Filipino Instant Pot arroz caldo is a chicken and rice porridge with lightly flavored broth and all the toppings for a meal you can enjoy for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Filipino arroz caldo is the ultimate comfort food, perfect for sick or overcast days.
- Prepare this recipe using a handful of simple ingredients.
- The hearty dish is a great way to repurpose leftover chicken and rice.
- Using the Instant Pot cuts the cooking time in half, and the chicken and rice are ready in about an hour.
What is Arroz Caldo?
Arroz Caldo is a Filipino comfort food that resembles Chinese congee or rice porridge. Despite its Spanish name, which translates to “hot rice” or “rice broth,” this dish was introduced by Chinese immigrants in the Philippines. While many families serve the meal as a comforting remedy for colds and stomach aches, it’s also a staple for breakfast, a midday snack, or a light dinner.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Oil: Sear the chicken and saute the vegetables in oil.
- Chicken: I typically make Instant Pot arroz caldo with bone-in chicken thighs, legs, or a combination. You can make the dish with whole chicken or chicken wings if you prefer smaller pieces. Use boneless chicken thighs if that is what you have, but I recommend including chicken Better than Bouillon or a bouillon cube for additional flavor.
- Onion: Use either white or yellow onions.
- Scallions (Green Onions): I use the white parts of the scallion to flavor the broth, and the greens are a nice peppery garnish.
- Garlic: Use a ton of fresh garlic cloves to flavor the dish.
- Ginger: Ginger is a key ingredient, so I suggest using fresh ginger.
- Jasmine Rice: If you can get your hands on glutinous rice like sticky rice or malagkit rice, use one of those. However, I use jasmine rice since I always have it in my pantry. You can also use calrose, long-grained white rice, brown rice, or basmati rice.
- Chicken Broth: Use homemade broth or store-bought chicken broth. You can also use water and Better than Bouillon.
- Fish Sauce: Fish sauce is made from salty fermented fish and adds a flavorful boost to the chicken and rice.’
- Spices: Taste and season the Instant Pot arroz caldo with salt and black pepper as you go.
Additions and Substitutions
- Vegetables: Include diced vegetables like celery, carrots, zucchini, or mushrooms. I personally love adding mushrooms to mine if I have them available.
- Protein: Use leftover shredded chicken breasts or rotisserie chicken for a quick weeknight meal. Use tofu or mushrooms for a vegetarian version of the dish.
- Broth: I recommend 6-8 cups of chicken broth or chicken stock, depending on whether you like a thick porridge texture or a looser soup.
- Bones: For additional flavor, you can add pork bones or chicken bones similar to bone broth, yakhni, and mutton soup.
How to Make Instant Pot Arroz Caldo
The full recipe with measurements is in the recipe card below.
Step 1: Warm oil in the Instant Pot on saute mode. Season the chicken with salt and pepper, and add it to the Instant Pot skin-side down. Let them brown for 2-3 minutes per side.
Tip: Be careful not to overcrowd the pan, and work in batches if needed.
Step 2: Remove the chicken and set the pieces aside. Add the diced onion to the pot and cook until they become translucent and soften.
Then, stir in the scallions, six minced garlic cloves, and ginger; cook for another minute.
Step 3: Deglaze the Instant Pot with chicken broth, scraping up any stuck-on bits from the bottom of the pot. Nestle the chicken pieces into the broth and add the rice. Secure the lid and set the pot to manual high pressure for 20 minutes.
Step 4: Meanwhile, warm two tablespoons of the oil in a skillet or saute pan over medium heat. Add six thinly sliced garlic cloves to the oil.
Cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic turns light golden brown. Transfer the garlic to a plate lined with paper towels to drain.
Step 5: Remove the the inner pot from heat and stir in the fish sauce. Spoon the rice and chicken into serving bowls and garnish with scallion greens and the fried garlic to serve.
Expert Tips
- Browning the chicken beforehand adds flavor, but skip it if you’re in a pinch.
- When adding the chicken broth to the Instant Pot, use the liquid to deglaze the pot and scrape up any stuck-on bits from searing the chicken. Not only will you add flavor to the dish, it will prevent you from getting a burn notification.
- For the best results, saute the garlic for garnish on medium heat and keep an eye on them so they don’t burn. You want the garlic crispy but not charred.
If you enjoy this meal, try one of these Filipino recipes!
Serving Suggestions
Arroz caldo in the Instant Pot is everything you need in one pot, and it is perfect for meal prep. However, it’s the trimmings that take the dish up a notch. After spooning the rice and chicken into bowls, I love adding fried garlic, scallion greens, and hard-boiled eggs but include your favorite toppings like chili crisp, ground chicharrones, cilantro, lemon wedges, calamansi, or sautéed vegetables like bok choy or spinach.
What to do with the Leftovers
- Refrigerate: Store the leftover arroz caldo in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
- Freeze: Let the dish cool completely, then transfer it to a freezer-safe container or bag. Instant Pot arroz caldo will freeze for 4-6 months.
- Thaw: Defrost the chicken and rice in the refrigerator overnight.
- Reheat: The dish will thicken as it cools in the refrigerator, so I recommend adding a little water to loosen it up before reheating it on the stovetop or in the microwave.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between lugaw and arroz caldo?
They are similar dishes, but the main difference is the prominent ginger flavor and chicken pieces in arroz caldo.
Is arroz caldo a porridge?
Instant Pot arroz caldo has a porridge texture, but you can include more chicken broth if you prefer a soup-like consistency.
Can you make arroz caldo with cooked rice?
Yes, you can make the dish with cooked rice, although the traditional arroz caldo recipes start with uncooked rice to allow it to slowly absorb the flavors of the broth, chicken, ginger, garlic, and onions as it cooks.
I recommend adding cooked or leftover rice to the Instant Pot when you stir in fish sauce at the end before you serve.
More Instant Pot Recipes:
Instant Pot Arroz Caldo
- 2-3 tablespoons oil, divided
- salt, to taste
- pepper, to taste
- 2 pounds chicken pieces, bone-in
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1 scallions finely sliced, white & green parts separated
- 12 garlic cloves, divided
- 1-2 inches ginger, minced
- 1½ cups jasmine rice, washed and rinsed
- 7 cups chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- Warm oil in the Instant Pot on saute mode. Season the chicken with salt and pepper, and add it to the Instant Pot skin-side down. Let them brown for 2-3 minutes per side.Tip: Be careful not to overcrowd the pan, and work in batches if needed.
- Remove the chicken and set the pieces aside. Add the diced onion to the pot and cook until they become translucent and soften. Then, stir in the scallions, six minced garlic cloves, and ginger; cook for another minute.
- Deglaze the Instant Pot with chicken broth, scraping up any stuck-on bits from the bottom of the pot. Nestle the chicken pieces into the broth and add the rice. Secure the lid and set the pot to manual high pressure for 20 minutes.
- Optional – Remove the chicken to debone and cut the chicken into smaller pieces. Return the chicken to the pot and stir to combine.
- Remove the the inner pot from heat and stir in the fish sauce. Spoon the rice and chicken into serving bowls and garnish with scallion greens and the fried garlic to serve.
- Browning the chicken beforehand adds flavor, but skip it if you’re in a pinch.
- When adding the chicken broth to the Instant Pot, use the liquid to deglaze the pot and scrape up any stuck-on bits from searing the chicken. Not only will you add flavor to the dish, it will prevent you from getting a burn notification.
- For the best results, saute the garlic for garnish on medium heat and keep an eye on them so they don’t burn. You want the garlic crispy but not charred.
- The nutritional information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for professional advice.