Sticky Instant Pot Sesame Chicken

Welcome to your new favorite weeknight dinner! This incredibly quick and easy Instant Pot Sesame Chicken recipe transforms chicken thighs (or breasts) into a sweet and savory masterpiece in less than 30 minutes. Whether you own a pressure cooker, a Ninja Foodi, or a Crockpot Express, you’re just a few steps away from a delicious meal that rivals your favorite takeout. If you’ve enjoyed our Crockpot sesame chicken, prepare to be amazed by how much faster and equally flavorful this Instant Pot version is.

Imagine succulent chicken pieces, bathed in a rich, thick, sweet, and savory sauce, served over a bed of fluffy rice. This isn’t just a meal; it’s an experience that brings the flavors of your favorite Asian restaurant right into your home kitchen. It’s no wonder this recipe has become one of our most beloved Instant Pot recipes.

Have you ever found yourself craving that irresistible restaurant-style sesame chicken, wishing you could whip it up at home without the fuss? You’re not alone! We’ve experimented extensively to perfect this recipe. After creating a delicious air fryer sesame chicken, we took on the challenge of making an even faster, equally tender version using the magic of pressure cooking. The result is a dish that’s not only incredibly tasty but also remarkably simple to prepare.

For this recipe, you have the flexibility to use either boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs—both yield fantastic results. We highly recommend dicing your chicken into bite-sized pieces. This not only speeds up the cooking process but also allows the rich, flavorful sauce to deeply penetrate every piece, ensuring maximum taste in every bite. This recipe is versatile and works perfectly with any multi-cooker, including your Crockpot Express, Instant Pot, or as a delightful Ninja Foodi recipe.

Cooking Instant Pot Sesame Chicken with Frozen Chicken

For the best results, we always recommend using thawed or fresh chicken. However, if you only have frozen chicken thighs, don’t despair! You can still make this delicious recipe, provided the chicken is already diced into bite-sized pieces. If your frozen chicken pieces are stuck together, make sure to separate them before cooking to ensure even doneness. Small frozen chicken breasts can also be used, but the cooking time will need a slight adjustment.

For frozen, diced chicken breasts, cook them with 1 cup of broth for 12 minutes on high pressure, followed by a 3-minute natural release. After this initial cook time:

• Drain any excess liquid from the pot.
• Shred the meat if desired, or leave it in diced pieces.
• Proceed with the rest of the recipe instructions as outlined below, skipping the initial sautéing step for raw chicken.
• You won’t need to use the high-pressure function again. Once the sauce is added, simply use the sauté setting to bubble and thicken the sauce, ensuring it coats the chicken beautifully.

No Asian-inspired recipe is complete without the aromatic additions of fresh ginger and garlic, and this sesame chicken is no exception. We’ve included just the right amount to give it that authentic depth of flavor. You’ll likely have most of the sauce ingredients on hand already, with the possible exception of a bottle of hoisin sauce—a secret weapon that adds an incredible sweet and tangy dimension to the dish. (Trust us, it’s worth getting!)

And don’t worry about the rest of that hoisin sauce going to waste! Once you’ve savored this pressure cooker sesame chicken, you’ll be eager to try our equally delightful Instant Pot spicy teriyaki chicken thighs, which also features this amazing sauce.

Ninja Foodi Sesame Chicken: Versatility at its Best

The beauty of this recipe lies in its adaptability. It truly doesn’t matter what brand of multi-cooker you have at home. As long as your appliance features a sauté function (essential for browning the meat) and a high-pressure setting, you’re all set to create this culinary delight. If you’re using a Ninja Foodi, remember to use the pressure cooking lid (the one that’s not permanently attached) for this recipe.

For those who love a bit of crispiness, you can take your Ninja Foodi sesame chicken to the next level! After pressure cooking, simply switch to the air crisp lid for a few minutes. This will give your chicken a beautifully golden-brown and slightly crispy exterior, adding another layer of texture to your meal.

Whole vs. Diced Chicken Thighs: Why Size Matters

Why do we dice the chicken into smaller pieces for this recipe? There are several compelling reasons:

1. **Enhanced Tenderness:** Smaller pieces of chicken tend to cook more evenly and become incredibly tender during the pressure cooking process, ensuring every bite is melt-in-your-mouth delicious.
2. **Maximum Flavor Absorption:** Dicing the chicken into bite-sized pieces significantly increases the surface area. This allows the exquisite sweet and savory sesame sauce to soak in thoroughly, infusing each piece with that signature, mouthwatering sesame chicken taste.
3. **Effortless Eating:** Pre-cut chicken makes dinner much easier for everyone, especially for kids (and busy adults!). No need for extra cutting at the table, just scoop and enjoy!
4. **Faster Cooking:** Smaller pieces cook much quicker, which is key to achieving this “less than 30 minutes” meal. If you were to cook chicken thighs whole, the pressure cooking time would need to be adjusted to approximately 12 minutes to ensure they are fully cooked.

Transforming Leftovers: Sesame Chicken with Pre-Cooked Chicken

Are you looking for an even faster alternative using pre-cooked chicken? Absolutely! This recipe is wonderfully adaptable for diced, pre-cooked chicken, such as rotisserie chicken or any leftover cooked chicken you have on hand. Here’s how to adjust the recipe:

Instead of sautéing raw chicken, simply add your pre-cooked chicken pieces along with the diced onions, garlic, and ginger into the Instant Pot. There’s no need to sauté the chicken itself. Then, skip directly to step 4 in the recipe card where you add the homemade sesame chicken sauce.

For step 5, after adding the sauce and stirring to coat, lock the lid and set the Instant Pot to high pressure for just 2 minutes (instead of 3). This brief pressure cook time allows the flavors to meld beautifully without overcooking the chicken. Including all the time it takes to prep your ingredients, this method will have a delicious meal on your table in under 20 minutes from start to finish – significantly faster than any slow cooker method.

Once your chicken is no longer pink on the outside (or if using pre-cooked chicken, once it’s heated through with the aromatics), you’ll whisk together the irresistible homemade sesame sauce ingredients and pour it directly into the pot. Make sure to stir everything thoroughly so that all the chicken pieces are completely coated, allowing the flavors to truly infuse. This is also a fantastic time to start cooking your rice, ensuring everything is ready to serve at the same time. (Having multiple cooking appliances certainly helps with multi-tasking!)

The Secret to a Thick, Gloopy Sesame Chicken Sauce

Once the second pressure cooking cycle is complete, perform a quick pressure release. Your chicken will be tender and cooked through, but for that truly authentic, “ooey-gooey” restaurant-style texture, thickening the sauce is key. This is where cornstarch comes in!

To achieve a luscious, thick sauce, prepare a cornstarch slurry: In a small bowl, whisk together 4 tablespoons of cornstarch with 4 tablespoons of cold water until completely smooth, ensuring there are no lumps. With the Instant Pot still on the sauté setting (or reactivated if it turned off), wait for the sauce in the pot to begin bubbling. Then, slowly pour in your cornstarch slurry while continuously stirring.

Continue to stir for 1-2 minutes. You’ll notice the sauce gradually thicken to a beautiful, glossy consistency. Once it reaches your desired thickness, turn the pot off and unplug it to prevent any further cooking. Of course, you can adjust the amount of cornstarch if you prefer a thinner sauce, but in our opinion, this ratio creates pure perfection. For a delicious gluten-free alternative, arrowroot powder works wonderfully and provides the same thickening effect.

What Makes Sesame Chicken So Special?

Traditional sesame chicken often features chicken thighs, renowned for their tenderness and rich flavor. While we sometimes opt for chicken breasts for a leaner profile, as pictured in some of our images, both options are perfectly suitable and delicious. Many restaurant versions involve deep-frying the chicken, but our recipe offers a healthier, low-fat alternative by skipping the breading and deep-frying process entirely. The sauce is the star, bringing together a delightful balance of sweet, savory, and sometimes a hint of mild spice, always finished with a thickening agent like cornstarch for that irresistible texture.

This comprehensive list outlines all the ingredients and equipment you’ll need to make this incredible easy Instant Pot chicken recipe. For a complete meal, remember to cook Instant Pot white rice separately, or opt for brown rice for a healthier, fiber-rich alternative to serve alongside your delicious sesame chicken.

More Irresistible Instant Pot Chicken Recipes

Once you master this sesame chicken, you’ll find that many chicken dishes can be adapted using similar pressure cooking techniques, primarily varying the sauce. The Instant Pot truly excels at infusing flavors and creating tender meat with minimal effort. Here are some other chicken recipes we highly recommend exploring:

First on our list is our Easy Instant Pot butter chicken. It’s an excellent choice, especially since dark meat (like chicken thighs) works exceptionally well in pressure cookers, yielding incredibly tender results, just like in this sesame chicken recipe.

If you’re looking for something with a fruity twist, our pressure cooker apricot chicken offers a flavor profile similar to orange chicken, using jam as a natural sweetener. It requires significantly fewer ingredients for the sauce compared to our homemade sesame sauce, making it a fantastic option when you’re in a greater hurry. Alternatively, for a super-fast meal, try our Instant Pot teriyaki chicken, which simply combines chicken with a bottled teriyaki sauce.

Our spicy honey Instant Pot chicken stands out as one of our most popular recipes, closely followed by Instant Pot Korean chicken. We can’t stress enough how this magical appliance has transformed our kitchen. It enables us to eat together more frequently and cook from scratch more often, leading to healthier and more adventurous palates within our family. Dishes like Chicken Tinga are also now regular features on our meal plan thanks to the efficiency of the Instant Pot. It’s truly amazing how much our kids’ taste buds have evolved for the better; they are now incredibly experimental eaters, which is a joy to witness.

Sweet and Sour Chicken vs. Sesame Chicken: What’s the Difference?

While both are popular Asian-inspired chicken dishes, our Instant Pot sesame chicken is distinctly different from our Instant Pot sweet and sour chicken. The primary difference lies in the chicken preparation and the sauce profile.

Our sweet and sour chicken typically uses breaded, frozen popcorn chicken, which contributes to a higher carbohydrate count. In contrast, this sesame chicken recipe is a lower-carb option as it features unbreaded chicken. The sauces also offer unique flavor experiences: this sesame chicken is sweeter and milder, while our sweet and sour chicken often has a more pronounced tangy kick. Both, however, are excellent homemade versions of classic Chinese takeout dishes.

If your family adored this recipe, be sure to also try our equally flavorful Instant Pot Hoisin Chicken. We’ve enjoyed serving it over Ninja Foodi rice, or for a lower-carb option, over creamy mashed cauliflower, which tastes just as incredible as brown or white rice. Are you ready for an easy, family-friendly meal that everyone will rave about? That’s our specialty here, especially with three girls who all agree this dish is “the bomb”! What culinary triumph has your family been raving about lately?

Remember to serve this delectable dish over a bed of fluffy rice, generously sprinkled with the remaining sesame seeds and a dash of freshly diced green onions for an extra burst of color and flavor.

Orange Chicken vs. Sesame Chicken: A Flavor Comparison

The key distinction between orange chicken and sesame chicken lies predominantly in their sauces! Our Instant Pot orange chicken recipe, for instance, features a different flavor profile, often boasting a bright citrusy tang. This sesame chicken recipe, in contrast, is noticeably sweeter and generally lacks any significant heat or “kick” that you might find in some orange chicken variations, such as General Tso’s. Of course, the presence of toasted sesame seeds is another defining characteristic of this dish. For both recipes, we prefer to use boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, diced into uniform bite-sized pieces to ensure even cooking and optimal sauce distribution.