Instant Pot Spanish Rice
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This Instant Pot Spanish Rice is incredibly flavorful and ready in just 25 minutes! It’s made using broth, tomato sauce, and spices and is the perfect side dish to any meal.
Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by USA Rice and The Feedfeed (links). As always, all opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting brands that help run this site!
Instant Pot Spanish rice is the ultimate side dish to any meal. While you can absolutely eat it as-is, it’s really delicious alongside these tofu enchiladas or in this taco salad.
As with all of my USA Rice recipes, this Spanish rice was made with U.S.-grown rice because of its flavor and texture. I used long grain white rice, which works perfectly for this recipe.
Why you’ll love this recipe
- It’s a super flavorful side dish and an exciting way to eat rice
- It can be made in the Instant Pot OR over the stovetop
Ingredient notes:
Rice – the recipe was tested using U.S.-grown long grain white rice, so that’s what I recommend using
Oil – I like using olive oil or avocado oil to coat the bottom of the Instant Pot, which will prevent the rice from sticking to it
Broth – vegetable or chicken
Tomato sauce – I definitely recommend using canned tomato sauce, and going for a brand that has some other flavors in their sauce, like garlic and/or onion
Step-by-step instructions
Step 1: Rinse the rice. Rinsing rice removes the starch from it and only takes a few seconds. Simply pour the rice into a mesh sieve or strainer and run water over it for 10 seconds or so.
Step 2: Add oil, butter, rice, and garlic to the Instant Pot. Adding oil to the bottom will prevent the rice from sticking, but the butter helps to add a nice flavor to the whole dish. So, add butter, along with the rice and garlic and sauté for 1 minute.
Step 3: Add all other ingredients. Pour everything EXCEPT the cilantro into the pot, then close the lid and make sure the knob on top is set to “seal”.
Step 4: Pressure cook for 4 minutes.
Step 5: Natural release for 10 minutes. Then, remove the lid and fluff the rice with a fork. You might notice the tomato sauce sitting on top, and that’s ok! Simply stir and fluff the rice until everything is combined. Last, stir in the chopped cilantro.
FAQs and Tips
Substitutions:
- Butter: if you want to omit the butter, simply add a total of 3 tbsp of oil instead
- Broth: you can use vegetable or chicken–whatever you have on hand
Can I use jarred sauce?
I wouldn’t. Most canned sauces use very simple ingredients, which is what we want, and many jarred sauces have spices like oregano and basil, which we want to avoid since this is Spanish rice and not an Italian dish.
How should I store this, and how long will it last?
Store rice in an air-tight container in the refrigerator. It’ll last for up to a week, though it tastes best if consumed within 48 hours.
Related recipes
If you made this recipe, be sure to leave a comment and star rating below. Thanks!
Instant Pot Spanish Rice
Video
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups long grain white rice
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 cups broth, vegetable or chicken
- 1 1/4 cup canned tomato sauce
- 3 tbsp cilantro, chopped
Instructions
instant pot:
- Pour rice into a mesh sieve and rinse for 30 seconds or until the water is no longer cloudy.
- Press "sauté" on your Instant Pot and set it for 3 minutes (it will take about a minute to warm up). Add the butter; once it starts melting, add the oil, rice and garlic and sauté continuously for the remaining time. Then, turn your Instant Pot off.
- Add chili powder, cumin, salt, broth, and tomato sauce and give mixture a gentle stir, making sure the rice is completely covered with the broth (if you need to, use a spoon to press it down). Place lid on the Instant Pot, making sure the knob on top is set in the "seal" position. Pressure cook rice for 4 minutes, then naturally release for 10 minutes before manually releasing the rest of the pressure and removing the lid.
- Fluff rice with a fork and stir in the cilantro.
stove top:
- Pour rice into a mesh sieve and rinse for 10 seconds.
- Add oil and butter to a large dutch oven and heat over medium heat. Once melted, add the rice and garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes.
- Then, add chili powder, cumin, salt, broth, and tomato sauce and stir. Increase heat to high and bring rice to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and place a lid on the pot. Simmer for 12-14 minutes or until the rice has absorbed the liquid.
- Remove the lid, fluff rice with a fork and stir in the cilantro.
Notes
Nutrition
Just tried making this and got a burn notice a few times! How can I avoid this?!
Hi! I’m sorry that happened. I recommend stirring everything together, ensuring there isn’t any rice stuck to the bottom of the pot before pressure cooking. Hope this helps!
I just tried making this and got a BURN notice too. So I changed it to Rice Setting on Low Pressure for 10 minutes then natural release 13 minutes.
Husband says this is a game changer! Very delicious! Used homemade chicken stock made from my instant pot.
Woohooo — love it when a recipe is husband-approved!
how many servings does this make? serving size?
Approximately 8 servings
Turned out great! I used one can of broth then added water to make 2 cups, and used only 1 cup (an 8 oz can) of tomato sauce. I always put tomato products in last (not stirring in) and never get a burn notice. The rice was flavorful and perfectly cooked.
Happy this worked out and that you enjoyed it!
After making this multiple times, for those interested in using 1 can (14.5 oz) of broth and 1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce, reduce rice to 1 ⅓ cups… turns out perfectly every time! I do add half a minced onion and 2 cloves minced garlic with the rice and sometimes use a chopped jalapeño as well. I always add the spices toward the end of the sauté to bloom their flavors.
I’ve made this several times now and LOVE it! I use chicken broth and add a little chopped onion with the garlic and this recipe turns out incredibly wonderful each time. This is my go-to from now on. Thanks!
Happy to hear this has become a go-to recipe! Thanks for the positive review 🙂
What size Instant Pot did you use?
6 quart!
Delicious! My toddler also enjoyed it!
I’m so glad — thanks for the review!
I made cheese enchiladas tonight and wanted a quick instant pot version of Spanish rice. This was AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This will be my go-to!!! Thank you so much!!
Ha! I’m SO glad you liked the rice, and I really appreciate the positive review!
I had never made this kind of rice before and had to bring it to a family. One of the men there was from Bolivia and his girlfriend said that he loved it. It was good and easy. Thanks.
I’m so glad everyone approved — thanks for the comment, Debbie!
Do you think you could add chicken breasts and pinto beans to this recipe? Or would I need to adjust the cooking time?
That sounds delicious! But, adding chicken would definitely alter the cook time and I haven’t tested it out so I’m not sure what the exact times would be.