Instant Pot Quick Chicken thighs are one of my go-to weeknight recipes. Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs are sprinkled with some dried herbs and spices, seared on the skin side to crisp up the skin, then pressure cooked 20 minutes at high pressure. Quick and easy!
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I sense a disturbance in the Dark Meat. Chicken thighs are having an online moment, with a bunch of posts singing their praises. Finally! To lure you to the dark side1, here is my simplest dark meat recipe - Instant Pot Quick Chicken Thighs.
I use this recipe when the planets align against me2, the boss is breathing down my neck3, and the kids are just not listening to me4. When force-choking another incompetent co-worker just feels like too much effort…this is what I make for dinner.
Ahem...sorry, I let my inner Star Wars nerd get loose for a second there. (This recipe is still great for busy weeknight dinners, though.)
How long to cook chicken thighs in an Instant Pot (and other chicken notes)
Bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs take 20 minutes at high pressure with a quick release in an Instant Pot. If you have individually frozen thighs, they will take an extra 5 minutes - 25 minutes total - but you won't be able to season them before cooking, the seasonings will just bounce off the frozen chicken.
If you want to cook boneless skinless chicken thighs, they take 10 minutes at high pressure - but that's a different recipe. Read my Instant Pot Quick Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs recipe for boneless skinless chicken thigh details.
Chicken cooking safety
Chicken should be 160°F internal temperature in its thickest part, measured with an Instant Read thermometer, for safe cooking. That said...these thighs should be well past that after 20 minutes. (Chicken thighs are great in the pressure cooker because they want to be overcooked - they're best above 170°F, and are good up to 190°F.)
Tips and Tricks
- Pot liquid gravy: If you want to make a quick gravy, use 1 cup of chicken broth as the cooking liquid in the recipe instead of the water. Then, after cooking: Move the thighs to a platter and pour the pot liquid into a fat separator. Set the Instant Pot back to Sauté mode - High, add ¼ cup of butter, and wait for it to melt. Whisk in ¼ cup of all-purpose flour and ¼ teaspoon of fine sea salt. Keep whisking, making sure no flour is sticking to the bottom of the pot, until the flour starts to turn golden brown, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the defatted pot liquid. And you're done! Pour the gravy into a gravy boat and pass it at the table.
- Seasonings: This recipe works with any seasoning blend - replace the Italian Seasoning with your your favorite! Some suggestions are my Cajun Seasoning, All-Purpose Seasoning, or Coriander, Fennel, and Garlic Seasoning.
What to Serve with Chicken Thighs
Chicken thighs go well with lots of different sides. On a weeknight, I'll serve them with vegetable side and a starch to make a complete meal. I like a quick-cooking starch like Orzo Pilaf, Quick Couscous, or Air Fryer French Fries. My favorite quick vegetable side is Steam-Sauteed Green Beans on the stovetop. Or, if you have a second Instant Pot, I like a quick-cooking kale, like Garlic-Lemon Kale or Kale and Pancetta.
Print📖 Recipe Card
Instant Pot Chicken Thighs Recipe
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 8 thighs 1x
Description
Bone-in skin-on chicken thighs, seasoned with dried herbs and spices, seared to crisp the skin, and pressure cooked for 20 minutes. Simple and delicious!
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 8 chicken thighs, bone in and skin on (about 3 pounds)
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning (optional)
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
- ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Season and brown the chicken thighs: Heat the teaspoon of oil in the pressure cooker over medium-high heat (sauté mode adjusted to high in an Instant Pot) until the oil is shimmering. Sprinkle the chicken thighs evenly with the salt, Italian Seasoning, garlic powder, and fresh ground black pepper. Brown the thighs in two batches: Put four of the chicken thighs in the pot, skin side down, and cook until the skin is golden brown, about 4 minutes. Move the browned thighs to a bowl, then brown the remaining 4 thighs, skin side down, about 5 more minutes. Move the second batch of thighs to the bowl.
- Pressure cook the chicken thighs for 20 minutes with a quick release: Pour 1 cup of water into the pressure cooker pot, and scrape the bottom of the pot with a flat-edged wooden spoon to loosen any browned bits of chicken. Add the cooking rack to the pot and set the chicken on in loose layers (4 thighs each layer in my 6-quart pot). Pour in any chicken juices in the bowl. Lock the lid and cook at high pressure for 20 minutes in an Instant Pot or other electric pressure cooker, or for 16 minutes in a stovetop PC. (Use Manual or Pressure Cook mode in an Instant Pot.) After pressure cooking, quick release the pressure from the pot.
- Serve: Lift the chicken thighs out of the pot and on to a platter. (Be gentle - they will be fall-apart tender). Spoon a little of the pot liquid over the thighs, serve, and enjoy.
Notes
- Want to crisp the chicken skin a bit more? After cooking and releasing the pressure, set the chicken thighs on a rimmed baking sheet, skin-side up, and run them under a broiler until the skin starts to brown and bubble, about 5 minutes. (The time depends on your broiler - there's a huge range in heat output. Keep an eye on the thighs, and pull them out when they look browned.)
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 chicken thigh
- Calories: 433
- Sugar: 0 g
- Sodium: 447.2 mg
- Fat: 32.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 0.9 g
- Protein: 32 g
- Cholesterol: 189.1 mg
Recipe Scaling
This recipe scales up and down easily. Use as many chicken thighs as you want, just watch out for the max fill line on your pressure cooker. Doubling the recipe will just fit in a 6-quart pressure cooker, though an 8-quart pressure cooker would be better. Halve the recipe and it will fit in a 4-quart pressure cooker. One note: always use 1 cup of water. 1 cup creates the steam to pressure cook, no matter how many chicken thighs you are cooking.
What do you think?
Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
Related Posts
- Instant Pot Chicken Cacciatore
- Pressure Cooker Chicken With 40 Cloves of Garlic
- Pressure Cooker Chicken Legs with Herb Rub
- Pollo a la Brasa (rotisserie Peruvian chicken)
- Air Fryer Breaded Chicken Thighs and Potatoes
- My other Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Recipes
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Mike Vrobel says
Thanks, Dave! Fixed.
Dave says
No need to publish this comment but wanted to let you know I think you have a typo or at least there is confusion in your post. The entire thing talks about chicken thighs except in instruction #2 where it says to cook the chicken legs. Thought you'd want to know.... Thanks for your awesome blog! You inspired me to take the instant pot leap and now it's the primary cooking device in our house!