Instant Pot Paella

This instant pot paella is super delicious and comes together in just about 30 minutes prep to finish! I could also call this recipe poor mans paella because I don’t use any saffron. No worries, it still has a similar saffron taste but at a fraction of the cost.

How is it made without saffron?

I use a small amount of curry powder, not enough to over power the flavors or turn this into a curry dish. Curry powder, which has a base of turmeric gives this rice an awesome depth of flavor. Turmeric is also often referred to as the Indian saffron in the spice world. Supposedly, some sneaky spice vendors mix turmeric into saffron powder to make it go farther. At any rate, it totally does the trick in this recipe!

I love instant pots!

I first bought an electric pressure cooker, now most commonly referred to as an instant pot, about 7 years ago. I bought it so I could cook brown rice in 12 minutes and artichokes in 7. I have used it a lot over the years, especially when I went 1 year without a fully functional kitchen during remodeling two houses back to back. I love how convenient they are and I love how the flavors get blended so well in such a short amount of time!

Don’t like seafood, no worries!

This instant pot paella is really easy to make and tastes amazing! You can add seafood to it or if you are not a seafood fan, chicken thighs will work just as well! The flavors are complex, yet harmonious and make this dish a bowl of pure comfort!

Lower the carbs by this hack!

If you would like to cut down on the carbs in the recipe, sub half of the rice for cauliflower rice and you won’t notice the difference! Just make sure you adjust the chicken stock used by half the amount.

What you need to make Instant pot Paella:

serves 6 people

• 1 cup red pepper – chopped
• 1 cup onion – chopped
• 1-1/2 tablespoons garlic – minced
• 1/4 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
• 2 cups dry white rice – extra long, long or medium grain
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 cup bacon crumbles
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• Optional:
• 8 jumbo shrimp – raw, fresh or frozen
• 1 pound mussels – precooked
• 1 cup calamari – raw, fresh or frozen
• 3 chicken thighs – boneless, skinless.

Instructions (pictures showing how it’s done are below the written instructions):

1. In the instant pot, add red pepper, onion, garlic, curry powder, olive oil, salt, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder and saute.
2. Saute for 4 minutes.
3. Add diced tomatoes and stir.
4. Next, add rice, bacon crumbles and stir.
5. Now, add chicken stock and lemon juice. Don’t stir.
6. If using raw chicken thighs, add chicken thighs at this point.
7. Put lid on and cook on high pressure for 12 minutes, if using raw chicken thighs.
8. If not using chicken or using cooked chicken or using chicken and seafood cook for 8 minutes with a quick pressure release.
9. At this point, if you are using seafood, add seafood and stir into rice.
10. If seafood is frozen: cook for an additional 5 minutes.
11. If seafood is thawed cook for 3 minutes.
12. Do a quick pressure release, if using a pressure cooker.
13. If you used chicken, shred chicken and stir back into the rice.
14. If you used shrimp with shells you can remove the shells from the shrimp before serving or leave that up to the person eating it.
15. Enjoy!

Print Recipe

5 from 1 vote

Instant Pot Paella

Delicious paella that is packed with delicious flavors and comes together in 30 minutes prep to finish!

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Total Time30 minutes mins

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Dinner, shrimp

Keyword: 30 minute, Chicken, Dinner, Easy Recipes, Instant Pot, Lemon, Shrimp, Tomatoes, Weekend Dinner, Weeknight Dinner

Servings: 6 people

Ingredients

• 1 cup red pepper - chopped
• 1 cup onion - chopped
• 1-1/2 tablespoons garlic minced
• 1/4 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1 teaspoon Paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Onion Powder
• 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes
• 2 cups dry white rice - extra long long or medium grain
• 4 cups Chicken Stock
• 1/2 cup bacon crumbles
• 2 tablespoons Lemon Juice
• Optional:
• 8 jumbo shrimp - raw fresh or frozen
• 1 pound mussels - precooked
• 1 cup calamari - raw fresh or frozen
• 3 chicken thighs boneless, skinless.

Instructions

• In the instant pot, add red pepper, onion, garlic, curry powder, olive oil, salt, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder and saute.
• Saute for 4 minutes.
• Add diced tomatoes and stir.
• Add rice, bacon crumbles and stir.
• Add chicken stock and lemon juice. Don't stir.
• If using raw chicken thighs, add chicken thighs at this point.
• Put lid on and cook on high pressure for 12 minutes, if using raw chicken thighs.
• If not using chicken or using cooked chicken or using chicken and seafood cook for 8 minutes with a quick pressure release.
• At this point, if you are using seafood, add seafood and stir into rice.
• If seafood is frozen: cook for an additional 5 minutes.
• If seafood is thawed cook for 3 minutes.
• do a quick pressure release.
• If you used chicken, shred chicken and stir back into the rice.
• If you used shrimp with shells you can remove the shells from the shrimp before serving or leave that up to the person eating it.