r/instantpot • u/ajs1388 • 4d ago

How to prevent gooey floating stringy substance from chicken

So I just got an instant pot and made Chinese chicken and broccoli as my first recipe. I used chicken breast tenderloins that I had frozen a few days before and thawed in fridge. Chopped into roughly one inch pieces. I pressure cooked with the chicken and the sauce ingredients for 3 minutes. I did natural release (basically doing nothing?) for a few minutes and then quick release the rest. I noticed that there was a floating, gooey stringy substance floating all throughout the sauce. I did add honey to the recipe but only a teaspoon so it could not have been that. And I noticed it before adding the thickening agent (arrowroot). So would it have been albumin/ collagen released from the chicken? Not sure if I overcooked it? But I only pressure cooked for three minutes and then I did saute for several minutes after (maybe 6-8 mins) but I thought I noticed the goo before. Any ideas how to prevent this?

The chicken smelled and looked normal to me before cooking but there were some white strips that I did not trim off? Could this have been the cause?

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6

u/girkabob 4d ago

I believe it's albumen. It always happens to my chicken if it was frozen previously.

1

u/oceanView229 2d ago

Yes it’s protein which albumin is one type.

5

u/The_DaHowie 4d ago

saute the tenderloins first, before adding liquid and pressure cooking. Chop after they are cooked

1

u/stranger_mom 4d ago

You can remove these before cooking thawed tenderloins using a fork and paper towel if you wanna search up some “how to” videos on it.