These Honey Garlic Instant Pot Chicken Thighs come together in 30 minutes with a sticky-sweet honey garlic sauce and Asian coleslaw.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Sesame oil – olive oil or canola oil would work but will have a milder flavour.
- Chicken broth – vegetable broth would also be good.
- Soy sauce – coconut aminos or tamari are the best substitutes for soy sauce.
- Honey – you can also use agave or maple syrup.
- Garlic – freshly minced garlic or jarred minced garlic can both be used.
- Gingerroot – if you don’t have any fresh ginger, use ground ginger powder instead.
- Boneless skinless chicken thighs – you can swap out for chicken breasts but you might need to increase the cooking time.
- Sesame seeds – black or white sesame seeds would both work.
Cornstarch slurry
- Cornstarch – potato starch or arrowroot will help thicken the sauce as well.
Asian coleslaw
- Coleslaw mix – you can use a combination of red and green cabbage instead but a mix is easier.
- Scallions – green onions would also be good.
- Rice vinegar – apple cider vinegar will provide a similar flavour.
- Soy sauce – coconut aminos or tamari are the best substitutes for soy sauce.
- Sugar – use any cup-for-cup substitute of your choice.
- Sesame oil – olive oil or canola oil would work but will have a milder flavour.
How to make this recipe
- Add the chicken ingredients to the Instant Pot in order.
- Cook on high pressure for 5 minutes.
- Mix together the cornstarch slurry.
- Make the coleslaw.
- Add the slurry to the sauce.
- Serve and enjoy!
Sauce substitutions
If you are sensitive to gluten, you need to substitute the soy sauce for tamari or coconut aminos.
I love the flavour of this Asian-inspired sauce, but you can try out different flavours as well. Other flavours you may want to try on your chicken thighs include:
- Garlic sauce
- Herbed butter
- Creamy lemon sauce
- Orange sauce
- Peanut sauce
Frequently Asked Questions
Chicken thighs will need to cook in the Instant Pot for 5 minutes. Keep in mind that it will take the Instant Pot 5-10 minutes to get up to high pressure to the total cooking time is around 15 minutes.
Honey garlic chicken is made of boneless skinless chicken thighs with a sticky-sweet honey garlic sauce.
The honey garlic sauce is made of soy sauce, honey, garlic, gingerroot and a cornstarch slurry to help thicken it up.
Storing and reheating
This honey garlic chicken will last in the fridge for up to 5 days. That means you can make this meal in advance or use the leftovers for lunch.
Simply divide it into individual portions and refrigerate. Warm the chicken in the microwave or eat it cold.
I only like to keep prepared coleslaw for about 2 days. The longer it sits, the less crunchy it will be.
Freezing this recipe
You have several options for freezing these chicken thighs.
You can prepare the sauce and put the raw chicken thighs in the freezer with the sauce. Then when you are ready to prepare it, you would just have to dump everything together into the Instant Pot.
You can also freeze the cooked chicken thighs. They will last for about 4 months in the freezer. Allow the chicken to thaw in the refrigerator before reheating.
More Instant Pot chicken recipes
Meal prep tools for this recipe
- Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on turning this recipe into your weekly lunches.
- I get all my free-range chicken from Butcher Box, conveniently delivered to me frozen.
- Use these Ziploc bag holders if you’re marinating the chicken then freezing it.
- Freeze this recipe in glass microwave-safe bowls up to 3 months.
Honey Garlic Instant Pot Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 2 tbsp honey
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp gingerroot, minced
- 8 boneless skinless chicken thighs
- sesame seeds, for garnish
Cornstarch slurry
- 1 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
Asian coleslaw
- 1 package coleslaw mix
- 1 bunch scallions, chopped
- 3 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp sesame oil
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to Instant Pot in the order in which they are listed except for cornstarch slurry and coleslaw.
- Place lid on Instant Pot and make sure valve is set to seal. Press the pressure cook button and set to high, then cook for 5 minutes. Instant Pot will take about 5-10 minutes to come to pressure then pressure cook for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, mix together cornstarch and water in a small bowl, and mix together ingredients for coleslaw.
- When chicken thighs are done, do a quick release of the pressure on the Instant Pot by flicking the switch at the top with a spoon. Open the lid when pressure gauge has dropped and the lid opens easily. Remove chicken thighs from the pot, reserving sauce.
- Set Instant Pot to saute mode and add cornstarch slurry to sauce. Saute for 3-4 minutes until sauce has thickened, then pour sauce over thighs and serve with Asian coleslaw. Enjoy!
