If you normally cook rice on the stove top, you’ll be amazed at how easy and incredibly convenient it is to cook rice in the Instant Pot.
Instant Pot rice is an easy, foolproof, hands-off method of cooking rice.
No burned rice. No boiling over. No need to even be in the same room, the same house, or even the same town when your rice is cooking. Just set it and forget it!
Once you start your rice, you don’t have to think about it again until you’re ready to serve it. Deliciously cooked brown rice will be ready for you exactly when you want it.
You’re going to love this method of cooking brown rice.
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How to Cook Brown Rice in an Instant Pot
To cook brown rice in an Instant Pot, simply place rice and water in the pot, secure the lid, turn the steam release valve to the sealing position, press the “Pressure Cook” or “Manual” button and set your time to cook for 24 minutes.
You can even delay your start time so your rice can be hot and ready later in the day (so you can go to work or run errands and come back to hot rice).
Check out my recipe below for water to rice ratio.
Measuring Tips
Be careful when measuring your rice and water. An precise water-to-rice ratio is important to make sure your rice comes out fluffy and properly-cooked. Use good (read: accurate) measuring cups when measuring your water and rice. One way to make sure your measurements are precise is to use the same measuring utensil for both water and rice.
Note that the measuring cup that comes with the Instant Pot is not accurate.
Notes on cooking time:
How long does it take to cook brown rice in an Instant Pot? I’ve listed out the times below for both the 3-quart and the 6-quart Instant Pot. Please note that these times are hands-off time. The Instant Pot does the work while you go about your day.
12 minutes to come to pressure
24 minutes to cook
23 minutes to release
– Total Time: 59 minutes
9 minutes to come to pressure
24 minutes to cook
16 minutes to release
– Total Time: 49 minutes
FAQ
Should I rinse my rice before cooking it?
Whether or not you rinse your rice before cooking it is a matter of personal preference and is completely up to you. Both rinsed and dry rice will work with this method of cooking rice. If you do rinse your rice, just be sure to drain it thoroughly before adding it to the Instant Pot.
How much rice can you cook in an Instant Pot?
My recipe below cooks 2 cups of dry rice, which yields about 6 cups of cooked rice.
In a 6-quart Instant Pot, you can cook 4 cups of dry rice, which yields about 12 cups of cooked rice.
Should I use natural pressure release or quick release?
Be sure to use the natural pressure release method when making rice in your Instant Pot. The quick release will make your rice sticky and mushy.
What’s a good way to flavor brown rice?
For more flavorful rice you can cook the rice in broth instead of water. Or you can sprinkle Herbamare over it, top it with some of my vegan Parmesan, or season it with my Rice Seasoning Recipe (below in this post).
Can I reheat rice in the Instant Pot?
You can. I prefer to reheat my brown rice on the stove top, but you can also reheat it in the Instant Pot.
To reheat brown rice in the Instant Pot, pour 1 cup of water into the Instant Pot and place the trivet in the Instant Pot. Place rice in a heat-proof glass container (uncovered) on the trivet. Secure the lid on the Instant Pot, and pressure cook for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, use the quick release method and your rice is ready to eat.
Troubleshooting
My rice is hard/crunchy
If your rice comes out hard or crunchy, you either didn’t add enough water or you tried to cook too much rice for the size of your Instant Pot
My rice is mushy
If your rice comes out mushy, you probably added too much water. Or you used the quick pressure release option. (Be sure to always use natural pressure release when cooking rice in an Instant Pot.) Or you didn’t fluff your rice with a fork when it was done (see recipe).
There is still water in the pot.
If there is water in the pot after your rice has cooked, you either did not cook your rice long enough or you added too much water at the beginning.
Delicious Ways to Eat Brown Rice
This naturally gluten-free dish is so flavorful and filling and taste fabulous topped with guacamole.
Stuffed Collard Leaves (Collard Rolls)
Collard leaves filled with perfectly seasoning vegetables and rice, baked in a luscious tomato sauce – the perfect (and perfectly healthy) comfort dish.
More Brown Rice Recipes
Perfect Instant Pot Brown Rice
Prep
Cook
Inactive
Total
Yield 6 cups
The nearly effortless way to cook brown rice and have it hot and ready precisely when you want to serve it.
Ingredients
- 2 cups long-grain brown rice
- 2 1/8 cups water - see note
Instructions
- Place brown rice in Instant Pot. Add water. Give it a quick stir to make sure there are not rice grains floating on the top of the water.
- Close Instant Pot lid.
- Turn the steam release valve to the sealing position.
- Depending on your Instant Pot model, use either the Pressure Cook or Manual button (not the rice setting) to set your cook time for 24 minutes.
- After the cook time ends, allow the pressure to release naturally.
- Remove lid and allow to steam off for 1 minute then fluff gently with a fork.
One quick request: if you like this recipe, please leave a rating and a comment. Ratings help more people find these healthy recipes!
Notes
The amount of water can be adjusted depending on the desired texture of the rice. If you would like your rice to be a little softer, add 2 tablespoons more water.
Also, the larger Instant Pots seem to lose a little more steam than the 3-quart travel size Instant Pot. So if you are using a large Instant Pot, add 1 to 2 tablespoons water.
* * * This Recipe for How to Cook Brown Rice in an Instant Pot is … gluten-free, plant based, oil-free, sugar-free, high in fiber, dairy free, egg-free, vegetarian, vegan, and made from real, whole foods.
Simple Seasoning for Rice
A mildly-flavored, simple, and healthy seasoning for brown rice.
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoon dried minced onion
- 3/4 teaspoon celery salt
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated onion
- 1/4 teaspoon sage
- 1/4 teaspoon rosemary
- 1/8 teaspoon granulated garlic
- 1/8 teaspoon basil
Instructions
Add these seasonings to rice in Instant Pot before cooking.
One quick request: if you like this recipe, please leave a rating and a comment. Ratings help more people find these healthy recipes!
Notes
This amount makes enough for 2 cups (uncooked) brown rice.
I am having trouble finding categories of recipes to look through. Is there a way to find all recipes in a category, such as “breakfast” or “salads”?
Hi Sonya,
Yes. Go to the navigation menu and hover over “RECIPES”.
In the drop-down menu you’ll see “RECIPE CATEGORIES”. Click on that and you’ll see all my recipes viewable by category.
Hope that helps!
Jennifer
So glad you find your instruction for brown rice in instant pot. I’ve been struggling ever since getting mine. Always too much water, just didn’t compute in my brain. But following your instructions exactly it turned out wonderful brown rice. Many thanks.
That’s great to hear, Constance. Thank you so much for your comment (and the 5-star rating)..
Looks great ; I am trying to get started ; am finding everything encouraging! Thank you.
That’s great, Linda. Let me know if there is anything I can do for you.