Let’s talk about the greatest dinner ever: Burrito bowls.
Why are burrito bowls the best? For these reasons:
- Family-friendly (who doesn’t love tacos? Serial killers. That’s who.)
- Budget-friendly (beans and rice!)
- Allergy-friendly (GF? No problem. DF? Use guacamole or this easy cashew cream sauce – game changer)
- Flexible (eat it plain, make it into tacos, serve it with chips, make leftovers into taco soup or nachos.)
- Use what you have! (change out the beans, use whatever cut of meat you have (beef shoulder roast makes great burrito bowls!), use the odds and ends of the salsa jars, a can of tomatoes, those black olives, and the ends of the bags of cheese lurking in the refrigerator drawer.)
We love burrito bowls, and we eat them nearly every week.
Instant Pot Chicken Burrito Bowls Recipe
Typically, I make burrito bowls the classic make-ahead way. I like keeping my options open and preparing the different pieces whenever I can leading up to burrito bowl night. However, today I want to show you how to make one-pot burrito bowls in the Instant Pot.
Here’s the big secret: just toss it all in the pot and you’re good.
Actually, there’s a little more to it because you have to make sure everything cooks at the same time. But really, it’s about that simple.
Instant Pot Recipe for an Easy Summer Meal
Let’s talk about summer days. Burrito bowls are good any time of the year, but on summer days we crave fresh flavors and we don’t want to heat up the kitchen. Grilling is fun, but on the days we don’t want to grill, we Instant Pot.
The instant pot helps us save a TON of money (for these reasons). For chicken burrito bowls, 10 minutes of prep work and 20 minutes in the Instant Pot mean dinner is served.
To increase the flavors, you can brown the chicken and toast the rice with the saute setting ahead of time. However, if you just need to get in and get out, you can totally just toss it all in the Instant Pot and turn it on. Easy.
You’re Just *7 Days* Away From Easier Meals with Your Instant Pot
Whether you have a few fav meals in your Instant Pot or still aren’t using it regularly yet, I can show you the secrets to SAVE time (and money) with my favorite appliance!
May I send you my best hacks to maximize my fav appliance so you can spend more time with your family AND nourish them well?
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Instant Pot Summer Recipe
Instant Pot chicken burrito bowls fall under my favorite summer meals. It’s easy, delicious, doesn’t heat up my house, everyone loves it, and the leftovers are amazing (if you have any).
This is an easy meal for kids to make! During the summer while they’re out of school, we focus on life skills like cooking. If they know how to safely operate an Instant Pot, they can cook chicken burrito bowls!
Easy Summer Meals the Whole Family will Love
A few other easy summer recipes for the Instant Pot:
- Barbecue chicken sandwiches
- Chicken with a big salad
- Turmeric chicken and rice
- Ice cream (let’s be honest, sometimes we eat that for dinner around here because BALANCE)
- Chicken with sliced veggies and healthy dip
- Mac and cheese
- Beef barbacoa
- Mexican lentils and rice
- Kid-friendly pesto chicken and rice
Instant Pot One-Pot Chicken Burrito Bowls Recipe
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6–8 servings 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Instant Pot
- Cuisine: Mexican
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Instant Pot chicken burrito bowls are one of our favorite meals! Here’s how we make this one-pot family favorite!
Ingredients
- 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into 1-inch chunks
- 2 1/4 cup broth or water
- 1 tsp. of garlic powder
- 1 tsp. of onion powder
- 1/2 tsp. of paprika
- 2 tsp. of chili powder
- 1 tsp. of cumin
- 2 cups black beans, drained and rinsed (or 1 15-ounce can)
- 2 cups frozen corn
- 2 cups salsa, homemade or store-bought
- 1 cup uncooked, extra-long grain rice
- 2 cups shredded cheese (Colby jack, Monterey jack, or cheddar)
Optional Toppings:
- chopped fresh cilantro
- fresh diced tomatoes (or from a glass jar, no BPA!)
- diced green onions
- sour cream
- guacamole
Instructions
- In the Instant Pot, stir together the chicken, garlic, onion, paprika, chili powder, cumin, beans, corn, salsa, and broth.
- Pour the rice over the top of the ingredients, but do not stir it.
- Select manual setting; make sure the pressure is set to high and set the time for 10 minutes. When finished cooking, quick-release pressure according to manufacturer’s directions.
- Stir in cheese until melted, about 1 minute.
- Serve in bowls immediately and top as desired.
Notes
To increase the flavor, you can brown the chicken and toast the rice with the saute setting ahead of time. However, if you just need to get it in and out, you can totally just toss it all in the Instant Pot and turn it on. Easy.
Nutrition
- Calories: 718
- Sugar: 6g
- Sodium: 1127mg
- Fat: 20g
- Saturated Fat: 10g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 82g
- Fiber: 13g
- Protein: 52g
- Cholesterol: 107mg
Where to Find High Quality Meat
Having trouble finding good quality meat locally? Would you like to fill your freezer with local and pastured options?
If you’re in the US Midwest, Chicago to Milwaukee to Detroit to New York, and select cities across the country, check out TruLocalUsa.
If you’re west of the Mississippi, check out Wild Pastures.
If you live in any of the 48 contiguous states, I recommend US Wellness Meats and Butcher Box!
I’m grateful that there’s an online source of incredibly high quality meat that I can always count on. A subscription from Butcher Box includes grass fed, organic, pastured, and free range = all the labels important to your family’s health! And I’ve got a special deal for you!
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Don’t have an Instant Pot yet? Here’s Katie to tell you what you need to know!
Where to Buy an Instant Pot
This is the 6-quart Instant Pot I started out with. After a few years, we added an 8-quart partly because I knew I would use two at the same time often enough, partly because it was the Prime Day sale, and also because I wanted more space for certain recipes. Both are a pretty basic model and you don’t need more bells and whistles than that!
If you’re deciding on size, most people say it’s better to get a deal on the 6-quart and just have 2 rather than go big, BUT if your family has 5 or more people or you really like to batch cook or do more than a pound of beans, the 8-quart may be the best choice. My full Instant Pot review and buying guide for features, size, and model.
If you’d like to shop directly at Instant Pot’s website instead of Amazon (or just compare prices), check them out here.
You can even get a carrying case to travel with it! See my review of the Instant Pot carrying case we have.
If you’re still on the fence about adding an Instant Pot to your kitchen appliance arsenal here are my Instant Pot pros and cons.
Summer Recipe in the Instant Pot
Chicken burrito bowls are an easy, delicious, real food dinner you can make in the Instant Pot in less than 10 minutes, and in 20 minutes, dinner is ready. Serve them to your family or to guests for a crowd-pleasing dinner everyone loves.
I had heard that when cooking meat in the instant pot you should always let it natural release for st least 10 minutes before doing a quick release because otherwise the drastic change in pressure would cause the meat to be tough. Is that not true in this case?
Thank you.