Instant Pot Turkey Legs And Rice. Delicious juicy turkey leg cooked over a bed of Mediterranean vegetable rice. A healthy quick dinner in the instant pot pressure cooker for two.
I love the simplicity of this instant pot turkey leg recipe and its perfect for when you find a special price on a turkey leg and can’t decide what to cook with it.
This instant pot Mediterranean turkey and rice recipe was originally published in early 2017, just after purchasing our first instant pot. We are updating it for you with more pictures, more recipe ideas and even more instant pot turkey and rice tips.
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Instant Pot Turkey Legs
I get it, turkey legs are in season, they are at an amazing price, and you want to make something delicious with one.
You also want to stretch out one small turkey leg (aka turkey drumstick) and have it feed two people for dinner.
You’re also aware that a turkey leg on its own is not going to have the wow factor in the instant pot.
You also love instant pot chicken and rice and want something similar for the festive season in the instant pot.
That is when our instant pot Mediterranean turkey leg and rice comes into your kitchen. It is easy to prep, and OMG turkey and rice in the instant pot is a dream come true.
Inspired by my 13 years living in Portugal, it is date night material, just without the effort.
Plus, as well as our free newsletter, we also have a free instant pot mini course. It is ideal for instant pot beginners or those that want to get more confident with their instant pot. The free course runs for 5 days with a new lesson delivered each day to your inbox.
Is Turkey Drumsticks Same As Turkey Legs?
Yes, it is one of the same. Turkey drumsticks is what you would call it if you lived in the UK, yet in the US they would refer to it as a turkey leg.
I think of it as a turkey drumstick and to me a turkey leg is when the turkey thigh is also attached.
But of course, a full turkey leg would be hard work fitting in the instant pot, whilst instant pot turkey drumsticks is much easier.
Can I Cook Turkey Legs From Frozen?
Yes, you can. BUT this recipe works because we have mastered the cook time of the brown rice and the instant pot turkey leg. If you add time for your turkey leg been frozen, it will mean the rice would go on for longer than I would like.
What Is Instant Pot Turkey & Rice Like?
Instant Pot turkey and rice is delicious. The brown rice is fluffy, and it has that baked rice taste thanks to the ingredients used. Plus, the juices from the turkey leg drip onto the rice making the rice taste even better.
I would compare instant pot turkey and rice to oven baked meat and rice dishes.
Turkey Legs Instant Pot Ingredients
Turkey – I recommend any turkey drumsticks in this recipe. Just a single medium sized one is plenty to feed two for lunch or for dinner.
Onion – When I make turkey legs in the instant pot, I love to sauté the onion first and give some flavour to the instant pot, before adding in other ingredients.
Peppers – This gives it a Mediterranean flavour like an instant pot paella, and what lovely colour it gives your rice. Just some red peppers will do the trick, but you can mix up the colours.
Veggies – You can also add in other veggies. I like to use carrots, but its all about personal choice.
Rice – I recommend brown rice. It is longer cooking which works well alongside your turkey leg and makes it more nutritious.
Wine – I also love to add in some white wine for flavour and you can also use white wine to deglaze the instant pot too before pressure cooking.,
Seasoning – I love to season my turkey leg and rice recipe with mixed herbs, garlic puree, thyme, parsley, rosemary, and salt and pepper. You can of course mix and match with what you have in.
Then for the kitchen gadgets that we have used in this instant pot turkey leg and rice recipe, it has just been our Instant Pot. We have this one and it does an amazing job and is also ideal for sauteing and then pressure cooking your one pot dinners.
How Do You Cook Turkey Legs In The Instant Pot?
- Prep. The first step is to peel and dice your vegetables and wash any that need washing.
- Flavouring. Next, I love to sauté my onion, add some flavour to the instant pot and deglaze with some white wine.
- Mix. Add all the brown rice ingredients into the instant pot and mix well.
- Organise. Next place the trivet over the rice ingredients and season the turkey leg before placing on the trivet. This gets you organised for cooking and allows you to cook turkey at the same time as rice.
- Cook. Instant pot your turkey leg and rice until you have perfectly cooked fluffy rice and tender and juicy turkey.
- Serve. Then once the instant pot has beeped and you have released pressure, fluff up your rice and serve with your turkey leg. I like to serve it on a platter for two, or you serve it on separate plates.
Crispy Turkey Legs
If you would like a crispy turkey leg, then I recommend you check out our air fryer turkey legs recipe and consider finishing off the turkey leg in the air fryer. Then you can have a wonderfully crispy skin on your turkey.
How Long To Cook Turkey Legs In The Instant Pot?
The recommended turkey legs cook time (with the rice) is JUST 16 minutes plus a 5 minute natural pressure release.
Any longer and your turkey leg meat will fall off the bone and then it will be difficult if you want to present it on a dinner plate.
Though if you wanted pull apart turkey that you can stir into the rice, then increase the cook time to 18 minutes and the same natural pressure release.
More Turkey Recipe Suggestions
- Air Fryer Turkey Thighs
- Air Fryer Turkey Wings
- Air Fryer Turkey Breast
- Instant Pot Frozen Turkey
- Instant Pot Turkey Neck Soup
- Instant Pot Turkey Crown
Instant Pot Turkey Legs And Rice
Ingredients
Kitchen Gadgets:
Instant Pot Turkey Legs Ingredients:
- 1 Medium Turkey Drumstick
- 1 Medium White Onion
- 1 Medium Red Pepper
- ½ Medium Green Pepper
- 2 Medium Carrots
- 1 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 480 ml Brown Rice
- 600 ml Water/Vegetable Stock
- 120 ml White Wine
- 1 Tsp Garlic Puree
- 1 Tbsp Mixed Herbs
- 1 Tbsp Thyme
- 1 Tbsp Rosemary
- 1 Tbsp Parsley
- Salt & Pepper
Instructions
- Peel and slice up your onion, peppers and carrots and place them into the instant pot with a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil. Sauté until your onion starts to change colour.
- Deglaze the instant pot with white wine. Then add in the rest of the rice ingredients.
- Give it a good stir and make sure all the rice is covered with liquid for an even cook.
- Add in the trivet over the rice ingredients.
- Season your turkey drumstick with a teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil and a sprinkle of mixed herbs and salt and pepper.
- Place the turkey leg onto the trivet, place the lid on the instant pot pressure cooker and pressure cook for 16 minutes, followed by a 5 minute natural pressure release.
- After releasing pressure put the turkey to one side and fluff up the rice. Then serve the turkey over the rice.
Notes
Nutrition
Can’t make it now? Then pin it for later!
Did you put the turkey under a broiler to get the skin crisp as shown in the accompanying photo?
Hi Scott
We browned the skin using the saute setting on the instant pot.
Kind regards
Dom
What size instant pot did you use?
Hi Annette,
We are 80% sure it is the 6 quart but on the day we were using both the 6 and 8 quart Instant Pot but the recipe should work in all Instant Pots apart from the 3 quart 🙂
Can I double the recipe to feed my family? If so, do I add to the cook time? Thanks!
Hi Susan,
Sorry for the late reply. Yes on the recipe card click the slider and move it it up and the amounts should change. Add 4 minutes to the cook time and an extra 10 minutes to the natural pressure release time, then double check with temperatures that your food is cooked 🙂
The timing on the rice was good but my 2 lb turkey leg needed more time.