Instant Pot 40 cloves of garlic chicken is a creamy and flavorful way to enjoy chicken over pasta or rice. You can serve this flavor packed pressure cooker chicken any night of the week because it is ready with almost no work.
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Part of the family law is that the more garlic, the better!
Especially when it comes to chicken or pasta.
And this creamy chicken has lots of garlic, but don’t think it’s overpoweringly garlicky.
It’s not.
The garlic is mellow and so delicious with this creamy chicken.
You and your family will love it and you’ll love making it since it comes together with barely any effort but produces a restaurant quality meal.
Ingredients and tools
Here are all the ingredients you’ll need to make this tasty, garlicky delight.
- Chicken breasts – You’ll need to trim the fat.
- Cloves of peeled garlic – Don’t substitute garlic powder. The name of this is clove of garlic chicken for a reason.
- Salt & pepper – These are to taste and could be omitted.
- Fats – You’ll need both butter and extra virgin olive oil.
- Alcohols – You’ll need a bit of Bourbon and dry white wine, such as pinot grigiot.
- Fresh thyme leaves – These add extra flavor to the chicken.
- Flour – This helps thicken the sauce.
- Heavy cream – Heavy cream helps make a rich, creamy sauce.
You’ll also want the Instant Pot for this recipe. You could make this in your 6 quart or your 8 quart pot.
How to make
Here are the easy to follow steps to make this recipe.
First, pat the chicken dry and then liberally season it with salt & pepper.
Next, set your pressure cooker on saute mode, and melt the butter and olive oil in it.
Working in two batches, add half the chicken to the inner pot and sear on both sides.
Once fully seared, remove the breasts to a waiting plate and then repeat with the remaining chicken. Set aside.
Next, add the garlic cloves to the pot and saute them, stirring & turning as needed, until they’re all evenly browned.
When the garlic is ready, pour the bourbon & white wine into the pot and use a sturdy spoon to deglaze the bottom.
You’ll need to remove any stuck on parts of the garlic with a sturdy spoon.
Next, add the chicken back to the pot and sprinkle it with the fresh thyme leaves.
When the fresh thyme has been added, turn the lid to close and set the vent to the sealed position.
Cook on normal pressure for 15 minutes and then let it naturally release for 10 minutes.
Use a wooden spoon to carefully turn the vent to release the remaining pressure.
Carefully open the pot and use a pair of tongs to transfer the chicken to a waiting plate.
Use caution when transferring the chicken, it can fall apart easily.
Once plated, cover them with foil to keep them warm.
Next, whisk the flour into the pot until completely incorporated.
Turn the pot onto sauté mode and allow the sauce to come to a boil and then whisk in the cream.
Allow the mixture to simmer for three more minutes.
Finally, turn the pot off and season the mixture with salt & pepper to taste.
Ladle the sauce & garlic cloves over the chicken and serve hot over pasta, rice, or on its own.
Serving and storing
Serve this hot from the pot with pasta, rice or even over mashed potatoes.
Crusty bread is also a great treat to serve with the chicken.
To store, place the chicken and sauce in an air tight container.
When you are ready to eat, you can reheat in the microwave for about 1 to 2 minutes or until warmed through.
Tips and Tricks
- Make sure you don’t burn the garlic by stirring consistently and adding a little liquid if needed during the cooking process.
- Don’t overcrowd your pot when you are searing the chicken. Make sure to split it into two batches.
- For added flavor, sprinkle on Parmesan cheese when serving.
Other Instant Pot recipes
Instant Pot 40 cloves of garlic chicken is a family favorite and a weeknight staple in our house.
You should make it tonight for your family, they are sure to love the flavor too.
If you love using your Instant Pot, check out these other Instant Pot recipes:
- Instant Pot Meatloaf & Mashed Potatoes
- Instant Pot Salsa Chicken
- Instant Pot Kielbasa, Potatoes, & Green Beans
- Instant Pot Creamy Chicken & Noodles
If you’ve tried this INSTANT POT 40 CLOVES OF GARLIC CHICKEN, or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on!
Instant Pot 40 Cloves Of Garlic Chicken
Ingredients
- 5-6 chicken breasts about 3lbs, trimmed of fat
- 40 cloves peeled garlic
- salt & pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp bourbon divided
- 1 1/2 cup dry white wine such as pinot grigiot
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme leaves
- 2 tbsp flour
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
Instructions
- Pat the chicken dry, and then liberally season it with salt & pepper.
- Set your pressure cooker on saute mode, and melt the butter and olive oil in it.
- Working in two batches, add half the chicken to the pot, sear on both sides, remove it to a waiting plate, and then repeat with the remaining chicken. Set aside.
- Add the garlic cloves to the pot, and saute them (stirring & turning as needed) until they're all evenly browned- roughly 5-10 minutes.
- Pour the bourbon & white wine into the pot, and use a sturdy spoon to deglaze the bottom- scraping up any browned bits as you go.
- Add the chicken back to the pot, and sprinkle it with the fresh thyme leaves.
- Turn the lid to close, set the vent to the sealed position, and cook on normal pressure for 15 minutes, and then let the dish naturally release for 10 minutes more.
- Using a wooden spoon, carefully turn the vent to release the remaining pressure.
- Using a pair of tongs, carefully transfer the chicken to a waiting plate so that it doesn't break apart during the process. Cover with foil to keep warm.
- Whisk the flour into the pot until completely incorporated. Turn the pot onto saute mode and allow the sauce to come to a boil.
- Add the cream to the pot, whisking in to incorporate. Let the mixture simmer for 3 more minutes.
- Turn the pot off, and season the mixture with salt & pepper to taste. Be careful when tasting the sauce though, as it will be HOT.
- Ladle the sauce & garlic cloves over the chicken, and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
This post may contain affiliate links. As an amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. See my full Disclosure Policy for details. As always, all opinions are my own.
Donna Lyn Anthony says
Hi. Your recipe looks delish and I want to make it. Can you please tell me if the chicken breasts are boneless without the skin or not? Thank you.
4sonsrus says
The chicken breasts are the boneless/skinless kind 🙂
Garnett says
What would be your thought on cutting the chicken into 2 inch pieces. Mostly the time to pressure cook.
Thanks
4sonsrus says
I haven’t tried it myself, but if you end of experimenting with the chicken- let me know how it turns out!
garnett jaeger says
Ok will do
Marion says
Is garlic sliced/minced or left while the entire time? It looks diced in picture but recipe doesn’t state it, just sounds like they’re left whole
4sonsrus says
They’re left whole. The cloves roast while cooking and become soft so some of then do naturally break apart.
Yvonne says
40 Cloves of Garlic?
4sonsrus says
Yes, you read that right! Cooking it this way actually ends of ‘roasting’ the garlic. Like roasted garlic it becomes very soft, with a slightly sweet and mellow flavor making it perfect for the delicious gravy it creates.
Gina says
Maybe I’m not reading close enough, but I can’t seem to find why the bourbon is divided. Doesn’t seem critical to the recipe but curious just the same. Planning on this for dinner, looks delicious!
Lisa says
So you can drink some?
Reagan Stevens says
Note: Adding flour to hot liquid can make it clump. I would dissolve the flour in cold chicken broth or cold water before adding. Another method would be to press the flour into butter, creating a paste, then adding it to the hot liquid while stirring.
Paula says
What adjustments would I need to make the 40 clove garlic Chicken if I only used 3 chicken breasts?
It sounds delicious.
4sonsrus says
None 🙂
Nosheen says
How important is the bourbon? What can I sub it with that isn’t alcohol?
4sonsrus says
Apple juice is what I use when I don’t have bourbon on hand.
Yvonne says
Looks good, I’ll be trying this recipe for sure. One question, how do you get your thyme chopped into such tiny, tiny pieces?
4sonsrus says
What’s pictures is actually dried thyme, so it was easy to crumble- for fresh thyme we just strips the leaves off the stem and chop it with a knife until it’s as small as preferred.
Tonya says
Do I have to use wine I don’t drink wine
4sonsrus says
You do not! You can just sub more chicken broth in it’s place 🙂
Patricia Miller says
can this be done in a crock pot
4sonsrus says
I haven’t tried it, but I’m sure it can be. I’d cook on low for 6-8 hours, until the chicken is cooked through and tender. The only difference is that you’ll probably have to make the gravy starter in a pot on the stove and then pour it back in over the chicken. If you try it, please let me know how it turns out!
Bonnie says
The wine is pinot grigio NOT pinot grigiot.
4sonsrus says
I’ll be sure to correct my mistake. I’m human, and despite proof-reading- I still can make them.
Lizzy says
Family loved it!!!
Lizzy says
Family loved it!!! Made it with chicken broth instead of wine. Used 3 frozen chicken breast, dried thyme and kept everything else the same.