Instant Pot Chicken Leg Quarters recipe. Chicken legs are quick and easy in an Instant Pot. I sprinkle them with salt, herbs, and spices, then brown the skin, 2 legs at a time, before pressure cooking them for 30 minutes with a Natural Release.
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One of my favorite French recipes is Poulet au Pot - chicken in a pot, simmered in broth until it falls off the bone. Pressure cooker chicken leg quarters are my weeknight version when I need dinner on the table with as little work as possible. A pack of whole 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.
INGREDIENTS
- 6 chicken legs (aka "chicken leg quarters" or "chicken quarters")
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt (⅓ teaspoon per leg)
- 1½ 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 or olive oil
- ½ cup water (or chicken broth)
How to make Instant Pot Chicken Leg Quarters
Season and brown the chicken legs
Sprinkle the chicken legs evenly with the salt, Italian Seasoning, garlic powder, and fresh ground black pepper. Heat the tablespoon of oil in an Instant Pot set to Sauté mode - high (medium-high heat in a stovetop pressure cooker). When the oil is shimmering, about 3 minutes, brown the chicken skin in batches. Put two chicken legs in the pot, skin side down - each leg should lay flat. Cook without moving until the skin is browned, about 4 minutes. Move the browned legs to a bowl, then repeat with the remaining legs. Pour any chicken fat out of the pot.
Pressure cook the chicken legs for 30 minutes with a Natural Pressure Release
Pour ½ cup of water into the pot. Leaving the pot in Sauté mode, bring the water to a simmer, scraping any browned bits of chicken from the bottom of the pan with a flat-edged wooden spoon. 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 pressure for 30 minutes in an Instant Pot or other electric pressure cooker or for 25 minutes in a stovetop PC. (Use Manual, Pressure Cook, or Pressure Cook - Custom mode in an Instant Pot.) Let the pressure come down naturally, for about 15 more minutes. Serve, passing the liquid in the pot on the side as a sauce. Enjoy!
Substitutions
Other Herb or Spice Mixes
You can substitute any herb or spice mix for the Italian seasoning. Just make sure they don't have salt in them, or if they do, skip the fine sea salt. (If there is more than just a blend of herbs, like if you're using an all-purpose spice blend, replace the garlic powder and black pepper with the spice blend too.)
My favorite spice blends for chicken are:
- Herbes de Provence for a taste of the South of France
- Adobo Seasoning (skip the salt) for a Latin American flavor
- Cajun Seasoning (skip the salt) for a taste of New Orleans
- Montreal Steak Seasoning (skip the salt) for some French Canadian flair
- BBQ Rub (and then I brush them with BBQ sauce after cooking)
- Dried Thyme when I want to keep it simple
You get the idea - almost any spice blend will work in this recipe.
Chicken thighs or drumsticks only
You can do this recipe with chicken thighs or chicken drumsticks
Tips and Tricks
Browning the chicken skin
Now, when I said "the least amount of work possible," there is one part of this recipe that requires a little work—browning the legs. You can skip this step, but I don't recommend it. Browning makes the skin taste much better because pressure cooking is a wet cooking environment and does not lead to crispy skin; golden brown skin adds flavor and keeps the skin from being flabby. Also, 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.
De-fat the sauce
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.
Can I substitute chicken breasts
For those of you asking, "Can I substitute chicken breast?" If you insist, you can, but chicken legs are perfect for this recipe. I've said before that I'm a fan of the dark side of the chicken, especially in the pressure cooker. Dark meat is more forgiving in the high heat of pressure cooking; overcook it, and you still get tender meat and juicy chicken. (Chicken legs are best when they are fall off the bone tender.) White meat is best when it is perfectly cooked at 160°F; overcook it just a little and it turns stringy and dry. (Also, chicken legs are shockingly cheap when I can get them on sale at my grocery store.)
Can I cook frozen chicken leg quarters in an Instant Pot?
Yes, but they won't be as good because you can't brown or season them before cooking. Skip the browning step. After cooking, sprinkle the salt, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and black pepper on the chicken. Add an extra five minutes to the pressure cooking time (35 minutes in an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker).
Print
Instant Pot Chicken Legs Recipe
- 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" or "chicken quarters")
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt (⅓ teaspoon per leg)
- 1½ 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 or olive 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 the tablespoon of oil in an Instant Pot set to Sauté mode - high (medium-high heat in a stovetop pressure cooker). When the oil is shimmering, about 3 minutes, brown the chicken skin in batches. Put two chicken legs in the pot, skin side down - each leg should lay flat. Cook without moving until the skin is browned, about 4 minutes. Move the browned legs to a bowl, then repeat with the remaining legs. Pour any chicken fat out of the pot.
- Pressure cook the chicken legs for 30 minutes with a Natural Pressure Release: Pour ½ cup of water into the pot. Leaving the pot in Sauté mode, bring the water to a simmer, scraping any browned bits of chicken from the bottom of the pan with a flat-edged wooden spoon. 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 pressure for 30 minutes in an Instant Pot or other electric pressure cooker or for 25 minutes in a stovetop PC. (Use Manual, Pressure Cook, or Pressure Cook - Custom mode in an Instant Pot.) Let the pressure come down naturally, for about 15 more minutes. Serve, passing the liquid in the pot on the side as a sauce. Enjoy!
Equipment
Buy Now → 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
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What do you think?
Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
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My other Pressure Cooker Recipes
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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.