Instant Pot French Onion Chicken

French onion chicken in a cast iron skillet topped with cheese and sitting next to sprigs of thyme.

5 from 5 votes

Instant Pot French Onion Chicken

This recipe takes the very best part of French Onion soup, including tangy broth, melty cheese, and sauteed onions, and transforms into a chicken dish that will blow your mind. You'll be glad to have this Instant Pot French Onion Chicken recipe in your back pocket for busy nights so the pressure cooker does the work for you.

Course chicken dinner, Main Course

Cuisine French

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 45

Pressure Building 10

Total Time 1 5

Servings

Calories 457kcal

Author Alexandria Drzazgowski

Equipment

Ingredients

6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
½ cup all purpose flour
3 tbsp unsalted butter
Salt and Pepper to taste
2 medium sweet onions sliced
1 cup beef stock
2 tbsp Balsamic vinegar
1 ½ tbsp cornstarch
½ tsp Ground Thyme
1 tsp Ground Oregano
5 tbsp water
½ cup shredded Mozzarella cheese

Instructions

Place your 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs in a large plastic ziplock bag and seal tightly. Use a meat cleaver to pound your chicken thighs until about ¼ inch thick. Season with salt and pepper.
Remove chicken thighs from the bag. Pour ½ cup flour into a shallow bowl. Dip the chicken thighs in the flour, coating each side in flour thoroughly.
Turn your Instant Pot on to the saute setting. Add 1 tbsp of butter and allow it to melt. Add the chicken thighs into the pot, browning them on each side (about 4 minutes each). Cook in two rounds if you need to so as not to crowd the chicken. Remove the browned chicken and set on a separate plate.
Still on the saute setting, add two more tablespoons of butter into your Instant Pot. Add the 2 medium sliced onions and saute until the onions begin to turn translucent. Add small drizzles of olive oil if the bottom of the pot seems too dry.
Once the onions have softened, turn off the saute feature.
Pour 1 cup beef stock into the Instant Pot along with 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar, using a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits that had stuck to the bottom of the pot.
Add the chicken back into the pot with the ½ tsp oregano and 1 tsp thyme, and put on the lid. Turn Instant Pot to Manual for 9 minutes. Once the 9 minutes are up, allow pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes, then instant release the rest.
Remove the cooked chicken from the pot and set on a separate plate.
Turn the Instant Pot to saute again, and allow the sauce to come to a boil.
In a separate bowl, combine 1 ½ tbsp cornstarch and water and mix to combine. Add the cornstarch slurry into the boiling sauce, and stir until the sauce thickens.
Once the sauce has thickened, turn off the pot. Add the chicken back into the pot. Sprinkle ½ cup cheese on top of the chicken. Place the lid back on for about 2 minutes, using the residual heat until the cheese melts all the way.
Serve chicken with sauce. Enjoy

Notes

Recipe Copyright The Foreign Fork. For educational or personal use only.

Recipe was made using an 8 qt pot.

Chicken Thighs: Use boneless, skinless chicken thighs.
Onions: Sweet, yellow onions are best in this recipe. I slice mine up thinly.
Beef Stock: Make sure to use low-sodium beef broth to keep the dish from being too salty
Balsamic Vinegar: This is what gives the sauce its familiar tang.
Herbs: You can use fresh thyme sprigs or ground thyme. I also used ground oregano.
Cheese: This recipe calls for Mozzarella cheese. You can use shredded mozzarella or buy a block of mozzarella and cut it into slices before placing on the chicken. You can also use gruyere cheese for a sharper cheese or mild provolone slices for a budget-friendly option.
If you don’t want to use boneless, skinless chicken thighs, you can choose instead to use chicken breasts. In this case, I would use only about 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Make sure to pound them until they are about ¼ inch thick
If you would prefer not to use mozzarella, you can use any type of cheese that you’d like. Provolone, gruyere, or Swiss are all great options.
For a full meal, serve this chicken alongside rice and vegetables, such as broccoli. The chicken would also be delicious over noodles!
For a creamier option, you can melt a little cream cheese into the onion gravy after the dish has been cooked

Nutrition