Instant pot Mexican chicken and rice is an easy one-pot meal that the whole family will love! Ready in minutes, this is a super quick dinner.
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You’ll Love This Mexican Chicken Instant Pot Recipe
Having a fast and easy to make dinner is always a win, especially when it tastes delicious. Check out this Mexican chicken and rice recipe that you can make in your instant pot for a super-fast dinner, perfect for those hectic nights!
Instant Pot Mexican Chicken Ingredients
- White rice
- Water
- Chicken tenders
- Salsa
- Cream cheese
- Salt
Mexican Chicken Instant Pot Substitutions
Something that is really great about this instant pot Mexican chicken is that you can make it as hot and spicy or as mild as you want. It’s incredibly easy to do either, just buy your favorite salsa of choice in your preferred heat range.
If spicy isn’t your thing and even the mild salsa puts a little too much heat on your tongue, don’t worry because the cream cheese and water in this recipe really help to tone it down, giving you the flavor without much of the heat!
How to make Instant Pot Mexican Chicken and Rice
- Place your frozen chicken tenders, salsa, and salt in the instant pot and then insert the trivet.
- Pour rice and water into an 8-inch cake pan or an instant pot insert made to stand on the trivet and then place it on the trivet.
- Cook on manual high pressure for 7 minutes and let it have a natural release for 4 minutes. Manually release the rest of the pressure.
- Remove the rice from the instant pot and add cream cheese to the chicken and salsa.
- Replace the lid and let it sit for a few minutes and then shred the chicken.
How to serve Instant Pot Salsa Chicken
My corn with bell peppers and bacon recipe would be an incredible pairing with this dish ut other ideas include tortilla chips and refried beans as this easy dish goes great with the easy side dishes.
Storing Instant Pot Mexican Chicken
Instant pot mexican chicken can be stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days. The chicken mixture can be frozen for up to 6 months.
Mexican Chicken and Rice Instant Pot FAQs
Yes, you can, and because they are thawed, you should reduce the cooking time from 7 minutes down to 4 minutes to prevent them from overcooking. This helps to put dinner on the plate even faster!
Generally, when chicken is rubbery, it means it's overcooked. However, when using the Instant Pot, rubbery chicken would indicate that is undercooked. Instant pot chicken is generally tender and easy to shred when it is finished cooking.
Yes. Overcooked chicken in the instant pot will be dry.
To a point. If it is cooked too long, it will become dry and chewy.
In this recipe, the chicken will cook for 7 minutes.
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Mexican Chicken and Rice Instant Pot Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups white rice
- 2 ¼ cups water
- 6 chicken tenders (frozen, see note)
- 2 cups salsa
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Place chicken tenders, salsa, and salt in the instant pot.
- Insert trivet. Pour rice and water into an 8-inch cake pan or an Instant Pot insert made to stand on the trivet. Place on a trivet.
- Cook on manual high pressure for 7 minutes. Let natural release for 4 minutes. Manually release the rest of the pressure.
- Remove rice from the instant pot. Add cream cheese to the chicken and salsa.
- Replace lid and let it sit for a few minutes. Shred the chicken.
Shannon
Alli, this looks so delicious. I've never seen the rice cooked over the "main" ingredients in the IP, gotta say that's genius!
Alli
Thank you, Shannon! I appreciate your kind comment. The rice cooked over the main dish was a result of me being too lazy to make them separate - ha! I was glad my experimenting worked!
Candace
Made this last evening....we loved it! The only issue I had was with the 8-inch cake pan. Once I got it in, there was very little room to get it back out. Can you tell me where you got your little insert for the rice? Thanks very much!
Cheers, Candace
Alli
So quick and easy and delicious!