Instant Pot Dirty Rice. The traditional Cajun side dish made in a pressure cooker.
This year's Fat Tuesday recipe is Cajun dirty rice. And yes, I know the name is a little risqué for rice. One of my kids got a lot of giggles at the high school lunch table because of it - but her table mates were also begging her to let them try it.
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Dirty rice is a traditional “Use up whatever we’ve got” recipe. It's cooked with chicken broth, and a little bit of meat, to make the rice a substantial side dish or a main course on its own.
For more dirty rice background, check out Dirty Rice History & FAQs at Zatarains.com. If you're looking for more pressure cooker Cajun recipes, check out my Instant Pot Brown Rice Jambalaya, Instant Pot Whole Chicken with Cajun Spice Rub, or Instant Pot Cajun Pinto Beans.
Inspired by: Emeril Lagasse, Dirty Rice
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Ingredients
- Vegetable oil
- Bulk pork sausage
- Onion
- Bell pepper
- Celery
- Garlic
- Cajun seasoning
- Fine sea salt
- Long grain white rice
- Chicken broth
- Bay leaf
- Green onion
- Parsley
See recipe card for quantities.
How to make Instant Pot Dirty Rice
Cook sausage until no longer pink
Heat the vegetable oil until shimmering in an Instant Pot set to Sauté mode - high. Add the sausage and cook, stirring and breaking it up, until it is crumbled and has lost its pink color, about 5 minutes.
Add the aromatics and spices
Add the onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic to the pot with the sausage. Sprinkle with the cajun seasoning and ½ teaspoon salt. Sauté until the onions soften, stirring scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pot, about 5 minutes.
Everything in the pot
Stir the rice into the sausage and onions, then add the chicken broth or water (and another ½ teaspoon of salt if using homemade broth). Scrape the bottom of the pot one last time to make sure there are no browned bits sticking, then float the bay leaf on top.
Pressure cook for 4 minutes with a 10 minute Natural Release
Lock the lid. Pressure cook on high pressure for 4 minutes (use Manual, Pressure Cook, or Pressure Cook- Custom mode). Let the pressure come down naturally for 10 minutes, then quick release any remaining pressure.
Serve
Unlock the lid on the pressure cooker, tilting it away from you to avoid the hot steam. Discard the bay leaf, then stir in the green onions and parsley. Serve and enjoy!
Substitutions
- Meat: Like I said above, this is a "use up whatever you've got" kind of recipe. Chicken livers, ground beef, ground pork, and uncooked sausage are all traditional. If you have a little leftover ground meat, you can use it. I use hot sausage, because I like the extra spices it brings to the rice. Any country or breakfast sausage will work, but I would avoid maple syrup sausage. If you use unseasoned meat, sprinkle it with ½ teaspoon of salt before adding it to the pot to brown, otherwise everything cooks the same.
- Rice: Any white rice will work in this recipe; long grain white rice is traditional. If you want to use brown rice, use the timing from my Pressure Cooker Brown Jasmine Rice recipe after cooking the sausage and sautéing the aromatics and spices.
Equipment
A 6-quart pressure cooker. (An Instant Pot pressure cooker is my favorite)
Scaling
This recipe doubles easily in a 6-quart pressure cooker. Cut all the ingredients in half and this recipe will fit in a 3-quart pressure cooker. The cooking time does not change; it takes the same amount of time to cook the rice, no matter how much you have in the pot.
Storing Leftovers
Cooked rice does not keep for long - it carries bacteria spores (Bacillus cereus) that multiply in warm temperatures. If you need to store cooked rice, cool it down quickly in the refrigerator, or freeze it within an hour of cooking. Store refrigerated rice for 2-3 days or frozen rice for up to 3 months, and make sure to reheat it completely (to at least 165°F) before eating. (Source: Safe Handling of Cooked Rice, University of Wisconsin Extension).
Print
Instant Pot Dirty Rice
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6 cups of dirty rice 1x
Description
Instant Pot Dirty Rice. The traditional Cajun side dish made in a pressure cooker,
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 1 pound bulk pork sausage (I use a tube of breakfast sausage)
- 1 medium onion, minced
- 1 bell pepper, seeded and minced
- 1 stalk celery, minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning (store bought or homemade)
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 cups long grain white rice
- 2 ½ cups chicken broth (preferably homemade) or water
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt (if using homemade broth or water)
- 1 bay leaf
- 3 green onions, minced (optional)
- ¼ cup minced parsley (optional)
Instructions
- Cook sausage until no longer pink: Heat the vegetable oil until shimmering in an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker set to Sauté mode adjusted to high (medium-high heat in a stovetop PC). Add the sausage and cook, stirring and breaking it up, until it is crumbled and has lost its pink color, about 5 minutes.
- Add the aromatics and spices: Add the onion, bell pepper, celery, and garlic to the pot with the sausage. Sprinkle with the cajun seasoning and ½ teaspoon salt. Sauté, stirring often and scraping browned bits from the bottom of the pot, until the onions soften, about 5 minutes.
- Everything in the pot: Stir the rice into the sausage and onions, then add the chicken broth or water (and another ½ teaspoon of salt if using homemade broth). Scrape the bottom of the pot one last time to make sure there are no browned bits sticking, then float the bay leaf on top.
- Pressure cook for 4 minutes with a 10 minute Natural Release: Lock the lid. Pressure cook on high pressure for 4 minutes (timing is the same for Instant Pots and stovetop PCs). Let the pressure come down naturally for 10 minutes, then quick release any remaining pressure.
- Serve: Unlock the lid on the pressure cooker, tilting it away from you to avoid the hot steam. Discard the bay leaf, then stir in the green onions and parsley. Serve and enjoy!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: Cajun
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What do you think?
Questions? Other ideas? Leave them in the comments section below.
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Justin says
I love dirty rice! Planning on making a double recipe for a work potluck. I wanted to bring it in the instant pot to reheat. Have you ever tried it? Any recommendations? I'm thinking a couple minutes on high pressure with a bit more liquid would do it.
Thanks
Mike Vrobel says
I have not done pressure reheating, because with rice I worry about it burning on the bottom before it comes up to pressure. I would reheat with sauté mode and a little extra water - and a LOT of stirring - and make sure the rice is piping hot (165°F) before serving for food safety reasons.
Edgar says
This is our go-to recipe for dirty rice!!
Mike Vrobel says
Thank you!
David Marrione says
Do you know if the pressure cook timing and Natural Release timing would be the same for a “boxed” Dirty Rice, like Zatarain’s Dirty Rice (Zatarains’s brand foods have been a long time staple of New Orleans Kitchens). Just wondering.. Found a box in my pantry and was hoping to make it in the pressure cooker vs the stove.
Thanks, in advance, for your suggestions and feedback.
Mike Vrobel says
Yes, it looks like the timing should be the same, because Zatarains has “normal” rice in the box.
Katie says
My husband and I enjoyed this meal very much. I followed the recipe except for adding 2 stalks of celery and 2 bell peppers. The prep time took me a little longer but I’m a slow chopper. Thanks for sharing! I will be making again.