Instant Pot Garlic Rice and Chicken-–brown rice is cooked with fresh garlic and tender bites of chicken. Parmesan cheese and asparagus (or broccoli) are stirred in to make a perfect one pot meal.
Get the SLOW COOKER Garlic Rice and Chicken recipe here
Instant Pot Garlic Rice and Chicken
This is a lovely one pot meal. The brown rice cooks perfectly in the Instant Pot with no worrying about water boiling over. The garlic and butter give a nice flavor to the rice. No cream soups are used but the rice almost as a creamy quality to it. The chicken thighs get fork tender. The asparagus is added after the chicken and rice are pressure cooked so that it is does not get overcooked and limp. This is just a solid dinner idea for a weeknight that has all the things (whole grain, vegetable, protein) but doesn’t require a ton of effort. My whole family agreed that this was a great dinner.
What if I want to use chicken breasts instead of chicken thighs? You can. I would use frozen chicken breasts that are thick. Because the brown rice uses a longer cooking time (22 minutes) the chicken thighs work really well because they don’t get overdone.
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Instant Pot Greek Chicken Lemon Rice Soup
Instant Pot Smoked Sausage with Parmesan and Orzo
Instant Pot Chicken Fajita Rice
What Pressure Cooker Did You Use?
To make Instant Pot Garlic Rice and Chicken I used my 6 quart Instant Pot Duo 60 7 in 1*. I love this Instant Pot because it has the yogurt making function which I use almost weekly. It has two pressure settings (high and low), and there are also little slots in the handles so that you can rest the lid there instead of putting it down on your counter-top.
Instant Pot Garlic Rice and Chicken
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 22 minutes (plus 10 minute NPR)
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
Brown rice is cooked with fresh garlic and tender bites of chicken. Parmesan cheese and asparagus (or broccoli) are stirred in to make a perfect one pot meal.
Ingredients
- 4 Tbsp butter
- 1 cup diced onion
- 1 Tbsp minced garlic
- 2 cups uncooked brown rice
- 2 1/4 cups chicken broth
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs (frozen is okay)
- 1/2 cup shredded or grated parmesan cheese
- 1 large bunch of asparagus, washed and cut into 1 inch pieces (see note)
Instructions
- Turn your Instant Pot to the saute setting. When the display says HOT add in the butter. Swirl the pot around so the butter melts. Add in the onion and saute for 4-5 minutes. Add in the minced garlic and stir for about 20 seconds. Add in the brown rice and stir to coat the rice in butter and onions. Stir in the chicken broth, basil, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Nestle the chicken on top of the rice.
- Cover the pot and secure the lid. Make sure the valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 22 minutes. When the time is up let the pot sit there for 10 minutes and then move the valve to venting. Remove the lid.
- Use tongs to remove the chicken and place it on a cutting board. Stir in the parmesan cheese and the asparagus. Cover the pot so the warm rice can “cook” the asparagus. Cut the chicken into pieces and add it back in. Salt and pepper to taste. When asparagus gets to your desired softness serve and enjoy. I like my asparagus with a little crispness so it didn’t take much time at all. Plus my asparagus spears were pretty skinny.
Notes
If you prefer you can use broccoli florets in the place of asparagus. Cut a head of broccoli into small florets so they can cook quickly. Follow the directions above as written. You can also use frozen broccoli. Run hot water over the broccoli before adding it into the pot.
If you prefer white meat over the dark thighs you can use thick chicken breasts. Because the rice needs to cook for 22 minutes the chicken can get a little overcooked. Using thick chicken breasts helps with that.
I used my 6 quart Instant Pot Duo 60 7 in 1*.
- Category: Chicken
- Method: Instant Pot
*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
I loved it. I used frozen chicken breast but it was still raw on some sides so I had to cook in the microwave and some of the rice got stuck to the pot. What can I do to fix it for next time?
★★★★
Were they gigantic frozen chicken breasts or frozen together in a pile? You’ll want to separate them so they aren’t all frozen together. And perhaps use smaller pieces of chicken. 22 minutes should be more than enough time for them to cook through.
Frozen in a pile. I’ll try to separate it next time!
★★★★★
I made this tonight with extra-thick chicken breasts from the local butcher shop and about 1/4 cup white rice added to the brown because I ran short. The chicken cooked perfectly, the little bit of white rice gave it a little creaminess, and the whole thing tasted great! I’m trying to eat healthier after the past year, thanks for such a tasty, healthy recipe!
★★★★★
Oh, I’m so glad to hear it! Thanks Allison!
What would you change if you used an 8qt instant pot?
I’d keep everything the same.
This burnt the rice before it even preheated… do not recommend!!
Hi – after reading comments, a question: If using chicken breasts (all I have), since they’re already thawed might it work best to use white rice so they wouldn’t dry out? And if so, still leave them whole during cooking – for Just 5 minutes? – remove and cut into pieces? I have both brown and white rice. Thanks!
Yes that would work well. What I would do is cup up the chicken into thinner fillets so they will cook in 5 minutes along with the rice. I would also use 2 cups rice and 2 1/2 cups broth.
Thanks, Karen. I’ll assume the thinner filets should still be removed just like the thick pieces are, then cut up and added back in. If not, yell, please.
Only having thawed chicken breasts, I filleted them in half and used organic, long grain white rice and an additional 1/4 cup of water, then cooked for 5 minutes instead of 22 – suggestions Karen made. Thawed, cold broccoli florets were added at the end. The chicken was a bit dry so I cut it into very small pieces. The flavor was excellent but too dry overall, so I added an additional cup of broth at the end. That did the trick – loosened ingredients up enough to look like the photo. (Different rice brands/types absorb differently.) If I made this again with thawed chicken/white rice, I wonder if it would be best to add that extra cup of liquid at the beginning or add as needed at the end? Though next time I’d likely use frozen chicken breasts and brown rice! Thanks for the yummy recipe.
★★★★★
My rice absorbed the broth and stuck to the bottom by the time the pressure cooker was able to pre-heat. Wondering if I missed a step because I was following the directions so closely. Ended up having to do the chicken in the oven. Any insight? This was my first instant pot meal, so not sure what happened!
Darn! I am not sure what happened! Do you have a 6 quart pot?
Can I use frozen chicken breasts?
yes that will work well, keep the same cooking time.
How long for frozen chicken breast?
Same time, 22 minutes.
If I wanted to use arborio rice, would that work? And if so, would cooking time or amount of other ingredients change? Thank you!
I bet you could do arborio! But the timing would change. Use 2 cups chicken broth and 1 cup of rice. Use a 5 minute pressure cook time with a 5-10 minute NPR. Since the cooking time is so much less you’ll need to cut your chicken into bite size pieces so that it can cook the same rate as the rice. You can also use chicken tenders.
Can you use spinach instead of asparagus? Thank you and we love this recipe!
★★★★★
Yes that would be great!
Girl this recipe is so good…I add mushrooms
★★★★★
I tried the mushrooms Ruth, loved it!
This was a winner!! I used a cup of frozen peas instead of asparagus and it was really good! I will make again!!
Good idea on the frozen peas! I will try that when asparagus is not in season.
Delicious! Just finished eating it!
I used chicken breasts which I cut into thin bite size pieces and white rice. I will make it again soon !!
★★★★★
Glad you liked it Karin!
How about basmati brown rice? That is the only brown rice I have & would love to use it. Water ratio & time to cook?? Thank you Karen.
Same ratio as brown but 24 minutes
Karen, Thanks for the great recipes. Now retired with the kids out of the house with families of their own, I often make full recipes and freeze portions for them when they don’t feel like cooking after a long day. I usually recommend they take the meal out to defrost in the refrigerator until they get home. My question is, will this recipe freeze well and if so, what is the best way of reheating it. I usually freeze meals in those disposable aluminum foil pans with foil lined cardboard lids which are then wrapped in freezer paper. If it is not too much trouble can you comment if your recipes are freezable for later eating? Thanks again.
Hi, I think the rice and chicken would freeze fine but I think the asparagus would get mushy and weird. You may want to just freeze some of the chicken and rice before you add in the asparagus. I would cover with foil and reheat in the oven…not sure how long but just until it’s warmed through. I don’t freeze a lot of recipes so it’s not my forte but I’ll do my best to help.
the white rice and raw chicken pieces only take 5 minutes to cook?
yes that’s right.
Made it tonight, with white rice, cooked it exactly how you said…it was delicious and my picky family loved it!!! will definitely make it again.
Thank you
Oh awesome Dana! Glad to know it worked well. Many others will probably want to do the same thing.
Can you use slow cooker ? How long in slow cooker?
here’s the slow cooker version: https://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/slow-cooker-garlic-rice-and-chicken/
I always cook with short grain brown rice, are the times and liquids the same as in long grain brown rice?
short grain brown rice: 1:1 rice to water ratio
24 minutes high pressure
Natural Pressure Release (11-18 minutes)
Hello,y wife does not like or will eat asparagus or broccoli so could I use fresh green beans instead? How will that effect times, temps. Etc. Al
Can I use chicken thighs with bones? If so, how much longer must I cook it?
Annette
yes you can. same time.
absolutely. keep same directions. perhaps steam them before adding them in at the end.
Can you use white rice?
I haven’t personally tried it. But you could. You’d need to use the 1 cup of rice to 1.5 cups broth ratio. Cut the chicken into bite size pieces. 5 minutes pressure cook time.
If I use white rice and frozen chicken what are the times and ratios?
1 cup rice to 1.5 cups water and the chicken must be cut into bite size pieces or else it won’t cook at the same rate as the rice.
If I use basmati rice how long is the cooking time?
basmati white rice?
Yes
I’d rinse rice and then 1 cup rice to 1.5 cup water ratio for 4 minutes plus a 10 minute natural pressure release.