Instant Pot 20 Minute Chicken Burrito Bowls
by Chungah
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These chicken burrito bowls comes together so quickly and easily in the Instant Pot! No fuss, no babysitting! And the chicken is so tender.
Featured Comment
This is a burrito bowl recipe I keep coming back to again and again. And this was the first Instant Pot (IP) recipe I ever tested that converted me to the pressure cooker fan club. With one pot, tender, juicy chicken, and perfectly cooked rice with the easiest clean up in the history of the world, I was completely hooked with the Instant Pot magic.
Why you’ll love these chicken burrito bowls
- All-in-one dinner. With the help of the 6-qt Instant Pot®, this is the best kind of dump-and-go dinner recipe. Also, there’s minimal prep here – no sautéing, no nothing. Throw everything right into the pressure cooker, set your time, and walk away. Dinner will be on the table in lightning fast speed, 20 minutes to be exact.
- Family-friendly. Burrito bowls are a guaranteed hit with the entire family, adding in as little or as many toppings as desired – there’s just a little bit of something for everyone to enjoy.
- Great for meal prep. This keeps for 2-3 days, ideal for making these ahead of time for meal prep and reheating as needed.
- Flexible, forgiving recipe. Most of the ingredients can easily be swapped out or omitted as needed. Don’t have black beans? Use pinto or kidney beans. Don’t have canned corn? Skip it or use frozen corn kernels. Want to use thighs over breasts? Give it a quick swap.
How to make chicken burrito bowls in the Instant Pot
- Combine all ingredients. Stir in the diced chicken breasts, chicken broth, and taco seasoning in a 6-qt Instant Pot®. Add the corn, black beans, salsa, and green chiles, stirring to combine.
- Add the rice. Without stirring, sprinkle the rice on top in an even layer, pressing the rice gently so it is slightly submerged into the liquid.
- Cook on high heat. Close the lid and pressure cook for 10 minutes, quick releasing and carefully opening the lid.
- Add the cheese. Stir in the cheese until melted.
- Serve. Serve warm, garnished with cilantro.
pro tip
Do not stir in the rice.
Adding in the rice at the very end without stirring will prevent the rice to sink to the bottom of the Instant Pot (this is what signals the dreaded burn notice). Layer and sprinkle the rice on top, patting down slightly to submerge. Do not stir. This will lead to burrito-goodness-flavored tender, fluffy rice.
what to serve with chicken burrito bowls
Tools For This Recipe
6-qt Instant Pot®
Instant Pot 20 Minute Chicken Burrito Bowls: Frequently Asked Questions
Black beans, pinto beans, or kidney beans are all great here.
Absolutely! Skip the cheese to make this a dairy-free chicken burrito bowl.
Yes! Skip the chicken, add an additional can of beans and use vegetable broth instead.
This typically means that some of the ingredients such as the rice or thick salsa has settled to the bottom of the pot, causing the Instant Pot to overheat. To prevent the burn notice for next time, always add the rice on top, gently patting it down.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Instant Pot 20 Minute Chicken Burrito Bowls
Video
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch chunks
- 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
- 1 (1.25-ounce) package taco seasoning
- 1 (15-ounce) can corn kernels, drained
- 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup salsa, homemade or store-bought
- 1 (4.5-ounce) can chopped green chiles
- 1 cup long-grain white rice
- 1 cup shredded Mexican blend cheese
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Instructions
- Add chicken, chicken broth and taco seasoning to a 6-qt Instant Pot® and gently toss to combine.
- Stir in corn, black beans, salsa and green chiles. Without stirring, add rice.
- Select manual setting; adjust pressure to high, and set time for 10 minutes. When finished cooking, quick-release pressure according to manufacturer’s directions. Stir in cheese until melted, about 1 minute.
- Serve immediately, garnished with cilantro, if desired.
Equipment
Notes
- Use chicken breast or thighs. Both will work beautifully here – breast will be leaner whereas thighs will have more fat, yielding more tender chicken than the former. Not a fan of chicken? Ground beef is also a great swap!
- Cut into uniform pieces. Cut the chicken breasts or thighs into even and equal 1-inch pieces to ensure even cooking throughout.
- Avoid using brown rice. Long-grain white rice such as jasmine or basmati rice is best. Brown rice will take too long to cook here.
- Never mix the rice. Sprinkle the rice on top in an even layer, patting it down slightly to absorb some of the liquid. Stirring in the rice will cause it to sink to the bottom, triggering the burn notice.
- Make it spicy. Add in 1 diced jalapeño for a kick of heat. For maximum heat, keep the inner white membranes and the seeds intact.
- Add your favorite toppings. Diced avocado, shredded Mexican blend cheese, cilantro, a squeeze of fresh lime juice, crispy tortilla strips or crushed tortilla chips (when you’re in a pinch) are all great options, adding just before serving.
- Reheat with a splash of chicken stock. When reheating, add a splash of chicken broth or water.
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
For those asking in the comment section, I used brown rice instead of white and pressure cooked on high for 24 min. I also used 2.5 cups of chicken broth. Came out amazing!!!
For those curious about how to stop BURN notices make sure you’re cleaning the sealant ring after each and every use!
We are trying to cook this and keep getting the burn notice. We are new to the instapot world. What are we doing wrong?
Thanks for helping the newbie.
I’ve read if there are tomatoes in the recipe put them in last, otherwise you get a burned reading all the time.
I added some smoked bacon as everything is better with bacon lol, but went down a storm with my hubby and we love it.
9/19 these are notes to me,
Husband loved, easy, next time just one c broth, used black rice, I would just put cheese on top when serving instead of mixing
10 minutes was good
Love the awesome recipes
Is this doable with quinoa instead of rice?
FYI-Someone else here (prior to your comment) said they did and it turned out excellent:)
If I use frozen chicken how long do I need to cook it
Sara, I recommend thawing the chicken prior to using.
Amazing! I doubled it and my family devoured it! Rice was perfectly cooked (I used basmati), and the chicken was delish. My kids have already asked when we can have it again.
Amazing flavor. Just finished making two batches. Is anyone’s rice on the harder side though?
Delicious, made a double batch (twice, not together), did not need to, it made a LOT! My 92 year old step dad wants to make this, any idea how to bake? He is not instant pot savvy…
What a great idea! But unfortunately, without having tried this myself, I cannot answer with certainty. But if you get a chance to try it, please let me know how it turns out! 🙂
I don’t typically review recipes but this one was so good, I had to share. Will be a regular in our home
A simple and delicious receipie when your craving a burrito bowl. I garnish the bowl with shredded lettuce and sour cream. A must try!
Just curious if anyone has used this recipe in a 3 qt instant pot or would I need to cut the recipe in half? It looks amazing!
Hi Jaden! When using a 3qt or “mini” Instant Pot, the general rule of thumb is to divide the recipe in half with the same cook time. But as always, please use your best judgment when making substitutions and modifications.
My family loved this with chicken so we tried it with beef and pork. Pork was a hit, but beef was not. I think that may have been because I used frozen meat. I’m going to try again, but use thawed meat and see. Any idea what the cooking time would be if I doubled the recipe?
What a great idea! But unfortunately, without having tried this myself, I cannot answer with certainty. But if you get a chance to try it, please let me know how it turns out! 🙂
Added the rice without stirring, per recipe. Didn’t get cooked. Dirth of fluid or misunderstood recipe? Added water, stirred, restarted & got the dreaded BURN error. Emptied pot and scraped out, then restarted for 3 min. okay now, but the tortillas my wife was frying are now tough. Sigh.
So delicious and so easy!!
Damn delicious! I have an 8qt instant pot. I used a can of chicken broth almost 2 cups. I used Kroger’s private selection restaurant style salsa. There was about 1/4 cup left in container so I added that too. Everything else the exact as recipe. Same cook time and it was wonderful! Sprinkled the rice on top evenly and it’s cooked perfect.
This was so quick and easy and so delicious. I will definitely add it to my favorites list.
One question, can leftovers be frozen? We are a family of two, but this is plenty for a family. If not frozen and if I halved the recipe, what cook time would I use?
Thank you for this recipe!
Freezing sounds like an amazing idea but unfortunately, I cannot answer this with certainty as I have never tried freezing this myself. Please use your best judgment for freezing and reheating.
It freezes great. I’ve been making this with beef for years and I make a huge amount so I can freeze for easy leftover dinners. So I can’t imagine switching chicken for beef would alter the ‘freezability’ of it.
Cheers
Do you double the recipe? If so, how does it alter the cooking times?
I would like to know this as well. Can the recipe be doubled?
It was delicious! For people asking about doubling… I doubled the recipe, increased the broth to 3 cups, used brown rice and set the instant pot for 22 minutes and it worked out great!
I’ve made this several times and just love it! I moved to a higher altitude and am finding I have to make serious adjustments for Instant Pot recipes. For me this one needs more liquid and 18 minutes. I squeezed some lime on top this time…YUM!