Instant Pot 3-Ingredient Salsa Sausage Rice–this is a perfect recipe for college students, camping or just on a day when you don’t have a ton of time. With only 3 main ingredients it comes together super fast and it tastes really good!

Instant Pot 3-Ingredient Salsa Sausage Rice
This recipe was born when we didn’t pack any food to make dinner at our cabin so we had to make due with what we already had in the kitchen. As Greg rummaged through the kitchen he said, what do you think about rice with smoked sausage and salsa? I thought it sounded like a winner and it actually was! To make this recipe you’ll only need 3 main ingredients…rice, smoked sausage and salsa. If you want extras like a can of corn, a dollop of sour cream on top, or some cheese grated on top you can but it’s totally not necessary. It really is good as is!
Ingredients/Substitution Ideas
- Olive oil–or another type of oil like canola or vegetable oil
- A package of kielbasa–or smoked sausage, turkey sausage, andouille sausage etc.
- Water–or broth
- Converted rice–or long grain white or brown rice (see the green chart for how to adjust for time)
- Pace’s chunky salsa–or another brand that you like best. I used mild.

Steps
- Brown the sausage: Turn Instant Pot to sauté setting. When display says HOT drizzle in the oil. Add in the sausage and brown on each side for a minute or two, just enough time to get some color. This step is not necessary but it adds a lot of flavor and appeal to the dish.
- Deglaze: Pour in the water and scrape bottom of pot so that nothing is sticking. Turn off sauté setting.
- Layer in ingredients: Sprinkle in the rice and then spoon 1 cup of the salsa on top. Don’t stir (this helps prevent the burn error message).
- Pressure cook: Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 5 minutes. When time is up let the pot sit for 5 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid.
- Serve: Stir in the remaining ½ cup of salsa. Serve and enjoy!
Notes/Tips
- Some additions you could make to this dish are:
- A can of corn that has been drained
- A can of diced green chiles
- A can of black or pinto beans that has been drained
- Sprinkle each serving with cheese
- A dollop of sour cream on top of each serving
- This recipe is gluten-free and dairy-free (as long as you don’t use sour cream).
- I used my 6 quart Instant Pot*. You can also make this in a 3 or 8 quart pot.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container* in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Other recipes you can make with salsa are: Instant Pot Chicken Alfredo Salsa Pasta or Instant Pot Tender Salsa Beef.

5 More Instant Pot Rice Recipes…
Instant Pot Mexican Black Beans and Rice
The easiest and tastiest rice ever! Brown rice is cooked in flavorful salsa with garlic salt, a bay leaf and cumin. Canned black beans make this recipe very convenient. And my favorite part is a squeeze of lime juice and a dollop of sour cream on top. Make this as a meal or as a side dish.
Instant Pot Sour Cream Taco Rice Bake
A layered dish with taco meat, rice, sour cream, seasoned tomato sauce and cheddar cheese.
Instant Pot Hibachi Fried Rice
The yummiest fried rice similar to what you order at your favorite hibachi restaurant only it’s made at home in your Instant Pot!
Did you know you can filter the recipes on my website to search by meat type, IP or Crockpot, low carb, gluten free, etc.? Use the filter to find exactly what you are looking for.
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Instant Pot Salsa Sausage Rice
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes (plus 5 minute NPR)
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
Description
This is a perfect recipe for college students, camping or just on a day when you don’t have a ton of time. With only 3 main ingredients it comes together super fast and it tastes really good!
Ingredients
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1 (14 oz) package kielbasa or smoked sausage, sliced into quarter inch rounds
- 2 1/4 cups water (or broth)
- 1 1/2 cups of converted rice or long grain white rice
- 1 1/2 cup Pace’s chunky salsa
Instructions
- Turn Instant Pot to sauté setting. When display says HOT drizzle in the oil. Add in the sausage and brown on each side for a minute or two, just enough time to get some color.
- Pour in the water and scrape bottom of pot so that nothing is sticking. Turn off saute setting.
- Sprinkle in the rice and then spoon 1 cup of the salsa on top. Don’t stir.
- Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 5 minutes. When time is up let the pot sit for 5 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid.
- Stir in the remaining ½ cup of salsa. Serve and enjoy!
- Category: Sausage
- Method: Instant Pot
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Delicious. I added onions and garlic to the sauteeing sausage and then used chicken better than buillion instead of water. Also added canned corn and canned beans to make it a more complete meal. So yummy!
★★★★★
Your version sounds awesome and it isn’t even much harder! Love it.
This is not a comment about this recipe just a request to print the ingredients on the title page. I bet there are other people who are picky eaters or allergic to some ingredients that would like to save time not having to click through to the recipe only to find we can’t eat something in the recipe. I love that you are helping us learn the ends and outs of instant pot cooking and enjoy the recipes. Thank you for helping us!
Hi Cathy, do you mean listing the ingredients in the first sentence? I’m confused on what you mean by title page.
Hi, Karen. Sorry for the confusion. I just mean the screen that shows when a person clicks on the g-mail. I love getting your recipes but am spending so much time clicking through a lot of screens to see if it’s a recipe I can eat. Am looking for ways to cut back on social media time. Am old and don’t want to live the rest of my life clicking on unwanted screens. If it’s too much of a problem, I’ll just cut back to a weekly or monthly schedule instead of daily. I just thought others might find it helpful, also.
Oh gotcha! The only way I make $ off my blog is through people coming to my site. So I don’t give all the info in the emails or they won’t click into the site. Hope you understand!
If I use another type of rice (from the chart), should I use the time on the green chart instead of the five minutes listed in the recipe?
Yes that’s right