Recipe: Instant Pot Balsamic and Tomato Chicken with Greens (Gluten Free, Dairy Free)

We hosted a small cookout at our condo on the 4th of July.  I bought a Costco-sized package of tomatoes for slicing and to chuck into  a bean salad I was making, but I still ended up with a TON of leftovers (I'm clueless when it comes to figuring out how much people actually eat!).  So anyway, rather then waiting a week and then throwing a bunch of tomatoes out once they went bad, I decided to be proactive and find a yummy, healthy recipe and use them up.  

I think I found a winner!

But be warned...

Taste=10     Looks=4  

LOL!  Not the prettiest dish.  

So I'm thinking if you're a gluten eater, you could pair this with pasta (and a crusty bread to soak up all the nice liquid).  If you're not, you could serve with brown rice, polenta, quinoa, or even riced cauliflower.  If you eat dairy, I can imagine it would be fabulous sprinkled with a little Parmesan or Romano after its been plated!

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs (I cut them into big chunks, but you can also leave them whole)
• 1.5 tsp sea salt (divided)
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large onion, cut into chunks
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 C balsamic vinegar
• 3-4 large tomatoes, chopped (or 1 28 oz can chopped tomatoes)
• 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 bunch of  coarsely chopped greens (power greens, spinach, baby kale...whatever)
• Cooked pasta, brown rice, polenta, quinoa, or riced cauliflower

HOW TO:

• Prep your chicken.  Cut off extra fat.  If you like, you can cut the thighs into large chunks.  Sprinkle with 1 tsp of the salt and some freshly ground pepper on both sides.
• Place your Instant Pot on the counter...make sure it's not under your cabinets (if you're new to the Instant Pot, you'll see why later.)
• Remove the lid from the Instant Pot and hit "Saute".  Add the olive oil.  When the oil is hot, add the onion and saute until just tender.  Press "Keep Warm/Cancel".
• Now add the chicken, remaining salt, garlic, balsamic, tomatoes (juice included), rosemary, thyme, basil and oregano.  Stir until well mixed.
• Put the lid back on, secure it, and be sure the vent is turned to "Sealing".
• Press "Manual" and then press the + or - button until the timer is set for 12 minutes (or a minute or two less if you cut your chicken into chunks).
• Walk away and let the pot do it's magic.  For those of you new to the Instant Pot, it may make some noise as it comes to pressure.  Once it is at pressure, the red button on the lid pops up and the timer starts to count down.  The pot will signal when it's done cooking so no worries.
• When the Pot signals that your cooking time is done, open/turn the vent CAREFULLY to vent.  (Don't hold your hand over the top of the vent--the steam comes out forcefully!  BTW, this is why we don't set the pot up under the cabinets. They don't like that much steam! If you have painted cabinets, it might peel the paint off!  LOL!)  So I like to lightly drape a paper towel or regular towel over the vent--again be careful not to burn yourself--because sometimes the ceiling gets moist from all the steam.        
• So once the steam has vented and the red button goes down, open the pot.  
• Stir in your greens and serve immediately over pasta, rice, polenta, quinoa or riced cauliflower.  (BTW, if you think you'll have leftovers...maybe stir the greens into each individual bowl rather than the whole pot...greens tend to get soggy as leftovers!)
  

ENJOY!