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This Instant Pot chicken and rice is just absolutely dreamy. It’s rich and creamy but SO quick and easy to make. The whole family will love it, and it’s a true one-pot meal! With Parmesan cheese and a splash of lemon, this weeknight family dinner recipe is inspired by my favorite risotto recipe but with none of the hard work required!

Instant pot chicken and rice in a bowl

Why This Recipe Is So Good

  • Thick and creamy with melty Parmesan, a tang of lemon juice, and perfectly cooked chicken and rice, this recipe is the ultimate comfort food.
  • This chicken and rice is so rich and delicious, but so easy to make! With just a few steps in the Instant Pot, this is the perfect easy but filling meal. It’s absolutely one of my favorite Instant Pot chicken recipes!
  • This recipe only takes a handful of ingredients that you may already have in your house! We love how simple the ingredients are but how amazingly rich and cheesy this chicken and rice is.

Chef’s Tips

  • Parmesan cheese is optional for this recipe, but we definitely recommend it! Fresh Parm will make this taste more like risotto, but if you are out, you can use a shredded cheese, like cheddar.
  • We used plain white rice for this recipe. Brown rice is not recommended since it would take about 10 minutes longer, which would overcook the chicken.
  • You must follow the directions exactly for releasing the pressure. Leaving it too long will result in overcooked rice and a potentially gluey texture. Make sure you manually release pressure after 2 minutes of natural pressure release!
  • This recipe does not make a soupy or stewy chicken and rice, but a thick and creamy risotto-like recipe, along the lines of my best ever risotto recipe. If you’re looking for something that isn’t thick and creamy, this isn’t the recipe for you!
Two bowls of chicken and rice

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Instant pot chicken and rice in a bowl
Recipe By: Cheryl Malik
4.90 from 752 votes

Dreamy Instant Pot Chicken and Rice

Prep 15 minutes
Cook 25 minutes
Total 40 minutes
Inspired by risotto (but without all the hard work), this rich, creamy, and totally dreamy chicken and rice one-pot meal is sure to be a family favorite.
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4 servings

Equipment

  • Instant Pot

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ pounds chicken breasts about 2-3 breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 1 medium onion chopped
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 3-4 cups chicken broth see Notes
  • 1 ½ tablespoons lemon juice juice from approximately 1 lemon
  • 1 ½ cups long-grain white rice rinsed, see Notes
  • 1 cup fresh parmesan cheese shredded or grated
  • 1 ½ teaspoons salt more or less to taste
  • ¼ teaspoons black pepper more or less to taste

Instructions

  • Set Instant Pot to sauté mode. Add butter and let melt, then add garlic and onion. Sauté for 3-4 minutes.
  • Add chicken and stir. Cook until no longer translucent, about 5 minutes. Add in rice, broth, and lemon juice. Stir well, bringing chicken pieces to top. 
    Add in chicken broth and liquid ingredients to Instant Pot
  • Secure lid on pot and set valve to Sealing. Set to Manual High Pressure for 8 minutes.
  • When cook time is completed, let naturally release for 2 minutes, then carefully Quick Release remaining pressure. Stir well and season with parmesan, salt, and pepper to taste. Add a little more chicken broth, if desired, to reach desired consistency – optional.
  • If you find liquid still remaining on the top of your Instant Pot chicken and rice after cooking, stir well and turn on Sauté mode to fully incorporate.

Video

  • Chicken broth: Use 3 cups of chicken broth if you prefer a firmer rice with a more separate grain. Use 4 cups for a more risotto-inspired chicken and rice, with a soupier, more stew-like texture. The rice will still have a clear grain but will be nice and soft. My family and I prefer 4 cups; we like the risotto texture more than when made with 3 cups. However, if you want your version to have clear grains of rice and be less creamy, use 3 cups.
  • Rice: Be sure to use white rice for this recipe! Brown rice is not recommended since it would take about 10 minutes longer, which would overcook the chicken. Do not use instant or minute rice.
  • Cheese: Fresh Parmesan is ideal, but can sub shredded cheese.
  • If you end up with a “gluey” texture to your chicken and rice, it’s likely you’ve overcooked the recipe by leaving it to release pressure naturally for too long. This part is important! Give it just 2 minutes after the Instant pot beeps, then manually release pressure.
  • This recipe will be more like a risotto than a fried rice texture or rice pilaf.
  • To Clean Instant Pot: If any rice sticks to your Instant Pot, use my easy trick to clean it. Fill the Instant Pot up ¼-⅓ of the way with water and dish soap. Set Instant Pot to Sauté mode on High/Extra High heat and let liquid simmer. After a few minutes, the rice will loosen and clean up easily.

Approximate Information for One Serving

Serving Size: 1servingCalories: 676calProtein: 54gFat: 23gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 156mgSodium: 1957mgPotassium: 912mgTotal Carbs: 61gFiber: 1gNet Carbs: 60gVitamin A: 598IUVitamin C: 7mgCalcium: 347mgIron: 2mg
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.

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Cheryl Malik

In addition to being a certified health coach, certified yoga instructor, and mom of 3, Cheryl is also the recipe developer, editor-in-chief, food photographer, and passionate foodie behind 40 Aprons. Having spent the last 10+ years as a food blogger, she's become known for her flavorful recipes, detailed instructions, gorgeous photography, and down-to-earth approach to food and cooking in general.

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1,342 Comments

  2. Great recipe. First, I am not a cook.
    Second, I am a father of a 15, 10 and 8 year old. I made it for my family yesterday and they all loved it…which is a miracle. The kids all like different food and my wife is an EXCELLENT cook and eats my cooking because she loves me (not the food I make). They loved it so much that when one kid was eating the leftovers today, there was much discussion about who would get which bites…so I ended up making another batch just now. Thank you for a great easy recipe! We call it “grandmother’s hug” based on someone else’s comment.

    Reply

    1. John, we’re so glad this recipe worked out for your fam! 😉 This recipe’s a perfect example of a “grandmother’s hug”. 🙂5 stars

      Reply

    1. Hi! There’s actually not any can of chicken soup in this recipe. Do you mean the broth? If so, the broth is a pretty important component to this recipe. 🙂5 stars

      Reply

  4. Holy Cow!! Just made this with stuff on hand in the kitchen. Super easy, quick and delish! It came out just like you all said. I used 4 cups of broth too…The whole fam loved it. We’ll be making this again for sure!5 stars

    Reply

  5. Excellent! This recipe is really good and super easy and fast when you didn’t plan dinner and need something at the last minute. Plus, I always have the ingredients on hand. We only eat whole grains when at all possible and it’s almost impossible to overcook chicken in the IP so I subbed brown rice and cooked 15 mins with 5 mins NPR. Turned out great! I also added a huge bunch of kale at the end before adding the cheese, salt and pepper. I used 4 cups of broth but if I wasn’t adding veggies, I probably would use 3 cups as it was a bit too soupy for us at baseline. Will definitely make again!5 stars

    Reply

  6. I see many 5-star reviews here, to no surprise. This recipe is now my favorite go-to comfort-food. It’s like getting a hug from Grandma. I’ve not yet tried variations (except the one time I was short on parmesan so substituted finely grated cotija cheese – worked beautifully), because we loved it as is. I’m passing this on to my siblings, nieces and nephews who enjoy cooking. Thank you for posting!5 stars

    Reply

  7. THIS is my go-to recipe for chicken thighs-bone-in. Super easy and delicious. I use the rice for future meals as it makes a lot! LOVE this recipe. THANK YOU!

    Reply

  8. So I have an instant pot, begrudgingly. This was the first recipe I made. Used some great Parmigiano Reggiano, what a good base, but felt it lacked something, maybe mushrooms? I’m still not sold on the instant pot, but this recipe nailed it. Chicken texture was soft but not dry. Rice was as described, similar to risotto.5 stars

    Reply

  10. Hi, I want to make your recipe but only have chicken tenderloin can I use it instead of the breast? And will the cooking time change?
    Thanks! I am nueve on the InstaPot world.

    Reply

    1. Hi! The cooking time should remain the same, although we always recommend using a meat thermometer to ensure the chicken is at least 165° F. 🙂5 stars

      Reply

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