Instant Pot 20 Minute Chicken Burrito Bowls
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Comes together in less than 10 min prep! The chicken is so tender and the flavors are so good.
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This is a burrito bowl recipe I keep coming back to again and again. And this was the first Instant Pot (IP) recipe I have 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 IP magic.
reasons to make instant pot 20 minute chicken burrito bowls
- All-in-one Instant Pot dinner. With the help of the Instant Pot, this is the best kind of dump-and-go dinner recipe. There’s minimal prep time 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, 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.
tips and tricks for success
- 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!
- White rice is ideal. Long-grain white rice such as jasmine or basmati rice is best. Brown rice will take too long to cook here.
- Make it spicy. Add in 1 diced jalapeno for a kick of heat!
- 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.
- Reheat with a splash of chicken stock. When reheating, add a splash of chicken broth or water.
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! To make this a dairy-free chicken burrito bowl, skip the cheese.
Yes! Skip the chicken, add an additional can of beans and use vegetable broth instead.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Instant Pot 20 Minute Chicken Burrito Bowls
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
Equipment
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.
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Attempted this recipe tonight, and we got the burn message on the pot twice. Followed the recipe exactly as written, any ideas what we can do to avoid this next time?
We finished the recipe in a pot on the stove and it’s delicious, but would like to give it another try in the instapot. Thank you!
I had the same problem others had – burn indicator came on. I wish I would’ve read all those reviews first so I’d have known this was a likely outcome. It is SUPER frustrating. Once the burn light strikes, you’re dead in the water because you have to clean out the bottom which means the rice is stirred in and the problem gets worse. I finished on the stove and my entire family loved the dinner and want it in our rotation. I’ll try once more in the IP meticulously following instructions and perhaps putting in a silicone trivet to help keep everything but the liquid on the bottom.
Worked great for me! I have a Breville fast slow pro as they don’t sell instant pots in Australia. Followed the instructions exactly (except omitted the chiles as my husband can’t handle spice). So convenient being able to just throw everything together so quickly and tasted great
Thanks for sharing with us!
Soooo good!! The ONLY change I made was to double the recipe, and substitute quinoa. PERFECT!!
My first attempt w/ an IP recipe. I have the 8qt LUX model. I doubled the recipe, except for the chicken which was just under 1.5x the original recipe. Everything other ingredient was doubled (I used 1 can of black beans and 1 can of pinto, and decided to use canned fire roasted corn instead of standard corn.) Beyond that, I followed the directions, making sure the rice was on top. I did lightly press the rice it to make sure it was wet, but I did not stir it. I did increase the cook time to 12 minutes, but I think I could have gotten away with 10.
I didn’t have any burn warnings, and it turned out delicious, no pot damage, burns, or any other nasty results. I must admit, I was a little freaked out by other reviewers, but it worked like a charm for me. The family loved it and we have plenty for leftovers, burritos and such. I recommend slicing some avocados and serving with lime wedges and sour cream in addition to the cilantro. It’s pretty mild, so I added my fav hot sauce. Good stuff.
I just made this recipe. Followed it to a tee and had no issues! Topped it with a bit of sour cream at the end and good to go.
Very tasty, but some of my rice didn’t cook. Why did it say not to stir in? I think that would have helped.
If you stir in the rice, it will burn.
I followed the recipe exactly and everything came out GREAT!! I think that next time I’m going to add some Serrano cause I like it spicy but I was happy that it turn out perfect after all the mixed “rice” reviews.
You’re my new favorite recipe site!
We love that!
I was really looking forward to this meal. The minute I had all of the ingredients in the pot I knew it wasn’t going to be enough liquid. Started with following the recipe exactly; burn message. Tried adding more liquid, same message. Decided to try stirring and setting on stew/meat. Burn. I’m so angry and don’t want to throw it away. It’s on my stove in a skillet, hopefully I can salvage this!
I made this.. substituted thigh meat for breast meat… and left out the cilantro.. my wife doesn’t like white chicken meat or cilantro.. .. she loved it.. will make again..
I tried this tonight and it burnt in the IP. I followed the recipe exactly…not sure what went wrong 🙁
Now this here is DAMN DELICIOUS! Thanks!!
Not sure what all of the others that complained about rice not being cooked or Burn warning did but I made this last night and it worked perfectly. First time user of the IP and it was great!
The recipe tasted fine, it was quick and easy to put together… But I gave it two stars because it wouldn’t work in my IP at all. I use a 6 QT DUO60 Instant Pot, and I followed the instructions exactly, but I kept getting a “burn” message no matter what. After troubleshooting my IP by adding more water, checking the valve, and even inserting a trivet for the chicken chunks, I realized that the rice in the recipe was what was causing the “burn” message. I ended up having to dump everything into a large pot and simmer it on the stove until everything was cooked. Very disappointing 🙁
We just bought the Crock-Pot Express and this was the first meal we made. Was easy and delicious. We love your recipes no matter how they are cooked.
Can chicken thighs be substituted for chicken breast?
Yes, of course.
My family really enjoyed this recipe! I just purchased an insta pot and this was the second meal I’ve made in it. I followed your recipe to the letter and it came out great! No rice problems here! Delicious and fast! Thanks! 🙂
Did exactly what the recipe called for. Got the burn error.. Added more liquid, still got the burn error. By this time the rice was mixed in and I was unable to cook it. Had to toss the whole thing and order pizza. I usually love the recipes on the site. This one is a big negative for me.
What’s essential is to have thin liquid on the bottom to avoid burn error. Counter-intuitive to the way we stove-top cook. So muchn depends on how liquidy the salsa is. And if you add more liquid? Gotta make sure the rice isn’t stirred……or dump it into a pan and stove top it.
What setting should be used? The meat/stew?
Select manual setting; adjust pressure to high, and set time for 10 minutes. Hope that helps, Lisa!
If I want to double or triple the recipe, would I need to increase the time?
Unfortunately, without further recipe testing, we cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment regarding substitutions and modifications.