Instant Pot Utica Chicken Riggies
It’s a Utica Thing! That’s what all the local people say here. I grew up in Utica NY located smack dab in the center of NY. One thing that is great about living in Utica we have a pizzeria on almost every single corner and lots of Italian restaurants and bakeries. We actually have an annual Chicken Riggie contest where all the local restaurants compete to see who makes the very best. So When it comes to Chicken Riggies we take it very seriously! I wanted to bring all my readers a little taste of Riggies with my Instant Pot Utica Chicken Riggies.
When I make Chicken Riggies on the stove top I do it slightly different using the homemade marinara sauce and homemade Alfredo with fresh Romano cheese. There is really nothing like it but I think I came close to a
A quick taste of Utica with my Instant Pot Utica Chicken Riggies.
Chicken Riggies has Tender Chicken and a Creamy Cheese sauce, Sweet Peppers, and a Spicy Hot kick of Red Cherry Peppers. The taste of the two sauces mixed with the hot is mouthwatering.
I wanted to find a quick chicken dish that would bring the taste of Utica without taking all day to cook. I think I came pretty close with this Instant Pot Utica Chicken Riggies All done in under 15 minutes you get an authentic Utica Chicken Riggies Dish that your whole family will love.
The good thing about this is you can use Jarred Sauces or use your homemade for an even better taste. I wanted to make this as simple as possible so you can have Instant Pot Utica Chicken Riggies as fast as possible without losing any of the flavors.
More Italian Dishes Done Right in the Instant Pot are my Instant Pot Olive Garden Copy Cat Chicken Scampi, Instant Pot Pasta Carbonara and, Instant Pot Homemade Lasagna Hamburger Helper.
Instant Pot Utica Chicken Riggies
Chicken Riggies has Tender Chicken and a Creamy Cheese sauce, Sweet Peppers, and a Spicy Hot kick of Red Cherry Peppers.
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon parsley
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
- 3 Sweet Peppers , I used one Red, Orange, and Yellow for the colors
- 3 Red hot Cherry Peppers
- 1 Pound Chicken Breast , Cubed
- 16 OZ Rigatoni
- 28 oz marinara
- 28 oz alfredo
- 8 oz mushrooms, sliced
- 4 oz Romano
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 4 cups water
Instructions
- Place Instant Pot on Saute
- Add Olive Oil, Chicken and spices
- cook on saute 2-3 minutes until no longer pink
- Add Pasta, Water, marinara sauce, and Veggies on top
- Place Pot on High Pressure 5 minutes
- Do a quick release
- Stir in Alfredo Sauce and Romano Cheese
Notes
Garnish with more Red Pepper flakes and Parsley
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 656Total Fat: 44gSaturated Fat: 25gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 15gCholesterol: 156mgSodium: 1666mgCarbohydrates: 34gFiber: 4gSugar: 10gProtein: 33g
This looks amazing! I think we figured out what is for dinner tonight. Two questions, when do you add the marinara? What kind of romano cheese do you use? Thanks!
I really want to try this but I’m wondering if a tbs of each seasoning is too much?
I did a tsp of each….wayy to much black pepper for me but the other spices were good
3086mg sodium? Wow!!
I’ve been searching for a good recipe since I moved to Sacramento from Syracuse (actually Liverpool). Thank you!
Two questions: What do you do differently on the stove? And do you have a recipe for Utica Greens? They go perfectly with some riggies.
I do need to put up a Utica Green’s recipe I think I can email you a link to Utica Greens recipes 🙂
For stovetop, I would cook pasta to aldenti, Saute the chicken in olive oil garlic, Add your veggies, Tomato sauce and you can use either heavy cream and Romano cheese or you can add a Alfredo sauce. I try to do slightly more alfredo then tomato sauce 🙂 Cook over a low heat until all the veggies are tender. Then add in your pasta 🙂 I hope this helps enjoy a taste of home 🙂
Thanks! Can’t wait to try these with some yummy Utica Greens.
I grew up in Utica. This looks tasty. I do remember all the great Italian food.
I’ve never used a red hot cherry pepper, would I get them in the fresh produce section? Also how spicy is this dish? My husband is a baby with heat.
We absolutely loved this dish. I didn’t add the cherry peppers and we thought it still had plenty of kick! It just took my IP forever to come to temp so I would definitely allow 15 minutes or heat your water and sauce in advance. Thanks!
I grew up on McGills riggies…. these taste very similar, in fact, they’re better! I dislike the riggies that some restaurants have that are more tomato based. This sauce comes out so creamy! This will be my go to recipe. Only thing I did differently was cooked the rigatoni separately on the stove, diced a onion and minced garlic instead of the powders. Absolute perfection!
Yay happy you liked it
I grew up near Utica. Transplanted to NC 20+ years ago. I haven’t had chicken riggies in years! Gonna be making some next week. Thanks for sharing!!
Fyi, My local supermarket sells “It’s A Utica Thing” sauces. One is Chicken Riggie Sauce in a 24 oz. jar. Nutrition Facts are reasonable re: carbs and sugars. Sodium is little high, 654mg for 1/2 Cups.
Yeah we don’t use that stuff here lol
I agree! I don’t really care for the Utica Thing sauce. But, it is better than nothing, I guess, if you can’t make it yourself. It is expensive, too. I’m sure bc it is a small business they have to pay top dollar for the manufacturing and distribution.
I don’t care for any sauce in the jar
Wonderful recipe that I have used many times now. Thank You! Most recently did this gluten free with just being cautious as to using all GF ingredients.
I am from Utica and live in South Carolina now. I missed Riggies and these are the best and so easy. I will say I did not add the water or cook the noodles in the Instant Pot.
I did this recipe from what they posted. It was delicious!! My husband thought it was delicious!!
Here’s what I will say…I LOVE fresh onion and garlic, instead of powdered. I do not poo poo the powder at all! If you’re in a hurry, this will ABSOLUTELY taste delicious!! If I have time; hop, I will add fresh onion and garlic! Pretty much, everything else was on point! Just my preference!! Five stars from us, no matter how you make it!
I am from Rome,NY but now live in Texas. We love riggies! We made the recipe last night in our Ninja Foodi. They turned out great! Thank you for sharing the recipe.
As an Italian girl living in upstate NY, I’m very discerning (read: picky) when it comes to riggies! So let me say with authority: this recipe is delicious! And it’s as easy and forgiving and it is yummy. The only changes I make are that i usually just cook frozen chicken thighs in my IP first, since I’m not a good planner, and use them instead of sauteing the fresh chicken. Makes no difference. Also, i don’t like canned alfredo so I just add some 1/2 and 1/2 at the end. Hands down, best riggies recipe I’ve found yet on the internet. For our family, who looks them spicy but not nuclear, we’ve found the perfect combination is 2 diced hot cherry peppers and 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper.
Thank you for posting this awesomeness!!!
LOL I don’t make them on the stove this way but this was the easiest way in the instant pot
Thank you! This recipe is the bomb! I grew p in Binghamton and visited Utica many times. Only had chicken riggies for the first time about 2 years ago and craved it ever since. Love, love, love your recipe. 💯
Wow. I usually make chicken riggiies using the “original chicken Riggies recipe” I found online . I was given a jar of the bottled riggies sauce and a lb of rigatoni as a gift at christmas, so being in a hurry tonight, I made them in my newly purchased
instant pot Duo, using your recipe. OMG, I’ll never go back to the old way and becasue it’s so easy/ And now, I can make it more frequently.. I had to cook another 2. Minutes becasue it was too al dente for me, but that’s the beauty of the instant pot. You can easily adjust cooking time to suit your taste.
Are the cherry peppers chopped or kept whole?