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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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This recipe is so delish! My husband and I can’t get over how moist and flavorful the rice is. We want to make it for more people. Any recommendations for doubling the recipe?
I’m so glad you two like it, Karen!! You could definitely try straight doubling everything. I’d keep the cook time the same since it’ll cook longer anyway because it’ll take longer to come up to pressure. That’s the usual recommendation for doubling recipes in the IP (to leave cooking time the same). If you’re in any doubt, use a meat thermometer to ensure the chicken is done, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t be.
Hi there! I loved making this recipe in my IP but ended up getting rid of it bc I was having so many issues with the burn notice. Is there a crockpot version of this recipe yet?? Thanks!
Hi Kayla! Those new Instant Pots are so frustrating. I have yet to ever experience a burn warning with mine. So annoying. 🙁 No, I haven’t experimented with this in my Crockpot. Sorry!
I made this last night. It was so easy and it came out perfect! The rice was like risotto – delicious. My adult son was over for dinner and he loved it to. I didn’t have plain chicken broth so I used Progresso’s Tuscany flavored chicken broth that has thyme, marjoram and oregano. It added really nice flavor. I used my 6 qt instant pot that I received as a Christmas gift. I will definitely make this again.
I’m so happy it worked out, Donna! 😀
I followed the directions exactly and all it did was burn. I don’t know what went wrong. I pulled everything out and even cleaned the pot so there wasn’t anything left on the bottom and it still burned. We were super excited to try this recipe. Such a bummer.
I’m sorry to hear that, Bonnie. If you read thru the comments, you’ll see that others have experienced the same issue. My Instant Pot has never shown a burn warning. I don’t think you did anything wrong… or for that matter that I did anything wrong. Some of the newer Instant Pots sadly seem to do this, and I don’t know why. I’ve tested this recipe multiple times in my own Instant Pot, and it’s never failed. I updated the post months ago mentioning the issue… not sure if you saw that or not.
This is my favorite instapot recipe… it is so yummy!
Wonderful! XO
This made me fall in love with my instant pot. My boys love this. I usually serve it the next day for them. I’ll reheat it and add heavy cream so it’s extra rich and creamy (they’re very underweight)!
I am so glad it’s a hit in your home, Aimee!! Love the heavy cream idea!
My daughter just got me an Instant Pot. I didn’t realise how confusing it is to use it, I’m 83 and I got confused reading all the different directions. Do they have a recipe book with directions from scratch..Step by step.
Hi Kate! The Instant Pot does come with an instruction manual. I think it’s probably a good idea to familiarize yourself with it prior to attempting this recipe. This recipe can actually be a bit tricky (some users of newer Instant Pots find the rice burns unfortunately). I wish I could come to your kitchen and help you out!
does this recipe work with frozen chicken?
Hi! I haven’t tested it. You may want to add an extra couple minutes to the cook time if you do try it. Some people with newer Instant Pots have had issues with burn warnings in this recipe (you might want to read thru the comments), so it may be best to make it with thawed ones first, and then you could play with timing depending on how your Instant Pot responds.
I made this with thighs + carrots came out perfect very tasty very easy. Thank you for making this available and easy to use.
Very glad you enjoyed it!!
Made this recipe tonight..with a smidge more tive and with lemon pepper instead of lemon juice. It’s absolutely amazing!!
So glad to hear it!!
Made this tonight with 3 large semi-frozen breasts…kept cook time the same since I was using fewer breasts. Turned out perfectly! Added a little bit of truffle sunflower oil as well. Perfect so tasty thank you!!
That’s great to hear! ♥️
Love love love this recipe! It was so easy and my whole family enjoyed it! The rice is so creamy and satisfying, and I love that I get that result without having to use a cream soup! This recipe will forever be a staple!
Thank you for sharing it!! Thank
So glad to hear it! ♥️
Do you leave this recipe in the insta pot on sauté the whole time
What do you mean by “the whole time”? The sauté is just to brown the onions and start to heat the rest of it while you put the ingredients in the IP. I can’t recall offhand, but I think you need to switch the sauté button off in order to set the manual high pressure cooking part (if not, it just turns off automatically when you set the high pressure cooking time). And then once you release the pressure, it’ll be on “keep warm” by default, I believe.
Perfect thank you so much I understand now. I’m new to using the insta pot
I’m so glad you saw my reply… I was hoping that you got it. I figured you were new to the IP… it can be tricky to figure out at first, but once you get the hang of it, it’s great. 🙂