Instant Pot Garlic and Honey Chicken

No need for take-out when you make this super delicious Instant Pot Garlic and Honey Chicken. Tender chicken, crisp but tender veggies, with a garlic and honey sauce to make you super happy! 

Make this Instant Pot Garlic and Honey Chicken!!

Below you’ll find instructions on how to cook this meal in the instant pot from fresh, how to package it up for a future freezer meal, how to cook it from frozen in the instant pot, as well as in a slow cooker!

What Kinds Of Chicken Should I Use For This Dish?

So,  there will be some cuts of chicken that work better with this dish than others.  You could use cuts such as: 

• Boneless, skinless chicken breasts (which I used today)
• Boneless, skinless chicken thighs 

What wouldn’t work that well:  

• chicken wings
• chicken legs

The combination of wings and legs with the garlic and honey sauce would be excellent together, but in a different dish with different cooking methods.

Directions For How To Assemble The Instant Pot Honey Garlic Chicken Freezer Meal: 

1. In a large bowl, combine the cubed chicken, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mix all ingredients together, and transfer to an 8 x 7-inch freezer bag. Seal the bag removing as much air as possible.

2. Using a sharp knife, carefully slice the onions, and then the carrots into coin shapes (if they’re bigger than bite-sized, slice in half), and cut the broccoli into bite-sized pieces as well. 

3. Place the carrots and onions into another 8 x 7 freezer bag. Seal the bag. Place the broccoli into another bag on its own.

4.  Pour the garlic and honey sauce into another freezer bag and seal very well.

5. Group all the smaller freezer bags and place into a larger gallon-sized freezer bag. Add the printed recipe into the bag as well for reference. 

6. Freeze for up to 3 months. 

To save you time and energy, print the recipe, and add it directly to the large freezer bag. Then you will know precisely what is in them and how to cook it. It’s convenient and easy.  

Assembled freezer meal 

Directions for Cooking The Instant Pot Garlic And Honey Chicken From Fresh

Add the chicken, onions, and 1 tablespoon of oil to the Instant Pot. Press saute and sear the chicken pieces and cook the onions till translucent.

Add the carrots. Add the cooking liquid and cover.

Move the toggle switch to “sealing”. Press Manual, high pressure and cook for 5 minutes.

When time is up, do a quick release. Carefully, with two oven mitts, remove the pot insert and drain the cooking liquids.

Replace the cooking insert into the instant pot.

Press ‘saute’ and add the sauce. When the sauce comes to a boil, add the  *optional* cornstarch slurry. Mix to thicken.

Turn off the appliance, and add the broccoli. Stir the contents well, cover with the lid and let it sit for 3 – 4 minutes for the residual heat in the pot to cook the broccoli through. 
Serve and Enjoy!

Directions for Cooking Instant Pot Garlic And Honey Chicken from Frozen

Remove all the bags from the larger bag. Take the chicken out of the bag and place in the instant pot cooking insert with cooking liquid.

Place the lid on the pot and toggle to the sealed position.

Cook on manual high pressure for 5 minutes. 

*** Whenever you cook frozen food, the Instant Pot won’t come to pressure as quickly. 

Do a quick release and then remove the lid. Break up the chicken pieces. Don’t be alarmed if they are not fully cooked. 

Carefully, with two oven mitts, remove the pot insert and drain liquids. Replace the cooking insert back into the instant pot.

Add the frozen carrots, onions and sauce. Cover, seal, and press ‘steam’ (low pressure) for 1 minute. When cooking time is up, do a quick release.

 Press ‘saute’ and while the sauce comes to a boil, add the *optional* cornstarch slurry. Mix to thicken.

Turn off the appliance, and add the broccoli. Stir the contents well, cover with the lid and let it sit for 3 – 4 minutes for the residual heat in the pot to cook the broccoli through. 

 

Directions for Cooking Instant Pot Garlic And Honey Chicken In The Slow Cooker

Thaw the bags of ingredients in the fridge the night before.

Add the chicken, onions, and 1 tablespoon of oil to a frying pan. Sear the chicken and cook the onions until they are soft and translucent. 

Add all ingredients to the slow cooker bowl except the sauce and the broccoli.  Add ½ cup of cooking liquid.

Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-6. (Internal temperature of safely cooked chicken should be 165 degrees Fahrenheit) 

Drain the cooking liquid and then add the sauce and broccoli. Cover and cook for another 30 minutes. Mix well and serve.

 

How Long Will This Chicken Dish Be Good For In The Freezer Meal Bags?

All of the ingredients for this freezer meal should last up to 3 months if they are properly stored in freezer bags! Remove as much air as possible in the bags when sealing.

What Else Can I Use As The Pressure Cooking Liquid For This Instant Pot Chicken Dish?

You could use chicken broth, veggie broth, but water works well too. Do not use beef broth because the flavor will be too strong for the chicken.

Tips and Tricks For Making Garlic & Honey Chicken A Family Favorite:

A good tip is to double the recipe ingredients and make TWO freezer meals at one time, or freeze one meal and make the other for dinner that night!
Adding extra ingredients such as pea pods, baby corn cobs, and celery will help to stretch the dish, saving you money!
If you prefer a bit of a kick, consider adding a dash of dried chili flakes to the sauce!
Using fresh ingredients to start with, produces and excellent tasting dish in the end.
If you can’t find a storebought Garlic and honey sauce, you could try making your own with this recipe.

How Can I Make This Chicken Recipe Low Carb? 

Because a commercially prepared sauce usually will have sugar, you could try making your own sauce, and then using a sugar-free alternative instead of sugar.  You could also switch up serving it on rice and serve on Cauliflower Rice or a cauliflower mashed potatoes.

Can I Refreeze The Cooked Leftovers?

Absolutely! Up to a month in the freezer would be fine.  Please use freezer appropriate storage containers, and remember, this only applies to cooked leftovers. Please do not thaw the RAW frozen meal, and then refreeze. 

This Instant Pot Garlic and Honey Chicken dish is one in a series of  10 Instant Pot Freezer Meals that I made with the time-saving, freezer meal applications in mind. Some of the other recipes in this freezer meal series are:

IP Honey Sriracha Pork
Instant Pot Hearty Beef Stew
Instant Pot BBQ Pork 

 

 

Also, if you are new to using the magical Instant Pot and are a little shy about all its operations, take a peek at this Instant Pot For Beginners guide. It should help you feel a bit more comfy around using it!

I sincerely hope you find this recipe for Instant Pot Honey Garlic Chicken as delicious as I did, and if you made any changes to the recipe or directions, I’d LOVE to hear your switch-ups! Thanks so much for stopping by The Salty Pot today and I hope you have an awesome day!

**DON’T FORGET TO PIN THIS INSTANT POT GARLIC AND HONEY CHICKEN RECIPE TO YOUR FAVORITE PINTEREST BOARD TO USE FOR LATER!!**