• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Aileen Cooks

  • Meet Aileen
    • Contact Me
    • Work With Me
    • Privacy Policy
  • My Cookbooks
  • Recipes
    • Air Fryer Recipes
    • Appetizer Recipes
    • Bread Recipes
    • Breakfast Recipes
    • Casserole Recipes
    • Cooking Recipes for Kids
    • Crockpot Recipes
    • Dessert Recipes
    • Drink Recipes
    • Freezer Meals
      • Beginner’s Guide to Planning a Freezer Cooking Day
      • Crockpot Freezer Meals – Recipes & Shopping List
      • 5 Casserole Freezer Meals + Printable Shopping List
    • Instant Pot Recipes
    • Main Dish Recipes
    • Side Dish Recipes
    • Soup Recipes
  • Instant Pot Recipes
    • Instant Pot Breakfast Recipes
    • Instant Pot Appetizers
    • Instant Pot Side Dishes
    • Instant Pot Soup Recipes
    • Instant Pot Pasta Recipes
    • Instant Pot Chicken Recipes
    • Instant Pot Beef Recipes
    • Instant Pot Pork Recipes
    • Instant Pot Dessert Recipes
  • Mom Life
    • Cleaning Tutorials
    • Diy and Crafts
      • Crafts for Kids
      • Cricut
      • Free Printables
      • Play Dough Recipes
    • Home and Garden
    • Organizing Tutorials
    • Parenting
    • Subscription Box Reviews
  • Travel
    • Camping
    • Disneyland
    • Hotel Travel
    • Museums
You are here: Home / Recipes / Main Dish Recipes / Instant Pot Salsa Chicken Tacos (With Frozen Chicken)

Instant Pot Salsa Chicken Tacos (With Frozen Chicken)

January 18, 2017 By Aileen 48 Comments This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Jump to Recipe
6551shares
  • Facebook 623
  • Twitter
  • Yummly
Make these instant pot salsa chicken tacos in your pressure cooker with just 5 minutes prep time! This recipes uses frozen chicken breasts. It seriously can't get easier than this! It's a family favorite!

Instant pot salsa chicken tacos make a healthy and filling meal that will please the entire family. I love that you can spend just 5 minutes of prep work on this meal and come back to perfectly cooked instant pot chicken breast recipe.

Throw together your favorite taco toppings and you are all set to enjoy these instant pot salsa chicken tacos for taco night! (You may also like our recipe for instant pot taco meat)

Make these instant pot salsa chicken tacos in your pressure cooker with just 5 minutes prep time! This recipes uses frozen chicken breasts. It seriously can't get easier than this! It's a family favorite!

New to the instant pot? Check out our instant pot guide here.

How to make Instant Pot chicken tacos

1.Start by whisking together a mixture of salsa, chicken broth, and taco seasoning. Pour it over frozen chicken breasts in the instant pot electric pressure cooker.

Make these instant pot salsa chicken tacos in your pressure cooker with just 5 minutes prep time! This recipes uses frozen chicken breasts. It seriously can't get easier than this! It's a family favorite!

2.Cook the chicken breasts on “poultry” for 25 minutes.

3.Allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes.

4.Remove the salsa chicken from the instant pot and shred.

Make these instant pot salsa chicken tacos in your pressure cooker with just 5 minutes prep time! This recipes uses frozen chicken breasts. It seriously can't get easier than this! It's a family favorite!

5.Serve in warmed crispy taco shells and top with shredded lettuce, cheese, tomato, and avocado.

You might also like our recipe for instant pot taco stuffed peppers or Instant Pot Chicken Fajitas!

Cover art of The "I Love My Instant Pot" Affordable Meals Recipe Book.

Instant Pot Salsa Chicken Tacos are a family favorite

I love making this instant pot chicken breast recipe for several reasons. One of the reasons is because it uses my favorite seasoning mix, ever.

McCormick’s taco seasoning It’s such a simple blend, but I love it so much! I actually buy it in bulk from Costco and keep it on my counter next to the salt and pepper.

There are many recipes out there for homemade taco seasoning (and that will totally work for instant pot salsa chicken tacos, too), but I just love the consistent flavor and ease of using this taco seasoning blend. 

The other reason why this recipe continues to be a family favorite is that the leftovers can be re-purposed in so many different ways. This recipe is great for busy weeknights because you don’t have to plan ahead with defrosted chicken.

If you’re like me and consistently forget to defrost the chicken, then you might like this huge list of instant pot frozen chicken recipes.

Make these instant pot salsa chicken tacos in your pressure cooker with just 5 minutes prep time! This recipes uses frozen chicken breasts. It seriously can't get easier than this! It's a family favorite!

Uses for leftover instant pot salsa chicken tacos

  • Chicken quesadillas: Mix leftover chicken with a Mexican blend of grated cheese. Heat up on the stove in a tortilla. Easy peazy lunch.
  • Chicken tostadas: Heat oven to 450 degrees. Place large tortillas on a cookie sheet. Top with refried beans, leftover chicken, and cheese. Bake for 8 minutes, until hot and bubbly. Top with sour cream and scallions.
  • Mexican scramble: combine whisked eggs and leftover chicken in a skillet over medium heat. Cook until eggs are cooked, but still soft. Sprinkle with cheese and stir to melt.
  • Chicken freezer burritos: Combine leftover chicken, refried beans, and cheese in the center of a large tortilla. Roll into a burrito and wrap in foil. Freeze. Reheat in the microwave for 2 minutes. (additional freezer instructions can be found in this post)

Instant pot salsa chicken tacos in crispy taco shells, served with lettuce and tomato.

Never miss a new Instant Pot Recipe! Sign up for our weekly newsletter.


 

 

Continue to Content
instant pot salsa chicken tacos in crispy taco shells with fresh tomato and lettuce

Instant Pot Salsa Chicken Tacos

Yield: Serves 6
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Healthy and flavorful instant pot salsa chicken tacos made in your electric pressure cooker.

Ingredients

  • 2 chicken breasts, frozen, boneless, skinless
  • 16 ounce jar chunky salsa
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth
  • 1/4 cup taco seasoning, 1 packet
  • For serving: 8 crispy taco shells, shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, chopped tomato and avocado.

Instructions

  1. Place frozen chicken breasts in the bowl of the instant pot.
  2. Whisk the chunky salsa, chicken broth, and taco seasoning together.
  3. Pour the salsa mixture over the chicken breasts.
  4. Set Instant pot electric pressure cooker to poultry - 25 minutes.
  5. Natural pressure release for 10 minutes.
  6. Remove chicken and shred.
  7. Serve instant pot salsa chicken tacos in taco shells; topped with cheese, lettuce, tomato, and avocado.
Nutrition Information
Yield 6 Serving Size 2 tacos
Amount Per Serving Calories 421Total Fat 20gSaturated Fat 6gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 12gCholesterol 65mgSodium 1455mgCarbohydrates 36gNet Carbohydrates 0gFiber 9gSugar 6gSugar Alcohols 0gProtein 25g

Nutrition information is an estimate.

Did you make this recipe?

Tag us in your recipe creations using @aileencooks and #aileencooks.

© Aileen Clark
Cuisine: Mexican / Category: Main Dish Recipes


Other delicious recipes:

  • Grilled Chicken Tacos
  • Slow Cooker Beef Tacos
  • Instant Pot Apple BBQ Ribs
  • Taco Stuffed Shells
  • Instant Pot Loaded Baked Potato Soup
  • Instant Pot Vegetable Beef Soup

Did you try this recipe for Instant Pot Salsa Chicken Tacos? Please consider leaving a rating and comment.

6551shares
  • Facebook 623
  • Twitter
  • Yummly

Filed Under: Chicken Recipes, Freezer Meals, Instant Pot, Instant Pot Chicken Recipes, Main Dish Recipes, Mexican Food Recipes, Popular Posts, Recipes, Taco Recipes Tagged With: instant pot, instant pot recipes, tacos

Previous Post: « DIY Wine Cork Trivet
Next Post: Choosing Joy Over Sadness »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Char

    February 23, 2017 at 3:29 am

    These sound easy and good Aileen! Thanks for sharing at our first Instant Pot linkup!

    Reply
    • Joyce V. Hansen

      August 19, 2017 at 1:49 pm

      yes, they were easy and good. I did change them up a bit(it’s what I do!!) I used individual seasonings instead of taco mix, too much cumin for me. I added a little (very little!) cilantro, cumin, onion flakes, garlic powder, dash of chili powder (doesn’t like me anymore). mainstay stuff. I so had a hard time only eating 3!

      Reply
      • Aileen

        August 19, 2017 at 2:18 pm

        Joyce, that sounds delicious! Thanks for sharing your tweets and your experience with the cook time. I’m sure your comments will help more than one person. ?

        Reply
  2. Carrie

    April 22, 2017 at 6:15 am

    I have the lux60 and it doesn’t have a poultry button. Do you think the meat button will work?

    Reply
    • Aileen

      April 22, 2017 at 6:27 am

      Hi Carrie! Yes. The meat button will work.

      Reply
    • Joyce V. Hansen

      August 19, 2017 at 1:50 pm

      I had to cook chicken longer than 25 minutes. Maybe added 10 minutes, but forgot to increase to high from medium heat. turned out great

      Reply
  3. Mikkell

    October 13, 2017 at 8:09 pm

    I just made this for my very first instant pot meal. It was amazing!!!!!

    Reply
    • Aileen

      October 15, 2017 at 3:19 pm

      Mikkell, I am so glad you liked it. It continues to be one of our very favorite meals. I would love for you to join our Instant Pot Group on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/312609505882384/

      Reply
  4. Bri O

    December 8, 2017 at 9:19 am

    I followed the recipe to a T and it said “burn” on the display. Should I add in more chicken broth next time?

    Reply
    • Aileen

      December 8, 2017 at 10:10 am

      Hi Bri. Oh no! I’m so sorry this happened! You will want to open your lid, scrape off any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan (and discard those parts if badly burned) add more broth, and start again.

      Reply
  5. Kirstin

    December 31, 2017 at 1:46 pm

    Hello. Can you double this recipe? And if so, do you increase the cook time? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Aileen

      December 31, 2017 at 1:48 pm

      Hi Kirstin. Yes, you can double it, the cook time stays the same.

      Reply
  6. January Blalock

    January 22, 2018 at 8:36 am

    What’s the cool time of chicken is not frozen?

    Reply
    • January Blalock

      January 22, 2018 at 8:37 am

      Cook not cool

      Reply
    • Aileen

      January 22, 2018 at 8:38 am

      Hi January! The cook time for raw chicken is 15 minutes.

      Reply
      • Heather

        January 11, 2019 at 5:21 pm

        Would you double the liquid as well?

        Reply
        • Aileen

          January 12, 2019 at 2:04 pm

          Hi Heather! Yes, double the liquid. 🙂

          Reply
      • Angie Wagner

        January 11, 2020 at 12:39 pm

        Thanks for answering this. Just had a panic attack trying to figure out how long to cook mine. It’s for dinner!!!

        Reply
        • Aileen

          January 11, 2020 at 2:09 pm

          You’re welcome! I hope you enjoyed it. 🙂

          Reply
  7. Jennifer

    February 7, 2018 at 8:50 am

    I’m new to IP. If I increase the quantity of meat, do I increase the cooking time?

    Reply
    • Jennifer

      February 7, 2018 at 8:50 am

      Sorry – I see that someone already asked. THANKS!

      Reply
      • Aileen

        February 7, 2018 at 10:28 am

        I’m glad you figured it out, Jennifer. 🙂

        Reply
  8. Lisa J O'Driscoll

    March 8, 2018 at 6:13 pm

    This looks so good and my family loves tacos! I really think I need to get an instant pot!!!

    Reply
  9. Sarah

    March 19, 2018 at 6:25 pm

    Do you use all 16 oz of salsa or just 1 cup? The recipe says both quantities.

    Reply
    • Aileen

      March 20, 2018 at 1:47 pm

      Hi Sarah! 16 oz of salsa. I will update my post. Thank you so much for bringing this to my attention. Hopefully, I responded in time for you to try out this recipe.

      Reply
  10. Pamela

    April 16, 2018 at 1:17 am

    Hi Aileen Yesterday I bought an IP Ultra 60. First I did the water test to familiarize myself with the electric pressure cooker. I have been using a stove top pressure cooker for 20yrs. The water test went fine. Tonight for dinner I tried your recipe for IP Salsa Chicken Tacos. as I was intrigued with the idea of cooking FROZEN chicken. Your recipe states to cook the IP Salsa Chicken Taco using the “Poultry” setting. The IP Ultra DOES NOT have a “Poultry” setting, so I tried the “Meat/Stew” setting. Immediately after the “Meat/Stew” cooking program started, I received a “BURN” message. First time cooking in the new IP, I felt there couldn’t be anything on the bottom of the inner pot. I stopped the cooker, wondering if it was the frozen chicken that caused the “BURN” message to appear. I changed the setting to “Pressure”, and started the cooker back up, after pre-heat, the cooking program began, and 25 mins later we enjoyed the best IP Salsa Chicken Tacos cooked from the FROZEN state.
    My question is this Why did I receive the “BURN” message on the “Meat/Stew” setting, After the “BURN” notice, I DIDN’T release the pressure or open the cooker and inspect the inner pot, I just stopped the cooker, changed the setting to “Pressure”, adjusted time and started the cooker back up??
    Thank you for sharing such an easy and delish recipe for a beginner Electric Instant Pot user to start cooking with.

    Reply
    • Aileen

      April 18, 2018 at 9:48 am

      That is so odd that you got the “BURN” message on Meat/Stew. I have no idea why that happened, but glad you figured it out. I will also add a note about using the pressure button if you have the Ultra. I hope you enjoy your Instant Pot! 🙂

      Reply
  11. Amanda

    June 13, 2018 at 3:24 pm

    I have tried 2 times and continue to get the burn notice. I took everything out and scraped the first time. I then added more broth and added everything back in. Second time, burn notice AGAIN. I gave up and just threw it out! So frustrating!

    Reply
    • Aileen

      June 14, 2018 at 9:49 am

      Oh No! I am so sorry this happened to you, Amanda. 🙁

      Reply
  12. Lala

    June 26, 2018 at 2:01 pm

    I just got the “burn” notice on this also. Opened it up and there was some burning on the bottom of the pot. :/
    Stirred it around and I’m trying it on Pressure Cook instead of Poultry to finish. Hoping it works!

    Reply
    • Aileen

      July 10, 2018 at 10:39 am

      Oh no! I’m going to go ahead and change my instructions to just use the manual pressure cook option since that seems to work better. Thank you for your feedback – I hope it worked out for you.

      Reply
  13. Andrea

    July 25, 2018 at 7:09 am

    I needed a recipe that was quick, easy and tastey and this was it! I doubled the recipe (using the same cook time) and it turned out great! I served the chicken over baked potatoes with all of the fixings and my family loved it. Thanks for a quick meal idea using frozen chicken!

    Reply
    • Aileen

      July 27, 2018 at 1:39 pm

      I’m glad you and your family enjoyed it. Thank you for stopping by with your feedback. 🙂

      Reply
  14. Ashley

    October 2, 2018 at 2:54 pm

    I love this recipe idea but have a cuisinart pressure cooker and don’t have these options. Would I just cook it on high for 15 and then quick release it?

    Reply
    • Aileen

      October 2, 2018 at 3:12 pm

      Hi Ashley. Cook on high pressure for 15 minutes then natural release for at least 10 minutes. If you want to use frozen chicken breast, then increase the cook time to 25 minutes.

      Reply
  15. Heather

    January 16, 2019 at 11:40 am

    I have tried this recipe multiple times and it has burned each time. The first time, I tried it with thawed breasts but otherwise followed the recipe using pace picante. It burned. I ended up adding 3/4 cup water and put the chicken on the trivet. The second try I used frozen chicken breasts with Herdez. Still burned. I added 1/2 cup water, trivet, chicken breast, then sauce on top. Overall I found this too liquidy and finicky for my liking. I will stick to just making shredded chicken and adding sauce and seasonings after shredding. I love the idea but this was a miss for me.

    Reply
    • Aileen

      January 18, 2019 at 7:44 am

      Hi Heather. I’m sorry the recipe didn’t work out for you. Thank you for sharing the ways that you tried to make it work.

      Reply
  16. Tena

    January 30, 2019 at 4:07 pm

    Hi! I just made this after looking for a quick recipe that called for frozen chicken and a few items I had at home — bingo on the taco seasoning and taco salsa!! While my IP doesn’t have a “poultry” button, I used the Manual button at 25 minutes. Now I did use 5 large frozen chicken breasts, 24 oz salsa, and a cup of chicken broth, but the chicken came out great!

    I highly recommend this recipe and if you had any issues, try using the Manual at 25 minutes.

    Reply
    • Aileen

      February 13, 2019 at 5:42 pm

      I’m glad you and your family liked it. It is one of our favorites that we go back to again and again.

      Reply
  17. Bobbi Bohon

    January 6, 2020 at 11:53 am

    Would the cook time change if using frozen tenders instead of breasts?

    Reply
    • Aileen

      January 11, 2020 at 2:15 pm

      Hi Bobbi. No, the cook time stays the same. Feel free to use frozen tenders. 🙂

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Instant Pot Linkup #2 - Pursue Your Project says:
    March 8, 2017 at 4:12 am

    […] Aileen Cooks: Instant Pot Salsa Chicken Tacos […]

    Reply
  2. Instant Pot Link Party #2 - MelClaire says:
    March 8, 2017 at 7:07 am

    […] Aileen Cooks: Instant Pot Salsa Chicken Tacos […]

    Reply
  3. Instant Pot Loaded Macaroni and Cheese - Aileen Cooks says:
    March 16, 2017 at 9:44 am

    […] Instant Pot Salsa Chicken Tacos […]

    Reply
  4. Mexican Inspired Recipes | Instant Pot Resources says:
    April 29, 2017 at 1:14 am

    […] Salsa Chicken Tacos-Aileen Cooks […]

    Reply
  5. 24 Insanely Delicious Instant Pot Recipes - Mom, Are We There Yet? says:
    June 21, 2017 at 12:15 am

    […] Salsa Chicken Tacos (Aileen Cooks). […]

    Reply
  6. Black Bean and Chicken Taco Salad - Aileen Cooks says:
    July 31, 2017 at 7:04 am

    […] Instant Pot Salsa Chicken Tacos […]

    Reply
  7. Instant Pot Peach Jam - Aileen Cooks says:
    August 12, 2017 at 11:14 am

    […] Instant Pot Salsa Chicken Tacos […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Meet Aileen

Aileen Clark is a lifestyle blogger, bestselling cookbook author, and mom of four living in Northern California. She loves sharing easy and delicious recipes, fun projects, and family-friendly travel.

Let’s Connect!

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Subscribe to our Newsletter

We will send you our Favorite Instant Pot Dinner Recipes eBook just for signing up!

My Cookbooks

Front cover of The "I Love My Instant Pot" Affordable Meals Recipe Book.

COPYRIGHT © 2021 Aileen Cooks

6551shares
  • 623