Instant Pot Chicken Stew is a hearty stew, made with browned chicken that is cooked in a delicious, aromatic, savory sauce with vegetables. Make it in the Instant Pot with ease.
This chicken stew is one meal you’ll want to have on repeat this winter. Hearty and generous, this stew is made with potatoes, carrots, browned chicken, celery, onions, and peas, and has layers of deep flavor. This recipe has now become a family favorite, just like this Instant Pot chickpea coconut curry and this much-beloved Instant Pot Chicken Curry.
Everyone in our family – from our toddler to 7-year-old - loves it, and we simply can’t have enough. Dunk your favorite bread into it and make it a meal to remember.
List of Ingredients
Here is all you will need to make this Instant Pot Chicken Stew:
- Chicken thighs (boneless)
- Carrots
- Potatoes
- Celery stalks
- Onion
- Canned tomatoes
- Garlic
- Bay leaves
- Mixed dried herbs
- Butter
- Flour
- Olive oil
- Bouillon (or use chicken stock or stock cubes)
- Paprika
- Frozen Peas (Optional)
Step-by-Step Instructions
Start by browning the chicken in the Instant Pot. For this, lightly coat the chicken in a mixture of flour and salt. Hit Saute on the Instant Pot and add the butter. Once the butter has melted, add the browned chicken. Cook on each side for 3 minutes. Keep aside for later.
Add olive oil in the Instant Pot, followed by the garlic, onions and celery. Saute until the onions are translucent.
Add the bouillon, bay leaves, potatoes, and carrots. Then add the canned tomatoes, two cups of water, and cover the Instant Pot with the lid. Pressure Cook for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, perform a manual release (quick release) of pressure. Open the Instant Pot. Chop or shred the browned chicken and add it to the Instant Pot. Add frozen peas, and a cornstarch slurry (cornstarch mixed with water).
Cook the stew for 5 minutes on Saute mode, until the stew is nice and thick. Serve with a side of sour cream and sourdough bread.
Expert Tips
This Instant Pot chicken stew is packed with flavor, yet incredibly easy to make. Here are some tips to make this recipe perfectly every single time!
Brown the chicken: Before presure cooking, use the Saute funtion of the Instant Pot to brown the chicken. All the browned bits go back into the stew and gives it added flavor.
Mash the potatoes at the end: For a thicker, creamier consistency, I like to gently mash a few potatoes with the back of a ladle while the stew is simmering. This makes it nice and thick in consistency.
Add cheese for more flavor: Optionally, you can add parmesan or cheddar at the end for an added boost of flavor.
Make it dump and go: If you are short on time, by all means, make this a dump-and-go recipe. Simply skip the steps for browning the chicken and sauteeing the celery and onions. Add all the ingredients together in the Instant Pot. Pressure Cook for 10 minutes and quick release after 10 minutes.
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Instant Pot Chicken Stew
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 850 grams chicken use boneless chicken thighs
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 stalks celery
- 1 large onion
- 2 tablespoons bouillon powder
- 2 cups water (or use 2 cups of chicken stock)
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 medium potatoes
- 2 carrots
- ¼ cup flour
- 1 teaspoon paprika powder
- 1 tablespoon assorted dried herbs
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 can tomatoes
- ½ cup frozen peas
For the cornstarch slurry:
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Coat the chicken pieces in a mixture of flour and a little salt. Turn on the ‘Sauté’ function on the Instant Pot. Once hot, add the butter. Let it melt and then, add the chicken pieces.
- Cook the chicken on either side for 3 minutes per side. Take them out after 6 minutes of cooking, and shred or shop and keep aside.
- Add the olive oil to the Instant Pot. Add chopped garlic, onion and celery. Sauté until the onions turn translucent.
- Add the chopped potatoes and carrots.
- Add the bay leaves, bouillon, canned tomatoes.
- Add the water (or stock if using), mix well.
- (ensure that there is no brown residue stuck to the bottom of the Instant Pot – deglaze as needed)
- Close the lid of the Instant Pot and switch to Pressure Cook mode. Cook for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, release pressure manually (quick release).
- Switch to ‘Sauté’ function and add the shredded / chopped chicken.
- Add the cornstarch slurry and frozen peas, and stir well.
- Cook for 5 minutes, until the stew thickens a little. To thicken it further, you can also mash the potatoes with the back of a spoon / ladle.
- Serve with sour cream and sourdough bread.
With beef prices so high right now, this chicken stew is just what I needed to combat the cold spring rain this week!
This stew is amazing! I love the "dump and go" option you include for super extra busy nights. It's such a fast and easy recipe.
So many gorgeous flavours, and so easy in the instant pot - what's not to love?!
This looks like a wonderful and hearty stew and I love that it is made in the Instant Pot!
This stew comes out delicious. I love the instant pot for making soups and stews. So easy!
Noticed in the expert tips under "Dump and Go", it says "skip the steps for GROWING the chicken"! I love the autocorrect function - a constant source of entertainment.
Whoops! Thank you for letting me know!
Eating it right now—absolutely delicious! I think it’s also filling, so 1 bowl was more than enough for me. I added extra veggies and also tossed in mushrooms so it’s more veggie stew with chicken! I did post a photo to Pinterest. The husband gave it 5 stars as well 😋
I do have a couple of comments:
1. Under ingredients, you wrote “1 tablespoon assorted dried herbs”. I laughed at it and told my husband about the “odd” request. But I went through my Penzey’s spice jars and made a combo of spices we like that complement chicken. I still wasn’t sure how it would taste... However, a less experienced cook might see that and look elsewhere for a recipe that spells everything out. Perhaps you could give a suggestion of what spices you use, while encouraging others to get creative with the spices.
2. Your instructions are excellent BUT you don’t say WHEN to add the spice mix. I have recipes that add spices prior to cooking as well as others that instruct one to wait until the pressure phase is complete.
Thanks for a recipe that is a change from soups.
Recipe looks great going to make it tonight. Just calculating nutritional information. Is the info you’ve given us for the full 5 servings? Many thanks!
hi there, thank you! This recipe should be good for 4 large portions or 5 medium portions. Hope this helps!