Instant Pot Ginger Chicken Thighs
These Instant Pot Ginger Chicken Thighs are made once a week in my home. Anybody who knows me, also knows that I have a constant supply of chicken that’s used for everything from salads to most entrees. These chicken thighs are skinless so they need the skin removed prior to cooking. Chicken skin in an instant pot leaves the skin soggy and mushy (which isn’t the most enjoyable way to enjoy chicken skin).
I usually flavor these lightly if I’m making chicken for “everyday” use. If I’m making chicken for a special purpose like “Chicken Biryani”, or something then that would be a different story and a different recipe. Today, I’ll be sharing a recipe that is perfect to be chopped up in a salad or can easily be placed on a plate with some rice or other side dish.
I’m using an instant pot pressure cooker but any pressure cooker will work fine. Looking at the recipe here, I’ve got the prep time at ten minutes. That’s including taking the skin off the chicken, then season and add the ginger. The rest is just set the instant pot for 11 minutes and wait.
It’s important to note that I have 5 lbs of BONE IN chicken. Boneless chicken will have a slightly less cooking time without the bone and you’re looking at 9 minutes before the texture of your chicken gets broken down too much. The chicken is still edible and may even be good, but most likely, not the texture you were looking for.
As mentioned, this recipe is for those that cook with an instant pot, a multi-cooker, or pressure cooker. The chicken is pressure cooked for 11 minutes with bone in.
| Prep Time | Cook Time | Total Time |
|---|---|---|
| 10 mins | 11 mins | 21 mins |
- 1 Cup Water
- 5 lbs Chicken Thighs (skinless, bone in)
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1/2 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- Fresh Herbs: Rosemary, thyme, parsley
- 1 good chunk of sliced or chopped ginger
- Remove skin from chicken, and trim excess fat, etc.
- Season the chicken with salt, pepper, garlic powder, coriander and optional DRIED herbs before placing chicken thighs in the instant pot.
- Place the chicken in the Instant pot and add water, ginger, minced garlic, and any fresh herbs you may want in there.
- Pressure cook for 11 minutes.
- The chicken is done but let rest in the instant pot for 15 minutes. The pressure drops naturally through the cycle but in a hurry you can release the pressure manually too.
- Chicken is ready to serve immediately or the storage container after an hour.
Recipe Rating: 5 / 5
Once they’re done the thighs must be removed from the cooker and left to rest. I will usually leave them on a plate for an hour before packaging them up for refrigeration.
This is everyday chicken for me. That means I’ll debone at least half (if not all of it), and chop up for salads and “add ins” for anything from rice, soups, stews, and anywhere chunks of chicken would go good. The chicken is already cooked so it’s fine to eat cold and reheating the chicken for most recipes is as quick as it can be. If I’m thinking entrees this week I’ll make sure to save a few with the bone and reheat in the microwave easy no problem.
If you’re living on limited time, like myself, this makes great sense when cooking a good amount for the week and then dividing it up for a whole bunch of meals. So easy to prep for the week this way.
Of course having some chicken thighs right out of the cooker is an EXCELLENT idea too. Enjoy with your favorite side dish.