This pressure cooker shrimp paella made in my Instant Pot Pressure Cooker will knock your socks off. And if you're not wearing socks, It'll make your toes curl. Not only does it have tons of flavor, it comes together so quickly with only a five minute high pressure cook time in the Instant Pot.
This post contains affiliate links, please read my full disclaimer here.
The full recipe with ingredients/instructions is available on the recipe card at the bottom of the post. Important tips/tricks are also included in the blog post.
I'm bizack with another Instant Pot recipe...and I'm super excited to share this one because it's such a quick and easy meal.
Although I love to cook, most weeknights I'm exhausted and I'd rather not stand in front of the stove. I'd rather not dirty up pots and pans. I'd rather order out but then my bank account says "no ma'am."
It's days like that that recipes in my Instant Pot are so important. If you haven't gotten an Instant Pot yet, you're so missing out. It is one of my all time favorite kitchen appliances, outside of my oven.
I go on and on about it in my post of Instant Pot Jamaican Cornmeal Porridge so I won't do that again here. But for those that don't know, it's an electronic pressure cooker that pretty much cuts cooking time in half.
It has a sauté function that makes it great for browning meats and softening onions that are part of meals.
Alrighty, so about this Instant Pot pressure cooker shrimp paella. Well I always keep a bag of raw frozen shrimp in our freezer at home. I love frozen shrimp because the defrost time is so quick and the cook time of shrimp is so fast.
The great thing about this recipe is that you don't even have to defrost the shrimp. It's a literally a throw it in the pot kind of recipe. And if you prep your ingredients ahead of time by chopping the onions, peppers, and garlic...well my friend, you may break the record for the quickest dinner on the table.
Your family will love this Pressure Cooker Shrimp Paella
I remember the first time I made this for my family, my daughter literally was shocked and thought I ordered out and didn't tell her. She couldn't believe how quickly dinner was done. I just told her I was Super Mom. She was indeed impressed.
People don't generally think of cooking shrimp in the pressure cooker. That makes sense because shrimp cooks quickly and if it's not done right it can lead to a rubbery mess.
The key to avoiding this of course is a short cooking time and using jumbo frozen shrimp with shell on. This will ensure your shrimp is perfectly cooked.
The only slight annoyance with this recipe is the taking the shell off after cooking and before serving. Honestly, it's up to you how you handle that part. On days I'm really tired, hubby and daughter are on their own when it comes to taking off the shells. On other days, I remove it for them so I don't hear their whining.
I've include step by step photos of how to cook this meal in the Instant Pot. I remember when I first got my Instant Pot I was lost on how to operate it. After pressing buttons and reading the manual 4 times, I figured it out. Well, as always, Enjoy 🙂
Pin Pressure Cooker Shrimp Paella for Later 🙂
Looking for more Pressure Cooker Recipes? Try these out:
Instant Pot Chicken and Rice (NY Street Cart)
Instant Pot Salmon with Creamy Herb Sauce
Southern Style Pressure Cooker Collard Greens
Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Shrimp Paella
Ingredients
Instructions
- Set Instant Pot to Saute function. Add butter to pot and melt. Add onions and cook until softened. Add garlic and cook for about a minute more. Add paprika, turmeric, salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes, and saffron threads. Stir and cook for about 1 minute. Add red peppers. Add rice and stir. Cook for about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add chicken broth and white wine. Deglaze your pot by stirring to ensure that there is no food stuck to the bottom of the pot. Add shrimp on top. Turn off Instant Pot and cover. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set Instant Pot to Manual Mode and set a 5 minute timer. When done, quick release. Remove shrimp from pot and peel if desired. Serve with Cilantro.
Nutrition
Video
Notes
- Make sure there are no dry bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. This could result in that annoying "burn" signal some pressure cookers give off. Once you add your broth (but before you place frozen shrimp on top), stir with a wooden spoon to ensure there is no food stuck to the bottom.
- This recipe was prepared in a 6qt Instant Pot. Please adjust accordingly for 3qt and 8qt models.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!Shop this Recipe
Notes on Pressure Cooker Shrimp Paella
- Use raw jumbo frozen shrimp with the shell on. This will ensure that your shrimp is not overcooked and your rice cooks perfectly. If you don't have jumbo shrimp or it's not frozen, then you will need to cook the shrimp seperatley.
- Make sure to deglaze your pot after the rice is added. Any food stuck to the bottom of an Instant Pot may cause the "burn signal to appear."
- This recipe can be modified with many different vegetable or meat additions. There are some great modifications on the comments below.
- Rinsed rice...I find this is a must in every rice recipe I make.
Step by Step Photos of Instant Pot Pressure Cooker Shrimp Paella
Adapted from Health Starts in the Kitchen.
Jennifer says
The shrimp was overcooked and rice still hard. Burned my fingertips trying to remove the shell. Was a mess.
jason says
awesome flavor.. i agree rice was a lil wet.. i will try with 1/4 additional rice next time. I really enjoyed this.. Thank u
Jessica says
Could you use brown rice?
Crystal says
that's the same question I have too..... Did you do it with brown rice? If so how did it turn out 🙂
Jane says
I hardly ever leave comments on sites, let alone return to one for the express purpose of doing so but I had to come back to thank you for this recipe. My husband and I tried this on a whim in our InstantPot last week and LOVED this recipe. In fact, we made it just a few days later just because it was just so easy and delicious...and we never repeat a meal twice. We decided to throw some asparagus on top of everything before putting the lid on, which came out fantastic. Thanks again!
Liz says
Just made this recipe and it was delicious. I added about 1/4 cup more rice to avoid the "wet rice" mentioned in a previous comment, and it was perfect. I tried to adjust seasoning accordingly but it needed a sprinkle of salt before serving. Between me and my husband there were no leftovers. This will definitely be one of my go-to recipes!
Andrew says
Can the shrimp be peeled and tail off prior to cooking?
Kari Burch says
This was delicious. Thank you so much for sharing. I was rushing around with doctor's appointments and had to feed my husband and disabled brother. The rice and shrimp were cooked perfectly. The level of spice worked for me and my family.
Yukie says
I made this tonight and my teenage son loved it thank you thank you! Added scallops is only change and didn't have saffron...
Pam says
Made this with basmati rice and added sausage. Rice wasn't cooked after 5 minutes so I reset it for an additional 5 minutes
Pam says
Update: Basmati rice took an additional 12 minutes on the Rice setting (after I already cooked it for 10 minutes on the manual setting). The flavor on this dish was just outstanding. I'll make it again.
Joelle says
Simply amazing! I added a cup of peas and I also added an extra 1/4 cup rice to avoid It being too wets It came out perfectly! My family loved it and it's so incredibly simple. It will definitely be added to our dinner rotation. Thanks so much for sharing!
Kerstin says
I had a terrible time with this recipe. It kept getting burnt to the bottom of the pan and for some reason my Instant Pot wouldn't get any pressure. I finally gave up and used my stove instead after trying about five times and scraping burnt food off the bottom every time. I stopped and did a water test in the middle to make sure the part was working and that worked fine. But when I put the food back in same thing again. I honestly don't even know what I did wrong which is frustrating ! It had plenty of liquid and I completely clear the bottom and it burnt to give it a fresh start each time. I just got my instant pot last week so I guess better luck next time ! I just wish I knew what the problem was !
Tanya says
So sorry to hear you had trouble with this recipe in the Instant pot. I'm not sure what the issue may have been as I've never had anything burn in the pot. So sorry, hope it turned out ok on the stove top.
Cheryl says
I had the same problem both times I tried this recipe and was wondering too. Second time it turned out good but the rice burned to the bottom.
Mp says
I had the same issue where I got the “burn” reading in the instant pot. Did you figure out what went wrong?
Tanya says
Hi Kerstin, I am not sure why some people are getting the "burn." It does seem to be rare so it may have something to do with the instant pot model some users are using. I use a 6 qt and I've never had any of my food burn with this or any other recipe. The key is having enough liquid to make sure it doesn't burn.
T says
When finished withe the saute, you'll need to hit cancel. Then restart the instapot. I'm not sure that this was your problem but my best guess if you are experiencing burning and the pot not coming up to pressure.
Hope this helps?
Tyler says
This literally came out tasting delicious,the rice looks intense yellow though maybe I added a little too much of something?But tastes delicious!
Tanya says
Thanks! Probably some good quality turmeric, it makes my rice super yellow too. Glad you enjoyed it!
Lillian says
Very tasty! The rice turned out a bit wet though. We like our rice a bit drier. We did use Uncle Ben's long grain white rice since we didn't have jasmine rice. Would using jasmine rice make it drier or maybe adding more rice would make a difference. Also I think adding frozen shrimp also adds more moisture which is why the rice is wet.
Tanya says
Hi Lilian, so happy you liked it! This dish doesn't really produce a dry rice, but it definitely shouldn't be so wet that you can see water puddles, lol. The rice change may make a difference but if you are looking for a drier rice, I would either add a bit more rice or reduce the liquid a bit. You are absolutely right about the frozen shrimp but I add it that way to ensure that the shrimp doesn't get overcooked while the rice is cooking.
Tanya says
Thank You! No worries, I love when people tell me the different ways they changed the recipes, I may do that next time as well. The one thing I love about these electronic pressure cookers and that you can increase the amount of ingredients and not change the cooking time. Perfect for meal planning and leftovers. So glad you liked it!
Suzanne says
I'm so bummed I bought fresh shrimp. They are large. Will they over cook?
Norm says
Yes, infact the best wau to cook shrimp is to wait until the rice is cooked and then add them, stir into tne rice, close the lid and wait about three to five mimutes. This will insure tbe shrimp are cooked but not rubbery. This is even more important if the shrimp are shelled.
A caution about wine in a pressure cooker. Sometimes it will turn bitter. To avoit this increase the chicken broth by a have cup. Then at the end add shrimp and wine. Turn on the saute function and cook unitl wine has been evaporated. This will cook the shrimp and preserve the wine flavor with no bitterness.
Jessie Wilder says
What would happen if you used frozen, peeled shrimp? I also don't use alcohol so I'm assuming I could just add more broth. Thanks.
Tanya says
Hi Jessie, frozen peeled shrimp would adjust the flavors and may result in overcooked shrimp. you can for sure sub the alcohol for more broth.
Kate @ Babaganosh.org says
I just made this, and it came out great!! I wanted to have a lot for leftovers, so I tripled the rice, liquid, and salt, and used a seafood mix (also roughly tripled), but stuck with the same cooking time, and it was perfect. Sorry I hate to be one of those people commenting on all the ways they changed the recipe, but I figured it could be useful info for someone who wanted to make a lot of paella. 🙂 Great recipe!
Vanessa Hayflich says
Did you triple up on the onion, garlic and spices too?
Sandra Maxwell says
I made this as per the original recipe and my family and I loved it, I wished I had tripled it, and will do so next time
Hol79 says
This is very helpful! I was wondering if time would need to be increased if i made 2x the amount...thanks!