Instant Pot Sunshine Chicken–chicken tenderloins and rice simmered in orange juice and seasoned with turmeric makes a bright yellow, sunny dish that has great flavor and takes only minutes to prepare.

Instant Pot Sunshine Chicken
This is a dump and go recipe that takes very little time but it’s super yummy. You’re going to love that it only has a 4 minute pressure cooking time. And you’re going to love the bright sunny yellow color of the chicken and rice (thanks to the orange juice and turmeric).
Ingredients/Substitution Ideas
- Orange juice–or pineapple juice
- Water–or broth
- Converted rice–or long grain white rice or jasmine rice
- Ground mustard
- Brown sugar
- Kosher salt–or sea salt
- Chicken tenderloins–or chicken breasts cut into strips the size of tenderloins
- Turmeric–or curry powder
- Black pepper–or white pepper
Instructions
- Pour orange juice and water into Instant Pot. Sprinkle in the rice. Sprinkle in the ground mustard, brown sugar and kosher salt. (I don’t stir it in because I want to prevent the burn error message).
- Season the chicken with turmeric, kosher salt and pepper and place into the pot on top of the rice.
- Pressure cook: Cover the Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 4 minutes. When time is up let pot sit for 5-10 minutes and then move valve to venting.
- Serve chicken and rice and top with chopped parsley, if desired.
Notes/Tips:
- I used my 6 quart Instant Pot Duo 60 7 in 1*, but you can also make this in your 8 or 3 quart pot.
- This dinner tastes great with steamed or roasted broccoli.
- What is converted rice? Converted rice is also called parboiled rice. Don’t confuse it with pre-cooked or minute rice. Parboiled rice has been processed in its husk by soaking, steaming, and drying. As a result, all the nutrients from the husk are absorbed into the grain before it’s removed. The starch content alters in the process, making cooked parboiled rice less sticky than regular white rice. The rice kernels aren’t clumpy and glued together instead they are more separated. I found a bag of parboiled rice at Walmart next to the normal long grain white rice. I often find the brand Uncle Ben’s in the orange box.
- Can I use another type of rice? Yes you can use long grain white rice, jasmine or basmati rice with the same cooking time.
- Can I use chicken breasts instead of tenders? Yes you can. Cut the chicken breasts across the grain into strips that are the same thickness as tenderloins (about an inch).
- Can I use chicken thighs instead of tenders? Yes you can. Cut the chicken thighs into bite size pieces.
- Can I use frozen chicken tenders? Yes you can. Use the same pressure cooking time.

More Instant Pot Chicken and Rice Recipes You’ll Love…
Instant Pot Mediterranean Chicken
Instant Pot Cock-A-Leekie Soup
Instant Pot Dude Ranch Chicken
Instant Pot Mexican Queso Chicken and Rice
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 Sunshine Chicken
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 4 minutes (plus 5 minute NPR)
- Total Time: 19 minutes
- Yield: 4–6 servings 1x
Description
Chicken tenderloins and rice simmered in orange juice and seasoned with turmeric makes a bright yellow, sunny dish that has great flavor and takes only minutes to prepare.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups orange juice
- 1 cup chicken broth (or water)
- 2 cups uncooked converted rice
- 1 1/2 tsp ground mustard
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenderloins
- 2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Pour orange juice and water into Instant Pot. Sprinkle in the rice. Sprinkle in the ground mustard, brown sugar and 1 teaspoon of kosher salt.
- Season the chicken with turmeric, ½ teaspoon of kosher salt and pepper and place into the pot on top of the rice.
- Cover the Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set the manual/pressure cook button to 4 minutes. When time is up let pot sit for 5-10 minutes and then move valve to venting.
- Serve chicken and rice and top with chopped parsley, if desired.
- 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.
Chicken was dry, I would use thighs next time. The rice was delicious!
★★★
Made this tonight for supper. loved the flavor of the rice but the chicken was dry. Would it be better to put the chicken in the liquid then sprinkle the rice around the chicken (like you do for your Chicken Julienne) and then sprinkle the seasonings over everything?
★★★★
Yes that might be a good solution!
Do you have a way to make it on a slow cooker instead? I don’t like how the chicken turns out in the instant pot.
I’m sorry I don’t have a slow cooker version of this particular recipe
Ok, ty for replying. 🙂
Is the ground mustard a dry mustard like Colemans?
Yes, it is 😉
You can find it in the spice aisle. It’s a powder.
I made this tonight with tenderloins and they came out very dry. I used basmati rice and it was awesome. I used the 4 minute cook time and natural pressure release for 10 minutes. I’m g reducing the release time to 5, but wasn’t sure if the rice would be less good. My guess, based on other Instant Pot recipes, is that I should use whole thighs and reduce the release time to around 7 minutes. Any thoughts?
I made this dish the other nite using thawed boneless chicken thighs cut into bite-sized pieces as recommended. I cooked it for 4 min. I used jasmine rice. The chicken turned out dry. So was wondering, since I cook for one, can I just cook the thighs whole? Would the cooking time remain the same? Or should I adjust that based on type of rice used? You were right the jasmine rice was clumpy. Tasteful but lumpy.
Can this be frozen? I am a single person who make meals and freezes serving sizes.
Yes. You can freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
How much would I increase the cooking time if I used boneless, skinless chicken thighs (fresh or frozen) instead of the tenderloins?
I would cut them into pieces and use the same cooking time
Can you cut up the chicken into bite size pieces?
Sure you could do that