Instant Pot Chicken Tinga

Make this easy Instant Pot Chicken Tinga aka Tinga de Pollo for the best chicken tacos! Tender chicken is cooked in a flavorful smoky tomato sauce, then it’s shredded and stuffed in tacos, served in burrito bowls, or over crunchy tostadas with refried beans!

In our house, we are OBSESSED with Mexican food! Every Tuesday is a taco Tuesday, and we make these chicken tinga very often. The chicken turns out so tender, saucy, and the smoky flavor coming from the chipotles in adobo is incredible!

You will love this recipe because it’s SO easy, takes just a few minutes of prep, and the Instant Pot will do most of the work for you.

This recipe is also very versatile and can be changed up to your preference. Want more heat? Add chipotles! Feeding your little ones? Skip the chilis! Following a low-carb diet? Serve over chopped lettuce!

What Does Tinga Mean?

Tinga is an authentic Mexican dish that originated in Puebla, Mexico. Made with shredded chicken, tomatoes, smokey chipotles in adobo, and onions making it a saucy shredded chicken recipe. The most popular way to serve tinga is over tostadas, but it can also be served in tacos or burritos.

Tinga can also be made with beef similar to barbacoa and Mexican shredded beef, or pork similar to carnitas.

The Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make chicken tinga:

• Chicken breasts: tinga is traditionally made with chicken breasts that are perfect for shredding.
• Sauce ingredients: onion, garlic, chipotles in adobo, diced tomatoes (I use canned), plus the ingredients below.
• Chicken stock: use chicken or vegetable stock to make the sauce. This will also help the Instant Pot to pressurize.
• Spices: ground cinnamon, cumin, oregano, salt, and pepper.
• Olive oil: you can use any oil to caramelize the onions, I like the flavor that olive oil adds and use it for Mexican cooking in general.
• Bay leaves: these are added with the sauce for extra flavor.
• Lime: like with most Mexican recipes, a squeeze of fresh lime juices brings out the awesome flavors!

Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.

How to Make Instant Pot Chicken Tinga

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper from both sides. Set aside.
2. Press on SAUTE – NORMAL on the Instant Pot, add heat olive oil. Add the sliced onions and sauté until deep brown and caramelized (5-6 minutes). Add the garlic, and cook for 30 seconds. Remove the onions and garlic from the pot onto a plate or bowl, and deglaze with water or stock and scrape off any bits stuck to the bottom of the pot (to avoid getting a BURN message). Switch off the SAUTE setting.
3. Add the onion and garlic to a blender or food processor, followed by diced tomatoes, chiles in adobo, oregano, cumin, cinnamon, and chicken stock. Blend for 30 seconds or until the sauce is smooth.
4. Add the chicken to the Instant Pot, pour the sauce over the chicken, and throw in the bay leaves. Mix so that the sauce covers the chicken well.
5. Secure the lid and set the vent to SEALING. Select the PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL setting and set the cooking time for 10 minutes at high pressure. The Instant Pot will take around 10 minutes to come to pressure and start cooking. When the cooking program ends, allow the steam to release naturally for 5 minutes then quickly release the rest of the steam.
6. Remove the chicken from the Instant Pot and place it on a cutting board or on a plate and shred using two forks.
7. Squeeze fresh lime juice over the sauce and give it a quick stir.
8. Return the chicken back to the sauce in the Instant Pot to soak up the flavor.
9. Serve stuffed in tacos with diced avocado, fresh cilantro leaves, diced or pickled red onion, and cotija cheese if desired. You can also serve with guacamole, lime crema, and pico de gallo.

How to Shred Chicken Breast?

You can either shred the chicken using 2 forks, with your hands, or using a stand mixer which is great if you’re making a large batch of chicken. To learn more, check out my Crockpot shredded chicken recipe as I go into detail and share my tips on shredding cooked chicken.

Top Tips

• While this recipe calls for chicken breasts, you can use chicken thighs if you prefer.
• Frozen chicken can also be used, but you’ll have to add 5 minutes to the cooking time. Set the timer at 15 minutes, and cook on high pressure then naturally release the steam for 5 minutes.
• The chipotle in adobo sauce is what gives the sauce a smoky flavor, so do not skip it!
• Make chicken broth or vegetable stock/broth in your Instant Pot instead of buying it at the grocery store. It’s SO easy to make, healthier, and cheaper!
• I use just regular canned diced tomatoes, you can substitute with fresh tomatoes or fire-roasted diced tomatoes for extra smokiness!
• If you don’t have a food processor or a blender, you can just finely chop everything and add it to the Instant Pot. The result won’t be exactly the same, but it will still be delicious.
• The recipe is dairy-free, and gluten-free if you serve in gluten-free corn tortillas or in a salad or burrito bowl. Also, Whole30 compliant, low-carb, and Paleo.
• If you double the recipe, keep the cooking time the same.
• If you have leftover plain shredded chicken, you can easily make it in a pan or in the Instant Pot without pressure cooking (using the SAUTE setting).
• For a simplified Instant Pot chicken taco recipe, try my shredded salsa chicken! I also have a creamy 3-ingredient version of salsa chicken that’s perfect for sliders.

Storing Tips

• Fridge: Store the leftover tinga in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
• Freezer: You can freeze chicken tinga in a freezer bag for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge completely before reheating and serving.

Topping Ideas

• Sliced avocado and diced red onion, or creamy guacamole
• Lime crema (much better than plain sour cream!)
• Fresh pineapple salsa
• Homemade refried beans
• Instant Pot pinto beans
• Instant Pot cilantro lime rice

More Instant Pot Chicken Recipes

Instant Pot Crack Chicken

Instant Pot Firecracker Chicken

Instant Pot Chicken Drumsticks

Instant Pot Creamy Chicken With Mushrooms

All Instant Pot →

Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!

Recipe

5 from 11 votes

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Instant Pot Chicken Tinga Recipe

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 30 minutes mins

Coming to pressure: 10 minutes mins

Total Time: 55 minutes mins

Author: Diana

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Make this easy Instant Pot Chicken Tinga aka Tinga de Pollo for the best chicken tacos! Tender chicken is cooked in a flavorful smoky tomato sauce, then it's shredded and stuffed in tacos, served in burrito bowls, or over crunchy tostadas with refried beans!

6

Make this easy Instant Pot Chicken Tinga aka Tinga de Pollo for the best chicken tacos! Tender chicken is cooked in a flavorful smoky tomato sauce, then it's shredded and stuffed in tacos, served in burrito bowls, or over crunchy tostadas with refried beans!

Equipment

• Instant Pot

Ingredients 

1/2x1x2x3x

• ▢ 2 pounds (900g) chicken breasts boneless and skinless
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 1 onion thinly sliced
• ▢ 3 cloves garlic minced
• ▢ 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes preferably fire roasted
• ▢ 2 chipotles in adobo and 1 tablespoon of the sauce
• ▢ 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ▢ 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• ▢ ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ▢ 2 bay leaves
• ▢ ½ cup chicken stock/broth or vegetable stock
• ▢ 1 lime juiced

For serving:

• ▢ 6 corn or flour tortillas
• ▢ avocado
• ▢ fresh cilantro
• ▢ diced red onion

Instructions 

• Season the chicken with salt and pepper from both sides.
• Press on SAUTE – NORMAL on the Instant Pot, add heat olive oil. Add the sliced onions and sauté until deep brown and caramelized (5-6 minutes). Add the garlic, and cook for 30 seconds. Remove the onions and garlic from the pot, and deglaze with water or stock and scrape off any bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. Switch off the SAUTE setting.
• Add the onion and garlic to a blender or food processor, followed by diced tomatoes, chiles in adobo, oregano, cumin, cinnamon, and chicken stock. Blend for 30 seconds or until the sauce is smooth.
• Add the chicken to the Instant Pot, pour the sauce over the chicken, and throw in the bay leaves. Mix so that the sauce covers the chicken well.
• Secure the lid and set the vent to SEALING. Select the PRESSURE COOK/MANUAL setting and set the cooking time for 10 minutes at high pressure. The Instant Pot will take around 10 minutes to come to pressure and start cooking. When the cooking program ends, allow the steam to release naturally for 5 minutes then do a quick release.
• Remove the chicken from the Instant Pot and place it on a cutting board or on a plate and shred using two forks.
• Squeeze fresh lime juice over the sauce and give it a quick mix.
• Return the chicken back to the sauce in the Instant Pot to soak up the flavor.
• Serve stuffed in tacos with diced avocado, fresh cilantro leaves, diced or pickled red onion, and cotija cheese if desired. You can also serve with guacamole, lime crema, and pico de gallo.

Notes:

• While this recipe calls for chicken breasts, you can use chicken thighs if you prefer.
• Frozen chicken can also be used, but you’ll have to add 5 minutes to the cooking time. Set the timer at 15 minutes, and cook on high pressure then naturally release the steam for 5 minutes.
• The chipotle in adobo sauce is what gives the sauce a smoky flavor, so do not skip it!
• Make chicken broth or vegetable stock/broth in your Instant Pot instead of buying it at the grocery store. It’s SO easy to make, healthier, and cheaper!
• I use just regular canned diced tomatoes, you can substitute with fresh tomatoes or fire-roasted diced tomatoes for extra smokiness!
• If you don’t have a food processor or a blender, you can just finely chop everything and add it to the Instant Pot. The result won’t be exactly the same, but it will still be delicious.
• The recipe is dairy-free, and gluten-free if you serve in gluten-free corn tortillas or in a salad or burrito bowl. Also, Whole30 compliant, low-carb, and Paleo.
• If you double the recipe, keep the cooking time the same.
• If you have leftover plain shredded chicken, you can easily make it in a pan or in the Instant Pot without pressure cooking (using the SAUTE setting).
• Storing: Store the leftover tinga in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can freeze chicken tinga in a freezer bag for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge completely before reheating and serving.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 251kcal, Carbohydrates: 8g, Protein: 34g, Fat: 9g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 97mg, Sodium: 470mg, Potassium: 761mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 392IU, Vitamin C: 13mg, Calcium: 50mg, Iron: 2mg

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

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