For Fall-Apart BBQ Chicken Thighs, Use This Appliance

While some prefer oven-baked baby back ribs or succulent pulled pork drenched in sauce, these offerings pale in comparison to well-cooked BBQ chicken thighs. Fattier than white meat, yet leaner than most cuts of barbecue-worthy pork and steak, this poultry offers all the tender, juicy, flavorful goodness you're expecting without a greasy finish. Plus, chicken thighs tend to be much less expensive than many cuts of beef or pork.

In fact, the only pitfall to barbecuing chicken thighs may be the risk of them drying out before they soak up all that beautifully rich, tangy, smoky flavor. Enter the Instant Pot, the pressure cooker's less temperamental cousin. With safety features and cooking functions neatly displayed on a digital interface on the front, the Instant Pot can build very high pressure at relatively low temperatures to cook your chicken thighs to perfection, imbuing them with flavor without robbing them of their moisture.

High-pressure cooking also means your chicken thighs only need about 10 minutes to become glossy and tender, though the Instant Pot requires time to pressurize and another 30 minutes to depressurize. However, oven-roasted thighs also take about 40 minutes and require basting and flipping at regular intervals, while the Instant Pot doesn't, saving you time and effort. The only other step you might take is to put the thighs under your oven's broiler or on the grill for a few minutes to caramelize the sauce and help it better adhere to the meat, though that's optional if you prefer a saucy, gloriously messy bite of barbecue.

Possibly the coolest thing about making barbecue chicken thighs from start to finish in your Instant Pot is that you can do almost everything right in the appliance itself. Want to saute some onions and peppers to flavor your chicken? The Instant Pot has a function for that. That way, once the veggies are ready, you can just add equal parts of your liquid (stock brings the most flavor) and your favorite homemade barbecue sauce as a lovely, flavorful bath for your chicken thighs to absorb as they cook.

While you can certainly wait the full half hour to depressurize after the chicken thighs are done, you can also use the Instant Pot's quick-release function if you're in a hurry. This releases a jet of superheated steam from the pot to depressurize things very quickly — be sure to stand at arm's length when using this function to protect your face from injury. The quick-release function is also useful if you're concerned that your food may dry out or become overcooked, which is easy to do with chicken — even the fatty thighs.

Either way, using the Instant Pot instead of your oven or grill also leaves these appliances free for you to make incredibly juicy and flavorful corn on the cob with buttermilk, or a casserole dish full of cheesy au gratin potatoes. This helps to ensure everything is flavorful, hot, and ready at the exact same time.