Instant Pot Honey Sesame Chicken–tender bites of chicken coated in a honey-soy sauce and sprinkled with sesame seeds. An easy dump and go recipe! Plus you can make rice at the same time in the same pot.
Note: the SLOW COOKER instructions are listed in the recipe card below
Instant Pot Honey Sesame Chicken
If you’re looking for a quick dump and go Instant Pot recipe this is your winner. Honey sesame chicken has a perfect balance of sweet and savory flavors. It tastes awesome served over rice. And you can cook the rice at the same time in the same pot. Winning! You can even make this ahead of time as a freezer meal. Keep reading for instructions on how!
Ingredients/Substitution Ideas
- Water
- Low sodium soy sauce–this is important so you get lots of flavor but it’s not too salty.
- Boneless, skinless chicken breasts–or thighs or tenders. For chicken tenders only pressure cook for 4 minutes with a 10 minute natural pressure release.
- Dried onion–I like to buy dehydrated onion flakes from Costco in a big container.
- Ketchup
- Sesame oil
- Garlic powder
- Red pepper flakes–or cayenne
- Honey
- Cornstarch–or arrowroot powder
- Sesame seeds
Steps to make honey sesame chicken in the Instant Pot
Instant Pot Instructions:
- Add ingredients: Add water and soy sauce into Instant Pot. Add in the chicken breasts. Add in the onion, ketchup, sesame oil, garlic powder and red pepper flakes.
- Pressure cook: Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 10 minutes for fresh or 12 minutes for frozen. When time is up let pot sit for 10-15 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid.
- Shred: Place chicken on a cutting board and shred.
- Honey: Stir the honey into the Instant Pot.
- Thicken: Turn Instant Pot to sauté setting. Stir cornstarch and water together in a small bowl until smooth. Stir the cornstarch slurry into the pot until sauce thickens. Once sauce has thickened add the chicken back into the pot and stir to coat the chicken.
- Serve: Stir in the sesame seeds and serve over rice.
Slow Cooker Instructions:
- Add ingredients: Add water, soy sauce, onion, ketchup, sesame oil, garlic powder, red pepper flakes and honey into slow cooker. Stir well. Add in the chicken breasts and turn to coat.
- Slow cook: Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours.
- Shred: Place chicken on a cutting board and shred.
- Thicken: Stir cornstarch and water together in a small bowl until smooth. Stir the cornstarch slurry into the slow cooker until sauce thickens. Once sauce has thickened add the chicken back into the slow cooker and stir to coat the chicken.
- Serve: Stir in the sesame seeds and serve over rice.
To make as a freezer meal:
- Add soy sauce, chicken, onion, ketchup, sesame oil, garlic powder, red pepper flakes and honey into a ziploc freezer bag.
- Freeze into a shape that will fit in your Instant Pot.
- Once ready to cook pour ½ cup water into Instant Pot and add frozen contents into the Instant Pot or slow cooker.
- Pressure cook for 12 minutes with a natural pressure release or slow cook for 4-6 hours. Then shred the chicken, thicken with cornstarch slurry and serve.
Related: 3 Dump And Go Instant Pot Freezer Meals
Notes/Tips
- You can make this with fresh or frozen chicken. For fresh chicken pressure cook for 10 minutes and 12 minutes for frozen chicken.
- I used my 6 quart Instant Pot. You can also make this in the 3 or 8 quart pot. You can double or halve the recipe by adjusting the ingredients accordingly and keeping the same cooking time.
- How to make rice at the same time: You can make pot-in-pot rice at the same time. Place a tall trivet* in the pot around the chicken. Then add a pan that has rice and water in it on top of the trivet. The water to rice ratio should be 1 cup rice to 1.5 cups water for long grain white rice. I like to cover the pan with a lid or foil, but you don’t have to cover it.
- Serve this chicken with rice and steamed or roasted broccoli or another favorite vegetable.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container* in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat in the microwave or by using the pot-in-pot method.
- If you’d like to make this recipe gluten-free use a gluten-free soy sauce or tamari sauce.
More Instant Pot Asian Recipes…
- Instant Pot Honey Garlic Beef (With Video)
- Instant Pot Mongolian Chicken
- Instant Pot Better Than Takeout Chicken Lo Mein
- Instant Pot Potsticker Bowls
Did you know you can filter the recipes on my website to search by meat type, IP or Crockpot, low carb, gluten free, etc.? Use the filter to find exactly what you are looking for.
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Instant Pot Honey Sesame Chicken
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes (plus 10 minute NPR)
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
Description
Tender bites of chicken coated in a honey-soy sauce and sprinkled with sesame seeds. An easy dump and go recipe! Plus you can make rice at the same time in the same pot.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 24 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 2 Tbsp dried onion
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- 1/2 cup honey
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch + 2 Tbsp water
- 1 tsp sesame seeds
Instructions
Instant Pot Instructions:
- Add water and soy sauce into Instant Pot. Add in the chicken breasts. Add in the onion, ketchup, sesame oil, garlic powder and red pepper flakes.
- Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 10 minutes for fresh or 12 minutes for frozen. When time is up let pot sit for 10-15 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid.
- Place chicken on a cutting board and shred.
- Stir the honey into the Instant Pot.
- Turn Instant Pot to sauté setting. Stir cornstarch and water together in a small bowl until smooth. Stir the cornstarch slurry into the pot until sauce thickens. Once sauce has thickened add the chicken back into the pot and stir to coat the chicken.
- Stir in the sesame seeds and serve over rice.
Slow Cooker Instructions:
- Add water, soy sauce, onion, ketchup, sesame oil, garlic powder, red pepper flakes and honey into slow cooker. Stir well. Add in the chicken breasts and turn to coat.
- Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours.
- Place chicken on a cutting board and shred.
- Stir cornstarch and water together in a small bowl until smooth. Stir the cornstarch slurry into the slow cooker until sauce thickens. Once sauce has thickened add the chicken back into the slow cooker and stir to coat the chicken.
- Stir in the sesame seeds and serve over rice.
Notes
You can make pot-in-pot rice at the same time. Place a tall trivet* in the pot around the chicken. Then add a pan that has rice and water in it on top of the trivet. The water to rice ratio should be 1 cup rice to 1.5 cups water for long grain white rice. I like to cover the pan with a lid or foil, but you don’t have to cover it.
- Category: Chicken
- Method: Instant Pot or Slow Cooker
*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
So easy and delicious! This is my go to comfort food 😋
★★★★★
Thanks for the 5 stars!
Delicious and super easy recipe. Another recipe that I follow from your blog that my family loves. Thank you!!! PS. I appreciate a lot that you always have the slow cooker version as well.
★★★★★
Thanks so much for the 5 stars!
Thank you very much for sharing such a delightful recipe!
★★★★★
Your recipes are quick and easy, but are high in sodium and cholesterol. Not great for us with high blood pressure. Do you have recipes that covers this issue?
No I don’t but I do have some suggestions to cut down sodium:
Low sodium
I asked on my facebook group and here is what they said:
You might can try the American heart association they may have some recipe links.
My big thing is I use zero salt Stock!
I would recommend reducing the salt added, as well as looking at the ingredients…all canned products have sodium added (you can rinse the beans), as well as sodium in things like Worcestershire sauce, boullion, soy sauce and canned cream soups. I work in healthcare and have this talk with others often.
Actually you can get ‘no salt added’ tomatoes and vegetables now. I have to eat low sodium so I am always scouting the can goods.
Yes, I should have phrased that better, as “most” and to search for the low sodium options, or use alternatives. I home can most of my own veggies, and with my IP, I just cook all my beans from dry and freeze the extra.
I use reduced sodium broth and skip the packets. Add my own spice when I can.
There are some excellent cookbooks and after reading their ratings and a few recipes it won’t take long to find several that follow low salt regime not just try.
Look on Amazon for “Instant Pot Dash diet recipes” there are several cookbooks available.
Not a resource per say but I use low sodium broth, no added salt and read labels. Many spice blends have added salt and I don’t use them
Since cooking with the IP is primarily from scratch and not using processed foods you control the sodium by controlling the salt. I prefer to use my own homemade broth but sometimes use broth powder but do by the low sodium. She can also avoid soy sauce and some of those Asian sauces that are high in sodium by making her own. Actually cooking with the IP is already inherently low sodium!
I’ve been using Magic seasonings for years. Great flavor and lower sodium. Created by Chef Paul Prudhomme in New Orleans.
Carefully read all ingredients on stocks tomatoes etc. For example, you can find low sodium chicken broth at 120 mg per serving or 540mg per serving. Chinese food is an option if you use coconut aminos instead of soy sauce.
Rinse and drain can beans when using in a recipe.
I just use low sodium ingredients
Just use no salt canned items when you are cooking, non injected pork and chicken, and stay away from the Better Than Buillon as it is horribly high in sodium. You can find no salt Swanson’s chicken and beef broth or Herb Ox no salt Buillons online. I eat low sodium, and the recipes are really easy to convert.