, tostadas, chicken quesadillas, or taco salad.
Notes
Nutrition
This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission off items you purchase at no additional cost to you.
Dale Marie Ingraham
Saturday 1st of April 2023
How do you make the shredded mexican chicken if you don't have an instant pot?
Julia
Monday 3rd of April 2023
Hi Dale! I linked to my slow cooker version in the post, but you can also find it here: https://www.theroastedroot.net/crock-pot-mexican-shredded-chicken/ Hope you enjoy! xo