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This Instant Pot chicken and rice recipe has tender, juicy chicken and the most amazingly soft and flavorful rice. You can even add carrots to make it a complete meal!
This lemon chicken and rice recipe came about because I keep seeing Crockpot recipes for chicken and rice that are cooked in there at the same time. Naturally, since I’m slightly obsessed with my Instant Pot (hello instant gratification), I wondered if it was possible to cook rice and chicken in an electric pressure cooker at the same time without anything going wrong. We’ll figure out a Crockpot version later. 😛
There’s just something tempting about throwing it all in there and it turning into a delicious dish with no extra work. I’m notorious for messing up stove-top rice, and I wanted to get this right!
Turns out it is possible to make rice and chicken in the Instant Pot at the same time, and the results are great. It’s also really hands-off once you close that lid, which to me is a bonus. 🙂
It saves time, dishes, and it’s just really tasty. And that rice turns out sooo creamy without using cream or any type of condensed soup. There isn’t a “sauce” per se, but the rice soaks up most of the liquid and becomes perfectly seasoned and almost has a risotto quality to it.
And, this is actually a fairly healthy meal. I like the rice so much that I have posted a separate recipe for just the rice sans the chicken.
If you want a veggie in there, add some carrots… so good.
How to make chicken and rice in the Instant Pot
It’s easy to make chicken and rice in the Instant Pot, but I do recommend following the tips below to ensure your recipe is successful. I have done a lot of research (and experimentation… this is probably my most tested recipe to date on the blog) to make sure it works. I’m going to put it out there that there’s a pretty good chance this recipe can go wrong if you don’t follow the cooking instructions exactly.
- Don’t guess on liquid measurements.
- Rinse the rice (I just measure it out, put it in a sieve, and then rinse and quickly let the water drain out).
- Stick to using white rice (I’ve tested jasmine and basmati). Brown rice is a different beast.
- Don’t make substitutions unless you’ve made the recipe first and you’re confident they will work… or you don’t mind if it goes wrong in the name of experimentation. 😉
- I usually make this recipe with larger chicken breasts. I don’t look for a particular weight, but you know sometimes the ones at the grocery store are just tinier than you’re used to. If you do end up with smaller ones, I’d reduce cooking time by a minute or so. You could definitely also try chicken thighs – they’re typically more forgiving when it comes to overcooking them.
I really think this is the best chicken and rice. It’s crazy easy and just so comforting.
Try my chicken and rice soup if you love these flavors!
Love Instant Pot chicken recipes? Try my Instant Pot teriyaki chicken, this Instant Pot chicken noodle soup, or my Instant Pot chicken tortilla soup recipe.
I hope you love this easy chicken and rice recipe!
Want to make just the rice? Check out the best Instant Pot rice recipe.
Questions? Don’t hesitate to ask. Leave me a comment below. 🙂
Update (5/7/2019): After reading the comments and doing further testing, I’ve slightly altered the recipe. Originally, the recipe called for 18 minutes on high pressure with a quick release. I’ve changed it to 12 minutes on high pressure with a 5 minute natural release, followed by a quick release for the remaining pressure. My logic behind this is two-fold: the 12 minutes leads to more tender chicken (as does a partial natural release). I also am learning that newer Instant Pots get the burn warning much easier than my older Instant Pot, and hopefully these changes will address that issue.
Instant Pot Chicken and Rice
Ingredients
- 4 chicken breasts
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2.5 cups chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 cup white jasmine rice (or basmati) rinsed
- 4 dashes Italian seasoning
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 3 medium carrots peeled & sliced (optional)
Instructions
- Season both sides of each piece of chicken with salt & pepper.
- Press the sauté button on your Instant Pot. Add the oil and onion and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Stir in the garlic, then add the chicken broth, lemon juice, rice (rinse it first), Italian seasoning, and butter. If you want to add carrots, add those in at this point too. Leave the sauté button pressed so it heats up as you're adding the ingredients.
- Give the ingedients in the Instant Pot a good stir (make sure nothing is sticking), and then immediately add the chicken pieces on top. Close the lid, set the valve to "sealing", and cook on high pressure for 12 minutes.
- Once the countdown has completed, let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes, then quick release the rest of the pressure. Give the rice a stir prior to serving (it will absorb a little more liquid as it rests for a few minutes). The rice will have a consistency that's soft, creamy, and a little sticky. If needed, season with salt & pepper to taste.
Notes
- I have tested this recipe multiple times in my 6-quart Instant Pot, and it has worked every time without a burn warning (I've heard this can happen in some of the larger and newer Instant Pots when cooking certain recipes - such as ones with rice). I suggest following my instructions exactly as written for best results.
- If desired, use low-sodium chicken broth. I found this recipe to be perfectly seasoned with regular chicken broth, though.
- Makes 4 generous servings. If I was eating this by myself, it would be more like 6+ servings.
- Inactive time indicates the time it takes the Instant Pot to get up to pressure and the time for natural pressure release.
- Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only and should be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary and Salt & Lavender makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Thanks for this recipe Natasha! I just received an 8 quart Instant Pot for Christmas & this was my first recipe using it!
Very tasty!
I used Trader Joe’s 21 season sauté seasoning along with Italian seasoning & some extra garlic & carrots for extra flavor.
I followed all other measurements & instructions as stated.
I had no burn warnings or issues.
A definite keeper recipe!
Thanks again for sharing!😋
I am so happy to hear this!! Thanks so much for letting me know, Lori! 🙂
This meal is looking like somebody’s answered prayer! I don’t have an IP but I am getting one quick, fast and in a hurry JUST so I can try this. Thank you so much for sharing!
Let me know how it goes! ☺️
I got an instant pot for Christmas and was looking for new recipes. I found this and made it two nights ago (my first IP dinner!) and it was fantastic! I followed the recipe almost exactly except I mis-read it and thought I was supposed to brown the chicken on the sautée setting (clearly didn’t read it well). But it still turned out great!! Tasted almost like chicken and rice soup (but not soupy). FYI 20 oz broth is equal to 2.5 cups so maybe you can make that conversion for your American readers? Thanks for a great recipe!
Hi Hillary! I’m so glad that the recipe worked for you and you liked it. Yup, it should be showing 2.5 cups now – I updated it a few days ago. ☺️
This was WONDERFUL and absolutely a new staple for our family’s fall/winter! Thank you for this super yummy recipe! I could eat the rice from this recipe with every meal! (Ok, since we’re on the subject, do you think I could, feasibly, make the recipe without the chicken breasts, following the same instructions?)
I am so happy you liked it, Monica!! I was starting to get worried with some of the comments I’ve received so far. I’m baffled why it doesn’t seem to work for some people but works for others. And yes, you definitely can just make the rice. I keep everything the same but cook it for 15 minutes. I actually am planning on putting just the rice recipe up. 🙂
Such a great recipe! I can’t even believe how quick it is. So cozy and comforting!
Thanks, Kelly!
I followed the recipe exactly in my 6qt instant pot and I got the burn warning three times 🙁 I added extra water the first two times and turned the pressure level down the third time. I don’t know what’s happening.
Argh that’s so frustrating. I tested this recipe multiple times and have never gotten a burn warning. I wish I knew why this happened. 🙁
So you mention two 10 oz cans of broth which threw me because a standard can is 14.5 oz.
Hi Christine! Where I live (Canada), the standard can of chicken broth is 284 ml (I buy Campbell’s), which works out to 9.6 fluid ounces. I just round up for ease of reading the recipe. I try to adhere as much as possible to what I know is standard in the USA since the majority of my readers are from there, but I guess this may be one thing that differs and I had no idea. I’m going to look more into this, and next time I’m in the States I’m going to a grocery store to look in the chicken broth aisle haha. No idea why this would be different between the 2 countries since so much is the same. Sigh! I’ve just updated the recipe to put the amount in cups – this should make it easier.
We made this recipe tonight – everything was waaaay over cooked. Followed everything in the recipe. Not sure what happened?
Hmm that’s not good! So the rice was overcooked as well? I wish I was in the kitchen with you so I could figure out what went wrong. 🙁 Like I mention in the post, sometimes smaller chicken breasts can end up a bit overcooked, but in the 5x I’ve tested this recipe (and like 3x on top of that where I did just the rice) it never ended up all overcooked, so I’m definitely wondering what happened. Do you have a 6 qt. Instant Pot?
Yeah it was the rice and carrots that were very over cooked. We used chicken thighs and they came out perfect! It’s definitely a 6-quart instapot so not sure what happened. 😞 Will definitely try some of your other recipes!! 😊
Thanks for letting me know! Yup, the carrots always come out super soft… the rice is a bit puzzling though haha.
No worries!! Other than the rice, the flavor was great and the chicken was delicious.
Did you happen to use instant rice? Also, what type of rice did you use (brown, white, jasmine, basmati, etc.)?
I like to use julienned/sticks of carrots, as don’t particularly like the taste of chunks, but can toleralte the sticks. Any problem you see using those instead? Recipe looks great.
Good question. I think since they’re so small, they will end up VERY soft and you may end up with a very carrot-flavored dish (especially if you use a lot of them). That’s my only concern since it sounds like you don’t like carrots that much. I think leaving them out altogether may be the best option.
Turned out great! I don’t think my kids were a huge fan of the hint of lemon in the rice so might leave that out next time. I used whole petite baby carrots and they were delicious!
So glad it worked out, Jess!
Hi!
Would you ever consider doing alternative timing for your instapot recipes for slow-cookers? Not sure if this is possible, but I love all of these instapot recipes and only have a crockpot :(.
Thanks!
Hi Liz! Actually, I do have some slow cooker versions of IP recipes. They will be linked within the blog post if they do exist (for example, I have IP and slow cooker versions of my ham and potato soup). If it’s a pretty straightforward recipe like some soups, I try to include Crockpot method suggestions within the recipe card so that the instructions work for both IP and Crockpot. Unfortunately, sometimes the timing and the method can be very different between the two appliances (especially for a recipe like this one), so it’s like developing a whole new recipe, and I don’t always have the capacity to do that between working full-time and trying to get a variety of different recipes on my blog. I try to target some of my recipes just to those who have Instant Pots since there is a definite demand for them, but I realize that does leave some people out unfortunately. I would be interested in seeing if I can replicate this recipe in the slow cooker, but I haven’t gotten there yet haha.
Sam’s has an 8 quart IP for $80 right now. Just buy one!
Thanks for sharing! This recipe is soooo yummy! The entire family loves it. How much time should i add if i double it?
So happy to hear that! I would keep the time the same. It’ll take extra for the Instant Pot to get up to pressure, so that theoretically should account for the extra ingredients (that’s the standard advice when doubling an IP recipe). Although, after reading through a lot of the comments, this recipe seems to be unpredictable for some people, so I say that with bated breath haha. I’d check to ensure the chicken is 165F in the middle to be safe if you have any concerns.