This Instant Pot Chicken and Rice is super creamy and delicious – no soup can required! Just add frozen veggies, sour cream and cheese.
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Ingredients in chicken and rice
The ingredient list may seem a bit long, but don’t let it intimidate you. There’s very little prep involved! Aside from the chicken, it’s really just basic pantry ingredients, plus some sour cream and cheddar cheese.
- Canola oil – If you want to use a different oil, any neutral flavour oil will be perfect.
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts – Using chicken breast cuts down on the fat, but if you prefer dark meat, boneless skinless thighs can be used.
- Yellow onion – If all you have on hand are white or red onion, either of those will work just as well.
- Fresh garlic cloves, minced – I prefer the flavour of fresh garlic cloves. For a little more convenience, you can use prepared minced garlic.
- Frozen mixed vegetables – I use a blend of carrots, peas, and corn. Feel free to use whatever you like – frozen green beans or zucchini are also delicious in chicken and rice casserole!
- Dijon mustard
- Kosher salt & pepper
- Long grain white rice
- Chicken broth – Obviously, chicken broth or stock will give you the best chicken flavour. Veggie stock will be fine if that’s all you have on hand.
- Sour cream – Any variety will work; full fat, light, or even non-fat sour cream.
- Cheddar cheese, grated – Grating a block of cheese yourself is going to give you the creamiest chicken and rice. Packages of shredded cheese have an anti-caking agent in them to prevent the cheese from clumping together. Unfortunately, that prevents the cheese from melting well.
- Parsley, for garnish (optional)
How to make Instant Pot chicken and rice
- Gather and prep all of your ingredients.
- Add everything except for the frozen vegetables, sour cream, cheese and parsley to the Instant Pot. Add them in the order they are listed in the recipe card. To be sure that the rice cooks completely, push it underneath the liquid as much as possible.
Place the lid on your Instant Pot and set the valve to the “seal” position. Press the pressure cook button and set it to high power, then cook for 3 minutes.
- When the cook time ends, do a quick release of the pressure on the Instant Pot by flicking the switch at the top with a spoon. When the pressure gauge drops, the lid will open easily. Stir in the sour cream and cheese.
- Add the frozen vegetables, then set the Instant Pot to saute for a couple of minutes. Stir everything to cobmine so the veggies can warm through.
- Garnish with fresh parsley and serve!
- If you’ll be using this recipe for meal prep, portion some of it into meal prep containers.
Ingredient substitutions
There are a few substitutions you can make with this recipe. Here they are listed below:
Chicken – Instead of chicken breasts, you can use boneless skinless chicken thighs.
Sour cream – You can use Greek yogurt instead of sour cream, but the taste will be slightly different.
Frozen veggies – Instead of using a blend of frozen veggies, you could add fresh carrots, peas, corn and green beans to the Instant Pot along with the other ingredients, or just use whichever of those veggies you have on hand.
Cheese – Instead of cheddar cheese, you can use any variety of cheese that you’d like. I do prefer sharp cheddar to bring more flavour to the rice but feel free to use your preference.
Making it in a slow cooker
For instructions to make the meal in a slow cooker, see my Crock Pot Chicken and Rice recipe post. The recipe is identical, and the meal is equally delicious. The only difference is the method you’ll use to make it.
More recipe notes
Can I use frozen chicken?
Yes, you can absolutely use frozen chicken to make this recipe. However, it will require an additional 5 to 6 minutes of cooking time.
Using different types of rice
If you want to use a different type of rice, be sure to check the package for cooking instructions first.
Short grain rice varieties may not work well because they require a different rice to liquid ratio.
Brown rice takes longer to cook than white, which may cause the chicken to over cook and become too dry.
As a result, you may be better off sticking with white rice. Or, cook your rice separately while the rest of the meal cooks in the Instant Pot. When the IP is finished cooking, you can stir in your cooked rice.
Storing and reheating instructions
Store any leftovers in a covered container in the refrigerator. They will stay fresh for about 5 days. You can reheat chicken and rice in the microwave for 2-3 minutes (sprinkle some water overtop first to avoid drying out the rice), or you can reheat in a pot on the stove top.
Freezing chicken rice casserole
Instant Pot chicken and rice freezes beautifully! As a result, it’s a great meal prep dinner for a busy night. To freeze the casserole, make the recipe as shown below.
When it finishes cooking, portion it into freezer-safe storage containers. Leave them out to cool to room temperature, then seal them up and freeze for up to 3 months.
For best results, before reheating, transfer the frozen dinners into a refrigerator to thaw overnight. You can reheat right from frozen, but you will need to sprinkle water overtop and then stir 1-2 times partway through. You can reheat from frozen for 6-8 minutes in the microwave.
More Instant Pot rice recipes
Meal prep tools for this recipe
- Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on turning this chicken and rice into your weekly lunches
- I get all my free-range chicken from Butcher Box, conveniently delivered to me frozen
- Use these Ziploc bag holders if you’re marinating the chicken then freezing it
- Freeze this recipe in glass microwave-safe bowls up to 3 months
Instant Pot resources
If you’d like some more help with your Instant Pot, then you’ll love my free resources! Sign up for free below when you get my weekly newsletter:
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Instant Pot Chicken and Rice
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp canola oil
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts, diced
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1/2 tsp each salt & pepper
- 1 cup long grain white rice
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 cup cheddar cheese, grated
- 2 cups frozen vegetables defrosted
- Parsley, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to Instant Pot in the order in which they are listed, except for sour cream, cheese, frozen veggies and parsley, pushing rice underneath the liquid as much as possible.
- Place lid on Instant Pot and make sure valve is set to seal. Press the pressure cook button and set to high, then cook for 3 minutes. Instant Pot will take about 5-10 minutes to come to pressure then pressure cook for 3 minutes.
- Do a quick release of the pressure on the Instant Pot by flicking the switch at the top with a spoon. Open the lid when pressure gauge has dropped and the lid opens easily. Meanwhile, microwave frozen veggies for 2-3 minutes until defrosted.
- Stir in sour cream and cheese, mixing well, then stir in veggies, garnishing with parsley (optional). Serve and enjoy!
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