Skip to Content

Instant Pot Street Tacos with Chicken

Our Instant Pot street tacos with chicken have all the flavor of your favorite street side-taco but we used seasoned chicken instead of carne asada.

Who doesn’t love street tacos? However, I’ve noticed most recipes only feature beef. Kim and I wanted to make a version using Tex-Mex chicken.

So, we decided to adapt our original chicken soft taco recipe into Instant Pot street tacos with chicken instead of carne asada.

All it takes is few ingredients and about 35-minutes to create your own street taco experience in the comfort of your kitchen.

Three finished instant pot street tacos on a white plate topped with onions and tomatoes.
Look at those tasty tacos! Serve them onions and cilantro for the delicious handheld dinner.

How to make Instant Pot street tacos:

First, start by turning your Instant Pot on to its saute setting. Place the stainless steel liner into the pot.

Then add your cooking oil and give the pot a minute or two to heat up. After that, toss in the chicken, onions, and taco seasoning.

Now, you can use store-bought taco seasoning. It works just fine. Or, you can use a homemade version, similar to what we used on our tasty turkey tacos.

An aerial photo of the raw ingredients like chicken and taco seasoning.
For a true street taco experience make sure to use the smallest tortillas you can find.

Once the chicken has cooked for about 4 minutes, put in the garlic. Let it saute for about 30-seconds; however, don’t let it burn.

If the garlic overcooks, then it will become bitter. Afterward, when the garlic is done, add the chicken broth, roasted tomatoes, and green chiles.

Top-down view of the taco filling cooking in the pressure cooker.
You can leave the chicken in strips or use tongs to make shredded chicken.

Then, close the lid and seal the valve. Set the pressure cooker on manual or high pressure for 6 minutes.

Last, allow the machine to perform a 10 minute “natural release.” If desired, use tongs or 2 forks to shred the Tex-Mex chicken.

Serve the finished street tacos with condiments like cilantro, diced onions, and shredded cheese.

Close-up view of the finished tacos served with a lime wedge.
We love to spritz our street tacos with fresh lime juice.

Tips for Instant Pot street tacos:

  • Be sure to deglaze the Instant Pot when you add the chicken broth to capture all that flavor that stuck to the bottom of the pot.
  • Serve your cilantro as a condiment. Some people, like myself, think it has an odd flavor. Don’t believe me, see this article from the Britannica.
  • This can be made on a stove-top by putting everything into a large saucepan or stockpot, uncovered, and cook it over medium-low heat for about an hour.
  • Yon make street tacos in the Instant Pot with chicken thighs by substituting boneless chicken thighs in place of the chicken breast.

Other Instant Pot chicken recipes you may love:

Three Instant Pot street tacos with chicken filling and diced onions.

Instant Pot Street Tacos with Chicken

5 from 25 votes
Print Save Pin
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 6 minutes
Come to Pressure, Natural Release: 15 minutes
Total Time: 36 minutes
Servings: 4 Servings

I earn a commission from Amazon and Instacart from qualifying purchases.

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons cooking oil canola, corn, vegetable, etc.
  • 1 ounce taco seasoning store bought or homemade
  • 1 white onion thinly sliced
  • 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into thin strips
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 10 ounces diced tomatoes and green chiles 1 can
  • ½ cup low-sodium chicken broth
  • 16 street taco-sized tortillas corn or flour

Instructions 

  • Turn on the Instant Pot to the saute setting, add the liner, and add the oil.
    2 tablespoons cooking oil
  • Add the chicken, onions, and taco seasoning to the line. Saute the mixture for 3-5 minutes.
    1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
    1 ounce taco seasoning
    1 white onion
  • Then, add the garlic and saute for an additional 30 seconds. Now pour in the tomatoes and green chiles, and chicken broth. Scrape the bottom of the liner to keep the chicken from sticking.
    2 garlic cloves
    10 ounces diced tomatoes and green chiles
    ½ cup low-sodium chicken broth
  • Close the lid and make sure the valve is set to “sealing,” set the Instant Pot to “manual, high pressure (manual/pressure cook),” for 6 minutes.
  • Allow the Instant Pot to perform a 10-minute “natural release.” Serve the finished tacos with condiments like cilantro, diced onions, and shredded cheese.
    16 street taco-sized tortillas

Notes

The calories listed are an approximation based on the ingredients and do not include the condiments. Actual calories may vary.
Chicken filling can be stored in your fridge, in a sealed container, for up to 3 days.
We used a 6-Quart Instant Pot Duo Plus for this recipe and have not tested the recipe in another model.

Nutrition

Serving: 4ounces | Calories: 236kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.04g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 923mg | Potassium: 471mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 984IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 1mg
Recipe Rating




John

Monday 23rd of April 2018

Thank you, Debbye! Kim and I hope you and your husband enjoy the tacos. Have a lovely day :)

John

Monday 23rd of April 2018

Thank you, Leslie! For me, ground beef will always be my favorite for tacos. However, this chicken recipe is pretty tasty. we're glad you like it :)

Michelle

Monday 23rd of April 2018

Wow, this is great, now I can make chicken tacos in my Instant Pot, thank you for your recipe and all your tips.

John

Monday 23rd of April 2018

Thank you, Michelle! We're glad you like the post and hope you have a great Monday :)

Michelle

Monday 23rd of April 2018

Wow, this is great, now I can make chicken tacos in my Instant Pot, thank you for your recipe and all your tips.

Michelle

Monday 23rd of April 2018

Wow, this is great, now I can make chicken tacos in my Instant Pot, thank you for your recipe and all your tips.