How to Make Shredded Chicken in the Instant POt

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     The other day I was hosting a little lunch with my grandson and his mom.  I was excited to make something delicious that my grandson would be able to eat all of.  He doesn't eat chemicals in his food, or processed sugars, so that meant I was making everything from scratch.  Plus, he is 2 1/2 years old, so there is that!  I debated and debated what to make, and finally, the evening before the lunch date, I decided on Hawaiian Haystacks!  Those things are delicious, the ingredients are all whole food and Logan would be able eat each element separately if he wanted to.  
      My version of Hawaiian Haystacks starts with rice and shredded chicken.  You top that with a gravy made from cream of chicken soup, or a white sauce version from scratch.  Then you add all sorts of toppings like tomatoes, green onions, bell peppers, pineapple, coconut...use your imagination!  Crunchy chow mien  noodles finish it all off.  (Logan couldn't eat those, I'd forgotten to read the ingredients on that package.)  But, my main problem was I didn't have any shredded chicken on hand and I knew I wouldn't have chicken that I could shred ready between breakfast and lunch in my crock pot!  But, guess what!  Instant Pot to the rescue!  In about 35 minutes, from start to finish, I was able to turn out some delicious shredded chicken to use in our Haystacks, and also enough to freeze for later! I'm sharing my recipe with you today. 

     Shredded Chicken is such a great staple to have in your freezer, as is cubed chicken. (You could actually make cubed chicken this was, too!)  It is so nice to be able to pull out a package of chicken, quickly thaw it in cold water if necessary and to be able to use it in a casserole, chicken tacos, Hawaiian Haystacks, soup or in so many other recipes!  That is why when I decide to make it, I make plenty to use for that day's dinner and more to freeze for later.  It is just such a time saver and a money saver when you can buy your chicken on sale!  

chicken breasts

bone-in thighs

     In my recipe, I used 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts and 2 bone-in thighs.  I like the juiciness of add in in the dark meat, plus the extra flavor that comes from the bones.  It is easy to take the meat off of the bones once the chicken is cooked, but if that grosses you out, you can use all breasts, or boneless skinless thighs.  I left the skin on my thighs for the extra fat content which adds flavor to your chicken and the broth. If you opt not to use bone in thighs, your cooking time will be much shorter. Probably about 12 minutes.
    Another perk that comes with cooking and shredding chicken in advance is that 2 cups of shredded chicken really goes a long way!  My recipe will yield about 8 cups of shredded chicken.  The recipe I made with just 2 cups of chicken easily fed 5 people generous portions! But, if you find that you need more than 2 cups, that's easy as well, just grab 2 packages from your freezer! 
     I freeze my chicken in quart sized freezer bags, and then I group about four packages inside of a gallon sized freezer bag, so that the chicken is double wrapped and also easy to store  all together rather than letting the smaller bags get tossed around and get lost in the freezer!  You can also use other types of containers, like Tupperware or Rubbermaid,  or if you are avoiding plastics, there are these glass containers.  Another alternative is to use your Food Saver and seal the chicken in air tight bags.  
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     Without further ado, here is my recipe!  Be sure to click on the recipe for the printable version! ​

After shredding your chicken, be sure to mix in a cup of the broth from the pot!

     By the way, the lunch was a lot of fun, but Logan was more interested in the Pumpkin Ice Cream that I'd made for dessert!  (You can check out that recipe here!)