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Make perfect Instant Pot basmati rice for a fast side dish that the whole family will love! Made in a flash in a pressure cooker, this delicious basmati rice is great for meal prep, and it pairs well with so many dishes.
Basmati rice in the Instant Pot is the perfect recipe for anyone new to pressure cooking. You’ll get perfect results every time, and you’ll love that you don’t need to babysit a pot on the stove.
I adore serving a batch of this rice with our peanut butter chicken or air fryer orange chicken.
Reader Review
“Made this last night! Went to make some rice on the stove and realized it’s brown rice and didn’t feel like waiting 40+ minutes for it to cook… but once I had it in the IP, I was adding up the time. One major bonus is I’m doing the pot-in-pot method so one less dish to wash!
And the rice came out delicious, so there is also that.”
Tina
This recipe calls for the optional addition of oil, ghee, or melted butter. If you sauté the rinsed rice in a bit of fat before cooking, it helps separate the grains and adds lots of flavor. You can always skip this step if you’re short on time.
PRO TIPS/RECIPE NOTES
- The cooking time will remain the same no matter how much rice you make. That being said, the more rice you make, the longer the Instant Pot will take longer to come up to pressure and to depressurize.
- Each cup of uncooked rice will yield three cups of cooked rice.
- Do not use the cup markings on the inside of the Instant Pot to measure your dry rice or water. Use a dry ingredient cup for the rice and a liquid measuring cup for the water/broth.
Quick & Perfect Instant Pot Basmati Rice
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups basmati rice {uncooked}
- 1 tsp olive oil, butter, or ghee {optional}
- 2 cups water {or broth}
- 1 tsp salt {optional}
Instructions
- Rinse uncooked rice in a fine-mesh strainer under cool water until the water runs clear. (about ~2 minutes)2 cups basmati rice
- Press Saute on the Instant Pot and let it heat up for a few minutes. Add the rinsed rice and olive oil (or butter/ghee), and cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring often. Press “off/keep warm” to turn the Instant Pot to off.1 tsp olive oil, butter, or ghee
- Add the stock/broth/water and salt to the Instant Pot. Give it a good stir and then put the lid on.2 cups water, 1 tsp salt
- Lock the lid into place and set the steam release handle (valve on top) to “Sealing”.
- Press Manual>High Pressure>5 minutes. It will take 5-8 minutes to get up to pressure.
- When the rice has finished cooking, the Instant Pot will beep and switch to ”keep warm". Turn it to "off".
- Allow it to sit for 10 minutes and then flip the switch to "venting" to remove any remaining pressure.
- Carefully open the lid and fluff the rice with a fork or rice scoop.
Pot in Pot Method (Optional Method)
- Place 3 cups of water in the insert of your Instant Pot and add the wire trivet.
- In a stainless steel bowl, combine rice, water (or broth), and optional salt and olive oil. Mix
- Follow steps 4-8 above.
Notes
- If you do not rinse your rice, increase the water by 1/8 cup per cup of rice.
- Each cup of uncooked rice will make 3 cups of cooked rice.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I haven’t tried this recipe yet but I definitely will be trying it because you made notes on how to do it in high-altitude. Since I live at 8500 feet, I appreciate that.
Glad it is helpful, Phyllis! My friend lives in Denver and once mentioned how none of my Instant Pot recipes had the same cooking times for her. That led me to do some research, and I make sure to include that info now.
Made this last night! Went to make some rice on the stove and realized it’s brown rice and didn’t feel like waiting 40+ minutes for it to cook… but once I had it in the IP, I was adding up the time.
Still learning the ways of the Instant Pot, so correct me if I’m wrong. So if I am making brown rice, I set the timer for 19 minutes. Is that 19 minutes in addition to the 5-8 minutes for the pressure to build? If so, making the rice in the instant pot isn’t much faster (8+19+10= 37 minutes). Stove top directions say 40 minutes.
One major bonus is I’m doing the pot-in-pot method so one less dish to wash!
And the rice came out delicious, so there is also that ????
Yep! If you look at the time in the recipe card it also includes “pressurizing/depressurizing” time in the total time.