Instant Pot Pork and Spanish Rice
This pork and Spanish rice dish is easy to make, budget friendly, and done all in the Instant Pot. It's a delicious one pot, stick to your ribs meal!
Servings: 4 to 6
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large green bell pepper, diced into ¾ inch pieces
- ½ large yellow onion, cut in thirds and sliced
- 1 large zucchini, cut lengthwise into quarters and sliced into ½ inch pieces
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt (plus more to season pork)
- ¼ teaspoon pepper (plus more to season pork)
- 1 24 oz. jar marinara sauce
- 1 cup water
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2.5 lb bone-in pork shoulder blade steaks, trimmed of excess fat
- 1 5.25 oz box Spanish rice
- ½ cup pitted Castelvetrano olives, sliced
- 8 tablespoon queso fresco, crumbled
- fresh chopped cilantro (for serving)
- lime wedges (for serving)
Instructions
- Turn the Instant Pot onto the sauté (normal) setting and add olive oil to the pot. When the pot has preheated, add peppers, onions, zucchini, salt & pepper and sauté until tender, about 7 minutes. Remove the vegetables to a plate/bowl and set aside.
- Add tomato sauce, water and paprika to the pot and stir to combine. Season the trimmed pork shoulder blade steaks on both sides with salt and pepper. Add pork steaks to pot and submerge fully in sauce. Place lid on Instant Pot and check that the valve is set to the "sealing" position. Set Instant Pot for 20 minutes on high pressure. When time is up, let it sit untouched for a 10 minute natural release, and then carefully flip the valve to the "venting" position to quick release the remaining pressure.
- Use a slotted spoon or tongs to remove the pork to a cutting board. Skim fat off top of sauce (I like to use a spoon and some paper towel to help soak up the excess fat). Add the rice to the sauce mixture in the Instant Pot & stir to combine. Place lid back on Instant Pot, check that the valve is set to the "sealing" position, and set for 3 minutes on high pressure. When time is up, carefully flip the valve to the "venting" position for a quick release. Meanwhile, chop the pork into bite-sized pieces, discarding the bones and any large pieces of fat.
- Add the reserved vegetables, chopped pork, and sliced olives to the pot with the sauce & rice and stir to combine. Spoon into bowls and top each serving with 1-2 tablespoon crumbled queso fresco, a sprinkle of fresh chopped cilantro, and a wedge of lime. Enjoy!
Notes
Pork shoulder blade steaks are sometimes called just pork steaks or pork blade steak. They are steaks cut from the shoulder of the pig (the same cut of meat most commonly used for pulled pork) and can be found either bone-in or boneless. This recipe calls for bone-in, but you can substitute boneless if that's what you're able to find (just buy a little less since the bone isn't accounting for some of the overall weight). Don't substitute pork chops in this recipe - they are much leaner and will not work well with this cooking method/time.
Spanish Rice mixes are typically parcooked but have different cooking times, so depending on the brand you choose, the rice cooking step may need a little more or less time. I usually use La Preferida Spanish Rice, and cooking it for 3 minutes in the Instant Pot works well for this brand. I have also tried Zatarain’s, and that brand comes out better when cooked for 6 minutes. If your rice is still a little crunchy after the 3 minute cook time, you can always pressure cook it for another minute or two or turn on the sauté function to bring up the temp and cook it a little longer that way.
If you want to speed up the overall time it takes to make this dish and you're ok with washing one more pan, start with step 2 (getting the pork going in the Instant Pot) and while that is cooking, go back to step 1 and prep/sauté the veggies in a skillet on the stovetop.
Recipe adapted from Publix Aprons Pork and Spanish Rice.