Instant Pot Chicken and Brown Rice Soup is a quick, easy and healthy recipe that is ready from start to finish in about 30 minutes.
This post was first published in December 2020. It has been updated most recently as of October 2021.
This easy chicken and rice soup recipe is the perfect bowl of comfort. Just like my Basic Instant Pot Chili. Cooking soups and stews in the Instant Pot is such a lifesaver when you need a warm, hearty and healthy meal in a short amount of time.
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Jump to:
- Ingredients
- How to make Instant Pot Chicken and Brown Rice Soup
- Do you need to cook the chicken or the rice before you make the soup?
- Can I use frozen chicken breasts in the Instant Pot?
- Make a soup starter to prep ahead
- How to store leftover soup
- Recommended Tools
- Instant Pot Chicken and Brown Rice Soup
Ingredients
Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts – You could also use boneless skinless chicken thighs.
Onions, Celery, Carrots, Garlic – the standard aromatics you would use for any soup or stew base.
Dried Herbs – for this recipe I usually go with oregano and thyme. You can also go with Italian seasoning or add some rosemary to the mix. Whatever kind of flavors you like.
Brown Rice – I would only recommend using brown rice in this recipe as it has a similar cooking time in the Instant Pot to chicken. White rice will probably come out mushy.
Broth – I use bone broth or low sodium chicken broth. You could also use veggie broth if that’s what’s in your pantry. Use whatever you like, just check for seasoning as it will depend on the salt levels in the broth that you choose.
Olive Oil – a few tablespoons of olive oil for sautéing the veggies.
Fresh Parsley – this is totally optional but I like to stir some in after the soup is cooked for a pop of freshness and some color. If you don’d have it, skip it.
How to make Instant Pot Chicken and Brown Rice Soup
This recipe is so easy, you’ll pretty much have it memorized in no time. In the cold winter months, it will become part of your weekly meal plan. If you don’t own an Instant Pot yet, you need to get one now and live your best life.
- Start by chopping up the veggies. You’ll need an onion, a few carrots, a few ribs of celery and some garlic. This is the most labor intensive part.
- Make sure the stainless steel insert is in your Instant Pot. Hit the “sauté” button and let it get hot. Add in a bit of olive oil and the onion, carrots and celery and soften for a few minutes.
- Once the veggies are softened, add in the garlic, and seasonings and cook for another minute or two.
- Add in rice, raw chicken and broth. Close lid and make sure the valve is set to the “sealing” position and cook on manual for 12 minutes.
- I let it natural release for another 10 minutes and then carefully (always with a dishtowel or oven mitt) flip the valve to “venting” and let the rest of the pressure release.
- Open the lid carefully away from your face.
Do you need to cook the chicken or the rice before you make the soup?
Nope! That’s the best part about this recipe and why it’s so easy. Uncooked brown rice and chicken have very similar cooking times, making this the perfect combination for this soup. If you had to cook brown rice separately, that would add an additional 40 minutes to your prep. We don’t have time for that!
I strongly recommend sticking to brown rice in this recipe because white rice has a shorter cooking time and it may become overcooked and mushy. As the brown rice cooks, it releases starches that also give this soup a wonderfully creamy texture without adding any dairy!
Can I use frozen chicken breasts in the Instant Pot?
Yes! If you forgot to take your chicken out of the freezer, don’t fret. That’s right, you can use FROZEN chicken and it will come out just fine. Now if that isn’t the best thing ever, I don’t know what is. It might take the instant pot a bit longer to come to pressure if your chicken is frozen, but it will work just fine. Just make sure that the breasts are separated and not frozen together in a giant chunk.
Make a soup starter to prep ahead
A pro tip that I’ll share with you. Whenever I buy a bag of carrots and celery, I chop them all up and make “soup starters” for the freezer. A “soup starter” is lightly sautéed onion, carrot, celery and garlic, frozen in a cup or two of broth.
When it’s time to make soup, hit the sauté button on your Instant Pot, drop in the frozen soup starter block and when it’s thawed, add the rest of your ingredients and you’re good to go. Now you’ve saved even more time by not having to chop veggies! Genius.
How to store leftover soup
This soup freezes like a dream. I make a batch and then if we don’t eat it all, I use these Souper Cubes to freeze the leftovers in perfect one cup portions. Souper Cubes are probably my favorite meal prep tool for freezing soups, stews, broth and sauce in small amounts for when you just need a serving or two. They’re brilliant.
Recommended Tools
Instant Pot Chicken and Brown Rice Soup
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup chopped celery 2-3 ribs
- 1 cup chopped carrots 2 large or 3 medium
- 1 yellow or sweet onion
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ¾ cup brown rice
- 6 cups broth
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 2-3 tbsp olive oil
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Chop carrots into ¼ inch rounds. Chop celery into ¼ inch slices. Dice onion and mince garlic.
- Make sure the stainless steel insert is in your instant pot. Turn on the saute function and let it heat up for about 2 minutes. Add olive oil and let it heat for about a minute.
- Add onions, carrots and celery to the pot and cook for 2-3 minutes until softened. Add in garlic, dried herbs and a pinch of salt. Cook for another 2 minutes or so until garlic and herbs are fragrant.
- Add brown rice and stir. Place whole chicken breasts on top and pour in broth.
- Close instant pot and turn valve to "sealing".
- Set the instant pot to cook manually for 12 minutes on high pressure.
- Once cooking is complete, let the pressure release naturally for another 10 minutes. With a dish towel or oven mitt, carefully flip the valve to "venting" to release the remaining pressure.
- Carefully open the Instant Pot away from your face. The chicken will be very tender. Shred chicken with two forks right in the pot, stir in fresh parsley if using, check for seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste.
Kimberly
I just made this and hubby and I loved it. Only changes I made were taking out the chicken to shred and while it was out I turned up the soup to a simmer and added sliced mushrooms and a bag of baby spinach.
Walt
Can you double this with same cook time?
Jessica
Depending on the size Instant Pot you have, I think so. I have a 6 quart but an 8 quart should be able to accommodate a double batch!
Crowharp
*Unthawed* 😂🤣😂
:::Eng. Lit. Mom rolls in her grave:::
Great recipe, though! Thanks! 🙏🏻
Jessica
Hahaha, thank you for catching that. I corrected it. Glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Karen
I followed the recipe to the letter, my chicken was rubbery and the rice could have been cooked a tiny bit more.. great flavors !
Elizabeth Danielson
I made this tonight after a long work week and very cold weather. It was so quick to put together and absolutely delicious. It fed our family of 5 with a bit leftover. We will definitely make it again!
Laura Wolinsky
SO easy and delicious. I didn’t have regular brown rice so I used a wild rice and quinoa blend and it was amazing. Total hit with my fiancé as well- will be a go-to moving forward!
Amanda
This was so easy and delicious! I make soup almost weekly in the fall and winter, but haven’t tried making one in my Instant Pot yet. This one didn’t disappoint, the recipe was easy to follow, and it was quick enough for a weeknight dinner. There was also plenty left over for lunches for the next few days and it was just as good reheated.
Jacqueline
I’m an instant pot novice, and this recipe was easy to follow. I would use double the garlic next time, otherwise it was delicious. Don’t forget to salt and pepper to taste when the soup is finished !