Instant Pot Garlic Herb Chicken and Rice
This Instant Pot Chicken and rice is a wholesome dinner that the entire family will love. Garlic Herb Chicken and Rice made in the Instant Pot results in fluffy buttery rice and Juicy Chicken thighs.
I am really obsessed with this Instant Pot Chicken and Rice recipe. This Garlic Herb Chicken and rice have so much flavour in it from the butter, lots of garlic and herbs.
Crispy Juicy Chicken thigh with perfectly seasoned rice is one of those family-friendly recipes that you can make on any day. It is easy, healthy and made in an Instant pot in just about 15 minutes.
It turned out to be perfect with amazing flavours. If you ask me, there is nothing like a one-pot Chicken and rice dish. It is always filling and satisfying. You can easily double the recipe for a larger crowd.
I have been exploring my new Instant Pot in every possible way. So far I am really loving the pressure cooker. After trying Instant Pot Sweet Potato Chickpea Curry, I tried making rice in the Instant Pot. Cooking rice in the instant pot is easy with an amazing result.
So, what was the result that simply wowed me? Perfect grains of rice every single time. A person like me who has been eating rice all her life was very happy with the result.
How to cook rice in the Instant Pot?
Cooking rice in the Instant Pot is easy. Rice to water ratio and the right timing is the key to perfect rice.
I cook rice in a pressure cooker or using the “cook and drain” method. When cooking rice in an open pot and drain the extra liquid you don’t need to worry about the rice to water ratio.
Because once the rice is cooked, you drain excess water. On the other hand, cooking rice in a pressure cooker needs an exact rice-water ratio.
To cook perfect rice below are a few tips
- Wash rice under running tap, until water runs clear.
- Measure water. As a general rule for every part of rice, you need two parts of water(1:2). But while cooking in Instant Pot because there is no evaporation of water, the amount of water you would need is less. The rice to water ratio would be 1:1.5
- Always add rice to warm water.
- While water is warming up, soak rice for 10 – 15 minutes.
These tips are for regular white rice, long grain Basmati rice and Brown rice. But rice varieties are not only limited to this. With my 20 years of experience in cooking rice, these few tips have always worked for me. But cooking perfect rice also depends on the quality of rice.
If the rice is of the starchy kind, you will have to adjust the quantity of water and time. The age of the rice grain also determines the end result. The older/aged the grain, the better it turns out.
Instant Pot Chicken And Rice With Butter, Garlic & Herbs
Making Chicken and rice in Instant Pot is easy and convenient. No need for cleaning multiple pans or spending hours in the kitchen. Make it in the instant pot from start to finish in just 20 minutes.
Start with seasoning Chicken. Seasoning Chicken well and browning helps in developing flavour. I have used chicken thighs but you can also use chicken breast instead.
Next is to caramelize onion and a lot of garlic in butter, which again adds lots of flavours. You can use Olive oil instead of butter, but believe me, it will not be the same. So for once keep your worries about calories aside and use butter.
I have used a mix of herbs Oregano, thyme and parsley. But you can use any of your favourite herbs.
Using Chicken Stock instead of water makes the flavour robust. Use water or a mix of water and stock instead.
How Long To Cook Rice In The Instant Pot?
Then comes the important part, cooking time. You could use a pre-set option for cooking rice. But I prefer cooking it in manual mode, by setting a timer.
After a lot of trial and error, I settled on 8 mins of high-pressure cooking and 10 minutes of natural pressure release.
While sauteing the instant pot heats up. And because of using soaked rice and warm stock, the overall cooking time reduces significantly. The Instant Pot goes to full high-pressure mode quickly.
Once you set the manual mode on and close the lid, it takes about 4-5 minutes to build pressure. And then the countdown begins. You would see no air coming out of the valves.
After 8 minutes the Instant Pot goes to standby mode. Switch it off and let it release pressure naturally for 10 minutes. Then realise pressure manually, using the back of a spatula.
I know once you open the lid, it is very tempting to scoop out the rice. But if you are not in a hurry you can let it rest for 10 minutes after opening the lid and then using a slotted spoon or fork separate the grain gently. Using a fork or a slotted spoon helps in keeping each grain of rice separately.
Avoiding Burn Notification While Cooking In Instant Pot?
Getting burn notice while cooking on an instant pot is quite annoying, especially while you have a hungry family to feed. I have made this chicken and rice in the instant pot multiple times without any issue.
First of all, every time the pot is giving a burn notice doesn’t mean something has burned. It might be an indication that the bottom layer of the pot has some brown bits stuck. So it is very important to deglaze the pot to release any brown patches from the bottom. Like in the above recipe, Stock is added to deglaze the pan.
Another reason for the burn notice could be because of very little liquid in the pot. In the recipe, the amount of stock is enough for the chicken. Also when the chicken thigh gets cooked it releases liquid.
The last reason could be the Inner pot is very hot, while setting it to manual high-pressure mode. In this recipe, first chicken thighs are being sauteed followed by onion and garlic. If you tend to get frequent burn notifications in your IP, then after you saute the chicken thighs, switch off the IP and let it cool down a bit. Then again switch to saute mode and start cooking onion and garlic.
One of the readers has to say
I got the burn notice too. Followed the recipe exactly. Bit I’ve been reading that perhaps the newer pots are triggering the burn notice more easily. It’s very frustrating. Next time I’ll try with a half cup more broth.
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Update! The burn notice happened about 4 minutes after it came to pressure.so I let it sit until it naturally released, maybe 25 minutes. When I opened it, it was cooked perfectly. So good! There was a small scorched area, which caused the burn notice, but it was easily avoided. I really do think the new pots are getting too hot, and particularly in one spot. Have a 6-quart Ultra, purchased last fall. I get the burn notice with many recipes.
What The Readers Are Saying About This Recipe?
So many have tried making this Chicken and Rice in the Instant Pot. It makes me so happy to read through the feedback.
Holy cow – this is delish! I am eating it right now and had to put down my fork to leave a comment. I followed the directions exactly but adjusted ingredients based on what I had – 1 cup of rice, 2 cups stock, boneless skinless thighs, lime juice instead of lemon, extra garlic, and fresh herbs from my garden (parsley, oregano, sage, rosemary). The rice came out perfectly and the whole dish is so flavorful. I served it with sautéed mushrooms and green beans. I’m obsessed! Thank you 🙂
This was great! Made it last night exactly as the recipe says.
Made this Chicken and Rice recipe as my first Ninja Foodi PC recipe and it came out great! I used skinless boneless thighs and added a bag of frozen edamame after I added the rice. After letting it rest I sprinkled in some Italian cheese and ran the air crisper for 5 minutes. My family loved it but would have liked more garlic.
OTHER INSTANT POT RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE
CAULIFLOWER SOUP
CREAMY BALSAMIC CHICKEN AND POTATOES
HONEY GARLIC CHICKEN
SWEET CORN CHICKEN SOUP
SWEET POTATO CHICKPEA CURRY
Instant Pot Garlic Herb Chicken and Rice
Ingredients
- 1.5 Cup Long Grain Basmati Rice
- 2 Cup Chicken Stock
- 1 tbsp Oil
- 2 tbsp Butter
- 1 large Onion
- 1.5 tbsp Garlic Minced
- 1.5 tbsp Mixed Herb (Oregano,Thyme,Parsley)
- ½ tspn Chili Powder (adjust as per taste)
- 1 tbsp Paprika
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
- Grated Parmesan to serve
To Season Chicken
- 5-6 Chicken Thighs With Bone
- ½ tspn Chili Powder adjust as per taste
- 1 tbsp Lemon Juice
- 1 tspn Salt
- ½ tspn Pepper
Instructions
- First measure rice. Wash it until the water runs clear. Add enough water to soak the rice and keep it aside. Don't soak rice for more than 15-20 minutes.
- Measure the Stock required for cooking rice and keep it warm(to fasten the cooking process).
- To the Chicken thighs add salt, pepper, chilli powder, lemon juice. Mix well. Keep aside while you are preparing other ingredients.
- Turn on the Instant Pot and put it in Saute Mode.
- When the Instant Pot is pre-heated, add Oil.
- Add seasoned Chicken Thighs to the pot and sear it 2-3 minutes on each side. Once they look light golden brown and crispy, remove and keep aside.
- Add butter to the pot, followed by chopped Onion. Saute until Onion looks soft and translucent.
- Add Chopped garlic and cook for another 30 seconds. Add herbs, Paprika, Chilli powder. Mix well.
- Drain any extra liquid and add soaked rice.
- Gently stir for 2-3 minutes roast rice. (This step is optional, You can directly skip to the next step.)
- Pour in warm stock or water. Season it with salt and pepper.
- Arrange seared Chicken thighs in a single layer. Add any extra liquid that would have come from Chicken thigh while resting.
- Switch Instant Pot to manual mode. Set the timer for 8 mins. And let the Instant Pot do its job.
- When the timer is off, let the pressure release naturally for 8-10 minutes. Then release pressure using back of a spoon manually.
- Once the pressure is released completely, open the lid and let it rest for another 10 minutes.
- Using a slotted spoon or fork separate rice grain gently.
- While serving sprinkle some parsley and parmesan cheese.
Video
Notes
INSTANT POT GARLIC HERB CHICKEN AND RICE (STEP BY STEP VIDEO RECIPE)
- While seasoning Chicken salt is already added and Stock also has some amount of salt. So adjust salt at the end accordingly.
- Adjust the amount of chilli powder as per your taste.
- Substitute Stock with a mix of stock and water.
- While you Saute, if the Pot gets heated, Off the Instant Pot for 1-2 minutes. The contained heat at the bottom should be enough to do the rest of the work.
To Avoid Burn Notification
To avoid burn notification, make sure you deglaze the inner pot after adding the stock. Once you add the stock, scrape the bottom of the pot to remove any stocky brown bits from the bottom.To Make Chicken and Rice in a traditional pressure Cooker on the stovetop
To make Chicken and Rice in the Pressure cooker, increase the amount of water to 3 cups. The steps would be the same. Once you close the lid, let the pressure build. Reduce flame after one whistle and let it be on low flame for 6-7 minutes. Switch off the flame and let the pressure release naturally.Nutrition
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I tried this tonight as my first dish in my new IP Ultra. I read the recipe and instructions about 6 times before hitting the kitchen.
I got the burn notice.
After the 2nd attempt, I added a little more broth and scraped the bottom. On the 3rd attempt, it did get to the cooking phase but immediately got the burn notice. I just let it sit since the pressure was built up a little.
I used chicken breast and Jasmine rice, if that makes a difference.
But I followed everything else. I rinsed and soaked the rice and deglazed when adding the stock.
The chicken was great. The rice was complete mush but the flavor was awesome.
Most of the time burn notice indicates that IP is heated for too long and doesn’t necessarily mean it has burnt at the bottom. I have been making different rice recipes using my IP and never got any burn notice. I am finding it hard to simulate and troubleshoot the issue. The rice was mushy because of the extra stock you have added.
would the time change for wild rice?
Yes. But as I have not tried myself, can’t tell you exactly how long.
Made this as my first Ninja Foodi PC recipie and it came out great! I used skinless boneless thighs and added a bag of frozen edamame after I added the rice. After letting it rest I sprinkled in some Italian cheese and ran the aircriper for 5 minutes. My family lived it but would have liked more garlic.
For the mixed herbs do you do 1.5 tbsp each
Of oregano, thyme and parsley?
No, it is in total. So roughly half tablespoon of each should work.
This was great! Made it last night exactly as the recipe says.
Ok so we just happened to stumble upon this recipe tonight and just made it in our 6qt instapot. We only had traditional white rice in the cupboard and used 3 huge leftover chicken thighs which fit perfectly (in a single layer) over the rice mixture. I followed the directions as noted and used the 2 cups of warmed chicken broth to 1 cup of rice (on bag ratio was 1:2) and it was spectacular! I even ended up doubling the mixture for the chicken because I mixed it all together vs sprinkling it and well, that pasty mess wasn’t going to be enough. Our kids loved it, even with the spices and it was truly a recipe to keep. I roasted whole carrots with 2TBS honey/2TBS olive oil (salt/pepper to taste) for 30min and they were done when the instapot was done. Yummy!
Thank you for trying the recipe.SO glad that your kids loved it. Honey Roasted carrot sounds like an amazing side for chicken and rice.
I just made this and agree with previous comments that the 2 cups of broth is too much. The basmati we have is good quality and I followed all rice directions exactly except without the roasting. I will try it with 1.5 cups next time and see if it’s not so mushy.
Made this tonight with boneless chicken breasts. The flavors were good but the measurements do seem off. I also ended up with way too much broth and had to scoop out about a cup, and then cook a few minutes longer. After that, it turned out pretty good and everyone was pleased.
I plan on making this soon, also with boneless chicken breast. Any tips from your experience? Do the recipe measurements need to be adjusted? Thanks in advance!
Many of my readers who have tried the recipe with Chicken Breast with successful result. Please let me know how did you like it?
How could I do this recipe in a crockpot?
Would you please break this recipe down for the 3 qt mini pot. Thank you
Sorry for replying late. I don’t have a 3 qt pot, so it’s little difficult to tell exactly. But my 6 qt was only half filled with this amount of rice and chicken.so I guess the same recipe would work in 3 qt too.
Your recioe looks great. But it days 2 cups broth not 21/2. So wondering if 2 cups is correct or not. The lower part says if your maki g rice add 3 c liquid. Please clarify asap. Maybe this is what is confusing people. Thank you dec 17
It is 2 cups broth for instant pot. In the recipe notes I have mentioned 3 cups of liquid for cooking in traditional pressure cooker on stovetop. Sorry for not being clear. I am updating it.
Can I make this with frozen chicken breast?
Yes, you can use frozen Chicken Breast.
I am a newbie to the wonderful instapot world. This was my 2md recipe to try. I was delicious. The rice was flavorful and the chicken was juicy. I will try to prepare ahead of time next go around cause I felt like I made 5 trips to the spice cabinet to grab something. I also got the burn notice but had read enough comments to know to let the pot release all the way and it was perfectly cooked. I will definitely make this again.
How long would you cook it for boneless skinless chicken thighs?
It would be the same time. Any less or more would impact the rice.
So mine came out soupy. I measure everything. Any ideas?
Are you sure the amount of water and rice ratio was right? I have so many readers who tried the recipe and it wasn’t an issue. Saying that the rice to water ratio depends on the quality and which kind of rice you have used.
I’ve made this a few times now! I don’t sauté the chicken before-hand, but otherwise follow the recipe exactly. The chicken and rice are always perfect, always delicious! Thank you so much!
This was really nice. It was the very first recipe I tried in my new instant pot. My rice was a bit clumpy though, not fluffy with separated grains. We didnt care about this though and will make it again. I will break up the two leftover chicken thighs, mix in with the leftover rice and use as a side to vegetable kebabs for dinner tomorrow.
I prepared this tonight, but when I opened the lid, there was so so much stock. I put on the 2.5 cups as per the recipe. I had to scoop out the stock (about 3/4 cups) and pop the lid back on for 3 mins on high. It’s there a chance that the 2.5 cups stock might be too much? There wasn’t enough rice either, so I’m just wondering if there is a typo in the recipe ie, 1.5 cups rice and 2.5 cups stock might be the other way around? The flavours are beautiful though.
This rice looks super. I need to cook a rice dish for about 18 people. I have an 8 qt. Do you think my pot would be large enough for that much rice – I won’t be adding the chicken as I just want the rice. Would the time be the same?
Can you double the recipe?
I made this with boneless skinless chicken thighs and got the “burn” notice twice. Thankfully the chicken and rice were done when it was checked the second time. I thought I had scraped the bottom of the pan but the rice was extra sticky after sautéing it. Might skip that optional step next time. This was delicious! Might also try brown rice next time.
Did you try with brown rice? If so, do you need to cook it longer? Thanks,
Amy
This is amazing.. lovely video too..,