Instant Pot Bourbon Chicken

A little sweet and a little spicy, this EASY Instant Pot Honey Bourbon Chicken recipe is BIG on flavor and takes just minutes. It’s a fan favorite and also freezer friendly!

Why This is One of My Favorite Instant Pot Chicken Recipes

With all of these perks, what’s not to love about easy Instant Pot Honey Bourbon Chicken?

1. It’s super simple to throw together. Simply dump the ingredients in the Instant Pot and cook it for 7 minutes. After it’s done, you can quickly thicken up the sauce using what’s called a cornstarch slurry. It’s optional yet quite easy.

2. It’s complex in flavor thanks to ingredients like fresh ginger (just keep some in the freezer to have on hand), soy sauce (or substitute gluten-free coconut aminos), honey, green onions, and, of course, bourbon. (More on the bourbon in a minute.)

3. My kids love it! It’s a little spicy, but you can always pull back on the spice if your family has a sensitive palate.

4. It’s been very well-tested by Polly and me, as well as, our 500 person recipe-testing team for our cookbook! In fact, we spent nearly two years developing and refining the recipes in From Freezer to Cooker. This recipe is actually one of the few on our site that is also in our cookbook!

5. It’s naturally dairy-free and can be made gluten-free with our substitutions. (According to Beyond Celiac, most bourbon is gluten-free due to the distillation process.)

Now here’s the key to delicious Instant Pot Bourbon Chicken: Do not overcook your chicken! If you follow our recipe, you’re good to go. But…be sure to download and print off our Instant Pot Cooking Times Chart that we spent two years developing for our cookbook. This guide will help you pressure cook both fresh and frozen meals perfectly! It’s our gift to you!

• In order for the 6 quart Instant Pot to work, it needs a minimum of 1 cup of liquid. If you have an 8 quart Instant Pot, it needs at least 1 1/2 cups of liquid.
• Because chicken breast is so easy to overcook, we always use the quick release method. Quick release is when you turn the pressure release valve to “open” or “venting” (depending on IP model) at the completion of the cooking cycle. This forces the steam to release from the Instant Pot quickly.
• Do not stack chicken when cooking in the Instant Pot. It will cook unevenly. This is especially true for frozen chicken. Try to spread it out evenly along the bottom as much as you can.
• Use a meat thermometer like the one we recommend here to determine doneness. All poultry must cook to the safe temperature of 165°F internally (or no more pink inside). You don’t want to cook it longer than that or it will get dried out.
• If cooking chicken from frozen, make sure to read our post about how to prepare and cook freezer meals in the Instant Pot. Seriously, don’t skip it.
• If you have more questions about the Instant Pot, swing by and browse Instant Pot 101.

I personally don’t drink or enjoy the taste of bourbon. However, when used in cooking, I’ve found that the bourbon lends a smoky, caramel-like sweetness that’s hard to replicate with another ingredient.

If you have kids, don’t worry, the alcohol will almost entirely evaporate when the sauce is simmered at the end. Look for small bottles by the liquor counter, if you don’t have some at home in your cabinet.

Wondering what you can use as a replacement for bourbon? One of our readers said she used chicken stock as a replacement with good results.

You bet! In fact, we have a whole post walking you through how to make Bourbon Chicken in the Slow Cooker.

Want More Freezer Meals for the Instant Pot?

We’ve got you covered. Hop over to this post highlighting 20+ Best of the Best Freezer Meals for the Instant Pot. It includes freezer meal instructions for EVERY recipe plus tons of pro tips and tricks we’ve learned over the years.

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