If you like Thai food, you’ll love these Instant Pot Thai Chicken Rice Bowls. The best thing about them is that since they’re made in the Instant Pot
I love Thai food and I’m a big fan of one-pot meals so these Instant Pot Thai Chicken Rice Bowls are one of my favorite recipes. My kids love it too, but I have to keep the spices down when I make it for the family.
When I make a batch for my own lunches (this reheats great!), I kick up the hot sauce and spices a few notches. Feel free to adjust the seasonings to suit your own preferences.
How to Make Instant Pot Thai Chicken Rice Bowls
One of the best features of the Instant Pot
Step One – Brown the Chicken
Choose the saute function on your Instant Pot. Once the pot is hot, add the oil and then the chicken. (Note: I buy a 4-pack of chicken from the meat section at the store and it’s usually about 2 pounds.)
Sear it on both sides to seal in the moisture and give the breasts a nice brown coat.
Step Two – Prepare the Sauce
Next, you’ll create the secret sauce that makes this dish amazing. Combine all the ingredients in a liquid measuring cup.
Then, place the chicken in a glass pan and pour the sauce over the top.
Step Three – Pressure Cook
Add the rice to the Instant Pot (I use a long-grain rice like jasmine or basmati). If you use a different type of rice, refer to this guide to adjust the liquid and cooking time. Overall cooking time will be similar so chicken will be fully cooked with any of the rice methods.
Then add the chicken, including the marinade (just dump it out of the glass pan into the pot). Next, pour in the broth.
Set your Instant Pot to “Manual” (high pressure) and the time for 10 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally. Dinner’s ready! When you open the lid to your Instant Pot, you should see something like this:
But spooned into a bowl and topped with some shredded carrots, zucchini and peanuts, it’s transformed into this:
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Instant Pot Thai Chicken Rice Bowls Recipe
Ready to make these amazing Instant Pot Thai Chicken Rice Bowls? Here’s the recipe!
IMPORTANT NOTE: The original recipe (and the way I make it in my own home) called for 3 cups of broth. After MANY comments from people who have tried the recipe reporting that the consistency was too mushy, I’ve reduced the amount to 2 cups.
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 4 chicken breasts (about 2 lbs)
- 1 cup uncooked long-grain white rice
- 2 cups broth
- 1 Tablespoon peanut butter optional
- 1/2 cup sweet chili Thai sauce
- 3 Tablespoons soy sauce - to taste
- 1/2 Tablespoon fish sauce
- 1/2 Tablespoon ginger minced
- 1/2 Tablespoon garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha or hot sauce
- Cilantro optional garnish
- Shredded zucchini optional garnish
- Shredded carrots optional garnish
- Bean sprouts optional garnish
- Peanuts optional garnish
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Select the saute setting on your instant pot and add the olive oil.
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Sear the chicken breasts for 2-3 minutes on either side to seal in their juices. Remove to a glass baking dish (and turn off the instant pot).
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Mix the sweet chili Thai sauce, soy sauce, fish sauce, ginger, garlic, lime juice, sriracha (and peanut butter if you want to include it) together.
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Pour the sauce over the chicken breasts and stir to combine.
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Place the rice in your Instant Pot and add the chicken and sauce over top.
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Add the broth and secure the lid.
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Select the manual pressure setting (high) and set the timer to 10 minutes. Natural release.
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Shred the chicken with two forks and then mix with the rice before serving.
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Garnish with cilantro, shredded veggies and peanuts. Serve with extra soy sauce to taste.
Weight Watchers Freestyle = 7 Points Per Serving with 4 Servings, Skipping Peanut Butter
More Instant Pot Rice Bowl Recipes
If you liked these Instant Pot Thai Chicken Rice Bowls, you might enjoy some of these other all-in-one Instant Pot rice bowl recipes.
Instant Pot Chicken Taco Bowls
Instant Pot Hawaiian Chicken Bowls
Instant Pot Chicken Broccoli and Rice (a great recipe from my friend Ashley at I Don’t Have Time for That!)
More Instant Pot Resources
Love your Instant Pot? Find more Instant Pot Recipes here. And check out my favorite Instant Pot Hacks.
Do more with your Instant Pot with these helpful Instant Pot Accessories:
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Corinne Schmitt
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TP says
Total mush. Followed recipe with 2 cups broth. Good flavor, rice was a disaster.
Monique Landon says
Greetings!
I am making this recipe a second time because my husband and I liked it so much! Last time we steamed broccoli separately on the stovetop to incorporate as well. Is there a way I can cook the broccoli in the instant pot with the rest of the meal?
Corinne Schmitt says
Broccoli will be way overcooked if you add it with the other ingredients, but you can add it at the end and then return the lid to let it steam inside the pot on top of the other ingredients for a few minutes.
Cam says
I want to serve this with Coconut Rice….how much liquid should I leave out if that’s my plan?
Corinne Schmitt says
Hi Cam, I have never cooked coconut rice before so I hate to even guess. I’m sorry I don’t have a better answer for you!
Kyra says
Turned out amazing!!! Just would have doubled the rice and I only used 2 chicken breasts -a new family favourite ❤️
Melissa says
I see onions in one of the pictures, but see nothing about onions in the ingredient list. So when would you add those I ? Thanks 🙂
Corinne Schmitt says
You have a good eye! My original version included a step where I sauteed onions after the chicken and before adding the rice to the pot, but based on the number of people who had burn issues, I deleted the step. There’s so much flavor from the other ingredients, I never missed the sauteed onions, plus the dish is easier to prepare. To answer your question though, if you want to add them, sautee them until translucent after you’ve browned the chicken and before adding the rice and other ingredients.
Ann marie says
His recipe was delicious! I did not get the bURN warning. After browning chicken, you must clean out the bottom of pot thoroughly. If there is even a little bit of stuff in bottom of pot left from sautéing it browning, then you will get the burn warning. The only modification I made was using low sodium soy sauce and only using 2tbsp instead of 3.
Christina Benz says
This was excellent and really fast. My rice came out a bit gloppy but I think it was one off two things. My sweet chili sauce was a bit watery so it could have been that or that I forgot to move the valve to pressure for several minutes so it may have been over cooked. Regardless, I will make it again. The crispy veggies add a great crunch. May try adding crunchy won ton’s as a topping too.
Carey says
My family LOVES the taste of this recipe. I wanted to add a couple notes on our experiences.
-Remember that if you measure your rice with the measuring “cup” that comes with rice cookers (and I think even my instant pot came with one…I don’t know, somehow I have 3 of those clear plastic rice cups in my home..) make sure you measure your liquid/broth with those cups as well…because they are significantly smaller than standard size cups! Or use regular measuring cups for both the rice & liquid!
-My family likes a higher rice to chicken ratio. (In my 8 qt instant pot), We double the rice, liquid, & sauce ingredients, but keep the chicken amounts the same. However, this makes it so it gets the burn code. I let it keep cooking, and usually by the time the Instant Pot actually turns off because of the burn code, everything is cooked through (though I usually use chicken thighs, so it may cook quicker than with breasts. If I do breasts, I will probably cut them so they aren’t very thick)…and we get a burned layer of rice at the bottom that we avoid until it’s time to wash the pot…lol. The recipe tastes SO GOOD, and we really want that extra rice, so I put up with this!
– I borrowed the suggestion from another commenter about sautéing some stir-fry veggies in the pot, setting them aside, and adding them at the end. This is delicious & makes the meal feel healthier & more balanced to my family’s preferences.
-The cole-slaw (shredded cabbage & carrot) bagged mixes make a great easy crunchy topping. We also like any other greens we have on hand…a bit of arugula or spinach. And we spice our individual servings up with Thai dry spice mix we keep on hand.
Rachel says
This recipe sounds great but comes out as a flop! It burnt the bottom of the pot! It was a soupy mess too! Had to order in as everything was ruined! Something is definitely missing in this recipe!
Corinne Schmitt says
Hi Rachel, I’m sorry yours didn’t turn out. This is my most popular recipe and is many people’s favorite. I’m not sure went wrong with your batch, but I hate that your dinner was ruined. If you can give me more details (e.g. brands of the ingredients you used), it can guide me to add details to the recipe to help others avoid the same outcome.
Lara says
Burn burn burn! Followed the recipe exactly using 2 cups of broth in 8qt pot. When set to high pressure it started to burn the rice within minutes. We turned it off, moved the food, cleaned the pot of burnt stuff, added a lot more broth, and restarted. Another burn. We baked it in the end. Great flavors but something amiss.