This was after putting it in the oven, under the broiler for a few minutes.
Ever since I got my instant pot, I’ve wondered if I could cook a whole chicken – yes, yes, I can!
It isn’t a recipe, really, you can season your chicken however you want to – but, I used a couple bay leaves, butter, salt, pepper and garlic powder on mine. My chicken was 6 pounds, give or take. I added 1.5 cups of water in the bottom of the instant pot insert, then placed the trivet in – finally adding the chicken and the seasonings.
I set the pot to ‘poultry’, high pressure and 1 hour. When it was done, I allowed it to do natural release.
The chicken was just pulling away from the bone!
I also ended up with a little over 5 cups of broth from the cooking process. This came in handy for me, since I was making chicken and dumplins from this!
To crisp up the skin, I put it in my oven, on broil for just a few minutes. I was actually just going to pull the chicken off and make dumplins, so that was totally unnecessary, but certainly a step worth taking to make your chicken ‘prettier’. You should probably also tie up the legs, as it gets VERY tender in the instant pot.
I can honestly say, I’ve never had a store bought rotisserie chicken that tasted any better. Looked better, yeah, my chicken isn’t winning any beauty contests – but I think it would hold it’s own in a taste contest!
I found myself with no protein thawed out, so I tried to think of things to make with shredded chicken (since it is so easy to do, from frozen, in the instant pot!). And, I do love a casserole – so this is what I came up with!
I decided I wanted to use pasta – I chose penne (but, any pasta would do). I also had an unused container of ricotta cheese on hand, some mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
I decided to boil my pasta separate. I boiled it to al dente. Be sure not to overboil it, or it will be too chewy in the casserole. While the pasta was boiling, I started to work on the sauce (I guess that is the appropriate term when you’re going to add it to something and make a casserole? I will call it that). I started by grating 2 cups of mozzarella cheese.
Then I cooked some garlic in a large skillet, with a little bit of butter.
Once the garlic was done, I added in a little bit of water and the milk. I only had skim milk on hand, but certainly, this would be so much better with a whole milk or even a bit of heavy cream! I brought the liquids up to a boil. I added in my seasonings at this time.
I then started adding in the cheeses. I started with the ricotta first and let it get mostly melted. I then added in the mozzarella and parmesan. I brought the cheese sauce up to a boil.
I then added in the shredded chicken and stirred through.
In a greased dutch oven, I poured in the al dente pasta.
Then I poured the sauce over top and stirred everything together. ** Note, I had forgotten to add my spinach to the sauce, so I just stirred it in at this point.
I, then, topped it with the remaining mozzarella and parmesan cheese, as well as the panko bread crumbs.
The casserole was cooked in a 400 degree oven (I think I’ve mentioned this before, but my oven tends to run a little cooler – that said, feel free to drop the temperature if 400 seems a little high) for 30 minutes. I did turn the broiler on for a couple min, at the end just to brown the top a little more.
Three Cheese Chicken and Pasta Bake
1 box pasta of choice 2 chicken breasts, shredded 1 cup water or chicken stock 2 cups milk 1- 15 oz container of Ricotta cheese 2 cups grated mozzarella (reserve 1 cup) 1 cup grated parmesan (reserve 1/4 cup) 2 tbsp garlic 1/2 tbsp butter 4 cups fresh spinach 1/2 to 1 tsp salt, depending on your tastes 1/2 tsp pepper 1/2 tsp dried basil 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes 1/3 cup panko bread crumbs
Boil pasta to al dente (do not overcook)
In large skillet, saute garlic in butter
Add in water or chicken stock and then milk
Bring up to a boil
Add in pepper, basil and pepper flakes
Add in cheese – ricotta, mozarella and parmesan
Pour pasta into a greased dutch oven or casserole dish
Pour the cheese sauce over top and add in spinach, stir everything through
Top with remaining mozarella, paremesan cheese and bread crumbs
Cook, uncovered, in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes
Put under broiler for 1-2 minutes if your cheese ins’t browned after 30 minutes
I remember when I first heard about Mississipi roast. I made one almost immediately and LOVED it. After eating the first roast, I thought – how good would this be with chicken??
We love chicken. Since I have done Mississippi Chicken (same recipe as Mississippi roast, but with chicken), I’ve found that others have done the same (I wasn’t so unique after all, it seems!).
I would like to link to the original Mississippi Roast recipe, but I found it so long ago that I have no clue where I found it. But, many people have posted about it online, so you’d have no problem finding it.
For the Mississippi chicken, I did the exact same thing as the roast recipe that is all over the internet (except I use 16 oz of pepperoncini peppers).
I used 1/2 of this jar of peppers, including the juice.
I just add the chicken, the mixes, butter and pepperoncini peppers (with the juice) to a crock pot. I cook it on high for 4 hours.
When done, I shred the chicken and removed the stems from the peppers.
You may want to remove some of the liquid (it can be reserved to be a dip – think french dip – if you like!), prior to shredding the meat.
Just shake it up to combine, when ready.
You can eat it with vegetables or on a sandwich like we do. I like to put mayonnaise on a bun (or hoagie roll!), add the chicken (and some of the peppers) and provolone cheese. It’s hard to beat – for tastiness and easy recipes!
Mississippi Chicken
4 large chicken breasts 1 stick of butter 1 packet Au Jus sauce mix 1 packet Ranch dressing mix 1 16 oz jar (I actually had 1/2 a large jar on hand) pepperoncini peppers, with juice
I love chicken stew. Here in the south, at least chicken stew I’ve had all my life, chicken stew is usually just chicken in a milk based broth with seasonings. And, is eaten with hot sauce and saltine crackers. I started to make that (and I will sometime, and will share it when I do!), but I decided I wanted some vegetables – so I came up with something a little different.
I started with shredded chicken. I realize I sound like a broken record, but I will say it again, for anyone that may have missed it – if you ever need shredded chicken, and you own an instant pot, use your instant pot – and cook your chicken (you can even do it from frozen, if you forgot to thaw it out), with some chicken stock – and then shred it with a hand held mixer. You can get more details here.
While my chicken was cooking, I prepped my vegetables. I used 7 potatoes, 4 carrots and 1 onion. I also added a can of whole kernel corn.
I love my Le Creuset and I use it several times a week. Tonight was no exception. It is, truly, one of my favorite things in my kitchen. I had wanted one for quite a while, but never could justify dropping that much money on one – but, I was given the opportunity to get one as my 20 year anniversary gift from the place I work. I didn’t know I would love it as much as I to – but, I digress… that that to say, I cooked the chicken stew in my Le Creuset. I have 6 3/4 oval Dutch oven, in Cerise.
I added the olive oil, onions and carrots and cooked until they started to soften.
I then added in the seasonings (when I can, I like to add seasonings, like thyme, before adding the liquids – I feel like it opens up the flavor more, if you do). and I just stirred it all through.
I then added in 1 cup of the chicken stock and made sure to pull up any of the brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Once that was done, I added in the potatoes, the corn, the chicken (including the stock from the instant pot), the remaining stock and the milk and brought the stew up to a boil. Then, reduced the heat, covered the pot and let it simmer for 45 minutes.
A couple tips:
Since the chicken is precooked, you can eat the stew as soon as your vegetables are soft, but the longer you let it simmer, the more the flavors will meld.
I didn’t have whole milk, but wanted a creamy soup – so I used some skim milk and some heavy cream. Feel free to adjust which milk to your taste. If I would have had whole milk, I would have just used all whole for the 5 cups the recipe calls for.
If you prefer a less ‘creamy’ stew (or just want to make it a little healthier), just adjust the broth to milk ratio, to your liking – but, we definitely prefer the chicken stew with more milk, than broth.
If you like a thicker stew, you can certainly add a slurry at the end to thicken.
Try it with some hot sauce – that’s how we like it! And, some saltine crackers if you have them – unfortunately, we didn’t tonight.
Chicken and Vegetable Stew
3 large chicken breasts, shredded (with stock from cooking) 4 carrots, chopped 6-8 potatoes, diced 1 onion, diced 1 can whole kernel corn, drained 3 cups chicken stock (one cup comes from cooking the chicken breasts – if you cook in instant pot, like I do) 5 cups milk 1 1/2 tsp salt 1 tsp parsley flakes 1 tsp poultry seasoning 1/2 tsp thyme 1 tsp olive oil
Cook chicken and shred
Prep vegetables
In large pot or dutch oven, add olive oil, onions and carrots and cook for 4-5 minutes
Add in seasonings and stir through
Add in chicken stock, pulling up any brown bits from the bottom of the pot
Add the potatoes, then the chicken (including stock from cooking)
Finally add in milk – and bring to a boil
Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 45 minutes (or until vegetables are tender)
I do, truly, love a one pot (or skillet) meal! I love the easy cleanup and I love having one dish that covers all the bases – protein, veggies and starch (if starch is your thing – it’s, clearly, mine!). This recipe checks all the boxes. And, to top it off – it couldn’t be easier!
The prep started by cutting up my chicken to bite size pieces. I actually used chicken tenders, so cutting it to approximately 1 inch pieces was super easy. I seasoned the raw chicken with the umami seasoning and let it hang out, while I prepped the vegetables.
For vegetables, I used onion, asparagus and mushrooms – I chose those vegetables because that is what I had in the refrigerator. Certainly, you could use carrots and celery for a chicken version that would be similar to the pork chop skillet, as another option. The flavors would definitely work!
Once I had everything prepped – I started cooking. I started with browning the chicken in olive oil. I didn’t want to cook the chicken through, but I did want to get some color on the chicken. After browning the chicken, I removed it from the pan.
I had enough oil left in the pan, but if you don’t – just add a little more at this time. Then add in the onions and garlic. Saute for about 5 minutes. Then add in the other vegetables, along with your salt and pepper and saute for 8-10 minutes (or until the asparagus starts to get a little soft and you get some good color on your veggies).
Once the vegetables have sauteed for a bit, you’ll want to add in your rice. Add it into the pan, prior to putting in your liquids – allowing the rice to get coated with the oil that is in the pan (it makes for such a flavorful rice, if you let it soak up the oil and the seasonings, prior to bringing it to a boil!) and stir through.
Once your rice is fully mixed in, you’re ready to add in your liquids – chicken stock, milk and cream of mushroom soup. Once added, mix well.
Then add the chicken back into the skillet – and bring it up to a boil.
Once a boil is achieved, you want to reduce the heat, cover the pan – and let it cook for about 20 minutes (or until the rice is done – for the jasmine rice I use, that is about 20 minutes).
Top with some shaved or grated romano cheese, if you like!
Chicken Skillet with Asparagus and Mushrooms
1 1/2 – 2 pounds chicken breased, cubed to about 1 inch pieces 6-8 baby bella mushrooms, sliced 15-20 spears of asparagus, cut to bit size pieces 1 onion, diced 2 cups of rice (I use Jasmine) 1 tbsp garlic, minced 1 can cream of mushroom soup 3 cups chicken stock 1/2 cup milk 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pepper 1 tbsp Umami seasoning 1/2 tbsp olive oil Romano cheese (optional)
In large skillet, add 1/2 tbsp olive oil
Add chicken, which has been seasoned with Umami seasoning, to hot oil and brown
Remove chicken from skillet
Add onions and garlic, saute for 5 minutes
Add in the asparagus and mushrooms (as well as salt and pepper) and saute vegetables for 8-10 minutes
Add rice in and stir – allow the rice to soak up some of the oil from the sauteed vegetables
Add in the chicken stock, cream of mushroom soup and milk and bring to a boil
Return chicken to skillet
Reduce heat, cover and cook for 20 minutes (or until rice is done)
Michelle Can Cook! 