Instant Pot Honey Sesame Chicken Breast – Better Than Take out
Need a quick weeknight dinner for Friday when you usually order take-out? Your family will love Honey Sesame Chicken Breast and you will love that it cooks in the Instant Pot. Instant Pot Honey Sesame Chicken is a quick family dinner that you will make over and over again, instead of picking up the phone to order out. Serve with a super quick fried rice side dish.
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Why make Chinese Carry-Out at Home?
Like most families after a long work week, we like to share a movie with the family eating a favorite takeout meal. But with the cost of takeout increasing, and the desire to control what we feed our family, I want to make most of our meals at home.
The problem is that you and I are tired after a long week working, caring for our homes and family by dinner time on Friday night. That is where the Instant Pot comes in. It is a dump, mix, and set timer appliance. Just like a slow cooker, an electric pressure cooker is a way to make a quick meal with outstanding over the stove.
Take all the ingredients, add them to the Instant Pot, and spend the hours when you are home with the family. Stop taking an hour at the end of a busy week to make dinner and let the Instant Pot work for you.
Stop buying expensive takeout from your local Chinese restaurant, where you do not know what the additives are in the food.
Jim and I have always loved Chinese take out. A lot of our first dates were at a local Chinese restaurant close to his parent’s house. Jim actually proposed in that restaurant. So we have an affection for this kind of food.
When the kids got into high school Chinese take out was a to-to dinner on Friday nights. Three kids in school both of us working full time making dinner just was too much energy to be spent. But now that I have my Instant Pot I have been trying to make so many of our favorites at home.
Take out for 4 to 5 people can just get to be too much on a weekly basis. Why spend that kind of money when you can get a quick filling meal for the family without spending too much energy?
I can start by making basic white or brown rice in the Instant Pot. Rice keeps really well in a covered dish in the oven at the lowest setting. Then when it gets time for dinner I just spend 20 minutes chopping all the ingredients and getting everything in the inner pot. Set it and forget it.
The fried rice is a quick hack also. I take the cooked rice, and heat it in a large skillet. Add soy sauce and ground ginger and then add defrosted frozen veggies that we get at Costco. But any Asian frozen veggie package will do. I do defrost the veggies in the microwave first and then add the hot veggies to the seasoned rice.
As quick homemade Chinese take out is almost as fast as calling in an order getting in the car, waiting in line to pay, and driving home again. Give it a try and see if you do not find this dish just enjoyable and filling. The extra bonus is that you control all of the ingredients without any added preservatives you may not want in your family’s food.
Quick Side Dishes with your Better Than Talk Out
- Use your Instant Pot before you start the main dish to make white or brown rice.
- Soak Rice Noodles for 20 minutes in water and then warm in the microwave.
- Use the Honey Sesame Chicken in a lettuce wrap
Check Out These Budget Friendly Instant Pots
Instant Pot Honey Sesame Chicken Breast – Better Than Takeout
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
- Category: Main dish chicken
- Method: Instant Pot
- Cuisine: Asian
Description
Pot Honey Sesame Chicken is a quick family dinner that you will make over and over again, instead of picking up the phone to order out. Serve with a super quick fried rice side dish.
Ingredients
- 8 chicken tenders cut into bit size pieces – fresh or frozen (or 4 large chicken breasts)
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2 teaspoons of pre-chopped garlic (or 4 garlic cloves chopped)
- 3/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup of stock (chicken, vegetable, or water)
- 1/4 cup of ketchup
- 2 teaspoons of sesame oil
- 1/2 cup of honey
- 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes (add more or omit depending on your taste for heat)
To Thicken after cooking:
- 3 tablespoons of corn starch
- Water to just mix into a thin sauce
To garnish:
- 3 green onions, chopped
- Sesame seeds
Instructions
- The chicken can be fresh or frozen – cut into bite size pieces and set a side.
- Turn the Instant Pot on to saute, add the olive oil and heat for 1 minute.
- Add the chopped onion and cook for 1 minute, then add the chopped garlic and cook until the onions are translucent.
- Cancel setting on the Instant Pot.
- Mix together the soy sauce, broth, ketchup, sesame oil, honey, and red pepper flakes, stir.
- Add the liquid to the Instant Pot.
- Add the chicken and stir
- Set the Instant Pot to high pressure for 7 minutes, secure the lid and set to seal.
- While the chicken is cooking chop the green onions and toast the sesame seeds (if desired)
- When the cooking time is up, do a fast release.
- Set the Instant Pot to saute
- Mix together the corn starch and just enough cold water to mix. Add corn starch mixture to the chicken and stir. As the chicken and sauce boils it will thicken.
Notes
- Serve over rice or Asian rice noodles
- Cook Rice in the Rice Cooker: Add equal parts rice and water to Instant Pot. Add salt and 2 tablespoons of butter or olive oil to the pot. Set to high pressure and cook for 4 minutes. Slow release (open and close the valve) so the rice does not stick to the bottom of the pot.
- How to make a quick fried rice: In a large skillet add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the cooked rice to the pan and saute. Add 2 table spoons of soy sauce and stir. Add a bag of frozen vegetable to the rice and cook until the vegetables are hot and no longer frozen.
Keywords: Instant Pot Honey Sesame Chicken Breast
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