These Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Shredded Chicken Tacos are so delicious – they've got less than 10 ingredients and are ready in 30 minutes!
Ingredients and substitutions
- Chicken breasts – boneless skinless chicken thighs will also work for this recipe.
- Lime juice – fresh lime juice is best but bottled lime juice will work in a pinch.
- Olive oil – or another neutral oil like peanut oil, sunflower oil or avocado oil.
- Honey – coconut nectar, agave nectar or maple syrup would be the best substitutes here.
- Taco seasoning – use a pre-made taco seasoning or a homemade blend using chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, cumin and sea salt.
- Chicken broth – vegetable broth would also work.
- Cilantro – cilantro is a key element for this recipe, but feel free to leave it out or replace it with parsley.
- Corn tortillas – flour tortillas or lettuce wraps would also be delicious, I just like the taste of corn tortillas.
Toppings
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- Red onion – sweet onions or green onions can be used in place of red onions. Leave this out altogether if you don’t like onions.
- Lettuce – iceberg lettuce, romaine lettuce or spinach can also be used.
- Coleslaw mix – coleslaw mix or just chopped cabbage would work instead.
- Cheese – use your favourite type of shredded cheese like Tex Mex or Monterey Jack.
- Salsa – use fresh tomatoes, pico de gallo or any salsa of your choice.
- Sour cream – Geek yogurt is a low-fat substitution option.
- Avocado – use avocado slices or guacamole.
- Pickled jalapenos – use raw jalapenos for a spicier kick.
How to make shredded chicken tacos
- Add the chicken ingredients to the Instant Pot.
- Cook on high pressure for 2 minutes.
- Do a quick release of the pressure.
- Shred the chicken breasts.
- Stir everything together.
- Assemble your tacos and enjoy!
Re-purposing the shredded chicken
Shredded chicken is super versatile and can be used for a number of recipes. You can make a big batch of these cilantro lime tacos and use the leftover shredded chicken to make burrito bowls, salads or even wraps. You can even experiment with different flavour combinations – more flavour options include BBQ, teriyaki or even jerk inspired chicken.
Frequently Asked Questions
These chicken tacos are super easy to make and only require less than 10 ingredients. For the shredded chicken all you need is chicken breasts, lime juice, olive oil, honey, taco seasoning, chicken broth and cilantro. Then just add on your favourite toppings, serve them on tortillas and you’re good to go!
Boneless skinless chicken breasts or boneless skinless chicken thighs are best for shredding. Either will work, you just want to make sure the chicken doesn’t have any skin or bones since you won’t be able to shred it as easily. I used chicken breasts for this recipe to make it a bit healthier but chicken thighs can also be used and might even be juicier.
This recipe has 383 calories per serving. It’s a great low-calorie meal option and a healthier spin on taco night! If you want a low-carb option, swap out the corn tortillas for lettuce wraps.
Storing and reheating
Store the leftover chicken and taco toppings separately in the fridge for up to 5 days. When reheating the chicken, sprinkle some water over top to make sure the meat stays juicy, then reheat the chicken in the microwave for 1-2 minutes. Once you've warmed the leftover chicken, assemble your tacos and add on your fresh toppings.
Freezing the chicken
You can freeze the cooked shredded chicken in an airtight glass container or in a freezer bag for up to 3 months. When you're ready to enjoy the chicken, defrost it in the fridge overnight, then reheat it in the microwave for 1-2 minutes. To keep the chicken from drying out, make sure to sprinkle some water over top before reheating. Use it to make fresh tacos or repurpose it for burrito bowls, salads or wraps.
More taco recipes
Meal prep tools for this recipe
- The Instant Pot DUO Plus 60
is the version I use in this recipe. - I love these corn tortillas!
- And this is my fave taco seasoning if you don’t feel like making your own!
- Get your square glass meal prep bowls here for packing up your leftovers.
- And of course I get all my free-range chicken breasts from Butcher Box!
is the version I use in this recipe.
Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Shredded Chicken Tacos
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken breasts
- 1/3 cup lime juice
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp taco seasoning
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 cup chopped cilantro (divided)
- corn tortillas
Topping ideas
- diced red onion
- Lettuce
- Coleslaw mix/chopped cabbage
- Shredded cheese
- salsa
- sour cream
- Diced avocado
- Diced tomatoes
- Pickled jalapenos
Instructions
- Dump all ingredients for chicken in Instant Pot, adding half of the cilantro and saving the other half for after. Add raw chicken breasts last. Set to manual and pressure cook on high for 3 minutes (add 2 more minutes if using larger breasts).
- Instant Pot will take about 10 minutes to pre-heat and then the 3 minutes to cook. When complete, press cancel and do a quick release of the steam, waiting until the pressure gauge drops back down and the lid is safe to open.
- Remove lid and chicken breasts. Shred with two forks. Add back to Instant Pot sauce along with the remaining half of the fresh cilantro. Stir well until everything is combined. Chicken will be sitting in extra liquid so use a slotted spoon to serve.
- Add chicken to warm corn tortillas along with toppings of your choice. Serve and enjoy!
Stephanie says
Hi,
I don’t have an instant pot, I have a crock pot. Would the recipe still work the same?
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Stephanie! Unfortunately I haven’t tried it myself but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work in the slow cooker. If you try it let me know how it turns out!
Jen says
Have you ever tried with pork? Looks for a good pork taco recipe also!!
Robyn says
This was delicious. I did 4 large breasts and cooked for 8 minutes with a quick release. Tacos last night and tonight having leftovers over nachos. We will definitely make this again.
E says
How did you determine how long to cook the breasts for?
jo says
Hey there,
Tried this recipe today. Thanks for taking the time to trial-run it and post! I followed the recipe as directed with 3 medium sized fresh chicken breasts in my 6qt Instant Pot and it turned out great. We used the shredded chicken as the protein for kale mix salad/rice bowls (with avocados, fresh salsa and cheese) and the chicken was mild enough for my toddlers too. We did adjust the final chicken for us; adding some salt and pepper (surprisingly, the taco seasoning didn’t make the chicken flavourful enough) and extra lime juice on top.
Overall, great recipe and we’ll definitely be keeping this in our meal rotation!
Taylor Stinson says
Hey Jo! SO happy to hear how much you enjoyed this recipe!!! Using the chicken for salads and rice bowls is genius! I’m going to have to try it that way! Thanks so much for sharing with me 🙂
Kaitlinn says
Hey I don’t have an instant pot but I was wondering if you know how long this would take to cook in a slow cooker I love the recipe because it uses chicken broth so I know the chicken will be juicy and tender
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Kaitlinn! I haven’t tested this myself so can’t guarantee results, but based on my knowledge of the slow cooker I would say follow the ingredient list and then cook on low for 8 hours, or high for 6 hours. Pull the chicken apart afterwards just like you’d do with the Instant Pot, and then soak back in the sauce and add the remaining fresh cilantro. Let me know how it turns out if you try it!
Jamie Lynch says
I’m new to the IP. In my research, I’ve seen some people do rice at the same time in the pot…referred to as pot in pot(?). Do you think I could do that with this recipe? If so, how do you think the the timing would work out?
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Jamie! I have actually cooked rice in the Instant Pot at the same time in this recipe: https://thegirlonbloor.com/20-minute-instant-pot-chicken-burrito-bowls/. Because you are cooking the breasts whole and then shredding with this recipe, I’m not sure that I would advise you cook rice alongside it because I’m afraid the rice would soak up all the liquid. Wish I could be of more help here!
Jill says
I have a 3 quart and I would love to make these with my frozen chicken breasts! How long should I cook them for?
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Jill – unfortunately I’ve never tested these from frozen so I really couldn’t tell you. For the 3-quart I would recommend cutting the recipe in half unless all the ingredients are below the maximum fill line, in which case you would be fine to follow the instructions exactly! If you’re looking to do these from frozen, I would recommend looking at other recipes online for pulled chicken that use frozen chicken breasts to see how to adjust the cooking time and then follow my ingredient list from there. Hope this helps!
Karly says
Looks yummy! Can’t wait to try these!
Taylor Stinson says
Thanks so much Karly 🙂
SLoriWebb says
I have a 6 qt InstantPot. Will the chicken be done after 4 minutes? I don’t want to over cook but want it tender.
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Lori! I made a typo, it is done in 3 minutes (I just made the correction!) I have the 6 quart as well so it will definitely work! The Instant Pot takes 10-15 minutes to come to pressure, then pressure cooks 3 minutes so the total cook time is closer to 20 minutes. The chicken will definitely be cooked in that time!
Stephanie says
I didn’t believe that 4 (or 3 minutes) would be enough time so I did 10. Chicken was still raw. How big were your chicken breasts? Super disappointed. Hoping a few more minutes when it all comes back to pressure will fix it.
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Stephanie – I’m so sorry to hear the trouble you’ve had. What kind of Instant Pot are you using? What size is it? Did you have the Instant Pot on high pressure (not some other setting)? Were you using frozen breasts, or bone in breasts? I’m just trying to troubleshoot what went wrong here. I’m using boneless, skinless chicken breasts that are medium-sized. I also have a 6-quart Duo Plus and I cooked 3 chicken breasts on high pressure for 3 minutes. Usually it takes 10-15 minutes minimum to come to pressure, then pressure cooks 3 minutes so you’re looking at closer to a 20 minute cook time on the chicken. I have tested this particular recipe twice now and have used the same timing for whole chicken breasts several more times and the breasts always come out perfectly for me – it’s really my no-fail go-to method. Hoping you can provide me with some more specifics so we can get to the bottom of this!
Rachel says
I have a 6 quart as well and just followed these directions. 3 minutes was not enough time as the chicken was still raw once I tried shredding it up. I repeated the steps and did another 3 minutes. It came out perfectly!
clareJohnson says
Can’t wait to try these. Thanks for taking the time to post.
Taylor Stinson says
Thanks so much Clare!!! Hope you like them 🙂