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Some of the best and tenderest chicken you’ll eat that’s made in minutes thanks to the Instant Pot. Plus that BBQ sauce – 10 out of 10!
By now you all know how madly, deeply I am in love with my Instant Pot 8 qrt Pressure Cooker. Wait you don’t know this? Oh honey we need to talk! Come grab a seat at my kitchen table, have a cookie (or 3) and let’s chat.
You see I cook every day. Every. Single. Day. And while cooking and baking (really anything that involves being in the kitchen and creating) is my passion. It allows my creative side to come to light and lets my engineering mindset take a breather. You see when I’m in the kitchen I don’t think. I know that sounds odd (or even cocky which I don’t mean) but for me, it just makes sense when I craft a new recipe.
It took those days where when I got home from work I just didn’t have the energy to stand in the kitchen for 30 minutes making a meal. I was tired, the gym kicked my butt, I needed a shower, I had 400 TKW emails to answer, I had to work on another recipe posting, I had to make sure I spent quality time with you guys on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram and oh yeah, feed Mr. Fantabulous. I won’t even go into my also logging into my day job and checking on emails and stuff.
You see if you’re like me you grew up where the pressure cooker that our Moms and Grandmothers used was deadly. They’d hiss, they spit, heck they’d even blow their lids off if you let the pressure build up too much or not have enough liquid in it. That was the only kitchen appliance that I was forbidden to touch. Heck, I wasn’t even allowed in the kitchen when my Mom would use it.
Nowadays they are the ‘norm’ yet when these new electric ones came out, it was scary as it was ‘new’. I went to Google just to read more about it and understand the mechanics of pressure cooking.
What is Pressure Cooking
Pressure cooking is a cooking method that takes a pot and tops it with a special airtight lid and seal. By sealing a liquid in a pressure cooker traps the vapor that rises from the liquid. This in turn raises the pressure inside the pressure cooker along with the maximum temperature that the liquid can reach.
In layman’s terms, the increased temperature and pressure significantly speed up the cooking process. The pressure infuses the hot steam into the food. By utilizing this method, pressure cooking can cook foods in about one third the ordinary time on average and often over 10 times faster.
Normal and Quick Release
With this pressure cooker there are 2 types of release methods
- Quick – Fast pressure release means that the cook should use the valve, or pressure releasing mechanism particular to their cooker (such as a button to push, a lever to twist, or a slide to pull), to release pressure once the timer goes off. For thick recipes (such as a chili or a risotto), right after this release, the still unopened pressure cooker should be given a few small jolts to release any super-heated seam pockets in the food.
- Normal – Slow pressure releases pressure using the pressure releasing mechanism. By letting the machine release it for it, it lets the pressure drop slowly from your electric pressure cooker. During this slow release, the cooking continues, so it is recommended for certain cuts of meats, and some desserts. When pressure is fully released, the float (pressure indicator) will drop and the lid will unlock to open.
Let’s talk about these luscious boneless thighs. I was at the butcher shop and he had an in-store special. 99 cents a pound with no limit! Now I normally don’t buy thighs as I’m not a huge fan of dark meat. Don’t get me wrong, it tastes great but it’s not the healthiest part only due to it having a higher fat content.
However, it’s also the most flavorful part. So you guys all know me, I firmly believe in ‘Everything in moderation so I can eat these, just not all the time.
Myoglobin is the hemoprotein (an oxygen-carrying protein) responsible for giving dark meat its reddish color. The more myoglobin, the darker the meat and the richer the nutrients. Myoglobin provides muscles with the oxygen they need during exercise or movement. And since chickens don’t fly they use their legs and thighs to get around thus building up the muscles and making the meat ‘dark’.
So I bought a few pounds and came home to make lunch. Since I had a crap ton (official term here folks) of stuff to get done, I didn’t have a lot of time to be putzing around in the kitchen. Don’t you hate it when real life gets in the way of your passion? Since I had made boneless chicken breasts in the pressure cooker a million (and 7) times before I figured the time would be about same. I whipped up some bbq sauce then thinned it out for the pressure cooker, tossed it all in and for 10 minutes I was able to sit and relax before I got all those things on my list done.
When they were done, which literally they were almost falling apart they were so tender, I kicked the pressure cooker over to brown to thicken up the sauce and popped these babies under the broiler to crisp up. And like clock work Mr. Fantabulous came out to the kitchen (or more like his nose pulled him into the room) sniffing away. When he saw me pull these slightly charred, sticky bbq thighs out of the oven he immediately went and got us sodas, plates and silverware. Oh how cute! He thought I was going to share! LOL However I’m a good wife and gave him some along with a small salad. He INHALED these things! He kept saying how tender and juicy they were. That the flavors were insane. When I told him what they were he said “but… but I don’t like dark meat…” I just smiled and said “looks like you do now honey!”
PrintPressure Cooker Honey BBQ Boneless Chicken Thighs
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Ingredients
- 2lbs boneless chicken thighs
- 2 cups honey bbq sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 1–2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
- 3 tablespoon brown sugar
- 3 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Pat dry the thighs dry. Add the thighs into the Instant Pot 8 qrt pressure cooker.
- In a bowl whisk together the sauce, water, paprika, cayenne, brown sugar, honey, salt, and pepper. Pour over thighs. Lock the lid down and set it to High pressure, for 10 minutes.
- When the 10 minutes is up do a quick release. While the quick release is relieving pressure, place the oven to broil with a rack in the middle. Line a rimmed pan with foil and place a cooling rack on top. Lightly spray the rack.
- Gently remove the thighs from the pressure cooker with tongs and place on the rack, set aside. Set the pressure cooker to browning and stir the sauce until thickened ~10-15 minutes. Slather on some sauce on top of the thighs. Put the pan in the oven, under the broiler for 2-5 minutes (just enough to lightly char the sauce).
- Flip the thighs over, cover with more sauce and broil for 2-5 more minutes or until they are nicely charred. Place the sauce in a container for serving. Store any leftovers in the fridge.
Looking for more Pressure Cooker recipes?
Pressure Cooker Wings with Bourbon Honey BBQ Sauce
Pressure Cooker St. Louis Ribs with Whiskey BBQ Sauce
Pressure Cooker Perfectly Poached Chicken Breasts
Fantabulous Pressure Cooker Pork Ragu
Judy says
Hi there, I just made these & my hubby said it was the best thing we’ve made in the pressure cooker! I hate to toss the bbq sauce. Do you any of you save it??
Thanks so much!
TKWAdmin says
Hi Judy!
Thank you so much! Don’t toss the sauce; save it – freeze it or make more thighs! You can use the bbq sauce on burgers, pulled pork and more chicken!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Cathy Fudala says
just got a pressure cooker and tried these honey
BBQ thighs, wow it was like they were slow cooked on the grill. Thanks for posting this recipe.
TKWAdmin says
Aw thank you so much Cathy! I’m so glad you loved them as much as I did!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Kassie says
Thanks for the recipe! I was also wondering if this would work for bone-in thighs? It will be the first time using my Instant pot, yikes!
Rebecca says
Can I use this recipe with just chicken legs? I have a giant package and I’m trying to find a pressure cooker recipe for it. Thanks
TKWAdmin says
Hi Rebecca,
I’m actually going to be testing this out today with drumsticks (bone-in). It’ll work but I need to see how long it’ll take in the pressure cooker. I’m thinking it should be between 10-14 minutes. I’ll let you know, k?
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Rebecca Seevers says
Thanks! I can’t wait to hear how it went!
Tiphanie W. says
Hi TKW,
I was wondering if you tried our the bone-in drumsticks, and how they turned out? I would like to make this recipe, but mine are bone-in chicken thighs. What would be the correct time for those, do you think?
Thank you!
TKWAdmin says
OMG Tiphanie it was a HUGE success!!! I cooked about 3.5 pounds of bone-in drumsticks and it took 12 minutes, quick release. Same recipe as above, just altered the time. I broiled them for about 7 minutes and perfectly crispy.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Tiphanie W. says
I made them tonight, and they were really good! The sauce never really reduced to a thickened consistency, but it still had a good flavor. Thank you for the recipe!
TKWAdmin says
I’m so happy you loved them! Hmmm… if your sauce didn’t thicken it more than likely needed a bit more time to cook. If you wanted, you could put it in a pan over the stove and let it cook down that way. Just like any bbq sauce it needs to cook down to reduce and thicken. Next time, trust me on this. It’s so worth it as the sauce is awesome!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Sarah says
Hi. This looks great, but my pressure cooker is only 4 1/2 quarts. Do you think that will be a problem? Thank you.
TKWAdmin says
Hi Sarah!
Hmmm I would think no only because it’s 1.5 quarts smaller than my smallest one. What I would do is cut the recipe in half ensuring that you’re below your max fill line on the pressure cooker. Plus since the recipe doesn’t take very long you can always make a 2nd batch while the first one is in the oven!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Kim says
I am a new owner of an Instant Pot. A lot of things I have read says to use natural pressure release for meats or the meat will be tough. Your recipe calls for a quick release. I am wondering about when to and not to use the quick release for meats. I made a recipe for short ribs last night that called for quick release and the ribs were tough. I reset the IP for 10 minutes and did a natural pressure release and they were better and I was able to save them. I don’t want to make that mistake again. Please advise on your recipe and in general on this issue. Thanks!
TKWAdmin says
Hi Kim and congrats on getting the new Instant Pot! I LOVE LOVE LOVE pressure cooking (as you can tell!)
Now when it comes to pressure cooking meats it honestly depends on the type of meat you’re cooking. Roasts and more of the ‘heartier’ meats you do the natural release. For chicken I don’t want to continue ‘poaching it’ thus I do a quick release. I want the chicken tender but not to fall apart. I consider chicken a more delicate meat as it’s low in fat.
How long did you cook your short ribs for? I have a recipe posted (http://www.thekitchenwhisperer.net/2016/04/07/pressure-cooker-beef-short-ribs-with-potatoes-and-carrots/) and mine cooked for about 50 minutes and then I do a natural release. They are tender. Pot roast (http://www.thekitchenwhisperer.net/2016/05/14/pressure-cooker-moms-classic-pot-roast-with-savory-onion-gravy/) was about 90 minutes with a natural release.
Does that help? I have a slew of pressure cooking recipes on here plus if you find a recipe of mine that you want converted to pressure cooking shoot me an email Lori@thekitchenwhisperer.net and I can help you out!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Lindsey says
This is the first ever recipe that I have left a review…..wow just wow.
These were so full of flavour and enjoyed very quickly by myself and my partner.
I liked the flavours so much that I was wondering if you could use this recipe in the exact same way but for pork spare ribs ?
Thanks again for such a lovely and yummy recipe that will be made time and time again ????
TKWAdmin says
OMGosh Lindsey thank you so so SO much! That honestly warms my heart and brings a tear to my eye. I truly appreciate it.
Oh yeah I’ve used this recipe with boneless pork spare ribs. They are seriously amazing. For those, however you want to tweak the recipe just slightly. Pat the ribs dry then dredge in some seasoned flour (I just use salt and pepper) and sear then in a bit of EVOO on all sides just to get a nice crust. Next, add the rest of the ingredients above and cook for 20 minutes. Do a natural release. Then just like the thighs, place the ribs on a rack and broil to get that caramel crust on them like you did for the thighs.
Let me know what you think of the ribs.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Gino Spinolli says
I never leave feedback, not because I don’t want to but because I forget. However this, this recipe lady you deserve my feedback. I’ve made this recipe about half a dozen times and it’s fantastic. My family, who never were thigh fans (I was the only one), raves about this recipe. Now to keep the family happy I do throw in some breasts with the thighs so everyone is happy.
Some don’t want them broiled – they like the sauce all saucy where others love it broiled to give it that bbq char.
This is my first ever recipe comment and words cannot thank you enough for such an amazing recipe. To be honest, I’ve made about 15 or so of your recipes and absolutely love each and every one of them!
Grazie!
TKWAdmin says
Wow Gino thank you so very much! I’m honored and humbled. That really means so much to me. Your family sounds like Mr. Fantabulous – he was never a thigh fan until I made these. Now he’ll ask me to make them.
I really appreciate you taking the time to leave me a comment!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
James says
We made these last night and wow are they awesome! Straight out of the pressure cooker they are so tender! I questioned the whole broiling them but when you put the bbq sauce of them and broil for a few it makes it taste just like you grilled them on the grill. Awesome! love these!
TKWAdmin says
Thank you so much James! Yeah that’s exactly why I put them under the broiler. Since I don’t have a bbq (long story) I use my broiler to give it that true “bbq’d effect”.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Richard Fertal says
What in the world is the pressure cooker browning doing in the middle of the recipe?
James says
You brown/broil them to give the bbq sauce that ‘grilled’ sticky effect. You don’t have to do it but these are “BBQ’d” thighs. We love this recipe!
TKWAdmin says
Yep, exactly right James!
And thank you!
Best Kitchen Wishes!
TKWAdmin says
Richard,
There is no ‘browning’ part in the recipe. You put the cooked chicken under the broiler to give it that ‘bbq’ effect and taste. If you’ve pressure cooked, the food that comes out is soft, tender and in this case, coated in the sauce. You don’t have to broil it. You can eat it as that. Think of it as cooked chicken with a sauce on top. By broiling it you then caramelize the sauce that is cooked on the meat similarly to grilling it on a bbq. I’m curious though why the one star. Did you make it and not like it?
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Lindsey says
Hi Richard,
I wondered the same thing as you because step 11 says to set the pressure cooker to browning. I think I may be able to explain this step for you. Step 11 is to cook the sauce that’s left in the pressure cooker once you have taken out the chicken thighs. The way I did it was like this…..once the chicken thighs had been taken out of the sauce I then set the pressure cooker to browning if your using an electric one (my pressure cooker calls it saute, so I pressed that button) leave the lid off and the sauce will cook and thicken slightly and look glossy as if you have it back on the normal stove on low-medium heat.
The sauce is easier to slather/brush on top of the chicken thighs your now about to pop under the grill/broiler. Took about 10 mins for my sauce to reach the glossy stage by using the saute (browning function) on my electric pressure cooker and I kept an eye on it stiring it regularly.
I hope this works for you as this recipe is truly one of the best and I’m sorry it’s such a long post but I hope I have explained it correctly for you and you get to try them again sometime ????
TKWAdmin says
Thank you so very much Lindsey! I really appreciate your feedback! That’s how I do it too!
Best Kitchen Wishes!