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creamy tuscan chicken thighs in a grey bowl

Instant Pot Creamy Tuscan Chicken

Instant Pot Creamy Tuscan Chicken is loaded with amazing good flavors, a creamy parmesan cheese based sauce & juicy chicken. This easy Tuscan Chicken Instant Pot recipe is a perfect family friendly, restaurant quality dinner.
5 from 1 vote
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Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American-Italian, Italian
Keyword: Creamy Tuscan Chicken Instant Pot, Instant Pot Creamy Tuscan Chicken, Instant Pot Tuscan Chicken
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 415kcal
Author: Meghna
Cost: $5

Ingredients

  • 4 chicken thighs **bone in, skin on thighs. You can use boneless chicken breasts or thighs. Check out the cook times below in "NOTES"
  • 1 cup onion **yellow onion roughly sliced.
  • 1 tbsp garlic **minced
  • 1 cup sun dried tomatoes **Loosely packed. We prefer using sulfate free sun dried tomatoes.
  • cup white wine **use any good wine that you would prefer drinking.
  • 1 tbsp Tomato Paste **diluted in 2 tbsp water.
  • ½ cup Parmesan Cheese **grated.
  • ½ cup Heavy Whipping Cream **slightly warmed in microwave oven.
  • 1 cup red bell pepper **finely sliced. We used half large bell pepper.
  • 2 cups baby spinach **if using regular spinach, rinse well & chop them roughly.
  • 1 tbsp Better Than Bouillon **paste.
  • 1 tbsp Unsalted Butter
  • 2 tbsp Olive Oil **use light or extra light. Extra virgin oil is not good for searing due to it's low smoke point.
  • salt **use according to your own taste preference.

Liquid

  • 1 cup Water **or chicken stock

Seasonings

Thickener

  • 1 tbsp corn starch **diluted in 1 tbsp water to form a slurry.

Instructions

  • Sear Chicken: Season chicken with ½ tsp paprika, crushed black pepper & 1-2 pinches salt, rub well. Marinate chicken for 30 mins. Now, set Instant Pot on SAUTE function & set it on HIGH heat. Add olive oil & butter & allow to become hot. Gently release the marinated chicken (skin side down) & sear until golden brown. Set them aside.
    Searing chicken thighs in instant pot
  • Saute aromatics: In the same pot release the sliced onion and saute for 1 min. Add salt, this will soften the onions faster. Add minced garlic & saute another 1 min. Next, add 1 tsp paprika, stir to mix well. Add the sundried tomatoes and saute for 30 seconds.
    sauteing aromatics in instant pot
  • De-glaze pot: Now, pour the white wine & de-glaze the pot very well scraping the sides & the bottom of the pot. This will help loosen any stuck food particles & prevent the BURN error! Cook down the wine for 30 secs. Than, add the chicken stock or water + bouillon paste (refer ingredients above) and mix well. CANCEL the SAUTE function.
    de-glazing pot
  • Pressure cook chicken: Transfer back the seared chicken thighs into the pot and lay them in a single layer on top of the onions. DO NOT mix or stir. Secure the lid, seal the valve and PRESSURE COOK on HIGH for 7 mins. Once, the pressure cooking cycle is over the instant pot will begin to beep. Wait for 5 mins natural pressure release, than release the rest of the pressure manually by moving the valve from the sealing to the venting position. Open the lid carefully. Fish out the chicken. CANCEL the pressure cook function.
    pressure cooking chicken in instant pot
  • Make creamy sauce: Add the sliced bell peppers (the residual heat will cook down the peppers), crushed black pepper and slightly warm heavy whipping cream. Stir to mix well. Now, add the grated parmesan cheese and stir briskly until the cheese completely melts. Make sure the instant pot is turned off, otherwise the cheese will clump up. Once the cheese has melted hit back the SAUTE function & set it on LOW heat. Add the corn starch slurry, mix well. Simmer the sauce on low until it thickens to your desired consistency. TURN OFF the instant pot.
  • Serve Tuscan chicken: Now, add the baby spinach and stir to mix well. The residual heat will perfectly wilt the leaves. Transfer back the chicken into the pot. Check for seasoning, if need be add a little more salt to open up the flavors. Smother the chicken with the creamy sauce. Rest the dish for 5 mins and serve hot. Enjoy!

Video

Notes

  1. Can I use chicken breasts? Yes you can use boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs. In that case pound the meat to form about ¼ inch cutlets. Season the cutlets with ½ tsp paprika, crushed black pepper & a few pinches salt. Than, Dredge the cutlets in ¼ cup flour, and sear them well until golden. Dredging the boneless, skinless chicken cutlets would keep the meat incredibly moist & tender. The rest of the recipe would remain the same. Follow the cook time shared below.
  2. Dredged chicken breasts or thigh cutlet Cook time: Pressure cook on high for 4 mins followed by 5 mins of natural pressure release.
  3. The best sundried tomatoes: Use sulfate free. Read the labels on the bottle and pick the ones that say Sulfate free. You can always use the brand we recommend or your preferred brand. 
  4. Can I use half & half instead of heavy cream? Yes you certainly can use half and half. Replace the heavy cream with half & half, however, the quantity would remain the same. And do use slightly warm half & half. This helps stabilize the fridge cold dairy and it doesn't curdle when added to a pot full of super hot ingredients.
  5. Can I use milk instead of the heavy cream? We are not sure if milk would work well. We have not tested the recipe using milk.
  6. White wine what kind is best: We would totally recommend using a good white wine, the one that you would love to drink instead of the cooking white wines. The cooking white wines are totally meh and doesn't contribute much to any recipe. Avoid them if you can!
  7. I don't have white wine what else can use? White wine would add so much crispness and sparkle to the recipe. But, if you do not prefer alcohol in food than sub the wine with equal amount of chicken stock.
  8. Spicy Tuscan Chicken option: Add about ½ tbsp red pepper flakes. This would add a nice kick to the creamy sauce.
  9. Can I skip the thickener in the recipe: Sure, it's not mandatory to add the cornstarch and thicken the sauce. You can just cook down the sauce a bit more to thicken it to your preferred consistency. This would take a little longer and add up to the total cook time.
  10. My frozen Tuscan chicken sauce separated what should I do? Well, sauces containing heavy cream tends to separate when frozen. However, you can bring it back to the right consistency and texture by adding a little more heavy whipping cream while reheating the dish over medium low heat. Add the extra cream and gently stir the sauce. it will become smooth again!
Calorific details are provided by a third party application & are to be used as indicative figures only.
 
Nutrition Facts
Instant Pot Creamy Tuscan Chicken
Amount Per Serving
Calories 415 Calories from Fat 261
% Daily Value*
Fat 29g45%
Saturated Fat 11g69%
Cholesterol 112mg37%
Sodium 279mg12%
Potassium 1002mg29%
Carbohydrates 19g6%
Fiber 4g17%
Sugar 10g11%
Protein 19g38%
Vitamin A 2674IU53%
Vitamin C 45mg55%
Calcium 160mg16%
Iron 3mg17%
* Read our privacy policy - Calorie information is provided as a courtesy only and should be leveraged as an estimate rather than a guarantee.Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
 

Nutrition

Calories: 415kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 112mg | Sodium: 279mg | Potassium: 1002mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 2674IU | Vitamin C: 45mg | Calcium: 160mg | Iron: 3mg