These Instant Pot Turkey Thighs are served with a homemade gravy that will blow your mind! This dish is perfect for smaller families who don’t feel like making an entire turkey on Thanksgiving day! I also serve these turkey thighs randomly throughout the year when I have a taste for a Thanksgiving meal without all the extra effort it takes to cook an entire turkey! I serve my turkey thighs with these Air Fryer Buttermilk Biscuits and sometimes I end the night with this Instant Pot Key Lime Pie!
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Ingredients For Turkey Thighs
- Turkey Thighs
- Dry White Wine
- Salt
- Ground Black Pepper
- Granulated Garlic
- Butter
- Garlic Cloves
- Onion
- Sage
- Fresh Thyme
- Fresh Rosemary
- Reduced Sodium Turkey or Chicken Broth
Ingredients For The Gravy
- Turkey Drippings
- Corn Starch
- Heavy Cream
How To Make Instant Pot Turkey Thighs
- First, pat dry the turkey thighs with a paper towel.
- In a medium bowl, season your turkey thighs with the dry white wine, salt, ground black pepper and granulated garlic.
- Chop and dice your onion and mince the garlic cloves. Set them aside.
- Press the saute function on your instant pot. Add the butter and wait for it to melt.
- Next, place the turkey thighs skin side down into the instant pot along with any remaining marinade. Sear them for about 5 minutes then remove them and set them aside on a plate.
- Add the chopped onion and garlic cloves to the instant pot and saute for about 1 minute. Immediately add in the turkey or chicken broth and use a wooden spoon to scrape the bits off of the bottom of the pot.
- Next, place the turkey thighs back into the instant pot along with the fresh rosemary, sage and thyme.
- Cancel the saute function and close the lid. Cook on high pressure for 30 minutes.
- Once the cooking time is up, let the pressure natural release for 20 minutes. Release any remaining pressure by engaging the quick release button. Once the valve drops, you’ll know the pressure is done releasing.
- Transfer the turkey thighs to a plate and begin making the gravy.
How To Make Gravy With Turkey Drippings
- First, press the saute function on the Instant Pot.
- Strain the turkey drippings to remove any large bits and pieces.
- Next, add in 2 cups of the turkey drippings and corn starch to the instant pot and whisk together. Make sure to mix well to remove any lumps formed.
- Add in the heavy cream and continue stirring for another 2-3 minutes or until the gravy has thickened. Cancel the saute function once you are finished.
- Serve the gravy over your turkey thighs and enjoy!
Tips & Variations
- Add salt to the gravy if you’d like. My turkey drippings had a good amount of salt already in them so I did not add additional salt. But always remember to try the food and add more salt if needed according to your taste!
- My turkey thighs were very large but if you have smaller turkey thighs you may need to reduce the cooking time by 5-7 minutes depending on the size. I like my turkey thighs at around 170-175 degrees F because there’s much more meat than chicken and the meat tends to be a bit tough at 165 degrees F which is the recommended temperature for poultry.
- It is very important to deglaze the bottom of the pot well as described in step 6 of the instructions. If you don’t, you may get the dreaded burn notice!
- Always read your instant pot manual before cooking in it. I used an 8 qt for this recipe but if you have a smaller or larger one, you may need to decrease or increase liquid quantities for this recipe.
Instant Pot Turkey Thighs
These Instant Pot Turkey Thighs are perfectly juicy! They're served with a homemade gravy that is out of this world! Turkey thighs are the perfect Thanksgiving dish for small gatherings!
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Servings: 2 turkey thighs
Calories: 326kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
Ingredients For The Turkey Thighs
- 2 turkey thighs
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 3 tsp salt or to taste
- 1 tsp ground black pepper
- 3 tsp granulated garlic or to taste
- 2 tbsp butter
- 4 garlic cloves chopped and minced
- 1/2 medium onion chopped and diced
- 3 sprigs sage
- 4 sprigs thyme
- 3 sprigs rosemary
- 1 cup chicken or turkey broth reduced sodium
Ingredients For The Gravy
- 2 1/2 cups turkey drippings
- 2 tbsp corn starch
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
Instructions
How To Make Instant Pot Turkey Thighs
- First, pat dry the turkey thighs with a paper towel.
- In a medium bowl, season your turkey thighs with the dry white wine, salt, ground black pepper and granulated garlic.
- Chop and dice your onion and mince the garlic cloves. Set them aside.
- Press the saute function on your instant pot. Add the butter and wait for it to melt.
- Next, place the turkey thighs skin side down into the instant pot along with any remaining marinade. Sear them for about 5 minutes then remove them and set them aside on a plate.
- Add the chopped onion and garlic cloves to the instant pot and saute for about 1 minute. Immediately add in the turkey or chicken broth and use a wooden spoon to scrape the bits off of the bottom of the pot.
- Next, place the turkey thighs back into the instant pot along with the fresh rosemary, sage and thyme.
- Cancel the saute function and close the lid. Cook on high pressure for 30 minutes.
- Once the cooking time is up, let the pressure natural release for 20 minutes. Release any remaining pressure by engaging the quick release button. Once the valve drops, you’ll know the pressure is done releasing.
- Transfer the turkey thighs to a plate and begin making the gravy.
How To Make Gravy With Turkey Drippings
- First, press the saute function on the Instant Pot.
- Strain the turkey drippings to remove any large bits and pieces.
- Next, add in 2 cups of the turkey drippings and corn starch to the instant pot and whisk together. Make sure to mix well to remove any lumps formed.
- Add in the heavy cream and continue stirring for another 2-3 minutes or until the gravy has thickened. Cancel the saute function once you are finished.
- Serve the gravy over your turkey thighs and enjoy!
Nutrition
Calories: 326kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 84mg | Sodium: 3539mg | Potassium: 225mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 1011IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 101mg | Iron: 1mg