Instant pot Spanish rice is a quick and easy way to infuse authentic flavor into boring ‘ole white rice. Create restaurant quality rice right in your own kitchen in just a few simple steps! Made with pantry staple ingredients, you can whip up this delicious and healthy side dish any day of the week.
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📋 About the Recipe
The days of soupy undercooked rice or mushy sticky overcooked rice are long gone! By following this recipe, you let the instant pot (or your favorite pressure cooker) do all the hard work for you!
Just throw some onion, garlic, and spices into the pot along with some chicken broth, and you’ll get perfectly cooked, flavorful rice every time.
Spanish rice is the best addition to your taco nights, nacho bars, burrito extravaganza, or simply just as a side to your weeknight dinner.
Make it as a side dish to fajita tacos or shredded chicken taco lettuce wraps.
Or, serve it under grilled chicken topped with mango salsa and black beans, and you’ll have a simple healthy dinner made in a matter of minutes.
Plus, with the sneaky addition of peas and corn, you’ll get some extra vegetables in your kids’ diet without them even knowing!
🛒 Ingredients
A few notes about the ingredients:
- This recipe was tested with basmati rice, which is a long grain rice. If you use jasmine rice or another shorter grain of rice, your rice may turn out softer or get a little mushy.
- If you want to use brown rice instead, pressure cook on high for 15 minutes with a 5 minute natural release before turning the valve to “venting.”
- If you prefer a vegetarian or vegan rice, you can use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
- If you like spice, you can add a few dashes of cayenne pepper.
📓 Instructions
Prepare all of your ingredients so that they’re ready to go into the instant pot when it’s their turn.
Put the instant pot on the saute setting. Then, add olive oil, onions, and rice into the pot.
Saute the onions and rice for about 5 minutes until the onions become soft and translucent. Be sure to stir so neither the rice or onions stick or burn.
Turn off the saute setting. Then add in all of the spices, salt and pepper, and garlic. Stir for about a minute to allow the garlic to cook.
Add in the chicken broth, then the tomato sauce. Stir again. (If anything is stuck to the bottom of the pot, be sure to scrape it up so you don’t get a burn warning in the middle of cooking.)
Add the lid on top of the pot. Pressure cook on high for 4 minutes with the valve in the “sealing” position. Once the timer goes off, flip the valve to “venting” and allow it do a manual release.
Once all of the pressure is out of the pot, remove the lid. Stir in the frozen peas and corn. The peas will defrost in the hot rice.
Serve rice alongside your favorite Mexican dish: nachos, fajitas, tacos, burritos, enchiladas, etc. etc. Or keep it simple and serve it on the side of your favorite proteins: beans, chicken, shrimp, or steak.
🔍 FAQs
Yes! This recipe can definitely be converted for stovetop cooking in a large pot. Adjust the chicken broth to equal the amount of water listed in the cooking instructions on the back of your rice bag or container. (It is typically a 2 to 1 ratio, so if you’re cooking 2 cups of rice, you’ll need 4 cups of broth.) Follow the steps as they are written in this recipe, with the addition of the extra broth, and then cover and cook the rice for the time on the package instructions, often about 20 minutes or so.
Often, Spanish rice and Mexican rice are used to describe the same dish. However, there are some slight differences between the two. Spanish rice is known to be a bit firmer and heartier than Mexcan rice, which is softer. Additionally, Mexican rice tends to use canned tomatoes or diced fresh tomatoes for additional flavoring, whereas Spanish rice is made with turmeric or saffron for an added authentic touch.
Be careful not to overcook or add too much additional liquid to the rice to help prevent it from getting sticky or mushy. It is also important to pay attention to the type of rice used in the recipe’s ingredient list. Not all white rice cooks the same. This recipe recommends that you use long grain white rice for best results.
If your rice turns out crunchy, chances are there wasn’t enough liquid added to the pot or that the liquid you did add evaporated too quickly. If this happens, add a bit more water and continue to cook the rice until it softens. Just make sure you scrape the bottom of the pot so that nothing sticks and burns.
Spanish rice is a well suited companion to nearly any dish! Serve it with simple grilled chicken or steak, or spoon it on the side of nachos, homemade tortilla chips, fajita tacos, or add it to the bottom of your favorite burrito bowl!
💭 One More Tip
Instant pot Spanish rice keeps well in the refrigerator for about 5 days. It’s perfect as a dinner side dish, an addition to your lunch, or even as a mid-afternoon snack!
🍴 Related Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Instant Pot Spanish Rice
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cups basmati or long grain rice
- ½ a yellow onion chopped
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon oregano
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cups chicken broth or mix of broth and water
- 1 cup tomato sauce (or 8 oz can)
- 1 cup frozen peas optional
- 1 cup canned corn, rinsed and drained optional
Instructions
- Prepare all of your ingredients so that they’re ready to go into the instant pot when it’s their turn.
- Put the instant pot on the sauté setting. Then, add olive oil, onions, and rice into the pot.
- Sauté the onions and rice for about 5 minutes until the onions become soft and translucent. Be sure to stir so neither the rice or onions stick or burn.
- Turn off the sauté setting. Then add in all of the spices, salt and pepper, and garlic. Stir for about a minute to allow the garlic to cook.
- Add in the chicken broth, then the tomato sauce. Stir again. (If anything is stuck to the bottom of the pot, be sure to scrape it up so you don’t get a burn warning in the middle of cooking.)
- Place the lid on top of the pot. Pressure cook on high for 4 minutes with the valve in the “sealing” position. Once the timer goes off, flip the valve to “venting” and allow it do a manual release.
- Once all of the pressure is out of the pot, remove the lid. Stir in the frozen peas and corn. The peas will defrost in the hot rice.
- Spanish rice is a well suited companion to nearly any dish! Serve it with simple grilled chicken or steak, or spoon it on the side of nachos, homemade tortilla chips, and fajita tacos, or add it to the bottom of your favorite burrito bowl!
- This rice keeps well in the refrigerator for about 5 days. It’s perfect as a dinner side dish, an addition to your lunch, or even as a mid-afternoon snack!
Notes
- This recipe was tested with basmati rice, which is a long grain rice. If you use jasmine rice or another shorter grain of rice, your rice may turn out softer or get a little mushy.
- If you want to use brown rice instead, pressure cook on high for 15 minutes with a 5 minute natural release before turning the valve to “venting.”
- If you prefer a vegetarian or vegan rice, you can use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
- If you like spice, you can add a few dashes of cayenne pepper.
- This recipe can definitely be converted for stovetop cooking in a large pot. Adjust the chicken broth to equal the amount of water listed in the cooking instructions on the back of your rice bag or container. (It is typically a 2 to 1 ratio, so if you’re cooking 2 cups of rice, you’ll need 4 cups of broth.) Follow the steps as they are written in this recipe, with the addition of the extra broth, and then cover and cook the rice for the time on the package instructions, often about 20 minutes or so.
Nutrition
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