Summer Italian Chicken ( Instant Pot )

Grab your chicken thighs and sprinkle ¾ teaspoons kosher salt all over them. You can do this part up to two days in advance, and keep the chicken covered in the fridge.Press the Sauté; button on the Instant Pot or heat a stove top pressure cooker over medium heat. Add your fat of choice.When the fat is shimmering, add the onions, carrots, and mushrooms, and a ½ teaspoon kosher salt.Sauté the vegetables until the softened, about 3 to 5 minutes.Stir in the garlic and tomato paste, and cook for about 30 seconds or until fragrant.Add the salted chicken, cherry tomatoes and green olives to the pot.Give it all a good stir.Turn off the sauté function, and lock the lid on the pressure cooker.I position my Instant Pot under my stove top exhaust vent before I program the pressure cooking so that when the chicken’s done and I immediately release the pressure, the vent will suck up all the steam. Your kitchen cabinets will thank you. (Stick a cutting board underneath your cooker if your stove top grates aren’t even—and remember not to turn on your stove!)If you’re using an Instant Pot, press the “Manual” or “Pressure Cook” button and set the cooking time at 10 minutes for boneless thighs. Other chicken cuts? Program 7 minutes under high pressure for boneless chicken breasts (if your chicken boobs are bigger than 8 ounces each, you can cut them in half or increase the cooking time to 9 minutes) and 15 minutes under high pressure for bone-in thighs and drumsticks.(For those of you using a stovetop pressure cooker, crank the heat to high to bring the contents to high pressure. Once high pressure is reached, reduce the heat to low, or just enough to maintain high pressure. Set a timer for 6 minutes for breasts and 9 minutes for thighs.)When the chicken is finished cooking, turn on the stove top exhaust fan before turning the pressure cooker valve to release the steam.Remove the lid right away to prevent overcooking. Add the freshly cracked black pepper and adjust the seasoning with additional salt as needed.If you want a thicker gravy, remove the chicken and blend up the vegetables and cooking liquid with an immersion blender. Personally, I don’t have time for this step. BECAUSE I’M HOT AND TIRED, REMEMBER?Stir in the fresh herbs, and serve immediately.Wondering what to serve with this? This stew tastes great ladled over cauliflower rice or garlic cauliflower mashed “potatoes.”Or just eat it as-is if you don’t want to dirty any other pots or pans.Toss any leftovers (covered, of course) in the fridge for up to 4 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.Want more Instant Pot recipes? I’ve got ’em all right here!