Fluffy and tender, our Instant Pot Rice Pilaf is a wonderful rice recipe that pairs well with just about any protein! It’s simple to make, and healthier than plain white rice. You’ll love how easy it is to make Basmati rice in the Instant Pot.
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Why We Love Instant Pot Rice Pilaf
- Super hands-off, perfect for busy cooks.
Cooking the rice in an Instant Pot means no possibility of water boiling over and no rice sticking to the bottom of the pot. Just set it to cook and let the Instant Pot do all the work. - Feeds a crowd.
This recipe makes a lot of cooked rice, so it’s great as a potluck side, or serve it with meals all week long. - It’s a quick, one-pot wonder!
No messing around with lots of prep work and no stacks of dishes to clean. Plus, you can add any fresh or frozen vegetables you like, making this a healthy, complete meal.
🎯 New to Instant Pot Cooking?
Read How to Use the Instant Pot first! Then, our Tips and Hacks for the Instant Pot is a great resource for new owners and seasoned IP-ers alike!
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- White Rice – For this rice and veggies recipe, choose either a medium or long-grain variety, like jasmine or basmati. You can use brown rice as a substitute, but you will need to add 15 minutes to the pressure cooking time.
We love Trader Joe’s rice and always stock up. - Broth or Water – Liquid is needed to deglaze the pot and prevent a “burn” notice on the Instant Pot. The choice between broth and water is a matter of personal preference–bear in mind that the dish will take on the flavor of whichever liquid you use. Choose mushroom or vegetable broth if you would like to keep this rice pilaf vegetarian.
Tips To Prevent An Instant Pot Food Burn
Include at least one cup of liquid in the Instant Pot. This helps the pot to come to pressure quicker.
Deglaze the pot after sautéing. Bringing all the cooked food bits up from the bottom of the pot prevents them from burning and adds more flavor to your dish.
Make sure the Instant Pot is sealed correctly. Check your manual and seal the valve so the Instant Pot can come to pressure.
Helpful Tips for Making Rice Pilaf in the Instant Pot
- Thoroughly rinse the uncooked rice in cold water. Removing the starch beforehand will go a long way towards making sure your rice pilaf instant pot style is perfectly fluffy – not sticky.
- Choose long-grain rice. When making rice pilaf in an instant pot, pick Basmati over Jasmine rice. Long-grain rice is lower in starch, which keeps the rice grains individual and gives it the perfect texture. Cooking short-grain rice can result in a gummy pilaf–exactly what we’re trying to avoid.
- Be sure to use hot cooking liquid. Using hot water or broth speeds up the entire process of making Instant Pot rice pilaf, helping the IP come to pressure more quickly.
- Deglaze the pot. After you add the broth, use a wooden spoon to scrape up any brown bits from the bottom of the inner pot. It may look burned, but trust us; it’s caramelized, which adds flavor!
- Allow the pressure to release naturally.The pressure cooking time for Instant Pot vegetable rice is 5 minutes on high pressure, but the rice will not be fully cooked after those 5 minutes.During the 10 minutes of natural pressure release, the pilaf will continue to cook. Then, when you open the lid, you’ll see beautiful, fragrant, and fluffy rice!
TFN Pro Tip
For the best flavor, sauté the grains before adding the broth or water.
You only need to sauté for a couple of minutes. At that point, you’ll notice a nutty aroma; that’s your cue to stop sautéing and cancel the setting.
Want a few more rice recipes?
If healthy grains are your thing, you’ll love our Instant Pot wild rice recipe!
For a flavorful side dish, make our recipes for homemade Rice-A-Roni and chicken fried rice!
To learn how to cook brown, white, Jasmine, and Basmati rice, check out our ultimate guide on how to cook perfect rice.
Storing and Serving Leftovers
Unlike fried rice, which is fabulous the next day, Instant Pot rice pilaf tastes much better on the day you make it.
This pilaf has a mild flavor, so it’s delicious with just about every protein! Our favorite main dishes to serve with rice are pork chops, baked chicken tenderloins, crockpot Swiss steak, and BBQ chicken tenders.
If you do have leftovers, refrigerate them in an airtight container. They’ll keep for 4 or 5 days.
To reheat, add 1 to 3 Tablespoons of water for each cup of leftover rice and stir gently while cold. Reheat in the microwave oven. The leftover rice pilaf instant pot style is fantastic to use in a soup pot! Try adding it to navy bean soup or tomato soup.
Rice pilaf can be frozen! Allow it to cool completely, then seal up in a freezer-safe container. It can be stored for up to 3 months. Be sure to thaw it in the fridge for a few hours before reheating.
Our Favorite Tools To Make Rice Pilaf
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Buy Now → Instant Pot Rice Pilaf FAQs
To avoid mushy rice, sauté it before cooking the rice in liquid. Also, avoid adding too much liquid to the Instant Pot. Stick to a 1:1 ratio of rice to broth or water.
While both are cooked in liquid, rice pilaf is sautéed first in seasonings to create a more aromatic rice.
Basmati rice has a light scent and is the perfect texture for pilaf.
Instant Pot Rice Pilaf
Ingredients
- 1 cups white rice any medium to long grain white rice
- 2 teaspoons butter or oil
- 1 cups broth or water. *See Notes
- 1 cup diced mixed vegetables frozen or fresh
Instructions
- Rinse and drain rice well, and set aside.
- Set the pressure cooker to sauté, then add butter or oil to the pot. When the pot is ready to sauté, add rice and cook for 3 minutes. Press "cancel" to end sauté function.
- Add broth and frozen vegetables to the pot of rice. Use a wooden spoon to stir and combine, also scraping the bottom of the inner pot to deglaze it. Close and seal the Instant Pot lid, and turn or press the vent lever to seal (if needed). Set the pot manually to cook for 5 minutes at high pressure.
- When the pressure cooking cycle is complete, allow a natural pressure release by leaving the pot undisturbed for 10 minutes. Then, initiate a quick release for remaining pressure, by carefully turning or pressing the pressure release button (refer to your pot's instructions). Remove the lid and use a fork to fluff the vegetable pilaf before serving.
Notes
- Using hot liquid speeds up the cooking process because it helps your Instant Pot come to pressure more quickly.
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