The easiest shredded buffalo chicken in the Instant Pot! Packed with bold flavors, easy to make and always the hit of the party. Less than 10 minutes of hands on time for this insanely easy recipe!
How to make Instant Pot buffalo chicken
For this recipe, we make the Instant Pot do all the work! Here’s all you need to do:
- Throw the chicken in to pressure cook for 20 minutes
- Whip up the easy homemade buffalo sauce
- Shred the cooked chicken and discard the juices
- Sauté the chicken with the sauce for a few minutes
With very little hands on time, you’ll be amazed by how much flavor is packed into this easy recipe!
Slow cooker option for this buffalo chicken
For those of you who don’t have an Instant Pot or if you just prefer the slow cooker, we’ve provided instructions in the recipe card notes below. You’ll just throw the chicken in to slow cook for three hours on high or six hours on low. After shredding the chicken and discarding the liquid, just saute the chicken in the sauce for a few minutes on the stovetop.
An easy homemade buffalo sauce
The buffalo sauce in this recipe is to die for! Easy to make and addicting, here’s a look at the ingredients:
- Hot sauce – Use any brand you like, but our go-to is the original Frank’s red hot. It has simple ingredients and a vinegar flavor that’s perfect for this recipe.
- Ghee – Provides a buttery flavor and it helps the chicken absorb the sauce when you saute it.
- Nutritional yeast – Thickens the sauce and provides a little “cheesy” flavor without the dairy.
- Lemon juice – Adds a little tang and balances out the sauce.
- Seasonings – A little smoked paprika, garlic powder and sea salt to get some smoky depth of flavor.
Other easy Instant Pot chicken recipes
- CHICKEN CARNITAS
- INSTANT POT HONEY GARLIC CHICKEN
- CHICKEN FAJITA SOUP
- INSTANT POT WHITE CHICKEN CHILI
Your turn to make this insanely easy recipe
This shredded chicken smothered in homemade buffalo sauce is so good! We know you’ll love the bold buffalo flavor and we think this might be your new favorite healthy chicken recipe.
If you try it, be sure to leave a comment below and let us know how it goes. Also, take a pic to share on Instagram. Tag us @realsimplegood, we love to see what you’re cooking!
Like this Recipe?
SHARE IT NOW OR PIN IT FOR LATER!
Insanely Easy Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs, (or breasts)
For the sauce:
- 3/4 cup hot sauce, (like Frank's Red Hot)
- 2 tbsp ghee, melted, (or coconut oil for dairy free)
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 2 tbsp lemon juice, (about 1/2 lemon, can sub apple cider vinegar)
- 1.5 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
Equipment
Instructions
- Add broth and chicken to the Instant Pot. Secure the lid and close the pressure valve.
- Press the “manual” button (or “pressure cook” button) and set the time to cook for 20 minutes at high pressure. Once the time is up, carefully quick release the pressure manually.
- While the chicken is cooking, prepare the sauce by combining all of the sauce ingredients in a bowl or jar and mixing well.
- When the chicken is finished, press the "cancel" button and remove the lid. Shred the chicken in the juices with two forks.
- Using potholders, carefully remove the stainless steel inner pot from the Instant Pot. Drain all of the liquid from the pot. If you want to keep the broth for later use, pour the contents of the pot into a colander with a container underneath to catch the juices.
- Place the shredded chicken back into the Instant Pot and press the "Sauté" button. Pour the sauce over the chicken and toss to coat.
- Simmer the chicken in the sauce for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Press the "cancel" button. Serve chicken immediately or store it in a container for later use.
Notes
- To prepare this recipe in a slow cooker, simply cook the chicken in broth on high for 3 hours or on low for 6 hours, shredding afterward. Drain the juices and transfer the chicken to a skillet and add the sauce. Simmer on medium-low for 5 minutes and serve.
- Nutrition details provided are per serving and an estimate provided for those following a Ketogenic or low-carb diet. See our full nutrition information disclosure here.
A BiG win! This was easy and so delicious! Definitely will be a family favorite – especially during football season.
Happy to hear that Velma! Thanks for coming back to leave a rating and review, we appreciate it 🙂 This one IS perfect for football season.
Are you willing to revise this for chunked chicken instead of shredding it? Sounds delicious but I don’t want the shredded…
You can chunk the chicken however you’d like after cooking it 🙂
Can use regular butter/margarine instead of ghee?
Yes, butter would be fine.
Super easy and yummy!
So glad to hear you enjoyed this one! Thanks so much for giving our recipe a try and also for taking the time to come back and leave a rating and review. We really appreciate it! 🙂
You guys can do no wrong! Your recipes are making my healthy eating so easy!
Aaaww thanks for such a great review! We are delighted you’re loving our recipes! Thanks so much for giving our recipes a try! We love that we get to connect over them. 🙂
I made this last night and served it over sweet potatoes I had baked over the weekend, topped with some Whole30 ranch and green onions and a big green salad on the side. I’m usually pretty satisfied with regular old buffalo sauce, but this sauce recipe blows it out of the water!
This was super convenient too! I set the chicken up in my instant pot, put the potatoes in the oven to reheat, and went to my Zoom jujitsu class. When I finished class, I dumped the sauce in and pull out the potatoes and dinner was done!
Love this review! It’s the perfect recipe for a busy weeknight like you described and what you served it with has my stomach rumbling 🙂
Delicious! I’ve been missing buffalo chicken during quarantine and never thought to make it at home. Thanks for the recipe!
You’re welcome Kathy! We really appreciate you coming back to leave a rating and review 🙂
Thanks for providing the slow cooker option! Yum!
You’re very welcome Dana! Glad you enjoyed the recipe and we appreciate you coming back to leave a rating and review 🙂
Super easy to throw together for a quick dinner with cauliflower rice and some greens, and tastes like take out!
Thanks Emily, this is one of my favorites lately 🙂