Instant Pot Creamy Chicken

Ninja Foodi (Option)

You don’t have to own an IP either. Yes I know and own the other machines that work just the same. For Crockpot Express you will use the same steps. For a Ninja Foodi recipe choose the lid that is not attached and the pressure cook button. If you have rotisserie or precooked meat you can skip the first step.

In that case you will only use the saute or brown button to melt and warm the condensed soup and cream cheese. The pasta would be cooked separately, ideally. OR you can use our pressure cooker butter noodles directions before, after, or in another pot. On the stovetop works as well of course, take your pick, but just do it apart from one another for the ideal outcome.

This is similar to our pressure cooker chicken and rice dish. That one includes white rice into the mix all cooked together until tender whereas this boils noodles separate. The reason this one isn’t one pot is because I wanted the sauce with meat to be super thick. If you added the pasta in there too you’d need to increase the liquid broth which would thin it out.

Ingredient Notes

• 2 lbs chicken breasts (fresh or frozen – boneless skinless), chicken thighs or make as a leftover chicken breast recipe
• Chicken broth is best for the flavor vs water which offers nothing
• Packet Italian dressing mix seasoning can be found near the actual dressings in the bottle
• Butter or dairy free alternative works too
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup or chicken, either one works
• Block of cream cheese cut into cubes, softened

Substitutions

I have in the past made a large batch of homemade cream of mushroom soup. I’ll use a few scoops to make this, a bowl as is for lunch, and save the rest to use the next day. Canned is very convenient for sure but if you have never tried making condensed soups from scratch it is easier than you might think.

Made with Frozen Chicken

You could actually make this with frozen chicken in Instant Pot if that is all you have on hand. With the 15 minute cook time either one will work and still come out tender enough to shred with 2 forks. I’d highly suggest boneless skinless frozen chicken breasts, medium sizes, not huge.

with Leftover Chicken

I have made this one the stovetop, but that is usually when I have leftover precooked meat already. For that I am just merely warming everything up and not worrying about cooking to a safe temp in the center. We also have a version, creamy chicken and rice casserole if you want grains in there together. If I do have fresh meat then these are the steps I follow.

Tips

Same as with our Creamy Crock pot chicken version, if you find that you think the sauce is too thick, just thin it out just a bit with some milk to your liking. As for adding vegetables into the mix I would only do so with diced frozen vegetables like peas or mixed with green beans and carrots. 3/4 of a cup would work, added before sealing the lid. 15 minutes for fresh produce would break them down too much, other than maybe carrot dials (those would be fine).

What is great about making it yourself is that you can control the sodium which is helpful for those with high blood pressure issues. Another huge plus is that you can use ingredients that are lactose free if you need dairy free options to eat. We have that issue at our home so I have had to tweak things so everyone can enjoy them around here.

FAQ

Can I use different types of chicken (breast, thighs) to make creamy chicken?

Of course. For our recipe we use 2 pounds so as long as you used boneless skinless thighs or breasts it would work the same way. I would stay away from bone-in just because it won’t yield as much meat so the amounts will be slightly off. Another reason I don’t choose those is it is harder to serve when done.

Are there any healthy alternatives for making creamy chicken?

You could use low fat cream cheese if you wanted but I will say that the taste is definitely different if you do. If you wanted to omit that ingredient all together you could instead use 2 cans of soup to keep it nice and thick as a sauce when done. In this case I would use 1 can of cream of chicken and use mushroom for the other for the best flavors.

Can I freeze leftovers?

You can but I would recommend that you freeze it without the noodles inside as those don’t freeze and thaw out well. Better yet is to just keep the soup, tender chicken sealed in a container once cooled in the fridge. It will stay well for up to 3 days. When reheating creamy chicken transfer to a microwave safe dish. Heat for 45 seconds, stir and heat for another 45 seconds or until warmed all the way thru to the middle.