This delicious Instant Pot Chicken and Broccoli recipe is a new, easy, healthier twist on the traditional take-out favorite.
In addition to being insanely delicious, this Instant Pot Chicken and Broccoli recipe also happens to be low carb, and completely dairy-free!
And thanks to your pressure cooker, you’ll have a perfectly balanced delicious one-pot meal in less than 25 minutes of your time!
Table of Contents
Why This Recipe Works
This low carb Chicken and Broccoli recipe is bursting with flavor yet super easy to make in your Instant Pot, which is perfect after a busy day.
Chicken that’s cooked in the Instant Pot comes out juicy, tender, and packed with flavors, and adding the broccoli at the end ensures it’s cooked to perfection. The stir fry sauce cooked right in the pot is light and delicious too, and goes perfectly with the chicken and broccoli, even better served with rice!
The flavor of this chicken pressure cooker recipe is based on traditional Chinese stir fry, which involves some combination of protein and vegetables cut into bite size pieces and sautéed in a large pot or wok, often served with rice.
Ingredients
Chicken – you can use chicken breast or chicken thighs for this recipe. I’m a huge fan of using thighs because they’re so flavorful and become so juicy and tender when cooked in the Instant Pot or slow cooker. Opt for boneless skinless chicken pieces for this recipe, since you cut the chicken into bite-size pieces prior to adding to the pot.
If you’re using frozen chicken breasts, you’ll want to defrost them fully before using if possible. If the chicken is already in bite size pieces, the chicken will defrost quickly. If your chicken is still frozen, you actually can pressure cook it straight from frozen in the Instant Pot. You may just need to add on a few extra minutes to make sure the chicken is cooked through.
Broccoli – use fresh or frozen broccoli florets in this Chicken and Broccoli recipe. If using frozen broccoli, be sure to thaw it out first. Although the name of this recipe is Chicken and Broccoli, you can easily swap cauliflower for the broccoli in this instant pot recipe if you don’t like broccoli or if that’s what you have on hand. It makes for a different flavor dish but tastes just as delicious!
Soy sauce – since soy sauce contains a lot of sodium, I would highly recommend the low-sodium variety which typically contains about ⅓ less sodium than its traditional counterpart (especially if you’re watching your sodium intake). For any recipe with soy sauce, I recommend tasting the sauce before adding any extra salt. Oftentimes it is salty enough with the use of soy sauce alone!
Chicken broth – use low-sodium chicken broth in order to reduce sodium intake.
Olive oil – sesame oil will work as well if you have it on hand.
How to Make Instant Pot Chicken and Broccoli
STEP 1: Gather your ingredients.
STEP 2: Cook onion in the Instant Pot on saute mode until almost caramelized. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute longer.
STEP 3: Toss in the chicken and pour in the stock.
STEP 4: Lock lid in place and cook the chicken for 7 minutes on High-pressure. Once the cooking cycle is done, do a quick release.
STEP 5: Add broccoli and make a slurry. Combine ½ cup of the cooking liquid with starch and pour it over.
STEP 6: On Saute mode, with the pressure cooker lid closed, saute the broccoli for 5-6 minutes. Season to taste and serve warm 🙂
Recipe Notes
- You can also make this recipe using beef, but then it would become a different dish, Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli.
- Stir fries are flexible recipes by nature—feel free to add more vegetables along with the broccoli if you’d like, such as mushrooms or bell pepper. I like to add a little bit of fresh grated ginger to the pot for an easy additional burst of flavor!
- If you like things a bit spicier, try adding some red pepper flakes. It will give you some heat that compliments the dish nicely. Or for a sweeter version, you can add up to 1 tablespoon of honey.
- Using sesame oil instead of olive oil adds a flavor that complements this chicken dish nicely! For added sesame flavor, try garnishing the final dish with toasted sesame seeds.
What to Serve with Chicken and Broccoli
Rice - Instant Pot Chicken and Broccoli is great served over glutinous rice. Rice is a very common side for a stir fry.
If you like rice, you could also serve this with Instant Pot Brown Rice. Brown rice contains more nutrients than white rice and takes only 10 minutes to pressure cook in your instant pot! Try cooking brown rice with chicken broth instead of water for rice with more flavor.
Zucchini Noodles - if you’re looking for a low carb side dish option, this recipe also pairs well with zucchini noodles.
Cauliflower - Another low carb alternative to rice is cauliflower rice or cauliflower mash.
FAQs
What Does it Mean to Sauté?
To sauté is to cook an item quickly over high heat. The instant pot sauté feature is used to jumpstart the cooking process and brown food, which adds more flavor.
What Does it Mean to Caramelize?
Caramelization refers to the process of sugars beginning to brown through the application of heat in the pot. Caramelizing onions turns them a brown color and also makes them softer and sweeter.
Can I Add the Onion and Garlic Together?
The reason the garlic is added to the pot after the onion in this recipe is because onion takes a few minutes to soften, while garlic will begin to burn after only a minute or so. Garlic should only be sautéed for about 30 seconds to 1 minute to release its aroma without burning. Burnt garlic will taste bitter and unpleasant.
What is a Slurry?
A slurry is made by combining a starch (usually cornstarch) and liquid (usually water). If you add cornstarch directly to the pan without mixing with liquid first, it’s likely to form clumps. Making a slurry helps prevent this and results in a smooth sauce.
An easy way to create a slurry is to stir it using your finger in a small bowl. Make sure you stir the slurry right before using it—otherwise it may begin to separate over time.
How Many Teaspoons are in ½ Tablespoon?
One tablespoon is equal to 3 teaspoons, so there are 1.5 teaspoons in ½ tablespoon.
Why is the Broccoli Added at the End of the Recipe?
Broccoli cooks more quickly than chicken, so if it was added to the pressure cooker too early it would be overcooked and turn mushy before the chicken is fully cooked. It only needs to be sautéed for about 5 minutes to be cooked to perfection!
How Do You Cut Broccoli Into Florets?
If using fresh broccoli stalks, first remove the end of the thick stem, which tends to be quite tough. Separate the small florets by cutting away from the stem, keeping a small amount of the stem intact. If any pieces are too big, you can cut them into bite size pieces from there. Frozen broccoli is typically sold in bags already cut into florets.
You can also cut the top part of the stalk into bite size pieces to reduce food waste. The top part of the stalk is tender, delicious and nutritious! As you move down the stalk, you can peel away the tough outer layer and utilize the inside part which will be more tender.
Similar Recipes
Want more amazing Asian-inspired pressure cooker recipes? Try these instant pot favorite recipes! They are all great served with rice, too:
Instant Pot Sweet and Sour Chicken
Instant Pot Chicken and Broccoli
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breasts skinless and boneless
- ½ cup onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- ⅔ cup chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 3 cups broccoli florets fresh or frozen, but thawed
- ½ tablespoon cornstarch
- olive oil as desired, but not more than 2 tbsp
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cut the chicken into bite-size pieces. Season with salt and pepper.
- Set Instant pot to Saute and add olive oil.
- Add onion and cook on "saute" for a few minutes until almost caramelized.
- Add garlic and cook for 1 more minute.
- Add chicken and toss to coat with oil. Cook for 1 minute.
- Pour in the stock and the soy sauce.
- Close the lid and cook at high pressure for 7 minutes.
- Once done, do a quick pressure release and open the lid.
- In a cup, combine cornstarch with ½ cup of cooking liquid and make a slurry.
- On the Instant Pot, press "saute" and pour the slurry over the chicken while stirring well.
- Add broccoli and close the Instant pot. Let the broccoli cook for 5-6 minutes on saute. (NO need for pressure cooking).
- Open the lid, mix a bit and serve :]
Nutrition
Notes
- You can also make this recipe using beef or tofu.
- Stir fries are flexible recipes by nature—feel free to add more vegetables along with the broccoli if you’d like, such as mushrooms or bell pepper. I like to add a little bit of fresh grated ginger to the pot for an easy additional burst of flavor!
- If you like things a bit spicier, try adding some red pepper flakes. It will give you some heat that compliments the dish nicely. Or for a sweeter version, you can add up to 1 tablespoon of honey.
- Using sesame oil instead of olive oil adds a flavor that complements this chicken dish nicely! For added sesame flavor, try garnishing the final dish with toasted sesame seeds.
Instant Pot's Chicken Broccoli Symphony
This recipe sounds wonderful, but I'm concerned about putting the lid on the pot in the sauté mode. I thought the lid is never to be used when sautéing. Please clarify. Thanks!
While the Instant Pot is in saute mode, you should not put the lid on. In step 7, you should change the setting to pressure cook on high pressure for 7 minutes, and that is when you cover the pot with the lid. Hope that helps!
Sorry, I too am confused about the lid in during sauté mode question. Step 11 says to do just that. Can you clarify?
Oh yes, sorry about that! In that step, you can place the lid on top to keep the steam in but you do not need to lock the lid in place. Does that make sense?
When you say to add 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid with corn starch for a slurry, is that the liquid that is in the pot after cooking the chicken?
Yes, that's correct!
Can I make this without the cornstarch. I am on a no sugar or starch diet. Thanks!
Yes. Cornstarch is just a small upgrade and you can definitely take it out 🙂
Not bad. I was looking for a bit more complex flavors, so ended up adding red pepper flakes, seasoning salt, and a pinch of ground ginger after it was done. Really easy though. I will try again with even more seasoning and veggies as suggested!
When does the soy sauce go in?
Step 6 before the pressure cooking.
This recipe is much better for cooking broccoli, five minutes on saute with lid closed, rather than pressure cook for two minutes as in beef and broccoli recipe, which turned it into mush.
Thanks for your advice 🙂 I think you are right so I changed the cooking method for the beef and broccoli recipe as well.
Corrie, I have to say, this recipe is excellent! Per your suggestion to add extra veggies, I went all out! On top of the broccoli, I added mushrooms, sweet red pepper, pea pods and bean sprouts and served it over riced cauliflower. Absolutely Delicious! I will make this again and again. Thank you for all the wonderful recipes!
Thank you very mish Lisa 🙂 I'm working really hard on my blog and it's sooo much fun to get comments like yours!!
My family loved this chicken and broccoli, even my picky son. Thank you so much for the marvellous recipe!
Thanks Micheline! I am glad that you have found the recipe helpful!
I made this yesterday and it came out yummy. I turned it into a chicken broccoli casserole by topping it with cheese and putting in the oven for 25 minutes on 390 degrees F.
What an innovation, Lavern! I'm impressed by the way you have made casserole out of it!
I recently found that broccoli and cauliflower takes zero minutes to be cooked perfectly in the instant pot. Pour cold water in the instant pot, place the broccoli or cauliflower in the steamer basket and set for 0 manual pressure. Done, done, done at Quick Pressure Release! Thumbs up for the best recipe!
Thanks Sook! You are right about broccoli! I have tried it several times.
Hi Sook:
Can you explain the process for cooking the broccoli more detailed. I could not get the idea on my mind of cero manual pressure. Do you cook it in high pressure and for how many minutes? Thanks