One of my favorite French recipes is Poulet au Pot - chicken in a pot, simmered in broth until it falls off the bone. This is my weeknight version, when I need to get dinner on the table with as little actual work as possible. A pack of chicken legs, some dried herbs, and a half cup of water, and I have dinner on the table in about an hour, with most of the time spent staring at the pressure cooker. 1
Now, when I said “the least amount of work possible”, there is one part of this recipe that takes a little work - browning the legs. You can skip this step, but I don’t recommend it. Browning makes the skin taste much better, the browned bits on the bottom of the pot make a rich sauce, and browning renders some of the fat in chicken legs. It’s worth the extra 15 minutes.
For those of you asking “can I substitute chicken breast?” - eh, if you insist, but chicken legs are perfect for this recipe. I’ve said before, I’m a fan of the dark side of the chicken. 2 Chicken legs are best when they’re fall off the bone tender; chicken breast is overcooked and a little stringy. (Also, chicken legs are shockingly cheap when I can get them on sale at my grocery store.)
Video
Recipe: Pressure Cooker Chicken Legs with Herb Rub
Print
Pressure Cooker Chicken Legs with Herb Rub
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 6 chicken legs 1x
Description
Pressure Cooker Chicken Legs with Herb Rub recipe - hands off chicken legs with pan sauce from the pressure cooker.
Ingredients
- 6 chicken legs (aka “chicken leg quarters”)
- 3 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt (½ teaspoon per leg)
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried Italian Seasoning (¼ teaspoon per leg)
- ¾ teaspoons garlic powder (⅛ teaspoon per leg)
- ¾ teaspoons fresh ground black pepper (⅛ teaspoon per leg)
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- ½ cup water (or chicken broth)
Instructions
- Season and brown the chicken legs: Sprinkle the chicken legs evenly with the salt, Italian Seasoning, garlic powder, and fresh ground black pepper. Heat a tablespoon of oil in the pressure cooker over medium heat (sauté mode in an electric pressure cooker) until shimmering. Brown the skin side of the chicken legs in batches - each leg should lay flat in the pot. In my 6 quart Instant Pot, I can fit two legs in the pot, skin side down. Cook each set of legs until the skin is browned, about 4 minutes. Move the browned legs to a bowl, then repeat with the remaining legs. Pour the chicken fat out of the pot.
- Pressure cook the chicken legs: Pour ½ cup of water into the pressure cooker pot. Over medium heat (or sauté mode), bring the water to a simmer, scraping any browned bits on the bottom of the pan into the liquid. Once all the browned bits are scraped up, add the chicken legs and any chicken juices in the bowl. Lock the lid and pressure cook on high for 30 minutes in an electric pressure cooker, 25 minutes in a stovetop PC. Let the pressure come down naturally, about 15 more minutes. Serve, passing the liquid in the pot on the side as a sauce.
Equipment
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Notes
If you have the time, de-fat the sauce. Pour the liquid from the pot into a fat separator and let it rest for a few minutes, so the fat floats to the top. Then, pour the de-fatted sauce into a serving bowl.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Category: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: American
What do you think?
Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
Related Posts
Pressure Cooker Chicken Broth and Shredded Chicken
Pressure Cooker Chicken Stew
Pressure Cooker Chicken Tacos - Tinga de Pollo
My other Pressure Cooker Recipes
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Sherry says
Came out so tender! Used the leftover chicken next day for chicken salad. So good!
★★★★
Shelly says
Made this a couple of nights ago. Substituted lemon pepper for herb mixture. 2 people do not eat the skin so I peeled it back and seasoned theirs and covered it back up. When I served it I just cut the skin off of theirs. Falling off the bone delicious.
★★★★★
Marianne says
Thanks, great, easy dinner.
susan broze says
Hubby proclaims this "the best chicken" he's ever had! I am not a fan of chicken skin, so I didn't even try it, even so, I also enjoyed the flavor. Well done! I'll be making this chicken again.
★★★★★
Mike Vrobel says
Thank you!
Mich says
Easy to make
★★★★★
22 Cowboy says
Really like this one, though it seems like my IP takes quite awhile to brown the thighs.
Debi Yakel says
I just got an instant pot a couple weeks ago, so far I’ve only done a pork roast. I’m planning to do these leg quarters tomorrow. I have 10lbs frozen that I need to thaw. I usually get on average 7legquarters . My husband works at a chicken processing plant and they give us 10lbs of them every once in a while.
I’m looking forward to seeing if they turn out
Jeanette says
YUM! Just got a multi-pot and this recipe is the first thing I made with it! Thanks for both the level of detail in the recipe and for responding to people's questions, as both were helpful in my first pressure cooking adventure. All of the instructions that came with my cooker (Mueller) showed less time for chicken, so I tried the 25 minute built-in option, and it was perfectly juicy, tender, and cooked all the way through. I also skipped the fat separation step, and as others mentioned, it still came out great. Looking forward to trying more of your recipes.
★★★★★
Rebekah says
My 7 yes is such a picky eater. He gobbled this right up. Thank you so much for sharing!
★★★★★
carolyn says
very tasty, fast and easy
★★★★★
Sandra Krcmar says
You are awesome! This is awesome! Love the vid!
★★★★★
Hope Elliott says
I am currently browning my chicken in my IP to make this recipe for the 2nd time now! I just wanted to let you know this dish is a hit in my home and to thank you for sharing it with us!
★★★★★
Mike Vrobel says
You’re welcome!
angiesrecipes says
Awesome! I can't wait to give this a try since I adore the dark side of the chicken too.
Anna Davis says
Thank you! My son loved. I did add more water in the pressure cooker for gravy.
It was very good.
★★★★★
Deb O. says
Surprisingly tasty considering how easy it is to make!
★★★★★
Marilyn says
I am new to IP cooking. I followed cooking directions and it had to be the best chicken legs/thighs we have had. Fiance raved. He ate 2 legs and 2 thighs. This is a keeper!! Thank you.
Michelle says
Wonderful recipe! Turned out better than I hoped!
★★★★★
matsugirl says
I followed your cooking direction for 5 leg quarters. I used my 8 qt instant pot and used chicken seasoning that came with our BBQ. When chicken was ready, I put on BBQ cooking tray, brushed BBQ sauce on the leg quarters. Put on the BBQ to carmalized the sauce. Delicous flavor and meat falling off the bones. Soooooo good!
tc says
Six chicken legs? Absurd. This is more than worthy of leftovers. Fill it to your pot's max. Nom nom nom.
Carole Libbey says
Made just as suggested - brushed some stickey fingers bq sauce on them before pressure cooking. Excellent all around.
★★★★★
Sandy Hudson says
I made this last night and it turned out perfect. I've had 6 qt. Instant Pot since 11/17 - absolutely love it!!!
This recipe is definitely a keeper.
★★★★★
Laura says
add paprika to your seasoning and these legs brown up beautifully when searing
Razzy 7 says
Good suggestion, Laura. Thanks.
Isbrucker says
The roommates loved this recipe. I would have removed the skin to make it less fatty, but still enjoyed it immensely.
A few tips and adjustments I made: I started with a single layer of mini potatoes to line the IP. Added some celery and a quartered onion. I browned the chicken in an iron skillet (easier to control the heat on the stove), then deglazed that pan and poured the liquid and brown bits on top of the chicken in the IP. (About a cup of liquid total.)
After 30 minutes, had delicious chicken, perfectly cooked potatoes, and a few cups of chicken stock.
Nom nom nom.
★★★★★
Mike Vrobel says
Thank you, glad they liked it!
★★★★★
Suzy says
So glad you posted this - never would have thought something so simple could be so easy and good . I used cooking wine and water for the liquid . After it finished I reduced the juices. Doctored it up with a bit of stock and some onion powder and pepper. Added a bit of milk and some cornstarch to thicken it up a tad . Another home run with dadcooksdinner !
★★★★★
spike says
Good result from this - got a very rich pan gravy and braised some bok choy and garlic in it afterwards. One caveat though - I deglazed the pan right after browning and lost a fair bit of liquid from the 1/2c water as it boiled off during the process, enough to where the pot would not pressurize (IP 6 qt Lux v3) and another 1/2c of liquid was needed.
Joy says
I made this and it was out of this world ! I did add cornstarch to the essence for a little thickening. Again it was awesome!! Thanks!
★★★★★
Don Winkel says
How is the skin, I like crispy. Under broiler for a bit??
Mike Vrobel says
Definitely needs the broiler for crispy skin. Pressure cooking is a wet cooking method.
Brad Cobb says
I'm going to try Browning chicken legs this time ... I prefer to use for a dry rub the seasonings that they came up with in the Chicago Tribune article for KFC ... pressure cook chicken legs for only 20 minutes ... use cold water to bring the pressure down instantly ... because the next step is to double dip the chickens in the KFC flour mixture ... and into the deep fryer to finish off ... I'm 100% certain the colonel didn't do it this way ... and I have 16, not 11 ingredients in the flour coating mixture ... but this is what I've worked out that tastes best to me ... 🙂
Myriam Windham says
this was super good
★★★★★
Katie says
I made this tonight and oh. Em. GEE! I added extra liquid so I could use the remnants in the rice I was serving with it! Woohoo delicious, thank you!!
★★★★★
Myriam Windham says
Tried this tonight. Sooooo good. My extremely picky eaters ate it up and asked for 3rds. This never happens (unless mac n cheese is on the menu of course)!
★★★★★
Brittany says
Roughly 20 mins if I want to use bone in thighs instead?
Shae Senner says
LOVE LOVE LOVE IT. I cooked 4 huge leg quarters exactly as described. Also added lemon slices, and it turned out so juicy and tender. ?? Served it over white rice and used the juices as gravy to pour over rice. THANK YOU
★★★★★
Susan in Las Vegas says
Hi Mike - Suggestion - do NOT pour off the fat from the pan after browning the chicken. Leave it there and continue as the recipe states. When done, remove the chicken and pour all the liquid into a fat separator. I got about 2 cups of concentrated broth and about 3/4 cup chicken fat. A lot of flavor is in the fat. I then used the chicken meat, broth and fat in THIS recipe. I used chicken fat rather than butter to make the roux, and plan to use frozen chicken fat in the dumplings next time!
https://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/turkey-and-dumplings-recipe
Kristina says
I just realized that I forgot to pour out the fat. It was excellent! Loved the recipe. So easy and really good! My hubby loved it too!
★★★★★
Cindy says
Forgot to add I'm a very new IP user with rubs and veg beef soup under by belt so far!
Valerie says
I am new to using a pressure cooker, just bought an Instant Pot. I am going to try this recipe tonight but only with 2 legs. Do I still cook it for 30 mins?
Mike Vrobel says
Yes. The cooking time is based on the individual pieces of meat - how long it takes to cook a chicken leg through - not how many legs there are.
Jessica says
Thanks so much for this recipe! It was literally fall off the bone good! And super easy. I’m new to cooking with pressure cookers so I really appreciate your easy to understand instructions.
Jane says
Delicious and very easy! I made 6 and they great! Very tasty!
Roberta says
SO flavorful and tender! Thanks for another great recipe
★★★★★
Larry Main says
Hey Mike, have you ever put a layer of potatoes in the bottom of the pan? The recipe is great! But I'm wondering if I'd need more liquid with the taters! Thanks for sharing your recipes!
★★★★★
Mike Vrobel says
No, I have not. If you try it, let me know how it goes!
Kath says
Thanks Mike. I tried 20 and it was perfect for about 800 g drumsticks. I have a 40 year old French Stainless Steel 8 litre SEB stovetop pressure cooker and I have been observing it seems to lose a bit of water in steam. So I added another quarter of a cup of water and it was just on the point of starting to catch when I stopped it. Perfect really as was able to add a little bit more water. If I ever add a bit much can reduce it.
Having a lot of fun with your recipes. Today made the New York cheesecake and was absolutely amazed at how well it turned out!! First time I have ever cooked a New York cheesecake and I could get a knife through the crust. Bought ones often have rock hard crusts too.
Mike Vrobel says
Thanks for the follow up!
KathrH says
How long would you keep pressure up if using drumsticks rather than whole legs?
Mike Vrobel says
I'm not sure. It's on my list to try out. I'd guess 15 to 20 minutes; if you try it, let me know how it turns out!
Hannah says
Do chicken legs in a pressure cooker taste boiled?
How many legs do you think I can fit in a 14 qt pressure cooker? Can they be stacked till the top and still have the flavor permeate the top layers?
I'm considering buying a cooker but only want the largest size and wondering if it will do the job for my family of 7.
Mike V says
You'll be able to fit a lot of legs in a 14 quart pressure cooker. Stack them as loose as you can and they will cook up fine. (The flavor is from the rub - the amount of legs doesn't matter as much. )
Steve Turton says
To also add flavour...once cooked as per these cooking instructions, take them out of the PC....put them on a lined cookie sheet, paint them with BBQ sauce, put under the oven broiler for 3 or 4 minutes on each side...turn out great for me.
Tcemt says
Wow! Made this tonight, with quartered potatoes on the bottom, and it was a hit with the family (I did use 3/4 cups of water instead of the 1/2 cup). My husband normally doesn't eat dark meat and he was impressed. The potatoes had enough flavor in them that I added only a tablespoon of butter, a bit less than a quarter cup of heavy cream and then used the chicken juice to thin them out a bit, delicious!
★★★★★
Mike Brady says
I made this last weekend in my Instant Pot. It tasted great, but the leg quarters did not come out in one piece as shown in the picture. The meat was falling off the bone, which was kind of a mess. Was that your experience?
Mike V says
They are fall-off-the-bone tender, yes. That is what I aim for with chicken legs. If you lift them out carefully with tongs, they hold together. (Or, cut 5 minutes off the cooking time - but the legs will not be as tender.)
Will says
I made this last night and it turns out great- I just used two leg quarters and still used half a cup of liquid to have it come up to pressure.
After removing the chicken, I threw a tub of baby spinach into the remaining liquid, and tossed with some lemon and breadcrumbs to wilt the spinach. It made a great healthyish side and was super flavorful.
It was about the easiest dinner I've ever made on a weeknight and I will totally do it again.
Mike V says
Wilted spinach is a great idea - thanks for sharing!
Jorge says
Mike did warn you he loves the darkside. Part of that is the half a cup or less of water. I agree with him, the food produces plenty of extra liquid usually.
Mark J says
Instantpot instructions say to never use less than one cup of liquid. Yet you only use 1/2 cup. I'm confused.
Mike V says
1/2 cup is enough water to come up to pressure. You can use 1 cup if you want - the recipe will still work - but the pan sauce that comes out will be a little thin.
Chris L says
Looks good! How would you adjust this recipe if you only wanted to cook two leg quarters?
Mike V says
Just use two leg quarters - everything else is the same.
Carol Pavlik says
Mike you were right. I do love my instant pot. My favorite chicken part is boneless skinless chicken thighs. So flavorful and just as versatile as breasts.