Instant Pot Santa Fe Chicken over Quinoa – An easy healthy instant pot chicken recipe perfect for dinner or make-ahead lunches for your week!

I’ve been getting my school brain back on lately.  For those of you who are new to the blog, I am also a middle school math and science teacher.  So lately I’ve been in my classroom working since school is less than a month away.  Part of that prep process gets me thinking about also preparing my make-ahead lunches for school weeks.  This Santa Fe Chicken over Quinoa recipe is exactly the kind of meal I like to bring to work for the week!

My teaching partners and I are all into making lunches and freezing them.  It makes life so easy in the morning!  Plus, we have something healthy to eat all week.  We like to make this soup, and this soup, and this one too!  

We have found that eating these soups and meals like this Santa Fe Chicken over Quinoa really helps us shed a few pounds during the school year.  Of course, that is as long as I can stay away from the candy!  

This meal could be made using a slow cooker, but I have found the Instant Pot cooks chicken so much better!!!

Tips for this Instant Pot Santa Fe Chicken:

• You can use frozen chicken breasts for this recipe.  Just increase the cooking time to 20 minutes.
• The Instant Pot can take a little while to come to pressure.  Once it does, it will start counting down the cooking time.
• Don’t like black beans?  You could substitute them with a great northern bean.  
• Divide up your servings among meal prep containers or storage containers.  Allow them to cool uncovered on the counter.  Once cooled, seal them and place in freezer for lunches and dinners.  When ready to use, take it out in the morning and let it thaw as much as possible until lunch time.  Remove the lid and microwave for about 3 minutes.  Top with fresh lime juice.

Instant Pot Santa Fe Chicken over Quinoa

Yield: 6

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Instant Pot Santa Fe Chicken over Quinoa - An easy healthy instant pot chicken recipe perfect for dinner or make-ahead lunches for your week!

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Ingredients

• 3 boneless chicken breasts
• 1 10 oz. can red enchilada sauce
• 1 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 14 oz. can corn, drained
• 1 10 oz. can Rotel
• 1 tsp. creole seasoning
• 2 tsp. cumin, DIVIDED
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 4 cups chicken broth, DIVIDED
• 1 1/2 cups quinoa
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. onion powder
• lime wedges
• fresh chopped cilantro

Instructions

1. Add chicken, enchilada sauce, beans, corn, Rotel, creole seasoning, 1 TSP cumin, chili powder, and 1 CUP of chicken broth to the Instant Pot. Stir.
2. Put on lid and make sure valve is turned to seal. Set to Manual for 15 minutes. Allow it to natural release for 5 minutes then do a quick release.
3. Remove chicken and shred with two forks. Place chicken back in instant pot. Serve over quinoa and garnish with fresh cilantro and lime juice.
4. For quinoa: Add quinoa, 3 cups of chicken broth, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and 1 tsp cumin to a rice cooker and stir. Cook in rice cooker until done. Fluff with fork and stir in lime juice and fresh chopped cilantro.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases. This helps us keep our blog running efficiently and allows us to create more recipes for you.

• 
  Nutribox [20 pack] 30 oz - meal prep containers 2 compartment lunch box with lids - BPA Free Reusable Lunch bento Box - Plastic food storage spill proof Microwave, Dishwasher and Freezer Safe
• 
  Instant Pot Duo 7-in-1 Electric Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Steamer, Saute, Yogurt Maker, and Warmer, 6 Quart, 14 One-Touch Programs

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 339Total Fat: 5gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 54mgSodium: 2219mgCarbohydrates: 45gFiber: 10gSugar: 8gProtein: 31g

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Looking for other healthy recipes?  Try these:

White Bean Chicken Soup

Skinny Chicken Vegetable Soup

Mexican Chicken, Black Bean, & Sweet Potato Soup

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