These Instant Pot Chicken Fried Rice Meal Prep Bowls come together in one pot – all you need is rice, chicken and frozen veggies!
Ingredients and substitutions
- Butter – butter keeps the rice fluffy, but is optional to the dish. If you want the same effect but would rather not use butter, then you can use olive oil.
- Garlic – fresh minced garlic is best but jarred minced garlic can also be used.
- Chicken breast – chicken thighs will also work in place of chicken breast and will probably be a juicier cut of meat.
- Chicken broth – use a vegetable broth in place of chicken if you’re in a pinch.
- Soy sauce – coconut aminos or tamari are great substitutes for soy sauce.
- Jasmine rice – use any rice that you prefer like basmati or brown rice, just keep in mind that using a different kind of rice will alter the cooking times.
- Frozen vegetables – use any frozen vegetable blend that you prefer.
- Green onions – to garnish.
How to make chicken fried rice
- Add the first 6 ingredients to the Instant Pot in order.
- Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes.
- Do a quick release of the pressure.
- Microwave the frozen veggies.
- Stir in the veggies and green onions.
- Serve and enjoy!
What goes well with chicken fried rice?
The great thing about this recipe is that you have all the components of a meal in one bowl with grains, veggies and protein. I typically like to eat these bowls on your own, but feel free to serve them with a side dish of your choosing. Egg rolls, dumplings or steamed broccoli would all be great with this recipe! You could even scramble or fry an egg and add it on top.
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Frequently Asked Questions
The chicken fried rice you get from your favourite takeout restaurant generally isn’t healthy. It’s usually packed full of preservatives and sodium. My version is a lot healthier and uses whole fresh ingredients including chicken breasts.
There are 325 calories per serving in this chicken fried rice dish, which is significantly less than restaurant versions. For example, one serving of Panda Express’ fried rice side dish has 520 calories – and that doesn’t even include the chicken!
I like using jasmine rice for this recipe because I find that it cooks the best in the Instant Pot. That being said, you can use another white or brown rice variety of your choice. Remember that using another kind of rice like brown rice will change the cooking time.
Storing and reheating
This chicken fried rice will last in the fridge for up to 5 days, making it the perfect meal prep recipe! All you have to do is transfer the rice from the Instant Pot to airtight containers once the rice has cooled down. I recommend storing the dish in individual servings in the fridge because it makes heating up your lunch that much easier!
To reheat this chicken fried rice, take your serving out of the fridge and heat it up straight from the container in the microwave for 1-2 minutes. Make sure to sprinkle some water over the rice to ensure that it doesn't dry out when reheating.
Freezing this recipe
You can also freeze the chicken fried rice for a quick meal later in the month. The dish will last in the freezer for up to 3 months to ensure freshness. After the rice has cooled down completely, transfer it into airtight containers in individual portions.
When you're ready to enjoy your fried rice, defrost the chicken in the fridge overnight before reheating. You can also reheat it from frozen – just sprinkle some water over top of the rice to keep it from drying out then microwave the dish for 5-6 minutes, stirring halfway through.
More Instant Pot recipes
Meal prep tools for this recipe
- The Instant Pot DUO Plus 60
is the version I use in this recipe. - Grab some glass meal prep bowls for your leftovers.
- And of course I get all my free-range chicken from Butcher Box!
is the version I use in this recipe.
Instant Pot Chicken Fried Rice Meal Prep Bowls
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp butter
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 chicken breasts, diced
- 1 1/4 cups chicken broth
- 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1 cup dry jasmine rice
- 1 bag mixed frozen vegetables (I used the Green Giant blend of carrots, corn and peas)
- 1 bunch green onions, sliced
Instructions
- Add butter, garlic, chicken, chicken broth, soy sauce and rice to Instant Pot in that order. Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes. Do a quick release of the pressure and open lid when it is safe to do so.
- Meanwhile, microwave frozen vegetables in a large bowl for 5 minutes until de-frosted.
- Add veggies and green onions to rice in Instant Pot, stirring well to combine. Serve and enjoy – will last in the fridge up to 5 days.
Jessicah says
Hello, I want to try this for my meal prep next week! Just curious, do you know approximately how many ounces of chicken you use? Chicken breasts I buy vary so much. Thanks!
Taylor Stinson says
It works out to be 1 lb of chicken so 8oz per breast or 16oz total will work 🙂
Erick says
I used sesame oil instead of butter, basmati instead of jasmine rice and added chopped red and green chilis, Extended the cooking time ti 4 minutes to compensate for the rice change. Turned out great.
Catherine Gayle Parker says
I want to make your recipe. I noticed that you sprinkled sesame seed over each serving and also a black seed. What is the black seed. Neither of the seeds are mentioned in your recipe.
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Catherine – I just used a mix of black and white sesame seeds! You can use white sesame seeds only if you’d like, it won’t change the taste.
Ayanna says
Hi! How much is one serving, based off of the nutrition info you posted?
Thanks!
Taylor Stinson says
I don’t provide servings by weight/cup unfortunately! You will need to take the number of servings listed (6 servings) and divide into portions. Each portion is a serving.