Shredded Salsa Chicken

This Shredded Salsa Chicken is a recipe you can always turn to when you are short on time, but want tons of flavor. This 3-ingredient chicken recipe is big on flavor, but also has juicy, tender chicken, and is perfect for meal prepping. You can serve it in tacos, taquitos, or in a salad with some guacamole. This recipe has the best ingredients and is paleo-friendly.

Why You'll Love This Recipe

Weeknight meal: This 3-ingredient salsa chicken is super simple and has minimal ingredients. It can be thrown together in under 30 minutes and is great to use for different meals all week long.

Allergen Friendly: This chicken recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free, Whole30, paleo, and high protein. It is a great recipe to make when you are feeding a family with different preferences because it can be made into many different recipes (tacos, quesadillas, salads).

Ingredients You Will Need

Chicken Breast: I like to ensure my chicken is organic and doesn’t have antibiotics. Chicken breasts are a great source of lean protein.

Taco Seasoning: I have a homemade taco seasoning that I like to keep in my spice rack, but a packaged one that I really like is Siete's because this is one of the very few that has all healthy ingredients without any fillers or preservatives.

Salsa: In this recipe I used the Sprouts brand Fire Roasted salsa that doesn't have added sugar or preservtives. This recipe can be made with your favorite salsa, being careful to check for added sugars.

Instructions

Prepare the chicken: Pour 1 cup of the salsa at the bottom of the Instant Pot. Then add the chicken breast on top, 1 cup of water, and season the chicken with 1 tablespoon of the taco seasoning.

Pressure cook: Cook on high pressure for 10-12 minutes and let the instant pot naturally release for 10 minutes when it is finished.

Shred the chicken: The meat should shred very easily and be very tender. I like to do this with my stand mixer, but you can also use two forks.

Recipe Tips and Tricks

Shredding the chicken: Instead of using fork to tediously shred the chicken, instead put it in your stand mixer or use a hand mixer on low to shred your chicken to perfection.

From Frozen: One of the best parts about the Instant Pot is that you can cook protein from frozen! To do this, cook the chicken breast on high pressure for 13-15 minutes depending on the thickness and allow for 10 minutes of natural release. This will allow for tender, shredded salsa chicken, even if you forget to thaw it the night before!

Recipe Variations

Salsa: This recipe can be made with any paleo friendly salsa. It can be made with red salsa or salsa verde!

Slow Cooker Instructions: If you do not have an instant pot, no problem! You can cook this in the clow cooker with the same ingredients. Cook on high for 4 hours and shred the chicken.

Storage Tips

This Instant Pot Salsa Chicken can be stored in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. It is great to use in various recipes all week long.

The chicken can be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months in a freezer safe container. Take it out and defrost it for a super easy weeknight meal when you don't want to cook.

FAQs About Shredded Salsa Chicken

What part of the chicken is best for shredding?

The breast is usually the best part of the chicken for shredding, but boneless, skinless thighs can be good, too.

Why is my shredded chicken so tough?

When chicken is tough out of the Instant Pot, it usually means that it hasn't been cooked quite long enough or that it is cooked too long. If it is not cooked long enough, it can be hard to shred and still pink in the middle. If it is cooked too long, the chicken can dry out and become chewy. It is also best practice to let the chicken rest for about 10 minutes before cutting into it after cooking it in the instant pot.

What are some tricks for shredding chicken?

The two best tools for stredding chicken are a stand mixer or a hand mixer. These will shred your chicken to perfection with out all the elbow grease.