Easy Instant Pot Chicken Peppers Onions Kimchi

Instant Pot Korean Chicken is a flavor-packed recipe with bone-in chicken that's marinated in a vibrant Korean-spiced sauce made with Gochujang chile paste. Serve the chicken and sauce as part of a rice bowl with sauteed vegetables or grill it to make Korean bbq chicken and serve the sauce on the side, for dipping! [Stovetop version of the recipe also included.]

Instant Pot Korean Chicken two thighs and four drumsticks on a dark background, garnished with sesame seeds

[This recipe was modified in February 2020 to provide stovetop instructions and new photographs.]

Introduction

I have an Instant Pot Korean Beef recipe on the blog and I thought it was time to share another one of my Instant Pot Korean recipes, which is my easy Korean chicken recipe. What I love about both recipes is that you blend the marinade ingredients, marinate the meat and then pressure cook. They're so easy and are great make-ahead recipes for when you know you're going to be busy.

I've been making this recipe since I found it in Bon Appetit magazine's "rsvp" section a few years ago, where a reader requested the recipe for Gochujang Braised Chicken from Oiji in New York City.

The recipe uses a Korean spice called Gochujang which is a thick fermented spicy chile paste. The paste can be quite spicy but has a sweet component to it. Some brands are spicier and/or sweeter than others; you can experiment and find one you like the best.

I've adapted the recipe for the Instant Pot and am really pleased with the result. I like to serve it with Instant Pot Fried Rice or Instant Pot Brown Fried Rice.

Here are some grilled chicken recipes you might enjoy:
– Instant Pot Jamaican Jerk Chicken
– Instant Pot Thai Grilled Chicken
– Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken Wing s

Tips and Substitutions

Marinade

I prefer to blend the ingredients in my Vitamix blender so that the marinade is smooth. You could also mince the ingredients very finely.

If you're short on time and can't marinate the chicken, it's fine to pressure cook the chicken in the sauce directly. You'll lose some flavor, but it'll still be good.

Chicken Wings

To make Instant Pot Korean chicken wings follow my recipe for Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken Wings, but substitute this Korean chicken marinade for the teriyaki marinade.

Sweeteners

Granulated sugar can be substituted with brown sugar or honey, to taste. You can also add half an Asian pear or Fuji apple to the marinade ingredients instead of sugar.

Gochujang

Gochujang is an ingredient that you may not have on hand. It's a sweet and spicy Korean fermented red chili paste. I prefer Chung Jung One Gochujang.

These days gochujang is available in grocery stores. I've used different brands that are available at regular grocery stores including Mother in law's brand which is available at Whole Foods and at Amazon.

Gochujang paste is thick. You can also find gochujang sauces, which are the consistency of ketchup and used straight up as a condiment. Try and get the paste.

Mirin

Mirin is another ingredient that you may not have on hand. It's a Japanese rice wine that adds a sweet and tangy flavor. Many grocery stores sell 'Aji Mirin' which is close to Mirin.

How to Serve

I serve this chicken two ways: it's really tasty over rice with sauteed vegetables and the sauce drizzled over the top.

It also tastes wonderful as a Korean Barbecue Chicken; grill the chicken and serve the sauce on the side for dipping. You could broil the chicken in the oven if you don't have access to a grill.

Since the chicken is first pressure cooked, you're grilling it just to finish it off and get those grill marks and caramelization. I usually grill it for 2 to 3 minutes on each side.

Boneless Chicken

Although bone-in chicken thighs or drumsticks are preferred, you can substitute whole boneless chicken thighs. Pressure cook for 7 to 8 minutes if you're not grilling, and 6 minutes if you are grilling.

To substitute boneless chicken thighs cut into bite-size pieces, pressure cook for about 4 minutes.

Make Ahead

To make this recipe ahead of time, pressure cook the chicken and refrigerate chicken and sauce separately. Grill chicken right before you're ready to serve and heat the sauce to serve on the side.

Burn Message

This recipe was made in a 6 quart Instant Pot Ultra and I have had no sealing issues or burn errors. If your Instant Pot is prone to getting the Burn Message , you can try and add an extra 1/4 cup of broth.

[Read More: Instant Pot Burn Message]

If you're new to the Instant Pot and aren't familiar with how to use it, you might find it helpful to first read one of the following guides and then come back here to learn how to make this recipe.

Instant Pot DUO Beginner's Manual
Instant Pot ULTRA Beginner's Manual
Instant Pot DUO EVO PLUS Beginner's Manual
Instant Pot DUO NOVA Beginner's Manual
Instant Pot DUO GOURMET Beginner's Manual
Instant Pot DUO CRISP Beginner's Manual
Instant Pot PRO Beginner's Manual

Instant Pot Korean Chicken – Ingredients

Chicken
Onion
Gochujang
Soy sauce
Pepper
Sesame oil

Broth
Garlic
Ginger
Sugar
Mirin

More details in the recipe card at the bottom of this post

How to Make Korean Chicken in the Instant Pot (Step by Step Instructions)

Blend the marinade.
Marinate the chicken.
Pressure cook.
Release pressure.
Thicken the sauce.
Grill the chicken.

Blend the Marinade

Instant Pot Korean Chicken Instructions 1 collage - marinade ingredients in blender, blended

For the marinade: blend together onion, garlic, ginger, gochujang, soy sauce, sugar, mirin, sesame oil, black pepper and chicken broth.

Marinate the Chicken

Instant Pot Korean Chicken Instructions 2 collage - chicken in marinade, transferred to inner pot

Marinate chicken in the sauce for about 2 to 4 hours.
Transfer chicken and sauce to the Instant Pot inner pot.

Instant Pot Duo Pressure Cook 9 minutes

Instant Pot Duo Manual mode 9 minutes collage - close lid, press manual, press - or +, display shows 9 - Paint the Kitchen Red

Close the lid and make sure the steam release handle is in Sealing position.
Press Manual (or Pressure Cook ) and + or – until the display reads 9 (9 minutes).

Instant Pot Ultra Pressure Cook 9 minutes

Close the lid.
Select Pressure Cook mode and adjust the time to 9 minutes ( 00:09 ).
Press Start .

Pressure Cooking Process (Duo and Ultra)

Instant Pot Duo Pressure Cooking collage - display shows On, float valve is down, display shows L0:00 - Paint the Kitchen Red

Instant Pot Ultra pressure cooking collage - Ultra display shows On, float valve is up, display shows 00 00 - Paint the Kitchen Red

Instant Pot display will change to On .
Once the Instant Pot is pressurized, the float valve will go up.
The display will count down to 0; it will then switch to Keep Warm mode and display L0:00 or 00 00 and begin to count up the number of minutes since pressure cooking completed.

How to Naturally Release Pressure (NPR) on the DUO and ULTRA

Instant Pot Duo natural release cancel and open collage - float valve is down, arrow pointing to Cancel, lid is open - Paint the Kitchen Red

Instant Pot Ultra Natural Release Cancel and Open collage - arrow pointing to float valve down, press cancel button, lid is open and Instant Pot Ultra display shows Off - Paint the Kitchen Red

Allow the pressure to release naturally (NPR). The float valve will be in the down position. This may take 15 to 30 minutes. [Find out more about the pressure release methods and how and when to use them. ]
Press Cancel and open the Instant Pot.

Thicken the Sauce

Instant Pot Korean Chicken Instructions 3 collage - cooked chicken, removed to a plate, reduce the sauce by boiling - Paint the Kitchen Red

Remove the chicken from the inner pot using a slotted spoon.
Reduce the remaining sauce in Saute mode (see below) until thickened, about 7 to 10 minutes. Use a splatter screen if needed.

How to Turn on Saute Mode

Instant Pot Ultra Duo Saute Function collage - arrows pointing to Saute in Duo and Ultra - Paint the Kitchen Red

Instant Pot DUO: Select the Saute function.
Instant Pot ULTRA: Select the Saute function and press Start .

Stovetop Directions for Korean Chicken

To make this recipe on the stovetop:

Marinate chicken.
Brown the chicken in oil in a heavy-bottomed medium pan.
Add reserved marinade, more broth, and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat, cover, and simmer.
Cook until chicken is tender.
Let the sauce thicken.
Serve chicken and sauce over rice.

See the recipe card below for detailed instructions.

Instant Pot Korean Chicken with Gochujang

In this crowd-pleasing flavor-packed recipe, bone-in chicken is marinated in a vibrant Korean-spiced sauce made with gochujang chile paste. Serve the chicken and sauce as part of a rice bowl with sauteed vegetables or grill the chicken and serve the sauce on the side, for dipping!

Prep Time: 2 hours

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes

Servings: 6 servings

Calories: 255

1 cup onion chopped
2 Tbsp garlic minced
2 Tbsp ginger minced
1/4 cup gochujang paste
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp granulated sugar or 2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp Mirin
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp black pepper powder
1/2 cup chicken broth (add 2 extra cups for stovetop recipe)
6 chicken thighs or drumsticks

Instant Pot Instructions

For the marinade, add onion, garlic, ginger, Gochujang, soy sauce, sugar, mirin, sesame oil, black pepper and chicken broth to a blender. Blend until smooth.
Transfer chicken and marinade to a medium bowl and refrigerate for about 2 hours.
Transfer chicken and sauce to the Instant Pot inner pot. Close the lid and pressure cook for 9 minutes at High Pressure .
Allow the pressure to release naturally (NPR).[ Read More: The Different Pressure Release Methods ]
Use a slotted spoon to transfer chicken pieces to a plate or bowl and set aside.
Select Saute mode and reduce the sauce until thickened, about 7 to 10 minutes. Use a splatter screen if needed. Reserve the sauce.
Preheat grill to 350 degrees. Grill chicken for 2 to 3 minutes on each side (optional).
Serve with Instant Pot Fried Rice, Instant Pot Jasmine Rice, or Instant Pot Brown Fried Rice, and sauteed vegetables and reserved sauce on the side.

Stovetop Instructions

For the marinade, add onion, garlic, ginger, Gochujang, soy sauce, sugar, mirin, sesame oil, black pepper and chicken broth to a blender. Blend until smooth.
Transfer chicken and marinade to a medium bowl and refrigerate for about 2 hours.
Remove chicken pieces and reserve marinade.
In a heavy-bottomed medium pan over medium-high heat, add oil and when the oil is hot, add the chicken. Brown the chicken, turning once. To avoid over-crowding, saute in batches, if needed.
Add reserved marinade, bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes.
Add additional 2 cups broth and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat, cover, and simmer. Cook until chicken is tender, 45 to 50 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add more broth if needed.
Towards the end, take the cover off and let the sauce thicken. Serve chicken and sauce over rice.

Prep time does not include steps that are already accounted for in the ingredient list, e.g. chopped onions, minced garlic, etc.
See the blog post for more detailed recipe tips.
* If you're not planning to grill the chicken you can pressure cook it for 11 to 12 minutes.
Adapted from Bon Appetit magazine.

Course Main Dishes

Cuisine Asian, Korean

Main Ingredient chicken

Thank you for visiting Paint the Kitchen Red. All photos and content are copyright protected. Please don't use any content without prior written permission. If you've made this recipe and would like to share it with your friends, please link back to this recipe. Thank you!

I am not a certified nutritionist. I provide my best estimate of nutritional information merely as a courtesy to my readers. If you depend on nutritional information for dietary or health reasons, I suggest using your favorite online nutrition calculator to confirm the nutritional value of this recipe based on the actual ingredients that you use.

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Source: https://www.paintthekitchenred.com/instant-pot-korean-chicken-with-gochujang/

Easy Instant Pot Chicken Peppers Onions Kimchi

Introduction