Instant Pot Chicken Drumsticks and Rice (Arroz Con Pollo) is a quick and easy 45-minute pressure cooker recipe with Cuban seasonings and Spanish rice. This recipe is perfect for weeknight dinners or advanced meal prep.
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Instant Pot Chicken Drumsticks and Rice (Arroz Con Pollo) is a quick and easy 45-minute pressure cooker recipe with Cuban seasonings and Spanish rice. This recipe is perfect for weeknight dinners or advanced meal prep.
I couldn’t wait to make my own back home. Of course, I had to use my Instant Pot! There really is no other way to get tender, juicy, fall off the bone chicken, especially chicken drumsticks! Nothing else really compares.
I also never use a rice cooker. I go to the Instant Pot!
I love that with this recipe you can throw things in the pot and simply walk away to perform other tasks.
This dish is also perfect for meal prep. Load up this dish on a Sunday night and lunch or dinner is served for the week. And it will only take you about 45 minutes!
I picked up this Cuban seasoning at my local grocery store. McCormick’s is usually easy to find at most grocery stores.
If you prefer to make your own seasoning, I love a mix of the following: 1 teaspoon coriander, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon paprika, and 2 teaspoons oregano.
Cook Time
I love brown rice. A lot of my other posts rave about brown rice and the associated nutritional benefits. Brown rice takes a long time to cook…..even using the Instant Pot! Brown rice prepared in the Instant Pot takes 25-30 minutes. My Instant Pot experiments are focused on time-saving.
My goal is to prep meals with the Instant Pot in less than 45 minutes, ideally, less than 30 minutes. Long-grain enriched rice can be prepared in the Instant Pot in less than 10 minutes. ULTIMATE WIN!
Enriched white long grain rice is enriched to replenish nutrients that are removed during the milling process. Enriched white rice has been mixed with vitamins and nutrients to boost nutritional value.
When rice is processed into white rice, the majority of its nutritional value is lost. The fiber and bran are removed.
This is one of the main reasons why I flock to brown rice. Brown rice is rich in fiber. Even after enriching white rice with the nutrients mentioned, it is not as nutritious as brown rice.
Brown rice still beats white rice in my opinion. However, in this instance, enriched white long grain rice makes a great alternative.
This chicken is so tender the meat is falling off the bone….just the way I like it!
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Instant Pot Chicken Drumsticks with Spanish Rice (Arroz Con Pollo)
Ingredients
- 5 drumsticks
- 1 1/2 cups enriched long grain white rice rinsed
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 3/4 cup water
- 1 cup onion chopped
- 2-3 garlic cloves minced
- Cuban Seasoning to taste (see cooking note below)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup red peppers chopped
- 1/2 cup green peppers chopped
- 1 teaspoon parsley chopped
Instructions
- Rinse the rice until the water from the rice runs clear. I like to use a fine mesh strainer.
- Season the drumsticks with the Cuban seasoning, salt and pepper.
- Turn the Instant Pot on to the saute function. Allow it to register as hot. Add the olive oil to the pot. Using tongs add the drumsticks to the pot. Allow the chicken to glaze for a couple of minutes on each side.
- Add the chicken broth to the pot and stir. Seal the pot and cook on Manual > Pressure Cooking > 22 minutes.
- When the pot indicates it has finished, allow steam to release naturally for 10 minutes before releasing the steam.
- Open the pot and remove the chicken and drain the broth in a cup. Place it aside.
- Place the Instant Pot on saute. Add the garlic and onions to the pot. Cook for 2-3 minutes until fragrant.
- Add about 1/2 cup of the drained broth to the pot. Deglaze the pot with a spoon by pushing up the brown bits on the bottom of the pot.
- Add the rice, water, and additional Cuban seasoning, salt and pepper to taste to the pot. Seal the pot and cook for 3 minutes on Manual > High-Pressure Cooking.
- When the pot indicates it has finished, allow the steam to release naturally for 10 minutes and then release.
- Open the pot and add the red and green peppers. Stir and allow the steam from the rice soften the peppers.
- Serve the chicken legs over beds of the rice. Sprinkle with parsley.
Sarah T
Monday 25th of November 2024
Can I make this with frozen drumsticks?
staysnatched
Friday 29th of November 2024
Yes, you will have to test out the additional cook time.
Jen c
Wednesday 20th of October 2021
I’ve now made this twice. I added 2 sliced Carrots and a half Yukon gold potato to the rice Cooking step. Pro tip: use the rest of the broth from the chicken instead of water. It turns the rice very savory. It’s nearing the top of my kids fave meals. Btw, Great hack to diy Cuban seasoning.
staysnatched
Friday 22nd of October 2021
I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Yolanda
Monday 10th of May 2021
This dish was amazing. I made some changes. First I sautéed an onion in oil in the instapot and some bell pepper. Then I added the seasoning mixture recipe and the chicken legs until brown. Added a little water to keep it from burning. Thrn I turned the instapot off. Then I added 1 cup each of brown and white jasmine rice and 1 cup of water and 1 1/2 cups of chicken broth. Added the chicken legs on top with 1/2 cup of green olives. Then I cooked it for 27 mins and did a quick release. I couldn’t do it without your recipe. Thank you.
staysnatched
Thursday 20th of May 2021
Glad you enjoyed it!
Anna
Monday 21st of December 2020
This was delicious. Instead of water, I used the remainig broth as the liquid to cook the rice and it was so flavorful and delicious.
staysnatched
Tuesday 22nd of December 2020
Wonderful! I'm glad you enjoyed the recipe.
happy wheels html5
Friday 10th of July 2020
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