This Instant Pot Chicken Fajita Pasta combines the spice and boldness we know and love from the classic sizzling fajita with penne pasta, and transforms into an ultra flavorful dish that’s ready in a flash!
Are you ready for another quick and easy, flavor packed dish? I present to you – drum roll please.. Instant Pot Chicken Fajita Pasta! Who doesn’t love the bold flavors of fajitas and who doesn’t love pasta? Combine the two and BAM you’ve got one epic pasta dish.
I love using my instant pot because of how fast I can get things done. It makes cooking so easy, all you have to do is pop in your ingredients and voila, the instant pot handles the rest! This is an ideal dish for those busy weeknights; when you want something the whole family will love, but doesn’t take hours slaving away over. This instant pot chicken fajita pasta will be a hit – no ifs, ands, or buts!
Fajitas
Now, if for some reason you’ve never had a fajita before, they’re the dish that comes on those hot sizzling plates that make your head turn when you’re at a restaurant. The flavor comes from the combination of spices used which typically consist of Chili Powder, Cumin, Paprika and Cayenne Pepper. Fajitas are usually served on a flour or corn tortilla but today we are switching it up with penne pasta!
Ingredients
Keep scrolling down to the printable recipe card for FULL ingredient amounts and instructions or click the “Jump to Recipe” button at the top of the page!
- Olive Oil – Substitute for vegetable oil, sunflower oil, safflower oil or avocado oil.
- Chicken – Chicken breasts, skinless, boneless, sliced into thin strips. You can use thighs as well.
- Onion – Medium onion, cut in half and sliced into strips.
- Bell Pepper – I used all three colors (red, green and yellow) chopped into strips.
- Garlic – Fresh is best! Minced.
- Fajita Seasoning – Use your favourite or make your own with my simple recipe.
- Chicken Broth – Any type of chicken broth will do the trick, but I prefer a low sodium or no sodium added.
- Pasta – I used penne, uncooked. Feel free to use any other type of pasta.
- Sour Cream – You can use plain greek yogurt as well.
- Cheese – I used Monterey Jack, shredded.
- Salt & Pepper – To taste.
- Cilantro – Chopped, for garnish.
How to make chicken fajita pasta in the instant pot
- Cook the Chicken: Turn your Instant Pot onto the sauté setting and add 1 tbsp of the olive oil. Once heated, add the chicken. Cook for 3-4 minutes until the chicken begins to brown. Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside.
- Add Ingredients: Add the remaining olive oil to the pot along with the onion and bell peppers. Cook for 2-3 minutes, then add the garlic. Stir and cook for 30 seconds, or until aromatic.
- Season: Add the chicken back to the pot. Stir in the fajita seasoning, and cook for 1-2 minutes. Pour in the chicken broth and scrape up the bottom of the pot if needed. Stir in the penne.
- Cook: Secure the Instant Pot lid and make sure the knob is set to SEAL. Cook for 4 minutes on high pressure.
- Finish: Quick release the pressure by turning the knob on the lid from SEAL to VENT. Stir in the sour cream and cheese. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed.
- Garnish and Serve: Garnish with cilantro and serve.
How to serve
This chicken fajita pasta would make the perfect weeknight dinner! It’s so quick and easy, yet still hosts a ton of incredible flavors. Don’t you just love the instant pot?! Garnish with cilantro and if you want to add little more oomph, add an extra dollop of sour cream or salsa on top!
Leftovers
Store leftover pasta sealed tightly in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Did you like this pasta recipe? Try these!
- Pepperoni Pizza Pasta
- Creamy Chicken Pesto Pasta
- Chicken Alfredo Bake
- Cheesy Taco Pasta
- Buffalo Chicken Lasagna
- Greek Chicken Pasta
- Chicken Parmesan
- Cheesy Chicken Pasta
- Chicken Bacon Pasta with Tomato Sauce
- Cheesy Chicken Broccoli Pasta
- Buffalo Chicken Pasta
Craving More? Follow Along:
Instant Pot Chicken Fajita Pasta
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1.5 pounds chicken breasts skinless, boneless, sliced into thin strips
- 1 medium onion cut in half and sliced into strips
- 1 green bell pepper chopped into strips
- 1 yellow bell pepper chopped into strips
- 1 red bell pepper chopped into strips
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2.5 tablespoon fajita seasoning
- 4 cups chicken broth low sodium or no sodium added
- 1 pound penne uncooked
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 cup Monterey Jack shredded
- ¼ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ½ teaspoon pepper or to taste
- ¼ cup cilantro chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Cook the Chicken: Turn your Instant Pot onto the sauté setting and add 1 tbsp of the olive oil. Once heated, add the chicken. Cook for 3-4 minutes until the chicken begins to brown. Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside.
- Add Ingredients: Add the remaining olive oil to the pot along with the onion and bell peppers. Cook for 2-3 minutes, then add the garlic. Stir and cook for 30 seconds, or until aromatic.
- Season: Add the chicken back to the pot. Stir in the fajita seasoning, and cook for 1-2 minutes. Pour in the chicken broth and scrape up the bottom of the pot if needed. Stir in the penne.
- Cook: Secure the Instant Pot lid and make sure the knob is set to SEAL. Cook for 4 minutes on high pressure.
- Finish: Quick release the pressure by turning the knob on the lid from SEAL to VENT. Stir in the sour cream and cheese. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed.
- Garnish and Serve: Garnish with cilantro and serve.
Tips & Notes:
- Store leftovers sealed tightly in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
I made this recipe for dinner tonight, it was delicious.
The only thing we found was it was really runny/loose. Was it supposed to be?
Not really, but the pasta will eventually soak up all the liquid.