Instant Pot Chicken and Rice

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This easy Instant Pot Chicken and Rice recipe delivers tender, juicy chicken thighs with perfectly cooked Spanish-style rice in just 30 minutes, making it the ultimate weeknight dinner solution. It has bold spices, colorful vegetables, and everything is cooked together in one pot!

This Instant Pot Arroz Con Pollo is my kind of easy meal!

This is one of those meals that just makes dinner ridiculously easy! The chicken always comes out so tender it falls off the bone, and the rice soaks up all those amazing flavors from the chicken, spices, and broth. It's completely hands-off once you close that Instant Pot lid. I love that I'm getting protein, grains, and veggies all in one easy instant pot chicken and rice recipe.

Don't miss my other Instant Pot recipes, like Instant Pot Chicken Thighs, Instant Pot Fettuccine Alfredo, Instant Pot Spaghetti, Instant Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup, Instant Pot Short Ribs, or Instant Pot Ribs!

How to make Instant Pot Chicken and Rice:

Sauté: Push the sauté button and pour a little oil in the instant pot. Sear the chicken thighs for a few minutes on both sides then remove to a plate. Dump in onion, bell pepper, garlic, spices, and tomato paste then stir and cook for 2 minutes.

Add Ingredients: Pour white wine in the pot and deglaze the pan. Cook for about 1 minute until most of the win is evaporated. Dump in rice, chicken broth, and bay leaf then stir. Place chicken thighs on top of the rice mixture then turn the instant pot off.

Cook: Push the manual button, high pressure, for 15 minutes. When the timer is over, let it naturally release for 15 minutes before releasing the rest of the pressure and taking the lid off. Pour the frozen peas on top then put the lid back on for a few minutes.

Serve: Remove chicken to a plate then gently fluff rice with a fork then garnish with chopped cilantro or parsley and serve! My family loves this meal served with a warm cooked tortilla on the side, and I always add a drizzle of hot sauce over my rice. Yum!

Frequently Asked Questions: 

Can I make this in a 3 quart and/or 8 quart model instant pot? Yes! Just use the minimum fill requirements for the liquid.

Can I use frozen chicken? Yes. Check out my tutorial for Instant Pot frozen chicken thighs. You wont brown the chicken at the beginning and the skin will not get crispy, so you can remove the skin after cooking, or brown the skin in a hot skillet after cooking. Or see my tutorial for Instant Pot frozen chicken breasts.

Can I substitute brown rice? Yes. To substitute brown rice in this recipe, add ¼ cup extra chicken broth and cook on high pressure for 22 minutes, with a 10 minute natural pressure release. I suggest using chicken thighs when cooking with brown rice, as chicken breasts are more likely to overcook and be dry when cooking for so long.

Can I make this Chicken and Rice on the stovetop? Yes! Follow the same directions, using a large skillet, over medium heat, instead. When everything is assembled, cover the skillet with a lid and transfer to the oven. Bake at 375 degrees F for 30 minutes, until the rice is cooked through.

Can I make this Chicken and Rice in the Slow Cooker? I haven’t tested this recipe in the slow cooker, but yes, I think it could work. I recommend browning the chicken thighs and sautéing the veggies and spices before adding to the slow cooker, then adding your rice and chicken. This will take 3-4 hours on high or 4-6 on low for white rice and 5-6 on high or 6-8 on low for brown.

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Instant Pot Arroz con Pollo

Author: Lauren Allen

Make this one-pot Instant Pot Chicken and Rice recipe with bone-in chicken thighs, savory Spanish rice, and vegetables for a complete family dinner in under 30 minutes. This pressure cooker arroz con pollo requires minimal prep and delivers maximum flavor with tender chicken and perfectly seasoned rice every time.

Prep: 5 minutes mins

Cook: 20 minutes mins

Extra wait time: 15 minutes mins

Total: 25 minutes mins

Servings: 5

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Equipment

• instant pot

Ingredients 

US CustomaryMetric

 

0.5x1x2x?

• ▢ 1/4 cup olive oil
• ▢ 4-5 bone-in chicken thighs, , with skin
• ▢ salt and pepper
• ▢ 1 onion, , chopped
• ▢ 1 bell pepper, , chopped
• ▢ 6 cloves garlic
• ▢ 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ▢ 1 teaspoon paprika
• ▢ 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ▢ 1 Tablespoon tomato paste*
• ▢ 1/2 cup white wine, , optional*
• ▢ 2 cups long grain white rice, , rinsed
• ▢ 2 bay leaves
• ▢ 2 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• ▢ 1 cup frozen peas
• ▢ cilantro or parsley, , for garnish

Instructions 

• *UPDATE 5/17/2020: I removed this recipe after many comments of readers struggling with the burn notice–then received a ton of backlash because so many of you love this recipe and– it works perfectly for me as well) so I am reposting it. Before cooking, PLEASE CONSULT your instant pot manual for the proper rice to liquid cooking ratio for your instant pot. I use a 1:1 ratio, but some require a 1:2 ratio, so you may want to add an additional cup of broth.       
•  *Prepare all of your ingredients and have them ready. This will help prevent too much liquid from evaporating during sautéing and help you avoid a burn notice.
• Brown chicken: Turn Instant pot on sauté setting. Add oil. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Add chicken to the hot pot and cook for a few minutes on both sides, until the skin on the chicken thighs is golden brown and crispy. Remove chicken to a plate.
  ¼ cup olive oil, salt and pepper, 4-5 bone-in chicken thighs
• Add onion, bell pepper, garlic, oregano, paprika, cumin, salt, pepper and tomato paste to the pot. Stir well and sauté for 2 minutes. Remove everything to a plate.
  1 onion, 1 bell pepper, 6 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, 1 Tablespoon tomato paste*
• Add white wine to the pot to deglaze the pan, scraping the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook for about 1 minute until most of the wine has evaporated. Turn the pot OFF!        
  ½ cup white wine
• Add chicken broth and bay leaf to the pot and stir. Add the veggie/spice mixture and stir to combine. Pour rice over everything and place chicken thighs on top, skin side up.
  2 bay leaves, 2 ½ cups low sodium chicken broth, 2 cups long grain white rice
• Pressure Cook: Secure instant pot lid, with valve turned to the sealed position. Cook on manual, high pressure, for 15 minutes. When the timer beeps allow the pressure to naturally release for 15 minutes before removing the lid.
• Finish: Remove the instant pot lid and pour the frozen peas on top of the mixture. Return lid and allow to rest for a few minutes.  Remove the chicken to a plate. Gently fluff rice with a fork. Garnish with cilantro or parsley.
  1 cup frozen peas, cilantro or parsley

Notes

Chicken Thighs: I highly recommend chicken thighs, over chicken breasts, because I think they cook much better in the instant pot and are more tender and flavorful. If you want to substitute chicken breasts, cook on high pressure for 8 minutes with a 5 minute natural release.

Tomato Paste: you can substitute 1 cup of diced fresh or cooked tomatoes, strained

Wine: I use Chardonnay. Any dry white wine would work. The alcohol gets cooked out. If you don’t want to use wine, just leave this step out and deglaze the pan when you add the chicken broth.

Rice: I use regular long-grain white rice. (If you want to use brown rice, see my cooking note above). Be sure to rinse the rice before adding it to the instant pot to remove the starch, and help keep the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pot.

Storage and Freezing Instructions: I doubt you'll have leftovers of this tasty dinner, but if you do, store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. You can also freeze leftovers for up to 2 months.

Nutrition

Calories: 629kcal, Carbohydrates: 70g, Protein: 24g, Fat: 27g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 15g, Trans Fat: 0.1g, Cholesterol: 89mg, Sodium: 394mg, Potassium: 589mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 3737IU, Vitamin C: 37mg, Calcium: 69mg, Iron: 3mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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I originally shared this recipe April 2019. Updated March 2026.