If you have both a rice cooker and an instant pot (or two instant pots), you can get away with spending very little time in the kitchen. Less than five minutes of prep, and everything is ready in around thirty minutes.
If you don’t have an instant pot, you can also do the salsa verde chicken in a slow cooker. If you do it that way, you can omit the broth.
The green salsa version is delicious, but you can use any salsa/spice combo that you have on-hand. Just dump the chicken in the crockpot with a jar of salsa (doesn’t have to be green) and whatever seasonings you like (a taco seasoning works great ). Cooking on high for 2-3 hours should be about right.
This is great as a bowl with some fresh veggies, beans and whatever other toppings you like. It also works nicely in soft tacos.
My kids go ballistic over this, which is pretty cool since it takes only a few minutes.
The red sauce is Valentina, which I highly recommend if you have never tried it. It isn’t overly spicy (though the do make a nice black-labeled one if you like it hot). It has a really unique and addictive flavor. Goes great on everything.
Instant Pot Salsa Verde Chicken with Cilantro Rice
Servings 8
Ingredients
- For the chicken:
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 2.5 lbs chicken breast (or thigh)
- 1/2 packet Sazon
- 1/2 tsp Adobo
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1 16oz jar Salsa Verde I used Herdez
- optional toppings: beans, shredded cheddar, sliced bell peppers, cabbage, diced cucumbers, guacamole, Valentina
- For the Cilantro Rice:
- 2 cups white rice
- 1/2 tsp adobo
- 1 lime lime, juiced
- 1/3 cup chopped cilantro
Instructions
- For the chicken:
- Cut the chicken breasts in half so they cook faster.
- Add the broth to the bottom of the instant pot.
- Layer the chicken into the pot. Dump the seasoning and the jar of salsa in with the chicken.
- Mix it all up.
- Pressure cook on high for 22 minutes. Quick release.
- Shred the chicken with two forks and serve.
- For the rice:
- Cook the white rice according to package directions (or just throw it into a rice cooker). Be sure to season the rice with a bit of adobo.
- Once rice is cooked, squeeze a whole lime over it.
- Add the cilantro, season with more adobo (if needed) and serve.
Notes
Nutrition for 1/8 recipe of Salsa Verde Chicken (chicken breast):
159 calories – 3 fat – 0 carbs – 33 protein
Nutrition for Cilantro Rice, 1/2 cup cooked:
100 calories – 0 fat – 23 carbs – 2 protein