Green Chile Lime Rice | Instant Pot recipe
Instant Pot Green Chile Rice is flavored with a mild green Chile, lime juice, salsa, and broth for a quick and tasty side dish, burrito filling, or taco filling.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
The great part about this simple side dish is that it gets tons of flavor from pantry staples like jarred salsa, green chiles, long-grain white rice, and broth.
This green chile rice goes with so many amazing main dishes, from grain bowls to tacos to burritos. It can be as mild or spicy as you like, and it comes together in minutes.
This is one of our favorite Instant Pot side dishes. If you haven’t made rice in the pressure cooker yet, start with this simple all-purpose recipe for Instant Pot white rice and brown rice.
Update: We love this salsa-infused Instant Pot rice recipe, and have updated the post with new photos and tips to help you perfect it at home.
INGREDIENTS YOU NEED
Here’s what you need for this quick and easy green chile rice:
- Onion. This is a built-in flavor base for your rice.
- Green chiles with juice. You can often find these near the taco shells and other Mexican items in the grocery store, they’re not pickled jalapeños.
- Cumin. Use ground cumin, not cumin seeds.
- Salsa. We love Medium Pace Picante Sauce, but any jarred salsa will work.
- Broth. You can use homemade or store-bought chicken or vegetable broth.
- Lime. Freshly squeezed lime juice is best for flavor.
- Rice. Be sure to use long-grain white rice so it cooks at the right time in the pressure cooker.
- Cilantro. You’ll want this for a nice fresh herby finish.
If you want your green chile rice to actually cook up green, make sure to use a green salsa. We like Trader Joe’s salsa verde best, but since we don’t get there often, we’ll use the Old El Paso Creamy Salsa Verde sauce from our local grocery store. The Herdez brand of salsa verde is a little spicier than my family’s taste, but the flavor is great if you like it a little spicier.
How to Make Green Chile in an Instant Pot
✅ This easy recipe will work in any brand of electric pressure cooker, including the Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi, or Power Pressure Cooker XL.
Start making your chile rice by sauteing the onion in the Instant Pot. Once the onions are softened, add the cumin and diced green chiles and cook until the mixture is fragrant. Next add the salsa, stock, and lime juice. Stir in the rice.
Cook the rice on high pressure for three minutes, then let the pressure release naturally for five minutes and finish with a quick pressure release. Rove the lid and add another squeeze of lime juice and your cilantro.
Place the lid back on the pressure cooker and let the rice steam for about two minutes before serving it up. You can add additional cilantro, hot sauce, or lime juice if you like.
Important Tips for Making Green Chile Rice
- Be sure to use long-grain white rice, as other varieties of rice will not pressure cook in the same time.
- You can use mild or hot salsa, depending on your preference for spice.
- In a pinch, you can swap the broth with water. You may need to add additional salt to season the rice as it cooks.
- We don’t recommend skipping the step to saute the onions, as it adds a ton of rich caramelized flavor, but if you’re in a time crunch, it won’t impact the cooking time.
How should I serve green chile rice?
You can serve this rice alongside your favorite entrees, like Easy Instant Pot Pulled Pork, Mexican Pinto Bean Soup, or Instant Pot Chicken Tacos. It also makes a great burrito filling.
Frequently Asked Questions about Instant Pot Chile Rice
This recipe has a bit of heat from the jarred green chiles, but you can use mild salsa to keep it from tasting too spicy. If you do like some heat, use medium or spicy salsa or add hot sauce on top.
Store any leftover green chile rice in an airtight container in the fridge for up to four days.
Yes, you can freeze fully cooled individual portions of this rice. The texture may be a little softer and mushier once it’s defrosted though.
MORE Instant Pot Rice Recipes
Rice is a great side dish for so many meals. Here are some of our favorite Instant Pot rice recipes:
- Rice Pilaf with Carrots, Peas and Parsley is a springy veggie-loaded side dish that’s full of color.
- Instant Pot Spanish Rice is made with salsa for instant flavor.
- Instant Pot Lemon Rice is bright and refreshing, and it pairs perfectly with Greek Tacos or Greek Souvlaki.
Do you LOVE this recipe?
Leave us a review below to tell us why!
Green Chile Lime Salsa Rice
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 medium-sized onion finely chopped
- 1 can 7 oz. diced green chilies with juice (not Jalapenos)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 cup salsa I used Medium Pace Picante Sauce
- 1 1/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth
- 2 tablespoons fresh-squeezed lime juice divided
- 1 cup long-grain rice
- 1/2 cup cilantro chopped
- Green Tabasco Sauce or your favorite hot sauce if you’d like more heat
Instructions
- Select Sauté to preheat the cooking pot. When hot, add oil to the pressure cooking pot and the chopped onions. Cook, stirring occasionally until onion is tender, about 5 minutes.
- Add the cumin and diced green chilies with juice and cook 2-3 minutes more. Add the salsa, broth, and 1 tablespoon lime juice. Stir in rice.
- Select High Pressure and the cook time for 3 minutes. When the cook time ends, allow the pressure to release naturally for 5 minutes, then finish with a Quick Pressure Release.
- When valve drops carefully remove lid. Stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon lime juice and chopped cilantro. Cover the rice and let it steam for two minutes before serving
- If you'd like the rice a bit spicier, serve with Green Tabasco Sauce or your favorite hot sauce to sprinkle over.
Nutrition
FOR MORE FROM PRESSURE COOKING TODAY
🥘 Browse our collection of the best pressure cooker / Instant Pot recipes.
💬 Follow Pressure Cooking Today on Facebook and Instagram for the latest updates.
👥 Join our Electric Pressure Cooker Facebook Group. Our positive community of pressure cooking fans use all brands of electric pressure cookers, so it’s a great resource if you have questions about your particular brand.
Easy recipe made with pantry ingredients I always have on hand. Very tasty!
Awesome – thanks Leanne!
None of the steps in the actual recipe actually add the rice to the pot… From the other description, I assume step 2 you’d stir in the rice before cooking.
Does look good will have to see if we can find green chilies in our market.
Sorry David – somehow in the update that part was omitted. I’ve updated the recipe with the missing info. Yes, it’s added in step 2.
Looking at the recipe, when do you put the rice in the instant pot?
Hi Lawrence – I’ve updated the recipe with the missing info. I don’t know how it got changed to omit the rice. You’ll add it in step 1.
This sounds delicious! But, I have read through the recipe 4 times and don’t see the instruction for adding the rice. Should I “assume” it is added when the broth goes in?
Hi Donna – add it in step two after all the ingredients. I’ve updated the instructions to include the missing info. Thanks for taking the time to let us know.
I love using my pressure cooker and love getting recipes from you both. We will love this one.
This sounds like a great use for my home canned Hatch Chile Salsa (safe recipe at http://nchfp.uga.edu/how/can_salsa/Tomato_GreenChileSalsa.html). I will also use brown rice–the higher fiber makes it better for those of us with diabetes. Yum!
This looks like the perfect thing to serve with my tomatillo pork this weekend!
Okay Barbara – now I’m wishing I’d had it with tomatillo pork. I’ll need a link to that 🙂
This looks delicious Barbara! I will definitely be trying this one for my family. I think it would be delicious with brown rice! 🙂
Thanks Heather! I debated whether or not to make it with brown rice. You’re right. I think brown rice would be great in this recipe.
Thanks for the recipe! Would love to be able to do a quick side dish of rice in my pressure cooking and my boys like it spicy!! 🙂
I’m curious about the can of green chiles….it says 47oz…is that supposed to be Forty-Seven ounces or Four to Seven ounces? 🙂
Tracey
Hi Tracy – thanks for the heads up. Kalyn used a 4 oz. can and I used a 7 oz. can. lol I’ll update the recipe. 🙂
ahhh so it’s a Four or Seven ounce can! Cool! Thanks again for sharing 🙂
Thanks for the terrific recipe! And, thanks for the chilies vs. chiles explanation! I’ve often second guessed my own spelling; this is awesome to know!
By the way, I finally broke down and bought an electric pressure cooker since my stove top model’s sealing ring bit the dust, and I just haven’t been able to find a replacement ring! As a rule, how much do I reduce the liquid in recipes to accommodate the electric model? Do you know? I know that it is less, but I’m just not sure how much.
Thanks, Barabara!
That’s so fun Deon! I hope you love yours as much I as I love mine. I don’t think you’ll need to make any changes unless your stove top model was losing a lot of liquid.
Awesome! Thanks, Barbara!
That looks delicious Barbara-so quick and easy too. I haven’t tried rice in the stove top pressure cooker I have here-one of these days!!! This would be a great one to start with for sure-it has everything in it we like. Love your idea of using it in burritos too.
Thank you Kayln and Barbara! 🙂
I love this idea even more than baking it in the oven!
Thanks Kalyn! I hope you’ll give it a try.