This instant pot greek chicken is covered in olive oil and herb marinade and cooked in 10 minutes with the rice for a one pot meal. This recipe is so easy and great for meal prep greek chicken bowls. It's gluten free and dairy free too!
Do you love Greek food? Try Greek chicken meatballs or Instant Pot Greek lemon chicken soup next.
This recipe is similar to my sheet pan greek chicken and potatoes recipe, except this one is made in the instant pot with rice!
You only need one pot to make everything and it's full of veggies and quality protein. The Greek seasoning covers the chicken and marinates to give this chicken so much flavor.
Ingredients for Greek chicken in the Instant Pot:
- Chicken: try and get organic, free range chicken without antibiotics. We love to get ours from Butcher Box!
- Red onion
- Zucchini
- Chicken or bone broth
- Jasmine rice
- Chopped parsley and feta to top (optional)
Greek Marinade Ingredients:
These are the ingredients for a flavorful greek marinade: Olive oil, Red wine vinegar, Fresh garlic, Lemon Juice, Dried oregano, Dried basil, Dried thyme, Salt, Pepper
I like to use dried herbs in this marinade because they tend to be a bit stronger and old up better for longer periods of time.
How long can you marinate chicken?
You can marinate your chicken for as little as 15 minutes or as long as overnight.
If you're short on time: marinate the chicken at the beginning of the recipe while you get the rest of the ingredients prepped/chopped/cooked. By the time you're ready to cook the chicken it will have marinated for about 15 minutes.
If you remember: you can marinate it overnight in the refrigerator. Be careful not to leave it in there too long or your chicken could get mushy.
How to make greek chicken in the Instant Pot:
- Start by marinading your chicken if you haven't already. Allow to sit while you chop the onion and zucchini.
- Once the chicken is ready, turn a 6qt Instant Pot to saute mode and heat with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. When it's hot, add the marinated chicken and allow to cook until the outsides brown (it doesn't have to be fully cooked through).
- Next, add the onion and zucchini and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the chicken stock or bone broth then the rice and close the lid.
- Cook on high pressure for 10 minutes then quick release. Stir to fluff rice then add chopped parsley and feta before serving if desired.
What to serve with greek chicken:
Because this greek chicken recipe is already made with rice I don't think it needs anything else besides extra toppings like parsley and feta. You could also add some chopped kalamata olives or hummus too!
If you don't have rice with your greek chicken, then adding rice, roasted potatoes or roasted asparagus are great options.
If you love this recipe as much as I do, don't forget to follow me on Instagram and tag me with @what_mollymade so I can see it and feature you! Also consider leaving a star review below!
More healthy Instant Pot recipes:
- The best instant pot chicken noodle soup
- Instant pot pot roast and potatoes
- Instant pot spaghetti [gluten free]
- Instant pot salsa chicken
- Instant pot beef stroganoff
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Note: this recipe was retested and updated as of 1/5/21 to reduce the amount of cooking liquid and the amount of cook time.
Instant pot greek chicken and rice
Ingredients
For the chicken and marinade:
- 1 ½ lbs boneless skinless chicken breast or things trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- Juice from one lemon
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Chicken and rice:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium red onion chopped into large chunks
- 1 medium zucchini quartered
- 1 ½ cups chicken broth or bone broth
- Juice from 1 lemon
- 1 ¼ cups jasmine rice
- ½ cup chopped parsley optional
- ½ cup feta optional
Instructions
- Put chicken and marinade ingredients in a freezer bag or container and allow to marinade while you prepare the rest of the ingredients, at least 15 minutes or overnight.
- While it’s marinating, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a 6qt Instant Pot and turn to saute mode. Once it’s hot, add the marinated chicken and cook for 2-3 minutes on each side to create a brown and crispy crust. You may need to work in batches of 2-3 to get the chicken crispy. Adding too much chicken to the pan at once can cause the chicken to steam rather than sear. Discard any extra marinade.
- When all the chicken is cooked, add it all back to the instant pot if you cooked in batches then add the chopped onion and zucchini and continue to cook for 2-3 more minutes. Add the chicken broth, lemon juice and rice and stir, then close the lid and cook on high pressure for 7 minutes. When it’s done, use a wooden spoon to turn the valve from sealing to venting to quick release the pressure. When it’s ready, open the lid and add fresh parsley, an extra squeeze of lemon and crumbled feta if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Gloria says
I just luv your recipes I'm trying to stay heathy and eat good my cholesterol is high so I'll defenatley follow you thank u ?
Molly says
Thanks, Gloria!
Shelby says
Do you have to use squash? I have a picky husband ?
Molly says
No you can omit the zucchini! We didn't have any the last time I made it and it was good without!
Tiff says
Why not just allow your husband to pick it out, he is an adult ?. We make our eat kids what is served, the adults should do the same unless it’s a birthday meal.
Lana says
Can this be done in a slow cooker?
Molly Thompson says
I haven't tried this in the slow cooker, but I think you could do it! Just sear the chicken on the stove first to get it crispy. Try cooking it on low for 2 - 21/2 hours!
Danielle says
Not sure what went wrong but I followed the recipe to a T. I thought it was too much liquid for the rice/liquid ratio, but followed it anyway. The whole thing turned out like soup. And the chicken definitely didn’t get a nice golden brown sautéing it in the IP. The zucchini was mushy and everything was just kind of bland. This was a bust for me unfortunately.
Molly Thompson says
Sorry to hear that, Danielle! Sometimes if the instant pot is overcrowded the chicken will steam instead of getting crispy. You could give that a try next time! I'm going to update the recipe to mention that. What kind of rice did you use? I've made this several times and never had it be soupy so I'm wondering if that could make a difference. Thanks for the feedback!
Danielle says
I used brown jasmine. I have the largest instant pot so it wasn’t too crowded. If I make it again I’ll try adding less liquid and see if that helps at all.
Molly Thompson says
Sounds good! Thank you!
Jo says
Super flavorful but my jasmine rice was mushy. Not sure what I did wrong.
KARLI says
SAME THING HAPPENED TO ME! CONFUSED...
Molly Thompson says
I'm confused too! Traditionally the ratios of water to rice are double, so 2 cups of water for 1 cup of rice. That's the ratio this recipe follows. I've made this several times and not experiences that result. I will give this another try again and see if there are any tips I can share!
Jamie says
Instant Pot recipes should be a 1 to 1 water to rice ratio instead of the typical 2 to 1
Danielle says
I agree. That would make more sense for this recipe!
Kaya says
I also ended up with soup. I am disappointed because the food smells amazing, but is essentially inedible. Next time I’ll cook everything separately and mix together because I do think this recipe sounds amazing.
Molly Thompson says
Sorry to hear that! I've made this several times and not experienced a soupy texture. Would love to hear any questions you have!
Sarah says
I had the opposite problem! I got the burn message and it's ruined
Molly Thompson says
Sorry to hear that! There are a few troubleshooting tips you can do if you ever get the burn notice. You can open it, scrape the bottom, add some more liquid and continue cooking. Thanks!
Martina says
Came out great, used only 1 and 3/4 cups of chicken broth and the texture was like a risotto, which was a big hit, I would recommend going down to 1 1/4 cups or even 1 cup if you don’t want it that creamy
Sarah says
If I wanted to cook just the chicken without the rice would I need to change the cook time or any of the ingredients? Thanks! Cant wait to try this for work lunches this week!
Andrea says
When do I add the second lemon juice to the pot, with the chicken broth and rice?
Leanne says
What is the serving size in cups? Or ounces
Molly Thompson says
It's about 1 1/2 cups per serving.
Madi says
This is SO GOOD!!! I doubled the recipe and used chicken thighs. I sautéed my chicken in a pan, browned it, then added it to the instant pot after sautéing the zucchini & onion in there for a few min. It was so creamy and delicious, like a healthy comfort food. I added more salt and pepper right before closing the IP lid. Don’t omit the feta or parsley! I will be making this all the time!
Auraline says
I tried this recipe twice and both times the rice burned the pot and it wasn’t able to pressure cook. I think next time I’ll do the rice separately
Diana says
Flavor was delicious! The feta adds the perfect touch on top. My kids (including a 10 month old baby) all gobbled it up.
I did have some trouble with the rice. Mine was undercooked, so I closed the top and added 2 min then did another quick release. I did get the burn notice and the bottom burned a tad but the rice was cooked and had a great texture after that.
I will for sure make it again, and add 1/4 cup water and 2 min to the cooking time.
Emily says
I made this tonight and was a bit disappointed. I would recommend using 1 1/2 cups of broth rather than the 2 1/4 cups in the recipe. It turned out not necessarily soupy, but definitely more like a gumbo texture. I was hoping for more of a typical rice texture. I also added the last of the lemon juice at the end of cooking, I don’t think that was mentioned in the instructions.
Molly Thompson says
Sorry to hear that, Emily! I really appreciate your feedback. I've taken some of the comments here and decided to retest the recipe with less cooking liquid and a shorter cook time. It turned out great and I think that should fix any issues with a more soupy texture that anyone may have. I hope you give it another try!
Lacy says
Hi, I'm getting ready to try this recipe this week. Are the amounts listed on the recipe now, updated since you retested the recipe? Just reading through comments, and want to prepare this in a way that produces "typical" rice texture. Not gumbo-ish. 😉 Thanks!
Christine says
Tried this recipe out last night to meal prep it as my lunches for the week and am very impressed! It has great flavor and leaves me feeling full but not bloated. I was worried that the texture wouldn't turn out right after reading some reviews but I followed the recipe to a T and it turned out perfect! My first batch of chicken I put too much in and it started to steam so I took half out and poured some of the juices out and that seemed to fix it! After that I did much smaller batches of chicken and it went very smoothly. The only thing I would have liked is if there were more pictures of the process. I think I picked too large of a zucchini and don’t think my cuts were how they should have been for the onion or zucchini. A picture right before you seal the lid showing what the liquid to rice/chicken ratio could have been helpful too so that you could add or take out more liquid if need be before sealing but I’m a big visual person so maybe thats just me. Regardless thank you for sharing I will definitely be making again!
Molly Thompson says
Hi Christine! Thanks so much for sharing this! I love the idea of adding in more step by step images. I'll put it on my list to do!
Markie says
I made this recipe a few weeks ago and it was AMAZING! Thank you so much for sharing. I’m hoping to make this again tonight and am wondering if you may have any recommendations in terms of liquid/time adjustments if I wanted to sub brown rice?
Molly Thompson says
Love to hear that, Markie! Brown rice takes a little longer to cook in the IP. I would buy the minute(instant) brown rice and use that with the same cook times. If you use long grain brown rice it will take closer to 20 minutes and you'll end up with overcooked chicken!
Emily says
This might be a silly question, but I would be using dry rice, correct? And not cooked rice?
Molly Thompson says
Hey Emily! Yes, dry, uncooked rice!
Kelly P says
Turned out great! I mixed everything together, then put the rice on top and didn't stir it in. That way it won't burn on the bottom. I also didn't pre'sear the chicken as I was trying to hurry and get dinner done - it was amazing!! I didnt have zucchini so I stirred in two cans of drained, quartered artichoke hearts when it was all done cooking. Yum yum yum!!
Angela Gosnell says
One of my favorite meals ever.. so easy! I make it all the time.
Molly Thompson says
This is the best! Thank you Angela!
Gariele says
Loved this recipe and I will be adding it to our family meal plan! Simply DELICIOUS!
Cynthia says
In the directions in the top it says pressure cook for 10 minutes and at the bottom it says 7 minutes. How long is the pressure cook time?
Caitlin says
Do I use Minute Rice?
Caitlin says
Is Minute Rice ok?
Allisha Kiger says
I feel like videos would help those of us who are new with insta cookers and recipes.
Molly Thompson says
I agree, Alisha! We have been doing a lot more videos and have a lot of new videos with the Instant Pot. If you search "Instant Pot" on the site you should see some with videos!
Lauren says
Do you stir the rice in once you add it to the pot before you close it and turn it on to pressure cook, or do you just add it on top and close the lid then proceed?
Molly Thompson says
That's a great question, Lauren! You can stir the rice before closing the lid. I'm going to update the recipe to note that. Thanks!
Lucia says
What would be cooking time without the rice?
Laura says
Can I make this with brown rice or wild rice?
Molly Thompson says
Hey Laura! Yes you can make it with brown rice. However, the cook times will vary because brown rice takes a little longer! I would try adding 10 minutes to the cook time. Thanks!
Rebecca says
I made this tonight and it turned out perfect. So delicious! I used basmati rice instead of jasmine as it was all we had in hand. Served with tzatziki and it was perfect! Thanks for the recipe
Molly Thompson says
Thanks for taking the time to share, Rebecca! Love to hear that. It would be so good with tzatziki!
Jazmine says
Can I cook the chicken from frozen?
Molly Thompson says
Hey! I think so! You won't get the crispy outsides from searing. It may take longer for the IP to come to pressure. You also may need to increase the cook time a few minutes because the whole chicken breasts will take longer to cook. Double check the internal temp of the chicken before eating it. Thanks!
Hannah D says
Anyone tried using Cauli Rice? Thoughts, Molly? Trying to get more veggies but also want the combined flavors!
Molly Thompson says
Hey Hannah!! The cauliflower rice will take much less time to cook, so if you cook it with the chicken it will probably end up mushy. You could try cooking it separately and mixing it or cooking the chicken then turning the saute mode on after and cooking frozen cauliflower rice until it's heated through. Hope that helps!
Ginger says
This recipe was a BIG hit at home! For some reason, I find cooking chicken breast to be challenging - even in the pressure cooker. I'm also still a bit of a novice with cooking...My chicken was dry. I didn't overcrowd the chicken, but I did cook it with the marinade. I think I should have strained the chicken prior to cooking, and I steamed the chicken anyway? My jasmine rice came out a little mushy as well. The only other variable is I froze the chicken and cooked it from frozen. Would that have caused the chicken to overcook or the rice to be mushy?
Thank you so much for this recipe! I found it by accident, but I am headed to look at all your other recipes!
Molly Thompson says
Hey there! Yes, you want to remove the chicken from any excess marinade prior to searing so it gets kinda crispy. Sometimes using frozen chicken withh create more moisture so that could be why the chicken wasn't as crispy and the rice was more mushy. Usually overcooked rice is mushy. Hope that helps!
Abe says
Hi there! I was wondering, could I substitute the chicken breast for ground chicken breast?
Molly Thompson says
Hello! Yes you could, but I would brown the ground chicken on saute mode first.
Amy says
Just made this last night and it was great! My hubby must have told me 3 times that he loved the dinner - ha! My son is a picky eater, so I love that the red onion sort of melted away and couldn’t be spotted, but gave great flavor. Will definitely be adding this to my rotation:)
Katie says
Mine came out with too much liquid as well. In addition it way too lemony for my taste. Wont be making this again; seems the reviews are accurate
Ruth McRobbie says
I want to make this recipe for 15 people, but can't imagine making it in the Instant Pot. Can it be made in the oven?
Sami says
I’ve made this several times and my husband and I love it, but I have a problem with the rice not being cooked all the way. I follow the recipe exactly, and each time the rice isn’t cooked completely. Any tips?
Lily says
I made this recipe while using my instant pot for the first time. My rice came out pretty crunchy, as if it wasn’t fully cooked. What do you recommend in this case? Repressurizinh and cooking longer? Turning on sauté mode until the rice is fluffy? Mine came out like watery soup
Lomi says
This is absolutely fantastic! Huge fan of the taste. I only marinated the chicken for an hour, for the rest I followed the recipe. I had regular long rice and cooked for 6 minutes. It's so good!
ChristeneDorsett says
I subbed ground turkey and put all marinade ingredients into the instant pot. Then added everything else and this was so good!! Thankyou for the recipe!!
Sarah says
Followed instructions except added 5 minutes of natural release time after the cook time and then manually released pressure. Consistency was more of a gumbo then in the photo but was still very delicious.
My zuchinni nearly disintegrated and I did rinse my rice prior so wonder if thats why its a bit "wetter" than the photos
Yvonne says
I did a few things differently than the recipe
1. After i sauted the chicken I put the zucchini (diced) and onions in to saute on their own than set them aside while the rice and chicken cooked together.
2. I did the 1:1 ratio for the rice and cooked my basmati for 6 minutes.
Tured out. Maybe slightly bland but in a bowl with tzatziki and Naan it was yummy
Judy says
This was delicious! I used broccoli instead of zuchinni but it was soo good 🙂
Molly Thompson says
Ohhhh I'm going to have to try broccoli next time! Yum!
Holly says
Whqt about baby tomatoes instead of zucchini 🥰
Holly says
What about baby tomatoes
Rhonda says
We LOVE this recipe! It’s so good.
Joy says
Has anyone ever made this on the stovetop or oven? If so, will you please share instructions? I am new to the Instapot, so I want to go with a safer route!
Molly Thompson says
Hey Joy! I haven't tried this on the stove top, but it's probably pretty similar in instructions to our one pot hawaiian chicken with coconut rice. You could adapt that recipe with these ingredients! I would cook the chicken, remove it, add the rice then put the chicken back in and simmer covered for 20-25 minutes.
https://whatmollymade.com/hawaiian-chicken-with-coconut-rice/
Michelle says
Our family loves this recipe!
Paula Kooring says
Why are there no amounts for the ingredients?
Lola says
Can you please clarify? In the blog part describing the recipe I don't see where lemon juice is added before the pressure cooking but it is in the recipe. Also time to cook in blog post says 10 minutes but recipe says 7 minutes. Thanks!
Sydney says
Hi. How easy or difficult would it be to double this recipe? Would it affect any liquid to rice ratios or cook time? Thank you
Ashley Cornell says
Absolutely delicious! We topped with tomato-basil feta, and the whole family loved it
Sydney says
How hard would it be to double the recipe? Would it change the cooking times or liquid amounts?
Emily says
Followed the recipe and it was delicious! I used chicken thighs and 1 1/2 cups broth. Very healthy and satisfying.
Emma says
My family loves this. It always turns out great, and I almost always have everything I need. I have even added spinach at the end for more veggies and it’s been great!
Samantha says
I made this for the first time today and it was so easy and delicious! As a new mom I’m always looking for quick and healthy recipes, this was a hit! The rice came out perfect and the flavors were great. Thank you so much!
Patty Hoyt says
Adding crumbled feta to the top makes the dish!
Kara says
I substituted quinoa for rice and it was great! Some on the bottom kinda carmelized, not burned but a darker color and those grains didn’t open fully. I might try to reduce the cooking time from 7 min to 1-2 min for next time but we really enjoyed this one pot meal!
Molly Thompson says
Love to hear that, Kara! Thank you!
Debbie says
This was good, but it's missing something. I'm thinking chili flakes, but not sure. It is very lemon forward and I LOVE lemon.
A few suggestions after reading the reviews.
1) I used a sifter to drain the chicken after marinating. This really helped with browning and I cooked in 3 seperate batches.
2) I took the chicken out once cooked, added a little chicken broth from the recipe to scrape up the drippings. This helps to not burn. I sautéed the Zucchini and red onion as well. Just like the recipe said though and I did not do, saute the Zucchini and onion together for about 2 mins. If I would have done that then the veggies wouldn't have been so soft.
3) make sure once you put the rice in that the liquid covers the rice. It doesn't have to be submerged, but definitely touching liquid.
I made asparagus on the side, so good!!!
Debbie says
Husband LOVED it! Had seconds.
I feel like the marinade should have more flavor. Maybe balsamic vinegar instead of red wine vinegar.
Holly says
I read 7 min in instapot then 10 somewhere else ?