Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Chicken and Rice

Pressure cooker chicken and rice casserole recipe made in our Instant Pot, Crockpot Express or Ninja Foodi is the best creamy dinner ever! Family favorite and so easy to do.

I love cooking everything together at once. Makes it easier on days when I am just spent and allows us to eat together more often which I appreciate as a mom, a total win win.

Instant Pot Chicken Breast and Rice

Adding vegetables to this chicken recipe gives it great flavor, texture, and the more I include them in our dinners the more my kids like them. Of course you can omit if you wish. 😉

Seasoned with just some salt and black pepper, it’s so easy to throw together. I use frozen vegetables to make things easier.

Now I generally use boneless skinless chicken breasts diced into bite size pieces. It’s the best way for this version, or our Instant Pot teriyaki chicken and rice dish.

Instant Pot Chicken and Rice Frozen Chicken

If I find chicken thighs on sale I would use those instead. I find that thighs have more flavor and are more tender than the latter. I get lazy though and if bone-in is all I can find I will opt for whatever is boneless and a decent price. Frozen works too but has to be cut into very small bite size pieces beforehand. Those pieces need to be separated before adding too.

If they are lumped together just run under cool water and break apart. If you add into one big clump the middle pieces won’t have enough time to cook all the way thru and that is important.As far as rice, I like Jasmine personally. It has a better texture than just the cheaper long grain version and less expensive than Basmati.

• If you are totally opposed to adding vegetables, just leave those out. Only like frozen peas? Just add those and omit the others.

Cheese is a really great add in but of course if you need it to be dairy free, then leave that out too.

Campbell’s Chicken and Rice

If you have ever make this, the one you see here is very similar. BUT this is cooked in my Instant Pot so timing and a few more ingredients were added to it.

• I ate something similar A LOT growing up with everything just dumped in a pot on the stove top. I really loved it and was made often because it was cheap. Pretty healthy Instant Pot dinner recipe too.

It has everything in a comfort food you’ll want including a bunch of mixed vegetables that cook in no time.

• Add any other spices you enjoy, I add just a few myself. If you want to use fresh green beans and baby bellas follow the directions here for our Instant Pot chicken mushroom casserole.

The first step is to add your meat and set to saute. All multi cookers have the function except some are labeled brown/saute instead. It is important that your meat is diced into bite size pieces so it cooks evenly and remains tender.

Pressure Cooker chicken and rice with cream of chicken soup

If you don’t have one of these multi cookers and are a busy mom I would HIGHLY recommend it. It’s a pressure cooker with 6 other functions so you can replace a lot of your other kitchen appliances too. I have a Crock Pot Express and Ninja Foodi. I use all three to make this.

• I’ve made lots of other dishes in my Instant Pot because it makes dinner time quick and easy.

Do yourself a favor and just use fresh diced boneless skinless breasts or chicken thighs to make this pressure cooker chicken and rice recipe.

Instant Pot chicken rice

Mine came out really well but several people had issues with them not cooking through. Or their pot did not reach pressure so I have revised this recipe.

Now the recipe reads with the chicken cut up into cubes so there shouldn’t be any issues any longer! A problem you may experience if you don’t follow the directions EXACTLY as they’re stated below is with the rice.

Making Instant Pot white rice is the exception to this rule since there are no other ingredients other than water. 

Pressure Cooker Chicken and Rice

At first I was intimidated because I had never used one before. Now that I’ve tinkered with it I use it every day and share new pressure cooker recipes each week. They are all yummy and super simple to do like this one.

1. Cup of rice (not instant white rice, we like Jasmine rice)
2. Chicken breasts
   1. could use chicken thighs
   2. if you want to use pork, follow our pressure cooker pork and rice recipe
   3. using precooked shredded chicken is possible too, just skip step 1 since it’s already cooked
3. Frozen mixed vegetables
4. Cream of chicken soup
   1. cream of mushroom could be used instead

Chicken broth – can use water but broth is so much better

1 – 1/2 cup Cheese (optional but so good, we like sharp cheddar).

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper
2. Onion 
3. Olive oil
4. Instant Pot or pressure cooker – I have a 6 qt.
   1. I HIGHLY suggest you get a non stick pot too!

Cheesy Instant Pot chicken and rice recipe

• I have used rotisserie chicken vs. raw chicken – just use 2 breasts and dice the chicken up, then skip the first step where the chicken is browned, just put it into the bottom of the pot
• You can amp it up with a bit of spice and veggies with Instant Pot Mexican chicken and rice.

Added vegetables and share it in our Instant Pot chicken broccoli rice recipe.

Chicken and Rice in Instant Pot

Just naturally release steam for 3 minutes, lift the lid, and the cooked rice is so tender!  Chicken is always tender, flavorful, and who doesn’t love a one pot meal?? I haven’t made it with brown rice yet but others have, comments for that method are below.

I modified the recipe I found here but adjusted some ingredients and the time as well for it to come out moist and ensuring the rice was done perfectly.

If you love this easy dinner idea try our other easy Instant Pot chicken recipes here are a few

• Cheesy Instant Pot chicken parmesan casserole is a family favorite
  • Crack chicken casserole.
• Spicy honey Instant Pot chicken is a popular dinner idea
• Pressure cooker frozen whole chicken
•  White rice goes great with our Instant Pot spicy teriyaki chicken on top

Want to make this in your Ninja Foodi too? Of course we’ve done that. The timing and high pressure isn’t any different. You use the lid that is not attached to cook and the pressure cook button.

If you want to make this using noodles instead of rice follow our pressure cooker chicken noodle casserole directions. Ready to make our cream of mushroom chicken and rice dish? Yes you can throw in quartered fresh mushrooms too!

I suggest using baby bellas vs. button so they don’t get so soft. Bellas will keep their shape and maintain their texture better. 

• Just make sure you throw them in at the very top and don’t submerge them.
• So once you sprinkle in your rice and gently submerge, then set mushrooms on top of that.

Want to make crockpot chicken and rice?? We have directions for a creamy Crockpot chicken method too!

Instant Pot chicken and rice

Here’s a quick step by step but I also have a printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. Put bite size chicken and diced onions into pot with some olive oil and set to saute. Cook outsides just enough so pink is gone (insides will still be raw and that is okay) Turn pot off now.

• Sprinkle in seasoning, whisk together broth and can of cream of chicken soup together in a bowl – stir that in. Add frozen vegetables if you want at this time.
• Sprinkle in uncooked white rice but DO NOT stir in, just gently submerge into the liquid at the top.
• Close lid and steam valve and set to high for 9 minutes. Allow steam to release naturally for 3 minutes and then open steam valve to pressure release the rest of the way.
• If you do a quick release rice won’t be as perfectly tender.

Add cheese now and stir so it melts (optional add in but it’s good). Serve topped with more cheese for added yumminess!! If you want to make this with a sausage link, try our Instant Pot sausage and rice recipe! Print the recipe below and enjoy!