Chicken and rice casserole is as American as hot dogs and burgers. We all grew up eating it but know better now! While a hearty piping-hot casserole may be delicious comfort food (or not, depending on your mother’s recipe), they are notorious for being high-calorie and made with condensed soup from a can.
This healthier version of chicken and rice keeps all of the classic flavors while leaving out the soupy processed ingredients. It’s also a snap to make thanks to the use of an Instant Pot, my favorite kitchen tool these days.
Here’s how to make the best homemade chicken and rice you’ve ever had, with the least amount of time and effort!
Chicken and Rice in the Instant Pot
Pressure cooking is actually a healthy way to cook and the Instant Pot makes it safer and easier than the pressure cookers of past generations. My Instant Pot has a wide variety of settings for meats, soups, veggies, and even desserts. You can even make yogurt in an Instant Pot! There’s no guesswork, just push the button labeled for what you’re making and it does its thing.
If you don’t have an Instant Pot yet, here’s my review of the different models out there as well as some favorite starter recipes.
But Wait… Grains?
It’s true… I’m not a fan of a diet full of grains as they will never be as nutritious as a diet full of veggies. I also avoided all grains for a long time and even wrote a grain-free cookbook while healing my gut due to my autoimmune condition. Still, as the research evolves I’m convinced variety and paying attention to how your body feels on certain foods is more important than strict food rules. Kids also need more carbohydrates than adults do, so I keep white rice, sweet potatoes, and other starchy veggies in our meal rotation so everything stays balanced.
If you are avoiding grains (or don’t have an Instant Pot), here is a grain-free and oven-baked Chicken and Broccoli Casserole with broccoli and cauliflower in place of rice.
Quick and Healthy Casseroles
Looking for more one-pan thirty-minute meals for a family? Here are some classics, reinvented to use only real-food ingredients:
- Cheesy Tuna Casserole Recipe (Kid Friendly & Gluten Free)
- Easy Breezy (and Cheesy) Breakfast Casserole Recipe
- Sweet Potato Casserole
- Green Bean Casserole
- Moussaka Casserole
Chicken and Rice Recipe (Instant Pot)
Ingredients
- 4 large chicken breasts
- 1 bunch fresh parsley
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 2 TBSP olive oil
- 1 onion (diced)
- 2 cups white rice
- 3 carrots (grated)
- 3 stalks celery (grated)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp basil leaf (dried)
Instructions
- Turn Instant Pot on "Saute."
- Peel onion and rough chop. Add to IP with olive oil and saute. While cooking...
- Grate the carrot and dice the celery and add to IP.
- Add rice, salt, pepper, garlic and basil and continue to saute.
- Blend parsley with bone broth and pour into IP.
- Add chicken and turn off saute function.
- Close the lid and turn the lid to sealing. Turn on manual for 8 minutes.
- When time is up, let pressure release naturally for 10 minutes and release the pressure manually.
- Shred the chicken and serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
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How do you make chicken and rice? Any favorite family-pleasing meals to share? I’d love to hear what you’re putting on the table tonight!
Cloth Diapers 101: How to Get Started
Do you make the rice first? Or cook it before adding it?
Nope. Add it dry and everything cooks together in the pressure cooker.
I use and love a ton of your recipes, food and home, but this one failed. The rice burned at the bottom, the instant pot gave a “burn” message with no beeping so we had no idea anything was wrong or for how long until walking over to check on it when it should have been done. Breasts didn’t finish cooking, rice did, other than the burning on bottom, and we had to turn it off, clean it out and put the chicken back in and heat the rice on the stove because of the undercooked meat. First time ever adding rice with meat, and last. I’m sick, hubby made it and assured me he followed directions to the letter. He uses the pot a lot, he’s no newbie. So disappointed.
Haven’t tried this yet, but would like to – just purchased an IP! Could wild rice be substituted for white rice? I’m grain free, and wild rice is a grass seed, not a grain, so would like to try it with this. Would the cooking time need to be increased if it is substituted?
I tried this recipe but kept getting the burn notice.
Did you soak the rice first?
I was so excited about this dish but the chicken was very undercooked at 8 minutes. I tried to cook another 2 minutes, but got a burn warning. What did I do wrong?
What about slow cooker? Do you add everything without cooking at the same time in there amd how long? I thought somewhere I saw a slow cooker version of this at one point