This Instant Pot Chicken Pad Thai is a quick and easy meal that is packed with flavor and done in less than 30 minutes! You can make it at home in less time than it takes to get take-out and it tastes better.
Instant Pot Chicken Pad Thai
Making this Instant Pot Chicken Pad Thai at home is so much better than ordering take-out and it’s quick to make thanks to the Instant Pot. You can make it at home for a fraction of the cost and it tastes just as good or better!
I love using my Instant Pot when I need to get dinner on the table quick. It has been a huge time saver and helped our budget tremendously because it has cut down on eating out and prevented us from going through the drive-thru.
With the Instant Pot I know I can get something delicious and better for us than take-out, on the table in no time. This Instant Pot Chicken Pad Thai is one of our favorite dishes made in the Instant Pot.
If you are trying to cut back on eating out then the Instant Pot and Slow Cooker are exactly what you need!
Check out this Instant Pot 12 piece accessories set that is compatible with Instant Pot 5,6,8 QT and other electric pressure cookers. It’s the set I have and I love it.
Scroll to the bottom for printable Instant Pot Chicken Pad Thai recipe.
This recipe was made using the Instant Pot LUX80 8 Qt 6-in-1 Multi- Use Programmable Pressure Cooker. It is great if you are cooking for 6 or more people or you like to cook extra to have leftovers for the next day. It’s also good for batch cooking or if you like to make your own chicken or vegetable stock.
Instant Pot Chicken Pad Thai Ingredients
Ingredients
4 chicken breasts, diced
10 ounces rice noodles
2 cups Carrot matchsticks
4 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp minced garlic
6 tbsp soy sauce
1 cup pad thai sauce
3 cups water
1 Yellow pepper, sliced thinly
1 Red pepper, sliced thinly
4 green onions, sliced
1/3 cup chopped peanuts
1/3 cup fresh chopped cilantro
How To Make Instant Pot Chicken Pad Thai
In the instant pot, add olive oil, chicken, garlic, soy sauce, pad thai sauce, water and rice noodles. Close the lid and set the Pressure Release Valve to sealing.
Set to manual and pressure cook on high for 2 to 3 minutes. When timer goes off, press cancel and do a quick release of the steam (follow manufacturer instructions), waiting until the pressure gauge drops down and the lid is safe to open.
Pressure cookers and Instant Pots can vary in cooking times and that is why I say 2 to 3 minutes. It worked perfect for me at 2 minutes but others have mentioned that 3 minutes were needed to cook the rice noodles.
Add carrots, red and yellow peppers and half of peanuts, tossing carefully. Place lid back on and let sit for 5 minutes. This makes the vegetables tender-crisp. Let sit a few minutes longer for more tender vegetables.
Remove lid and serve with chopped green onions, cilantro and peanuts.
I hope you enjoy this Instant Pot Chicken Pad Thai! It was a huge hit at our house.
How To Make Homemade Pad Thai Sauce
To make homemade Pad Thai sauce mix together 1/4 cup fish sauce, 3 tablespoons honey, 2 tablespoons tamarind paste, 1 tablespoon oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon rice vinegar, 1 clove garlic, minced and 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes. (Double this recipe to get a cup of sauce.)
Tips And Variations for Instant Pot Chicken Pad Thai
- Swap out the vegetables for ones you prefer or use the vegetables you already have on hand such as snow peas, mushrooms, diced Zucchini, finely chopped broccoli or shredded red cabbage.
- You can use pork or shrimp instead of chicken.
- Make your own Pad Thai Sauce instead of using store bought.
- Use spaghetti noodles instead of rice noodles.
Instant Pot Chicken Pad Thai
Instant Pot Chicken Pad Thai is a quick and easy meal that is packed with flavor and done in less than 15 minutes!
Ingredients
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 4 chicken breasts, diced
- 4 tbsp minced garlic
- 6 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 cup pad thai sauce
- 3 cups water
- 10 ounces rice noodles
- 2 cups Carrot matchsticks
- 1 Yellow pepper, sliced thinly
- 1 Red pepper, sliced thinly
- 4 green onions, sliced
- 1/3 cups chopped peanuts
- 1/3 cup fresh chopped cilantro
Instructions
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In the instant pot, add olive oil, chicken, garlic, soy sauce, pad thai sauce, water and rice noodles. Make sure rice noodles are pushed down in the water.
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Close the lid set the Pressure Release Valve to sealing.
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Set to manual and pressure cook on high for 2 to 3 minutes.
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When timer goes off, press cancel and do a quick release of the steam (follow manufacturer instructions), waiting until the pressure gauge drops down and the lid is safe to open.
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Add carrots, red and yellow peppers and half of peanuts, tossing carefully.
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Place lid back on and let sit for 5 to 7 minutes.
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Remove lid and serve with chopped green onions, cilantro and peanuts.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
This recipe made in 8-quart Instant Pot.
Pressure cookers and Instant Pots can vary in cooking times and some may need 3 minutes on high.
To make homemade Pad Thai sauce mix together 1/4 cup fish sauce, 3 tablespoons honey, 2 tablespoons tamarind paste, 1 tablespoon oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon rice vinegar, 1 clove garlic, minced and 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes.
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Crystal says
January 2, 2019 at 5:50 pmThis was delish! I did 2tbsp of minced garlic. The noodles and the veg were a bit too hard though. So I would cook it for 3 minutes instead of 2 and let the veggies sit longer
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Judy says
January 3, 2019 at 6:52 pmI’m so glad you enjoyed it! Definitely add a minute to it next time if the veggies needed a little longer. Instant Pots can vary sometimes in cooking. Thanks for letting us know you tried it out and liked it.
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Debbie says
January 4, 2019 at 4:41 pmDo you turn back on after you add the veggies?
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Judy says
January 5, 2019 at 10:59 pmNo you don’t turn it back on. Just close the lid and let sit for 5 to 7 minutes. Hope you enjoy it!
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Kim says
January 4, 2019 at 6:38 pmThis was tasty, but curious what size package of rice noodles you use? Mine must’ve been smaller because it was a little “saucy”.
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Judy says
January 5, 2019 at 10:02 pmIt was 10 ounces. I used Thai Kitchen Stir Fry Rice Noodles. Hope that helps.
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JoDee says
January 13, 2019 at 7:02 pmI used these same noodles but mine turned out really gummy. So I need to increase the liquid? Otherwise it was great and I would make again if I can fix the noodles.
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Judy says
January 14, 2019 at 7:19 pmYes I would try increasing the liquid and make sure the noodles are pressed down into the noodles.
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Kiki says
January 16, 2019 at 4:49 pmIs it a 1/2 package of noodles or 1 & 1/2 (1.5) packages?
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Judy says
January 17, 2019 at 6:04 pmHi Kiki. I updated recipe to show it’s 10 ounces of rice noodles.
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jen says
January 4, 2019 at 8:09 pmwhat pad thai sauce is used?
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Judy says
January 5, 2019 at 7:21 pmI used Thai Kitchen® Original Pad Thai Sauce but you can use your favorite brand or make your own. Hope you enjoy it!
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Karynne says
January 6, 2019 at 10:06 amI was wondering how to home-make Pad Thai Sauce. I can’t wait to try this! Thanks.
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Judy says
January 6, 2019 at 7:26 pmHi Karynne! To make homemade Pad Thai sauce mix together 1/4 cup fish sauce, 3 tablespoons honey, 2 tablespoons tamarind paste, 1 tablespoon oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon rice vinegar, 1 clove garlic, minced and 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes. I’ve added this to the recipe also.
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Jeanna says
January 7, 2019 at 11:22 pmAwesome recipe it was delicious ! ?????? I did less garlic but other than that it was perfect!
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Judy says
January 8, 2019 at 12:22 amThank you! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
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Elaine says
January 8, 2019 at 9:06 pmHi. When making the pad Thai sauce. Is there something I can use instead of honey? I have a baby under 1 years old, and so I can’t cook with honey. But besides that it sounds amazing and I can’t wait to try
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Judy says
January 12, 2019 at 10:19 pmHi Elaine! You could use palm sugar or brown sugar instead of the honey. Hope you enjoy it!
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Patty says
January 12, 2019 at 10:50 amIs there nutritional info for this recipe?
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Judy says
January 12, 2019 at 10:07 pmI am plan on adding that feature soon but in the meantime you can use a recipe nutrition calculator from my fitness pal or very well fit.
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Karen Farber says
January 13, 2019 at 3:36 pmI haven’t cooked rice noodles in my Instant Pot yet. Since you said it varies by pot, which pot are you using? I’m hoping it the same as mine so I don’t have to guess!
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Judy says
January 15, 2019 at 7:42 pmHI Karen! I used an 8 quart Instant Pot.
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Judy says
January 18, 2019 at 6:11 pmThat’s correct, 3 minutes. Hope you enjoy it!
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Sarah says
January 20, 2019 at 8:39 pmAny idea how much chicken you used in terms of weight? Chicken breasts can vary so much in size!
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Judy says
January 21, 2019 at 8:17 pmHi Sarah. I don’t know the weight of the package I used but it was 4 smaller size chicken breasts. I used Perdue Boneless Chicken breasts.
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Sue says
January 22, 2019 at 6:43 amThis recipe was amazing!!! I think it tasted better than some restaurant Pad Thai. I didn’t have any peppers or carrots but I did add bean sprouts, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, and baby corn and it think they added a very nice touch. I will definitely be making this again.
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Judy says
January 23, 2019 at 11:17 pmThank you Sue, I am so glad you liked it! It’s a favorite at our house!
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Michele says
February 4, 2019 at 6:43 pmCan this be done in a crock pot?
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Judy says
February 5, 2019 at 4:36 pmI haven’t tried it in the crock pot so I’m not sure how it would turn out.
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Sarah says
February 5, 2019 at 12:44 pmHow much would you recommend cutting back on the liquid if you were going to try this without the rice noodles and put it over cauliflower rice?
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Judy says
February 5, 2019 at 4:38 pmI have only tried the recipe as written so I can’t say for sure on how to adjust the liquid since I haven’t tested it.
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Amber says
February 6, 2019 at 6:14 pmMy Instant Pot didn’t come to pressure – I followed the directions exactly. Any reason why it wouldn’t?
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Judy says
February 6, 2019 at 10:53 pmI’m sorry that happened. I haven’t had that happen. But usually if the Instant Pot won’t come to pressure it’s because it is not sealing correctly.
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Roxanne Mason says
March 7, 2019 at 5:59 amI had the same issue until I realized you should only use 1/2 a box of noodles! When I took all of the excessive noodles out it worked great and tasted great!
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Judy says
March 11, 2019 at 6:53 pmHi Roxanne. I updated the recipe to show 10 ounces rice noodles. So glad you enjoyed it.
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Mike says
February 10, 2019 at 3:27 pmMy grocery only had angel hair rice noodles. Will these work?
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Judy says
February 11, 2019 at 7:20 pmI haven’t tried it with angel hair rice noodles so I’m not sure if any adjustments would need to be made.
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Erin says
March 29, 2019 at 5:45 pmCould I use frozen chicken breasts?
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Judy says
March 29, 2019 at 9:55 pmHi Erin. I have not tried it with frozen chicken breasts so I’m not sure how you would need to adjust the cooking time.
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Cheri says
June 2, 2019 at 7:40 pmSO DELICIOUS
We are addicted to this recipe
We’ve made it about 5-6 times
We make a double batch
Then heat left overs through the week!!!
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Judy says
June 3, 2019 at 7:44 pmSo glad it was a hit. We love it to! Thanks for sharing!
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Anna says
June 5, 2019 at 8:45 pmThis meal is delicious! I set it for 3 min and noodles were perfect but then I added veggies and let it sit for 5 min noodles got a bit mooshy and peppers were to crunchy but still tasted good. I’m keeping this recipe just going to adjust timing Thank you!
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Sally says
July 23, 2019 at 7:34 pmLove the recipe. What if I want to double the recipe. What time do I cook for? Thanks!
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Judy says
July 26, 2019 at 8:19 pmSo glad you love the recipe! I have not tried doubling the recipe so I’m not sure on cooking times for a double batch.
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jamie says
September 9, 2019 at 7:25 amI made this last week and it was DELICIOUS!! I followed the recipe exactly, cooking the noodles for 2 minutes and it was perfect. Super easy and plenty of leftovers!! Thank you!!!
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Judy says
September 9, 2019 at 5:56 pmSo glad you liked it!! Thanks for sharing.
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Kristi says
September 30, 2019 at 8:04 pmI’m really excited for this recipe! I had to make a few modifications because I didn’t have some of the ingredients. I subbed Thai curry sauce for the Thai peanut sauce, gluten free brown rice pasta for the rice
Noodles (bc I didn’t have spaghetti on hand) and I added snap peas, zucchini to the red bell pepper and carrots. So exited to try this!! Cut my cooking time and cleaning time in more than half! Life saving with a brand new baby.
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Kristen says
November 4, 2019 at 3:51 pmHi! About to make this tonight, I have a crock pot brand instant pot. The only function that gets down to 3 minutes cook time is steam, will this be okay??
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Judy says
November 4, 2019 at 7:19 pmI’m sorry but I am not familiar with that brand so can’t say if that would work or not on this recipe. I’ve only made it in my Instant Pot.
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Ana Hessong says
November 12, 2019 at 12:07 pmI’m looking to make this recipe with shrimp. Would you add the shrimp in with the veggies since they cook so quickly?
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Judy says
November 14, 2019 at 7:13 pmI haven’t tried it with Shrimp but I think that would work and not over cook them. Let us know how it turns out!
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Lindsey says
November 15, 2019 at 2:30 pmI made this, and it was the best thing ever! So impressed! I think this is even better then any restaurant Ive had chicken pad thai at! The only thing i will do next time is do half the amount of red and yellow peppers. <3 Thanks so much for the recipe!
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Judy says
November 16, 2019 at 11:58 pmThanks for sharing! So glad you enjoyed it.
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jessica says
December 7, 2019 at 4:57 pmHi the recipe calls for one cup of pad thai sauce, but the recipe you provide to make pad thai sauce only makes 1/2 cup. This is confusing – why wouldn’t you provide a recipe that makes a cup of sauce as required in the main recipe?
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Judy says
December 13, 2019 at 7:58 pmSorry for the confusion. That is the way the recipe I have is written and I just doubled it when I make it. I meant to add a note advising that and forgot. So I went back and added it.
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ClareP says
December 11, 2019 at 2:31 pmI’m making it this weekend! Has anyone ever tried to add eggs?