Instant Pot Italian Chicken Marsala {Pressure Cooker}

October 3, 2017 By Jill Selkowitz / 22 Comments Updated September 20, 2019 / As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs I earn from qualifying purchases; see all disclosures.

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Instant Pot Italian Chicken Marsala is super easy to make. The Prosciutto and Marsala sauteed Mushroom and Onions, soars this meal to another level.

Instant Pot Italian Chicken Marsala

Get ready for a delicious Instant Pot Italian Chicken Marsala dinner that you can serve even the pickiest of eaters.

Cooked in a rich and savory Dry Marsala Sauce, this Restaurant quality meal is perfect for a dinner party.

You will be the star of the show.

Cast of Ingredients for Instant Pot Italian Chicken

The Cast of Ingredients for this Instant Pot Italian Chicken Marsala are few.

It is a simple recipe Italian/American dish that quickly cooks on the stove.

Using the Pressure Cooker, keeps the kitchen cool and infuses the flavors into the Chicken, not just in the Sauce.

Dice Prosciutto and Onions

What is Prosciutto?

Prosciutto comes from the hind leg of a pig.
Like Bacon, Prosciutto is smoked and cured.
It is raw ham and needs to be cooked.

Using my water method (or in this case, Marsala Wine), you can render the fat, without worrying about burning the Prosciutto.

Can I Substitute Bacon for Prosciutto?

Yes.
You can even render the fat the same way.
When I make Bacon in my Cast Iron Skillet (which is like the best way ever!!! Really, try it.), I always add water first.
This will keep your Bacon strips nice and straight.

Cremini Mushrooms, Wild Mushrooms, any variety you like will be delicious. Porcini, Morel and Oyster Mushrooms are great in this recipe.

White Button Mushrooms are not recommended, as they have very little taste.

Another recipe that uses Wild Mushrooms is my Pressure Cooker Best Wild Mushroom Ristotto.

Pound out the Chicken Breasts

What are Chicken Cutlets?

Chicken Cutlets are just the breast meat that has been trimmed of fat and pounded into thin pieces.
Don’t worry about buying expensive Chicken Cutlets.
With a very Sharp Chef’s Knife, cut the Chicken Breast horizontally to make two long pieces.
Cut them in half, so you will have eight Cutlets
Place the Chicken between Plastic Wrap or Wax Paper(Plastic Wrap works better) and pound them into thin “Cutlets.”

This Meat Tenderizer easily pounds the Chicken with little effort. It’s got one smooth side for pounding Chicken. The textured side, does a great job at tenderizing tough cuts of beef.

You can make Pork Cutlets too, using this same method. Italian Pork Marsala is totally delicious as well.

Dredge the Cutlets through the Starch Mix

Cooking Chicken in a Pressure Cooker is quite tricky, especially with the White Meat Chicken.

I developed this method a few years ago, which guarantees, moist and tender Chicken.

Why Should I Coat Chicken in Potato Starch?

The Potato Starch will protect the Chicken from drying out and becoming rubbery and tough.
Potato Starch is very light and won’t gum up the recipe.
Your Pressure Cooker or Instant Pot, will easily come to pressure, since Potato Starch is very light and not much is used.
Using Potato Starch eliminates having to make a Slurry after pressure release and then Simmering to incorporate the Starch. That often times will cause Chicken to become over cooked. Plus, I’d rather not use flour in the recipe.

Check out my Pressure Cooker Orange Pepper Chicken recipe. That might be the first time I introduced you to my Potato Starch method in the Pressure Cooker.

The Chicken is not rubbery and is moist and juicy and cuts like Buttah!

My incredibly delicious (I’m not kidding or looking for kudos) Air Fryer Crispy Honey Garlic Chicken Wings are really something special.

That recipe was created by Ed and I and it has turned out to be our favorite Chicken Wing recipe and very popular with the Air Fryer Community. This is not your normal Honey Garlic Wings at all.

Hot Pot, Cold Oil

It is important to heat up the cooking pot before adding the Oil. This Rachel Ray Oil Dispensing Bottle is super nice.

Make sure the Oil gets nice and hot!

Pan Fry the Cutlets

Sear the Chicken Cutlets on each side.

Place the Cutlets on a Paper Towel and add more Cutlets into the pot to Sear.

A couple minutes on each side, should do the trick.

The Potato Starch will keep them nicely protected and retain all the juice.

Render the Fat from the Prosciutto

How do I Render Fat from Prosciutto?

The Prosciutto is added to a very hot Pressure Cooker cooking pot (or skillet).
In some cases, Olive Oil is added prior to adding Prosciutto (or bacon).
The Prosciutto will almost immediately begin to stick to the cooking pot.
A liquid is used to prevent sticking, rather than using excess oil.

Since I wanted to take this dish up to another level…..

Pour in some Dry Marsala Wine

When I cook Bacon in my Cast Iron Skillet, I use Fresh Water.

For this Instant Pot Italian Chicken Marsala recipe, what do you think we should use?

Ah ha, Dry Marsala Wine. Why not? Right?

Plus, it as it cooks down and reduces, it will become a thick and syrupy, much like what happens when cooking on the stove.

Whenever I can use Wine or Chicken Stock, rather than Water, which can dilute the taste of the recipe, I opt for flavor over plain water.

Deglaze the Pressure Cooker with Marsala Wine

Not only will the Marsala Wine save the Oil calories, it will be key in deglazing the cooking pot.

Dry Marsala gives a better depth of flavor to this savory recipe than Sweet Marsala.

As you cook the Prosciutto, scrape up any brown bits that are stuck on the bottom of the cooking pot.

Cook the Mushroom and Onions in Butter and Wine

I have a major fondness for cooking Mushrooms and Onions in Butter, Wine and Garlic.

Especially for putting over a nice Grilled Steak! Oh Yum, Major Yum!!!! I’m salivating.

It adds such a layer of flavor and really takes any recipe up a notch.

Check out my Instant Pot Beef Stroganoff and see if you agree! (It’s in my cookbook, so the link is not live).

Try my Pressure Cooker Ground Turkey Stroganoff in the meantime and let me know if you notice an extra layer of yummy flavor and depth.

Add Marsala Wine, Chicken Stock and Seasonings

The Onions and Mushrooms will give off a lot of liquid.

Cook them until the Onions are soft and the liquid is kind of syrupy. Add the Fresh Minced Garlic.

Add the rest of the Dry Marsala Wine and the Chicken Stock and mix through.

If you don’t have any of my Homemade Bone Broth or boxed Chicken Stock, try using Organic Better than Bouillon Chicken Base.

We always have a jar in the fridge. It’s the best I have found for true Chicken flavor and it is not filled with Salt and preservatives.

If you use the Organic Better than Bouillon Chicken Base, add a whole round teaspoon of the Base to your water when mixing, for an intense chicken flavor.

Taste and Adjust Seasonings

Depending on how much of the Salt and Pepper got shaken off with the Potato Starch, you may need to add more.

Freshly Ground Pepper is always so much better than a jar of Ground Pepper.

Actually, more often than not, I use Rainbow Peppercorns, rather than Black Peppercorns and grind them in my Electric Pepper Grinder.

The Herbes de Provence adds another layer of flavor to this recipe. It may be the single ingredient in this recipe that takes it from really good, to incredible.

Place Chicken Cutlets into Sauce

Push the Cutlets down into the Marsala Sauce.

If you love Marsala Sauce, you can always double the seasonings and liquid. Sometimes I make extra sauce and freeze it and then use it with my Pressure Cooker Mashed Potatoes.

A bowl of Italian chicken marsala (chicken and mushrooms) in an oval white plate with parsley garnish on top.

Pressure Cooker Italian Chicken Marsala

The Sauce in this Instant Pot Chicken Marsala will be perfectly thickened, so no need to worry about a Slurry!

Pair this with my Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes or my Pressure Cooker Basic Risotto Recipe. Egg Noodles are yummy to soak up the Sauce too. Add a big spoon of Sour Cream or Yogurt to the Mashed Potatoes and OMG, so good.

For another variation of an Italian scaloppina dish, try my Pressure Cooker Chicken Piccata.

Kitchen Equipment and Essentials

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Here is the handy printable recipe:

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Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Italian Chicken Marsala

About Jill Selkowitz

Hi, I'm Jill. I'm a mom to Tonkinese cats and enjoy sharing restaurant quality meals, easily made at home. With my easy step by step photos and directions, new cooks will be able to follow along and cook like rock stars.

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