Instant Pot Chicken Stew Recipe

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Perfect for an easy lunch or fall dinner, this instant Pot Chicken Stew is so hearty and delicious, I can hardly stand it.

When I needed a hearty stew this Instant Pot Chicken Stew recipe was just the most perfect twist on my favorite traditional soup. Hit the spot and took care of my fall soup craving!

As a large busy family Instant Pot recipes are something that I find very practical and time saving.  There are so many great ideas there, it’s insane. 

Instant Pot Chicken Stew Recipe

What You Need To Make Instant Pot Chicken Stew

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• ½ a small onion, chopped
• 1 pound boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite sized pieces (although if you want to make whole chicken stew in the Instant Pot, keep reading for some tips)
• ½ cup water
• ¾ cup vegetable broth (or chicken broth, either will work, although the chicken broth will have a little more saturated fat)
• 3-4 medium sized yellow potatoes
• 2 cups baby carrots
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Optional: bay leaves or 1 tsp lemon juice
• Optional: top it with parsley or even cilantro (huge fan here!) 

How to Make Gluten-free Instant Pot Chicken Stew

Place olive oil into your inner pot and set your Instant Pot to sauté. 

Add the onion to olive oil and cook until it sweats. Stir it a few times to make sure it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot too much.

Add chicken and brown each side, about 4 minutes. Remember: if you want to do a whole chicken, check out the tips below, because this is where it deviates.

Take the chicken out of the inner pot and set aside.

Add water and broth to inner pot and deglaze the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon.

Place chicken back into the inner pot, then cut potatoes into small bites.

Place potato pieces and baby carrots into the pot on top of the chicken.

Close and lock lid, then cook on high pressure for 20 minutes.

Quick release.

Add salt and pepper, as desired.

Serve and enjoy!

My husband is a huge rice fan, so he likes to serve this with rice. Personally, I prefer it the way it is, maybe some crackers or bread on the side. 

How to Make Whole Chicken Stew in the Instant Pot Recipe

If you want to make chicken stew with a whole chicken in the Instant Pot, it’s really very simple. Rather than just working with cut-up chicken thighs, simply clean your chicken and prepare the onions, as described in the recipe, then deglaze the inner pot.

Then add your chicken and 1/2 cup of water to the inner pot and cook on high pressure for 24 minutes (or 6 minutes per pound, if you have an unusually small or large chicken). Do a natural release for 15 minutes, then manual release the rest of the pressure.

When the chicken is cool enough to handle, shred the chicken and remove the bones, then return it back to the pot. Add the carrots, vegetable broth, potatoes and all of the other ingredients to the Instant Pot and cook on high pressure for 10 minutes. 

Quick release and serve!

Cooking Chicken Breasts in the Instant Pot 

Chicken breasts are something that I keep on hand. I buy them in bulk at Sams and always have some frozen in the freezer. 

Breasts are a great dinner idea for your electric pressure cooker. Here are list of some of my favorite Instant Pot chicken breast recipes. Perfect for busy families who need to get dinner done fast! 

Instant Pot Recipes 

Here are a few other great ways to cook dinner in your IP: 

Hawaiian Chicken

Chicken Fajitas 

Instant Pot Chili Recipes  

What To Serve Chicken Stew With

You could make a fantastic loaf of bread or just serve this chicken stew with crackers. Or, if you were wanting something more dessert-ish to go with it, you should check out my Instant Pot dessert recipes. Yes! you can make dessert in your pressure cooker!

That said, this chicken soup is really a great meal in and of itself. You don’t have to make anything to go with it, if you don’t want. You can even make some egg noodles to drop into the stew and make this a great recipe for chicken noodle soup!

How Do You Thicken Chicken Stew?

If you want more soup in your chicken stew, you can add more vegetable broth after it’s cooked. To thicken your chicken stew, add 1 tablespoon of broth to 3-4 tablespoons of corn starch and stir them together to make a smooth paste. Pour that in your chicken stew and stir. 

Allow that to sit for 5-10 minutes while you set the table and your soup part of the chicken stew should be fairly thick!

Can Chicken Stew Be Frozen?

Absolutely! Just put your chicken stew in an airtight container and pop it in the freezer. You can just defrost it either in the Instant Pot, microwave or over the stove. I’ve even saved some of this chicken stew in little individual freezer-safe individual-serving bowls to take for lunch!

Can I Make Chicken Stew without an Instant Pot?

Yes! While pressure cooking is my favorite (right now), you can make chicken stew in the slow cooker or in a large pot on the stove. Just bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes and carrots are soft. Depending on the level of heat, your cook times may vary, but it shouldn’t take any longer than about 30 minutes on the stove, assuming the chicken is cooked and all you need to cook is the potatoes and carrots, as recommended in the recipe.

While you’re here, make sure you check out our cheap chicken and rice recipes that your family will love. These recipes are loved by kids and great when you’re on a budget.

Don’t have an electric pressure cooker but want chicken and veggies? Make this one pot roasted chicken potatoes and carrots.