Instant Pot Chicken and Gravy pairs tender bits of juicy chicken with a creamy and flavorful gravy.
This easy chicken and gravy recipe is classic comfort food that’s ready in about 30 minutes.
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I think most of us have a few tried-and-true Crockpot chicken recipes on hand. The ones where you toss in all the ingredients, and at the end of the day, you have a delicious meal, like tender chicken in a flavorful sauce.
Crockpot recipes take time and planning, and I don’t always have a lot of time (and I don’t always plan well 🙈). While getting everything into the Crockpot should be simple, it’s not always.
That’s why I’ve followed the steps to convert a slow cooker meal to a pressure cooker meal and transformed this family favorite meal into a pressure cooker chicken and gravy recipe.
The Instant Pot allows for last-minute planning, and I can still get a hot, flavorful, and comforting meal on the table for my family.
The best part is that this Instant Pot chicken and gravy recipe only takes about 30 minutes to make, which is why it’s one of my favorite Instant Pot chicken dinner recipes.
You can also do something similar with pork chops–check out my Instant Pot pork chops and gravy recipe!
Don’t have an Instant Pot? Make my stove top chicken and gravy recipe instead!
More Instant Pot Chicken Dinner Recipes You’ll Love:
- Instant Pot Chicken and Dumplings
- Instant Pot Chicken and Rice
- Instant Pot Chicken and Stuffing
- Instant Pot Mississippi Chicken and Noodles
- Instant Pot Jerk Chicken
Make Dinner Easy with Instant Pot Shredded Chicken and Gravy
Life feels busier than it did when I was a kid. Growing up, dinner time was always important in my parent’s house. It was rare that we would have an activity that conflicted with supper and nights around the table were our norm.
As my children get older, I realize the importance of family time and hope that my children have the same fond memories of family mealtime as I do.
Cooking Instant Pot chicken and gravy or any of our favorite Easy Instant Pot Weeknight Dinners takes away a lot of the stress and gives me a fighting chance of hanging on to just a few more precious moments with my family.
How to Make Instant Pot Chicken and Gravy
It’s really easy to make this flavorful chicken and gravy in the pressure cooker.
Ingredients You’ll Need:
- Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
- Low-sodium Chicken Broth
- Chicken Gravy Mix
- Black Pepper
- Garlic Powder
- Homemade Cream of Chicken Soup
How to Make It:
(Full printable recipe is available below)
Add Chicken. First, you’ll cut each chicken breast in half and place it into the Instant Pot along with the chicken broth.
Cook the Chicken. Next, you’ll sprinkle the gravy packets, black pepper, and garlic powder over the chicken breasts, but don’t stir (I don’t stir it in because I don’t want to take a chance on having the thickener in the gravy packet to thicken the liquid and cause scorching on the bottom of the pot during cooking).
Close the Instant Pot and cook at high pressure for 6 minutes followed by a natural pressure release.
Shred the chicken. Next, you’ll remove the chicken to a cutting board to shred, slice or chop it leaving some larger pieces. Stir in the cream of chicken soup, stirring until everything is well-combined, then return the chicken to the pot.
Serve. Last, you’ll serve the chicken and gravy over Instant Pot mashed potatoes, Instant Pot white rice, biscuits, or noodles.
Notes and Adaptations:
- I use low-sodium chicken broth in this easy chicken and gravy recipe because the gravy packets have a good bit of salt in them.
- I highly recommend using homemade cream of chicken soup, because it adds such wonderful flavor, but you can certainly use the canned variety if preferred. Simply use 1 can of condensed cream of chicken soup plus one can of water.
- You can change up the flavor a little by using one packet of chicken gravy mix and one packet of ranch dressing mix.
Recommended Equipment:
- Instant Pot or other electric pressure cooker
Instant Pot Chicken and Gravy
Instant Pot chicken and gravy is the classic comfort food you know and love, but with a pressure cooker makeover!
Ingredients
- 2.5-3 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, each cut in half
- 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 2 packets chicken gravy mix (0.87-oz each)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 2 cups homemade cream of chicken soup
Instructions
- Place chicken breast pieces into the insert pot of the Instant Pot. Pour chicken broth into the pot.
- Sprinkle gravy packets, black pepper, and garlic powder over the chicken breasts, but do not mix.
- Close the lid and set the vent to the sealed position. Select a cook time of 6 minutes at high pressure.
- After the cook time is complete, allow a natural release of pressure. Once the pressure has released and the valve has dropped, carefully remove the lid.
- Remove chicken to a cutting board and shred, slice, or chop (I always shred it but leave some larger chunks).
- Add homemade cream of chicken soup to the gravy in the Instant Pot, whisking until it's fully incorporated and smooth. Return chicken to the gravy and stir to combine.
- Spoon chicken and gravy over mashed potatoes, rice, biscuits, or noodles to serve.
Notes
- I use low-sodium chicken broth in this recipe because the gravy packets have a good bit of salt in them.
- I highly recommend using homemade cream of chicken soup, because it adds such wonderful flavor, but you can certainly use the canned variety if preferred. Simply use 1 can of condensed cream of chicken soup plus one can of water.
- You can change up the flavor a little by using one packet of chicken gravy mix and one packet of ranch dressing mix.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 993Total Fat: 23gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 486mgSodium: 783mgCarbohydrates: 5gFiber: 0gSugar: 0gProtein: 179g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and is not guaranteed for accuracy.
Can you make this with frozen chicken breasts and if so, how long would you pressure cook them?
Hi Krista! I think that should work fine–the cook time will depend on the size of the frozen chicken breasts. I generally do 10-12 minutes for smaller ones or about 15 minutes for larger ones. Enjoy! 🙂
Hello,
Would I be able to use a frozen whole chicken??
Hi Juli, that’s a great question! I haven’t tried it myself, so I can’t say for sure. It might work just fine, but I am a little concerned the gravy could scorch if it cooks for the longer cook time required with a whole frozen chicken. To be safe, I would probably suggest first cooking the chicken separately in the Instant Pot (you can follow these instructions if needed: https://ifoodreal.com/instant-pot-frozen-chicken/), then pulling some of the chicken off of the bones and following the instructions using the cooked chicken instead, and decrease the cook time to 1 minute (since the chicken is already cooked). I hope that helps! 🙂
I went ahead and tried it. As i only have c while chickens all of which were frozen. So I just increased the cooking time to compensate. It worked great!!! I also doubled the recipe because of the size of the bird. Nothing scorched at all!! This is an amazing dinner!!!! Thank you so very much !!!!
Can you use the can of chicken soup if so can you add the milk to make it a full two cups?
Hi Erica! Yes, if you’d like to use the canned cream of chicken soup instead of homemade, I generally recommend whisking together 1 can of soup + 1 can of water (or milk, if you prefer). Enjoy! 🙂
Large or small can of the soup?
Hi Jenna–it would be a 10.5-ounce can (the smaller size). Hope that helps! 🙂
If the can of soup and can of milk are more than 2 cups, just use 2 cups ? The exactly 1 can of each?
The can of soup and can of milk will be slightly more than two cups, but that’s okay! I’d still use all of it since the condensed soup is thicker. I hope that helps! 🙂
I would rather use boneless, skinless thighs. How would that change the time in the Instant Pot?
Hi Donette! Boneless thighs tend to require a slightly longer cook time than boneless breasts, so I’d probably just bump the cook time up to 8 minutes (I’d still cut the thighs in half first). Enjoy! 🙂
I had such high hopes but the chicken was so rubbery that i could not shred it and so it has become expensive dog food. The gravy part smelled good but i did not do the final step of adding the soup – since it is going to the dogs . last time i’m trying chicken in instant pot. ♀️
Hi Jo! I’m sorry it turned out rubbery–I haven’t had that happen with this recipe. Sometimes that can happen if the chicken doesn’t cook long enough (that’s why I cut the breasts in half, so the smaller pieces cook well in that time). If the chicken seems rubbery, you can always add a couple more minutes of cook time and see if that helps.
This recipe was easy and delicious! I made it as written except for a little addition of some dried thyme & a LOT more black pepper to suit our tastes. We served on rice tonight along with California Blend vegetables, and I had compliments all the way around! Thanks for this recipe!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Johna! Thanks for sharing your tweaks–I love the idea of adding some California blend veggies, too! 🙂
It’s just my husband and I so I will be halving this recipe. Would this affect the cook time?
Hi Danielle! No need to change the cook time if halving the recipe. Enjoy! 🙂
Whoopsie I accidentally put the cream of chicken in first before cooking. ( I guess I should’ve read the directions better) we will see how it turns out!
Hopefully it still turned out okay, Tamara! I’m sure it was still tasty, just maybe a slightly different texture–but it’s all going to the same place, anyways, right? 🙂
Can I make this recipe with McCormick Simply Better Chicken Gravy twist top cartons instead of the powdered gravy mix? It’s all I have at the moment.
Hi Janey! I haven’t tried it with that type of gravy, unfortunately, so I’m not sure if it would work. My main concern is that it might be too thick to boil properly, causing scorching on the bottom of the pot. Sorry I can’t say for sure!
The Simply Better Chicken Gravy has a slightly thinner viscosity than cream of chicken soup, and since I don’t have any cream of chicken soup, I was thinking I could substitute it with the chicken gravy instead. I guess the only way to know if it would work is to try it and see. =) I’ll make it tonight for dinner using the chicken gravy in place of the cream of chicken soup, so I’ll be sure to share how it turns out.
Yes, please let us know how it turns out, Janey! 🙂
Has anyone tried to add reames frozen noodles to this? Just wondering how I could add those in!
Hi Renae! I haven’t done it with this recipe, but I’ve used Reames noodles in a couple of other Instant Pot recipes. I think it would probably work! If you use a 12-ounce package, you may not need to increase the liquid in the recipe, since they don’t absorb as much liquid as dried noodles do. But if you do more noodles than that, I’m guessing you’d need more liquid (and possibly more gravy mix, too). I’d probably adjust the cook time to 5 minutes, since it will take longer for the pot to come to pressure with frozen noodles in it. I hope that helps! Let us know how it goes if you give it a whirl!
I cooked my chicken in the oven and shredded it to cook tomorrow do I still add all the same amount of ingredients? Also can you add chicken broth instead of water?And what other spices can I add so it has great flavor? Thank you.
Hi Marlene! If your chicken is already cooked, you can probably just simmer the other ingredients together and add the shredded chicken to warm through (there’s no need to pressure cook if the chicken is already cooked). I use low-sodium broth since there’s salt in the gravy packets and cream of chicken soup. I think the gravy packets and cream of chicken soup give plenty of flavor on their own, but if you want to add more seasonings, you could try a bit of ground thyme, black pepper, and garlic powder. Hope that helps! 🙂
I made this tonight. I made it with the homemade cream of chicken soup (which was very good btw). I had to add some cornstarch to thicken up the gravy a little but once I did that it was all good. The chicken was very tender. Served over mashed potatoes, this was a very good IP meal!! Thanks!
Thanks for sharing, April! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
How much cornstarch did you add?I want my gravy thick.And did yiu adx any additional spices?
The gravy packet didn’t completely dissolve. Had to toss out some chunks.
I’m sorry to hear that, Brenda! I wonder if some brands dissolve better than others? I’m glad you were able to salvage it! 🙂
I had the same problem as Brenda. I had to try to mash them up to dissolve. It was mostly successful, but very time consuming. Otherwise it was successful.
I’m sorry to hear that, Karessa! Thanks for letting me know. I’m glad you were able to salvage it!
Delicious, the only change I made was I added red pepper flakes. This recipe has been added to my favorite recipes. Thank you
I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed it, Margie! Red pepper flakes sound like a tasty addition–thanks for sharing! 🙂
I’m going to try this tonight. I like one of the responses of adding thyme. I think I will also ad a mix of frozen vegetables (like peas, carrots and corn) for a meal. Thanks for the recipe.
You’re welcome, Kim! I hope you enjoyed it 🙂
If I only have 2 pounds of chicken breast, should I follow the recipe or cut it in half and only use one pack of chicken gravy mix and one can of cream of chicken soup or should I use both packs?
Hi Tim! I would keep everything else the same (no need to cut the recipe in half) for 2 lbs of chicken. You just may have a little extra gravy, which in my opinion, is never a bad thing! 🙂 Enjoy!
993 calories per serving? 719 grams off protein per serving? Is that an error and for the whole six servings maybe?
Hi Kim! Great question. The nutrition information is automatically calculated by the recipe card software I use, so it isn’t always accurate (for instance, the calculator may not know how many calories are in a pack of gravy mix or homemade cream of chicken soup, so it makes an estimate). So I agree with you, the amount of calories per serving definitely seems inflated. It’s showing 179 g of protein, which seems high as well (maybe it’s assuming there’s protein in the cream of chicken soup and/or broth?). For more accurate info, it may be useful to plug some numbers into a nutrition calculator online, where you can specify the calories for the ingredients you’re using, etc.
Love this recipe! Tend to use it when I dont quiteeeee have enough chicken for dinner for my family of 4 and this really helps me stretch it out. The whole family enjoys it. True comfort food.
Thank you–I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Jill! 🙂
For the natural pressure release do we just wait as it slowly goes down? For my instant pot that is awhillllle. Please explain more
Hi Jessica! Yes, a natural pressure release is when you just let the pressure go down on its own. That’s my favorite option when cooking meat, as it helps to prevent sudden shifts in temperature, which keeps the meat more tender. But you don’t have to do it that way! If you’re in a hurry, I’d suggest letting the pressure release on its own for 5 minutes, then you can quick release the rest of the pressure. Hope that helps! 🙂
Ok, this is hands down the best recipe I’ve ever found according to the kids in my house.
I’m so glad to hear it was a hit, Travis! What a great compliment from your kids! 🙂
So I tried this and the chicken came out fine. Looking for suggestions. The flavor was pretty bland and the gravy was watery. I followed the directions to a tee. Any suggestions for giving it a bolder flavor and thickening the gravy? Overall a quick and easy dish, but we love a dish with a huge burst of flavor. Thank you in advance.
Hi Bryant! If you’d like to thicken the gravy, you can either use the Saute function to simmer it for a few minutes after pressure cooking, or you can add a slurry of cornstarch and water before simmering to thicken it up even more. As far as flavor goes, most of the flavor comes from the gravy packets, so you could try a different brand of gravy packets or add some additional seasonings beyond the garlic powder and black pepper. Ground thyme, paprika, onion powder, etc. would all be good options. You may even be able to add a packet of ranch seasoning mix or dry onion soup mix to the gravy packets and see if that takes it up a notch–just be aware that most packets contain more sodium, and you won’t want the final dish being too salty. I hope that helps! 🙂
How long do you suggest letting the pressure naturally release?
Hi Ashley! I allow a full natural release of pressure, meaning I let it release until the pressure valve drops. The natural pressure release just helps promote tenderness in the meat. But if you are in a hurry, you can let the pressure release naturally for at least 5-10 minutes, then do a quick release of the remaining pressure. I hope that helps! 🙂
Could you make this in the crockpot if you do not have an instant pot?
Hi Tiffanie! I think that would work fine–you could combine all the ingredients and cook on low for 4-6 hours, then shred the chicken. Enjoy! 🙂
My husband is not a fan of packaged chicken gravy so I substituted packaged creamy pesto sauce. It put an Italian spin on the dish and I served it with fettuccine. Delicious and thank you’
What a fabulous idea, Betsy! Thank you for sharing your tweak! 🙂
This is my GO TO recipe!!! I always do it with frozen chicken just add a couple more minutes and do everything the same as the recipe calls for. A family favorite, glad I found it
Thank you so much, Myriah! I love hearing that it’s become a regular in your home! 🙂