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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So good! A family favorite for sure. I also cut up celery and carrots and cook with the onion just to add a little more veggies to mine. Very good this way!
I cooked this last night. It is positively yummy. I definitely recommend it.
Hi! I did not read through all of the comments, but I just wanted to say that if you want to avoid the burn notice, just deglaze (thoroughly scrape) the bottom of the pan after you brown the chicken thighs. Not only do you avoid the burn notice, but all those flavorful bits at the bottom meld into to your rice! Delicious!
I declared after adding butter, rice, and chicken broth and still got the burn notice basically immediately. I love this recipe, but I think next time I’ll use a new inner pot after cooking chicken, place chicken on a rack and cook the rice in a bowl in top of the chicken. Not sure how else to avoid the burn notice.
Love this recipe – a go-to in our household!
I tried this dish and it was delicious!
Amazing! I got the burn notice too but towards the end and when it unsealed, everything was cooked perfectly. My family devoured it, including my toddler. Definitely adding it to our rotation! Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Love that your family enjoyed it, Riza. Cheers!
Probably my favorite instant pot meal ever! It’s one of my easy, go-to recipes. Always turns out so delicious!
Trying this in my Ninja Foodi hopefully it’s going to come out good! Wasn’t sure if I needed to substitute anything timing wise or liquid wise. We will see what happens smells delicious!!!
Hope the recipe worked in Ninja Foodie.
My family loved this recipe so much! Super easy and tasty! Thank you so much!
I have made this once before and it was delicious! However I struggled with the chicken skin sticking when browning.
I would order to make this in my Le Creuset Dutch oven. Do you know how I would need to adjust the recipe and cook times?
if the pot is not hot enough or if try to flip the chicken before it is slightly crispy, it will stick to the pot. Leave the skin side down undisturbed for a little longer for the skin to crisp up. And also do in small batches to avoid crowded pot.
I haven’t tried it on the stovetop. But I guess you will have to increase the rice to stock ratio. It should take somewhere around 15 minutes for the rice to cook.
Love your recipes and this is no exception. Praying that you and your family are safe and well. Blessings from Georgia USA❤️
Thank you very much Ally. By God’s blessing, we are safe and staying indoors. But there are lakhs of people who are out there suffering. Please keep them in your prayer.
While I haven’t eaten this yet, I’m currently stuck in the natural release process it smells amazing!! A helpful hint: scrape the bottom as the butter melts AND after you add the stock. Like on other person said, we used boneless chicken breasts. This recipe has the perfect seasonings for boneless breasts to still be flavorful! I’m excited to eat this and hopefully add it to the rotation of meals my son begs for!
DELICIOUS AND QUICK!! I enjoyed taking the time to prep and make this recipe..
Could you use wild rice? I love the nutty flavor of wild rice. How do you think it would effect timing?
I have not tried wild rice. So I can’t really be sure how the rest of the flavours would go with wild rice.
Can you substitute brown rice?
You can. But the rice to water ratio will be different. And also the cooking time. I can’t give you the details, as I haven’t tried it.
I made this with brown basmati (it’s what I had on hand) and it was delicious, but needed a bit of improvising. I used the same amount of liquid as the recipe called for and when I opened the pot the rice was undercooked and there was a lot of excess liquid (to be expected!!). I just switched it to sauté for maybe 5 min. The rice finished cooking but it was more of a creamy risotto-like texture than fluffy rice. I also added mushrooms. Still, incredible flavor!
Recipe is delicious. I used boneless chicken and it came out really flavorful. The only thing was that my rice came out really wet. Still yummy and I probably could have turned the saute function on after the rice was done and reduced the liquid but we were too hungry for that. Perhaps it was because I didn’t add warmed broth! Will definitely make again soon.
This was so good! I usually am not a huge fan of rice, but rhis rice is so flavorful I will eat it all alone. I add about 1-2 cups frozen mixed veggies so I don’t have to make any veggies for the side. This has officially been added to our dinner rotation!
I am trying this recipe right now! Got burn notice twice. Tried to double recipe. After the second time I took rice out scrapped bottom of IP and finished my rice on stovetop. Put chicken back in and hoping for the best!
Made this for dinner tonight and my husband I both loved it! Plenty left over for lunches as well. We will definitely make this again
Making my own version tonight. I am following all directions just changing up the spices to make cilantro and lime. I hope it turns out busy d good as you’re version.
I got the dreaded burn notice twice so I am finishing it on the stove. It smells delicious! Can’t wait to taste it!
Same thing happened to me. I finished it in the oven but it was still delicious!
Got burn notice too. It does smell good, on to plan b to get this to the dinner table 🙂
I’ve made this multiple times and am going to make it again tonight.. it’s so dang good… but is it ok if I double the rice and chicken broth? We always run out of rice and the kids are mad at me cause I’m the one that ate it .. 🙂
A big rice lover here as well. If you are doubling the rice I would suggest using an 8qrt Instant Pot. Doubling the measurement should work fine. Just that it will take a little longer to come to full pressure.Let me know if how it turned out 🙂
My instant pot has taken about 1.5hrs to make this.. the pressure release is going on 35 minutes.. oye
That’s strange.. Never happened to me. Looks like some issue with the IP.