This Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Rice is a perfect copycat for Chipotle’s recipe, but made in the Instant Pot making it even easier! You won’t have to get takeout to have those delicious Chipotle flavors anytime you want!
Using a pressure cooker to cook the rice is a great way to reduce overall cooking time as well as minimize the amount of dishes you have to clean! For more delicious pressure cooker recipes try my Instant Pot Brown Rice Risotto.
For more easy vegan sides try these Crispy Polenta Fries or easy Vegan Spinach Artichoke Dip.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Perfect replica – This rice is so close to Chipotle’s Cilantro Lime Rice recipe that you almost cannot tell the difference.
- Quick & Easy – Making this rice in the Instant Pot makes this rice so much quicker and easier.
- Easy to scale – You can easily cut this recipe in half or double, even triple it to serve a crowd.
Ingredients for Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Rice
- Rice – I like long-grain white rice like jasmine is my personal favorite for this recipe, but you can use whatever you’d like
- Olive oil – Just a bit helps balance the flavors of the citrus.
- Lemon & Lime juice – Of course, we can’t make this recipe without the classic lime flavor. Fresh juice is best, but refrigerated works as well.
- Salt – This helps bring out all of the flavors in this recipe.
- Cilantro – fresh is best, but I have also made this with dried cilantro leaves and it still has great flavor
- Bay leaves – this is the secret to that extra flavor!
How to Make Cilantro Lime Rice in the Instant Pot
Begin by cooking your rice. If you are using an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker, you will use equal parts rice and water, so for this recipe it will be 2 cups of each. Make sure to rinse your rice beforehand to remove the extra starch. This makes the end result less sticky.
If you are cooking your rice on the stove, you’ll do 2 parts water to 1 part rice. Bring the water to a boil, add the rice, then lower to a simmer and let simmer for 18-20 minutes or until the rice is thoroughly cooked.
Cook the Rice
Add the rice, bay leaves, and water into the Instant Pot. Set it to seal and pressure cook on high for 4 minutes. My instant pot usually takes about 10 minutes to get up to pressure, then 4 minutes at pressure.
Release the steam carefully immediately after cooking is done.
Add the Flavor
Once the rice is cooked, you can either leave it in the pot or transfer it to a serving bowl for the final steps.
Next, you’ll add in the remaining ingredients: olive oil, lemon and lime juice, salt, and chopped cilantro. Stir until evenly combined. Add salt and/or fresh ground black pepper to taste. Make sure to remove the bay leaves before serving.
Serve with your favorite protein, in a DIY burrito bowl, in tacos, or alongside fajitas – the options are endless!
How to Store Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Rice
- Fridge: This Cilantro Lime Rice will last 5-7 days when stored in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.
- Freezer: You can freeze this rice in batches and store it for up to 3 months.
- Reheat: Reheat in the microwave with a splash of water to rehydrate the rice.
More Tips for Making Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Rice
- Not Vegan? Serve this rice with a beef or chicken-based Mexican-style dish, or add cheese as a garnish before serving.
- Gluten-Free? This recipe is already gluten-free!
- Oil-Free? You can omit the olive oil in this recipe to make it oil-free.
Cilantro Lime Rice (Chipotle Copycat)
Equipment
- serving dish
Ingredients
- 2 cups long grain white rice
- 2 cups water
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 3 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tsp salt
- ½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 2 bay leaves
Instructions
- Rinse the rice and place it in the instant pot with the water and bay leaves.
- Set the instant pot to "seal" and pressure cook on high for 4 minutes.
- Carefully manually release the steam once the rice has cooked (about 14 minutes total).
- Remove the bay leaves.
- Add the olive oil, lime juice, lemon, juice, salt, and cilantro. Mix until evenly distributed.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Not Vegan? Serve this rice with a beef or chicken-based Mexican-style dish, or add cheese as a garnish before serving.
- Gluten-Free? This recipe is already gluten-free!
- Oil-Free? You can omit the olive oil in this recipe to make it oil-free.
Nutrition
Please note, while all ingredients used in this recipe have been verified to be vegan and free of applicable allergens at the time of recipe creation, different brands may differ in their ingredients or processing procedures and may change their ingredients at any time. For some recipes, I do include ingredients that are processed in a facility that processes other allergens. Please make sure to check the ingredients and processing procedures for your specific purchases to ensure they meet your dietary needs.
Last Updated on August 13, 2025
This is the easiest way to get restaurant-level deliciousness at home!