This Instant Pot Chicken Teriyaki recipe is a quick and easy dinner made with chicken thighs pressure cooked in a savory, sweet and sticky sauce.
Enjoy this popular Japanese take-out dish in the comfort of your home. Serve over rice, noodles, quinoa or vegetables or shred for a delicious sandwich or wrap filling.
This amazing Instant Pot chicken teriyaki is one of our favorite recipes for a quick and easy dinner. Succulent, tender chicken coated in sticky-sweet honey soy sauce served over rice, noodles or vegetables is always a big hit with the kids and grownups.
While you can make teriyaki chicken with breast meat, it’s more flavorful and more tender with chicken thighs. The sauce is made of chicken stock and teriyaki sauce, which consists of garlic, ginger, soy sauce, honey (or sugar), rice vinegar and sesame oil.
Teriyaki chicken is pressure cooked in the Instant Pot, then the sauce is further reduced using the Saute function. It gets thicker, more caramelised and sticky, coating every bite of that perfect chicken. A little sprinkle of sesame seeds and green onions is all you need to complete this dish.
WHAT IS TERIYAKI CHICKEN
Chicken Teriyaki or Teriyaki Chicken is a Japanese dish of grilled or pan-fried chicken coated in a savory, sweet sauce made of soy sauce, mirin, and sake.
The word teriyaki describes both the marinade and cooking technique: “teri” means gloss and “yaki” means to cook, fry, or grill.
Most people know teriyaki for its sweet, tangy and salty sauce that delivers plenty of umami flavor. While the authentic Japanese version is made with sweet mirin, most Westernised recipes use honey or sugar for sweetness. You will also find garlic or/and ginger in many online recipes, which isn’t as common in the Japanese teriyaki sauce. Regardless of which version of the sauce you use, the flavor of teriyaki is delicious and addictive!
CHICKEN TERIYAKI INGREDIENTS
What we love about this Instant Pot chicken teriyaki recipe is its simple list of ingredients and quick cooking time. You might already have these Asian staples in the pantry. Otherwise, you can pick them up in most grocery stores. These are useful to have to making many Asian recipes using the Instant Pot.
This teriyaki chicken recipe uses homemade teriyaki sauce from scratch, so there are no extra additives, preservatives or corn syrup.
Chicken. You can use breasts or thighs, however, the latter turn out more tender and they have more flavor than the extra lean, white chicken breast meat. Cooking time is the same for both, make sure to cut the breast into similar-sized pieces (see photo).
For the teriyaki sauce: soy sauce for salt (low-sodium is ideal as the sauce will reduce and get saltier), honey and a little brown sugar for sweetness, rice vinegar (or lemon juice) for acidity, garlic and ginger for aromas and sharpness, and sesame oil for that perfect toasted nuttiness to finish things off.
Chicken stock: We need a little extra liquid to cook the meat in the Instant Pot, otherwise it would burn quite easily. Low-sodium chicken stock is best here but you can also dilute regular stock with a little water.
Sauce thickeners: Once the chicken is cooked, the sauce will be quite thin because we used additional chicken stock, plus the juices from the chicken. We used the Saute function to cook off some of that extra liquid and reduce the sauce. To further thicken and finish the sauce, we used a little butter and cornstarch (or regular flour).
Swaps: You can swap fresh ginger and garlic with ground powders. The common swap is to use about 1/4 teaspoon of ground powder for every 1 teaspoon of fresh ginger or garlic.
INSTANT POT CHICKEN TERIYAKI VIDEO
STEP-BY-STEP PHOTOS – HOW TO MAKE TERIYAKI CHICKEN IN INSTANT POT
You will find the full recipe with ingredients and nutritional breakdown in the recipe card below. Here are some handy step-by-step photos of how to make teriyaki chicken in the Instant Pot. You can use a 6-quart or 8-quart Instant Pot.
PRESSURE COOKING THE CHICKEN
Step 1. Cut the chicken thighs and set them aside.
Step 2. Whisk the teriyaki sauce ingredients in a bowl: soy sauce, garlic, ginger, honey, rice vinegar and sesame oil.
Step 3. Add the chicken to the sauce and stir through to coat.
Step 4. Set up the Instant Pot. Add ½ cup of chicken stock or water to the bottom. Add the chicken and all the marinade. Spread the pieces evenly.
Step 5. Secure and lock the lid. Set to Pressure Cook for 10 minutes on HIGH pressure. The Instant Pot will take about 5-7 minutes to come to pressure. Once the timer is done, natural release the pressure for 5-10 minutes and then quick release the remaining steam. Then, open the lid.
Prepare the sides in the meantime. You can cook the rice ahead of time (also in the IP) and boil or steam broccoli or make a simple cabbage salad.
ONCE CHICKEN IS COOKED
Step 6. Stir the cooked chicken. Add the additional tablespoon of sugar and press the Saute function (Normal mode). Allow the sauce to come to a boil. Cook on simmer, stirring frequently until half of the liquid has evaporated and the sauce has thickened quite a bit.
Note: Taste the sauce to make sure sugar and salt are balanced, you can add a little more soy sauce or salt or sugar as needed. If it feels like it needs a little more acidity, you add a tiny splash of rice wine vinegar or lemon juice.
Step 7. Finish with a teaspoon of butter (for shine and richness) and if needed to thicken the sauce further, make a slurry with flour or cornstarch and water. Stir it into the sauce right at the end. Press Cancel to stop the Saute function. Optional: To make a slurry, whisk the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water until smooth.
Garnish with diced green onions and sesame seeds.
WHAT GOES WITH TERIYAKI CHICKEN
Chicken teriyaki is a versatile dish that can be served in many ways:
- Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken & Rice. You can use regular white rice or brown rice here; Jasmine rice is classic Asian rice that has a nice aroma and flavor that goes well with this chicken. You can make the rice ahead of time in the Instant Pot or on the stovetop while the chicken cooks. Amy & Jacky have a good pot-in-pot recipe for cooking rice and chicken at the same time here. Another speedy option is to use pre-cooked 2-minute rice packets.
- Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken with Noodles. Rice noodles, egg noodles or soba noodles will work with this saucy chicken dish. You can stir-fry some vegetables and toss the chicken and teriyaki sauce through with the noodles.
- Teriyaki Chicken & Broccoli. This is a popular combination similar to Asian beef and broccoli. You can cut the broccoli into florets and throw it into the sauce while it’s Sauteiing and reducing, which will be just long enough to also cook the broccoli. Alternatively, stir-fry or steam the broccoli to serve separately as a side dish.
- Teriyaki Chicken & Cauliflower Rice. For a low-carb meal, serve the chicken and sauce over pan-fried cauliflower rice or with zucchini noodles. In addition, you can replace the sugar in the recipe with a sugar-free alternative to make the sauce lower in carbohydrates.
- Serve with a vegetable stir-fry. Make a quick and easy stir-fry of carrots, snow peas, green beans, red peppers, cabbage or broccoli with a little garlic and sesame oil.
- Teriyaki chicken sanwiches. Serve shredded chicken and a spoonful of teriyaki sauce in a sandwich, wraps or in sliders for a fun take on this dish. A little fresh coleslaw with cilantro would be a great addition.
STORAGE & FREEZING
- To Store. Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for 3 days.
- To Reheat. Reheat gently in the microwave or on the stovetop, with a splash of water or chicken broth to dilute the sauce if it gets too thick
- To Freeze. Instant Pot teriyaki chicken is great for freezing and can be kept for up to 3 months. Thaw out overnight in the refrigerator before reheating to piping hot as above.
MORE INSTANT POT CHICKEN RECIPES
- Instant Pot Japanese Curry
- Instant Pot Thai Chicken Curry
- Instant Pot French Onion Chicken
- Instant Pot Coconut Chicken Curry (Only 5 Ingredients!)
- Want even chicken recipes? 45+ Instant Pot Chicken Recipes For Every Taste
- Want more Japanese recipes? Check out these Instant Pot Japanese Recipes
FULL RECIPE & NUTRITION
Below is the full list of ingredients, instructions, notes, tips and nutritional breakdown. Don’t forget to rate this recipe and leave a comment with feedback or any questions.
Description
Learn how to make Instant Pot teriyaki chicken with this quick and easy recipe. Chicken thighs are pressure cooked in a homemade teriyaki sauce and served with rice and broccoli. A Japanese takeout in the comfort of your home!
1.5 lb / 700 g skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut in large cubes
½ cup chicken stock (low-sodium ideally)
For Teriyaki Sauce
½ cup low-sodium soy sauce ( see notes)
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 large garlic cloves minced or grated (about 2 teaspoons)
1 teaspoon grated or minced ginger
2 tablespoons honey
To finish:
1 tablespoon light brown sugar or white sugar
1 teaspoon butter
2 teaspoons cornstarch or flour mixed with 2 tablespoons water (if needed to thicken the sauce at the end)
2 green onions, sliced for garnish
Optional: sesame seeds for garnish
- Cut the chicken thighs and set them aside.
- Whisk the teriyaki sauce ingredients in a bowl.
- Add the chicken to the sauce and stir through to coat.
- Set up the Instant Pot. Add ½ cup of chicken stock or water to the bottom.
- Add the chicken and all the marinade. Spread the pieces evenly.
- Secure and lock the lid. Set to Pressure Cook for 10 minutes on HIGH. The Instant Pot should take about 5-7 minutes to come to pressure. Once cooked, natural release the pressure for 5-10 minutes and then quick release the remaining steam. Then, open the lid.
- Prepare the sides in the meantime. You can cook the rice ahead of time (also in the IP) and boil or steam broccoli or make a simple cabbage salad.
- Once the timer is done, open the lid.
- Add the additional tablespoon of sugar and press the Saute function (Normal mode) and allow the sauce to come to a boil. Cook on simmer, stirring frequently until half of the liquid has evaporated and the sauce has thickened quite a bit.
- Note: Taste the sauce to make sure sugar and salt are balanced, you can add a little more soy sauce or salt or sugar as needed. If it feels like it needs a little more acidity, you add a tiny splash of rice wine vinegar or lemon juice.
- Finish with a teaspoon of butter (for shine and richness) and if needed to thicken the sauce further, make a flour and water slurry and stir it into the sauce right at the end. Press Cancel to stop the Saute function.
- Optional: To make a slurry, whisk the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water until smooth.
- Garnish with diced green onions and sesame seeds.
Notes
If you don’t have low-sodium soy sauce on hand, you can use ⅓ regular soy sauce and add a little extra water instead. If you don’t have low-sodium chicken stock, you can dilute full sodium stock with a little water or just use water.
How many calories in teriyaki chicken? This will usually depend on the cut of the chicken used (breast has fewer calories than thighs) and the teriyaki sauce itself. Many bottled sauces are loaded with sugar but a homemade version or the authentic Japanese sauce are much healthier.
Our recipe has 344 calories per serving of teriyaki chicken (6 oz of meat with sauce, see the nutrition label below). If you add 1 cup of cooked rice, the calories per serving will be 586 with 72 grams carbs, 42 g protein, and 12.8 g fat.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6 oz chicken & sauce
- Calories: 345
- Sugar: 14.2 g
- Sodium: 1049.4 mg
- Fat: 12.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 19.3 g
- Protein: 37.8 g
- Cholesterol: 167.9 mg
Keywords: Chicken Recipes, Teriyaki Recipes, Instant Pot Recipes, Chicken Dinner Recipes