Instant Pot EASY Sesame Chicken and Rice Recipe

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4.17 from 6 votes
Published: July 29, 2021Updated: December 28, 2021Author: Camille Beckstrand
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No need for take-out - this EASY Sesame Chicken made in your Instant Pot is ready in less than 30 minutes from start to finish! A much healthier option to make at home that your family will love.
Instant Pot EASY Sesame Chicken and Rice Recipe

I have only owned my Instant Pot for a short amount of time and this Instant Pot EASY Sesame Chicken and Rice Recipe is the first Instant Pot recipe that I am sharing on our blog.

Even though my sisters have been sharing tons of Instant Pot recipes!

Up until this point, I have been the slow cooker queen (that is a self-given title) and have posted over 150 slow cooker recipes on our blog personally. I LOVE my slow cooker.

However, this Instant Pot has earned a spot on my kitchen counter – I am LOVING how quickly it cooks my meals, which means I can have dinner on the table in a matter of minutes!

This recipe for EASY Sesame Chicken is so simple and SO delicious!

The texture from coating it in cornstarch and then sauteing the chicken pieces in sesame oil (which, by the way, you saute the chicken in your Instant Pot and then cook it in your Instant Pot – only one dish to clean! It’s the best) makes it taste like it’s deep fried, but it’s actually pretty healthy for you!

My family loved this recipe and I know that yours will too.

If you love easy and delicious instant pot soup recipes, be sure to try our delicious Instant pot creamy chicken enchilada soup. It’s absolutely amazing!

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Chicken Breasts vs. Chicken Thighs for this Instant Pot EASY Sesame Chicken and Rice Recipe:

For this recipe, I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts cut into bite-sized pieces.

You could definitely use boneless chicken thighs (just add 1 minute to cooking time) – just be sure to cut the thighs into bite-sized pieces and then follow the instructions are directed in the recipe.

Both kinds of chicken will be delicious in this recipe!

Instant Pot EASY Sesame Chicken and Rice on a white plate sprinkled with sesame seeds

Why sear the chicken first?

The reason that we sear the chicken before cooking is to lock in amazing flavor and to cut down on cooking time.

To sear the chicken, plug in your Instant pot, remove the lid, and push the “Saute” button on your Instant Pot. It will heat up fairly quickly. Add in your sesame oil and let it get nice and hot.

Once the oil is hot, add in the coated chicken pieces to the Instant Pot and saute for 2-3 minutes. You aren’t cooking the chicken, but instead sealing in all the juices and giving it a nice golden brown crust.

Tips for making this Instant Pot EASY Sesame Chicken and Rice in the Instant Pot:

  • This recipe calls for a quick release. Don’t do a natural release on your Instant Pot because you don’t want to overcook the chicken, which will dry it out.
  • If you don’t have sesame oil, you could substitute olive oil – but I promise that savory flavor of the oil adds so much to this dish (hence the name *Sesame* chicken).
  • Remember that it is going to take about 10 minutes for your Instant Pot to pressurize, so be sure to take that into consideration as you are preparing this dish.

What Instant Pot do I use?

I have the Instant Pot LUX 6 Quart 6-in-1 Programmable Pressure Cooker. It’s basically 6 appliances in 1 – pressure cooker, rice cooker, saute, steamer, cake maker, and warmer.

Check out our other favorite Instant Pot recipes:

**This recipe has been updated December 28, 2021. It was originally tested and posted using an older model Instant Pot that didn’t have a burn notice. It has been changed to prevent the burn notice from happening.

Serves: 6

Instant Pot EASY Sesame Chicken and Rice Recipe

4.17 from 6 votes
No need for take-out – this EASY Sesame Chicken made in your Instant Pot is ready in less than 30 minutes from start to finish! A much healthier option to make at home that your family will love.
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 15 mins
Total Time 25 mins
Print Pin

Ingredients

  • 3 Tablespoons cornstarch (divided)
  • salt and pepper (to taste)
  • 1½ pounds boneless, skinless, chicken breasts (could also use chicken thighs)
  • 2 Tablespoons sesame oil (divided)
  • 6 Tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
  • 2½ Tablespoons ketchup
  • pinch red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth (or water)
  • 6 Tablespoons honey
  • 3 Tablespoons water
  • 1 Tablespoon sesame seeds

Instructions

  • In a gallon-sized resealable bag, mix together 2 Tablespoons cornstarch with salt and pepper.
  • Add in chicken pieces to bag, seal, and shake until chicken is completely coated with cornstarch (if you need to add more cornstarch to make sure all chicken is covered, feel free).
  • Plug in your Instant Pot and push "saute" button. Add in 1 1/2 Tablespoons of sesame oil to the Instant Pot and let it heat up.
  • Once the oil is hot, add in the coated chicken pieces. Saute for 3-4 minutes or until all sides of the chicken start to turn golden-brown.
  • Before adding in the sauce, you may want to "deglaze" the bottom of your Instant Pot – using a wooden spatula, just scrape off any burned bits on the bottom of the Instant Pot (you may have to add a Tablespoon or two of water to help scrape it off). This will help keep you from getting the "burn" notice.
  • In a small bowl, mix together soy sauce, ketchup, red pepper flakes. Pour over chicken pieces. Stir gently so that all the chicken pieces are covered in sauce.
  • Add in 1/2 cup chicken broth (or water), pouring liquid down the side of the Instant Pot and not directly on the chicken so that you don't wash the sauce/flavor off of the chicken.
  • Place lid on Instant Pot and seal. Make sure that your valve is in the "seal" position and not the "vent" position.
  • Push the PRESSURE COOK (or MANUAL) button and then set for 3 minutes.
  • The Instant Pot will take about 10 minutes to pressurize and then it will start the 3 minute cooking time.
  • Once the 3 minutes are up, do a QUICK RELEASE (move the valve from "seal" to "vent") and let all the pressure out. Once the steam has stopped coming out of the vent, remove the lid.
  • Add in the remaining sesame oil and honey and mix in with the chicken.
  • In another small bowl, mix together 3 Tablespoons water with the remaining 1 Tablespoon cornstarch. Pour in with the chicken, and gently stir to cover chicken. Push the SAUTE button again and let the sauce thicken (should only take 2-3 minutes).
  • Serve over rice and top with sesame seeds.

Notes

If you use boneless chicken thighs (just add 1 minute to cooking time) – just be sure to cut the thighs into bite-sized pieces and then follow the instructions are directed in the recipe.
**This recipe has been updated December 28, 2021. It was originally tested and posted using an older model Instant Pot that didn’t have a burn notice. It has been changed to prevent the burn notice from happening.

Nutrition

Calories: 273 kcal · Carbohydrates: 24 g · Protein: 25 g · Fat: 8 g · Saturated Fat: 1 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 3 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 3 g · Trans Fat: 1 g · Cholesterol: 73 mg · Sodium: 723 mg · Potassium: 485 mg · Fiber: 1 g · Sugar: 19 g · Vitamin A: 66 IU · Vitamin C: 2 mg · Calcium: 24 mg · Iron: 1 mg

Equipment

  • Instant Pot
  • Ziploc Bag
  • small bowl (2)

Recipe Details

Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, Asian

Recipe adapted from: Julie Harrington, RD

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Instant Pot EASY Sesame Chicken and Rice on a plate served with broccoli

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  1. Annette Stallings says:
    December 7, 2018
    Hello, In the Sesame Chicken recipe, it calls for 6 tbsp of honey. The directions state to add the honey in with the ketchup, soy sauce and red pepper flakes mixture. Yet, further down in the directions, the instructions state to add honey and sesame oil to the instant pot after the chicken has pressure cooked. I am unsure how much honey to add to the instant pot, since it appeared I added all of the honey previously in the ketchup mixture. Thanks!
    Reply
    • jjh says:
      June 15, 2019
      I agree. Did not say : Divided. I added it all when mixing the sauce. :)
      Reply
  2. Scott says:
    December 22, 2018
    The recipe is confusing as to how much honey is poured over the chicken after you open the instant pot. I just guessed and it may not have been enough. The sauce in the instant pot was really thick after adding the cornstarch so I made another batch of sauce to pour on top. It still didn’t seem to be enough sauce.
    Reply
  3. Angela West says:
    January 8, 2019
    In this recipe, after the chicken is seared, it says to push the “manual” button. I have an 8 quart instant pot duo. There is no button for a manual setting. I tried cooking it on the “meat setting” and the “pressure” setting and both times, it burned. Can you please tell me how to adapt it for my duo? Also, just as these other folks, I am confused about how much honey to add when.
    Reply
  4. Julie says:
    January 8, 2019
    Help! My instant Pot doesn't have the 'Manual' button that you use, so I'm not sure how to cook this recipe and I'm dying to make it! Please help!
    Reply
    • Brittany Finch says:
      February 17, 2021
      Mine didn't either I just used the Pressure Cook Button! For 3 minutes and the chicken was fully cooked
      Reply
  5. Ellen says:
    January 9, 2019
    This recipe didn't work for me. I followed the recipes exactly. When I got to the pressure cooking stage, my Instant Pot beeped at me and declared "burn". I de-pressurized and opened it up to discover that all of the sauce had burnt to the bottom of the pot. At this point, I probably should have tested the chicken's doneness, taken it out, and eaten it. Instead, I scraped the bottom and attempted to cook it again. The somehow burnt to the bottom even worse! Overall, the chicken wasn't bad. It definitely would have been better if I hadn't burned most of the sauce off...
    Reply
    • jjh says:
      June 15, 2019
      AGREE Totally. I had the exact results. I'm SO glad that I'm not the only one. !!!!! I
      Reply
    • Kathy Sissel says:
      August 20, 2019
      I think the problem is there's not enough liquid to offset the honey. After reading all the burn comments I made it with adding 1/2 cup chicken broth. No burn and sauce was just the right thickness . Did add the honey at the end too like the directions said . Hope this helps !!
      Reply
    • Michelle Olah says:
      July 5, 2020
      Same thing happened to me! I added a cup of water to the IP and tried again...same result. I ended up basically making soup instead of crispy chicken in a sauce :(
      Reply
  6. PATY says:
    January 9, 2019
    PLEASE CLARIFY THE HONEY CONFUSION!
    Reply
  7. Maureen Kostka says:
    January 12, 2019
    Same questions as above! Please clarify.
    Reply
  8. Paty says:
    January 13, 2019
    I followed this recipe to the letter and it also burned at the bottom of the pot. The chicken was very good so I really want to find a way to make it without the bottom burning. Perhaps if I sear the cornstarched chicken on the stove then transfer it to the IP. That would, of course, add more work and clean up but my picky son loved it so I'll do it!
    Reply
    • Sandie says:
      April 2, 2019
      I had the same issues. I wish I read the comments before cooking. I had no idea where the "extra honey" was coming from. I wish I took out the chicken the first time I got the "burn" signal. My sauce was already thick so I skipped the cornstarch. Dinner was good, but directions were confusing. Any ideas on how not to get the burn message?
      Reply
      • jjh says:
        June 15, 2019
        Same here. Never occurred to me to read comments. Six Sisters have been my "go to" source for Instant Pot cooking. But......Burn, Burn, Burn. Stop, depressureize, scrape bottom of pan, Start again. BURN, again.
        Reply
      • jjh says:
        June 15, 2019
        I have a sneaky feeling that the honey should NOT be in the original sauce mixture! Anyone else? Has anyone seen an answer?
        Reply
  9. Karen says:
    January 15, 2019
    Also had an issue with it burning on the bottom, AND confusion about the additional honey. I didnt add any, just the sesame, and it seem fine?
    Reply
  10. Linda says:
    January 27, 2019
    I made this recipe and it was wonderful, I had no problems with burning at all. I was a little confused about the honey too but just decided not to worry about it.
    Reply
  11. Eva Lally says:
    March 5, 2019
    This recipe burned the heck outta my instant pot! Like, I may have to replace the pot. I had to switch it to a regular pan instead of cooking in an instant pot. My advice: don’t use this as an instant pot recipe! Horrible. I wish I could leave a picture.
    Reply
  12. Christina says:
    March 17, 2019
    I had the same issue with the burning & the same confusion about the honey, which was why I read the comments. I wish I would have read them first so I could have chosen a different recipe & avoided having my family’s dinner ruin! Remove this recipe from your site!
    Reply
  13. Stephanie Cleek says:
    March 27, 2019
    This is great! I didn't have any issues with burning as others reported. I just added all the honey to the sauce instead of the confusing direction at the end, and it turned out fine. Will definitely make again!
    Reply
  14. Lisa Ewoldt says:
    April 1, 2019
    Loved this recipe! The chicken was tender and I love the sauce, it's very thick. I just drizzled some honey in at the end, didn't bother to measure it. This might be one of the best recipes I've made in my pressure cooker. I didn't have any problems with burning, but I don't have an actual instant pot, I have a Farberware pressure cooker with a nonstick inner pot. Thanks for a great recipe!

    5 stars

    Reply
    • Lisa Ewoldt says:
      April 27, 2020
      Update: I made this again last night and doubled the sauce, it was even better! I like having extra sauce for the rice. I didn't bother with the honey at the end, just put it in the sauce at the beginning. So good!

      5 stars

      Reply
  15. Monique Opet says:
    August 25, 2019
    So I also was confused by the instructions, I did the sauce with everything including 3 tbl of water had to cook 5 min cooker wouldn’t go lower it was perfect! No burning

    4 stars

    Reply
  16. Tony says:
    September 16, 2019
    Love the flavor! But made it three times so far and I keep getting the burn warning. I tried adding water, and halfing the honey in the beginning. Is it the corn starch that’s causing it to burn? Anybody else having this issue that has been able to modify the recipe to make or successfully without burning it first?
    Reply
  17. Karen says:
    October 3, 2019
    HONEY CONFUSION!!!
    Reply
    • Cyd says:
      October 14, 2019
      We fixed the honey confusion. Thanks for the heads up!
      Reply
  18. Celina G. says:
    January 16, 2020
    Followed recipe exactly, added honey after pressure cooking. Still got burn message, had to add chicken broth as someone added above.
    Reply
  19. Amy M says:
    May 27, 2020
    I didn't add the honey, just the soy sauce and ketchup and got the burn notice. Indeed it was burnt to the bottom. I think there is definitely not enough liquid in the pot. I think this recipe would best be made in the frying pan with such little liquid. Also I was confused at the short cooking time on the chicken. 3 minutes even after searing the outside seems too little time. I don't have a meat therm so I don't have a way to check for sure.
    Reply
  20. Sharon p. says:
    September 9, 2020
    It was good, but tasted burned. I'll try again as I'm sure it was operator errors.
    Reply
  21. Tony Emond says:
    November 27, 2020
    There's a problem with the recipe- the pressure cooker needs et least 1 full cup of liquid to work properly, otherwise stuff will burn. So you need to add water to the sky sauce-ketchup mixture before starting the pressure cooking.
    Reply
  22. Barb Smith says:
    January 11, 2021
    I’m new to the Instant Pot and thought this looked like an easy enough recipe. Followed recipe to a ‘T’ but the corn starch and my chicken stuck to the bottom and I got a “burn” signal before my pot was even fully pressurized. I turned it off immediately and opened it up but by then the everything was infused with a burnt flavor and dinner was a disaster! Where did I go wrong?
    Reply
    • Momma Cyd says:
      January 13, 2021
      The burn notice means you need more liquid, so you could try adding in 1/2 cup chicken broth or water during the cooking time to see if that helps. Then follow the recipe as directed. Sorry you had a problem with the recipe.
      Reply
  23. Lisa B says:
    February 6, 2021
    This recipe sucked - the cornstarch burnt to the bottom of the smart pot. Other recipes suggest cooking the chicken in oil first, minus the cornstarch - it just sticks to the bottom of the pot.
    Reply
    • JB says:
      February 16, 2021
      Yeah, some recipes just really need to be cooked on a stovetop. Pressure cookers aren't right for everything.
      Reply
  24. Sheryl Anderson says:
    February 16, 2021
    I am looking for your SLOW COOKER sesame chicken recipe please.
    Reply
    • Momma Cyd says:
      March 22, 2021
      https://www.sixsistersstuff.com/recipe/slow-cooker-honey-sesame-chicken-recipe/
      Reply
  25. Laura says:
    August 1, 2021
    I bought the instant pot cookbook and it called for more soy sauce and ketchup and it was way too salty. My cornstarch did stick and burn to the bottom of the instapot as well. I’d recommend pan frying chicken first, and adding beef broth to the instapot so it doesn’t burn. My version of the recipe called for the honey only at the end after pressure cooking. Might try it again with less soy sauce. Which sesame oil are you using? Dark brown or the light one that looks like olive oil?

    2 stars

    Reply
    • Momma Cyd says:
      August 2, 2021
      We used the brown sesame oil.
      Reply
  26. Chandra says:
    September 12, 2021
    Easy meal and family friendly!

    5 stars

    Reply
  27. Actual Bayonetta says:
    January 9, 2022
    Made this similarly as written once, it was good. The second time I made some changes. I didn't bother to separate the sauce ingredients, honey, oil, or sesame seed - just mixed it all together. I like my IP recipes to be one-step ;) I also doubled the sauce and added vegetables in as well to steam. Neither time did I have a problem with the burn notice. Make sure that when you sear the chicken you're deglazing the pot REALLY well once you add the sauce - scrape, scrape, scrape! Since I added more ingredients to the pot the second time around I added a splash more broth. I did broccoli florets + chopped stems, carrots, and bell peppers; though anything that steams nicely can go in. PS: If you don't have mirin, you don't need ketchup - white/rice vinegar + sugar will do! (1/2 tsp. Sugar for every 1 tbsp. Vinegar). I just think it's much tastier that way.

    4 stars

    Reply
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