Instant Pot Firecracker Chicken
4 standard portions
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Dietary & allergen details
Based on listed recipe ingredients. No certification is implied.
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- Gluten-containing cereals: not fully checked
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- Eggs: not fully checked
- Fish: not fully checked
- Lupin: not fully checked
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- Peanuts: not fully checked
- Sesame: not fully checked
- Soya: not fully checked
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Check the actual product labels and preparation. Substitutions can change this information.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken breasts (cubed into bite-size or 1 inch pieces)
- ⅓ cup cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- ½ cup water (¼ to deglaze and ¼ added to the chicken and sauce)
- ⅓ cup hot sauce (such as Frank's hot sauce or sriracha)
- ½ cup light brown sugar (or honey)
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce (use tamari sauce for a gluten-free option)
- ¼ cup green onion (chopped)
- Cooked rice (for serving)
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon water
Method
- To a bowl, add the chicken, corn starch, salt, and pepper. Mix so that the chicken is well coated.
- On the Instant Pot press on SAUTE (on low) and heat the oil. Add the chicken, and brown it until lightly browned. Remove the chicken from the pot onto a plate and set aside.
- Deglaze the pot by adding ¼ cup of water, and with a wooden spoon or a heat resistant spatula scrape off any bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. I recommend discarding the liquid and the chicken cornstarch bits that were stuck to the pot to get a smooth sauce. Switch off the saute setting.
- In a bowl, whisk all of the sauce ingredients until well combined, then add them to the Instant Pot and put the chicken back. Add ¼ cup of water to the chicken and sauce, and give everything a good mix.
- Secure the lid and set the vent to SEALING. Select the PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL setting and set the cooking time for 5 minutes at high pressure. The Instant Pot will take around 4 minutes to come to pressure and start cooking. When the cooking program ends, quickly release the steam.
- Carefully open the lid, and remove the chicken from the pot and set aside.
- Press on SAUTE if the sauce is no longer hot, and once the sauce comes to a gentle boil add the cornstarch mixed with water. Whisk until the sauce is thickened (it thickens very quickly). Put the chicken back in, and mix.
- Serve over rice, and garnish with chopped green onion.