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Want to learn how to make the best Instant Pot rice? Give this recipe a try! People will be asking for seconds.
True story: I sometimes eat this Instant Pot rice as a meal all by itself. This recipe all started when I made my Instant Pot chicken and rice but just wanted the rice all by itself.
I was in two minds about posting this recipe. On one hand, I’ve made it so many times that I can’t understand how it wouldn’t work. I do know that some people have had issues with a burn warning on that other recipe (rice is notoriously tricky), so I don’t want more comments from people saying this didn’t work for them.
But… it’s just so tasty. Imagine a yummy risotto with lemony notes. The rice soaks up all the chicken broth and flavor, and it’s just so tender and creamy (no cream though) and ahhhh I’m not even a big rice person, but I love love love it. I kinda can’t not post it. In my opinion, it’s the best thing I’ve ever made in the electric pressure cooker.
“I could eat the rice from this recipe with every meal!” — Lovely reader Monica on the chicken & rice recipe that spawned this one
How to make rice in the Instant Pot
Sauté the onion in your Instant Pot until soft; add the remaining ingredients (garlic, chicken broth, lemon juice, rice, Italian seasoning, & butter). Be sure to rinse the rice and drain it prior to adding it. Give it all a stir. Close the Instant Pot’s lid, set the valve on “sealing” and cook on high pressure for 10 minutes. Do a quick release. Give it a stir. Eat.
***Note: There is a chance that a burn warning will occur. I have never seen a burn warning on my own Instant Pot (it’s a 6-quart model), so I am perplexed, but I’ve definitely heard of this happening. I recommend you follow the directions exactly. I’ve tested cooking this rice at various intervals, including 10 minutes, 15 minutes, and even 18 minutes (with chicken breasts in this recipe) and I have yet to get a burn warning or wreck the rice.
If you’re not a fan of soft and creamy rice, you may not like this recipe. It’s definitely not al dente.
Pro tip: You may use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth if this recipe needs to be vegetarian, but I do find chicken broth in general to be more flavorful.
I hope you’ll give this easy Instant Pot rice recipe a try!
Questions? Ask me in the comments below.
The Best Instant Pot Rice
Ingredients
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2.5 cups chicken broth or veg broth
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 cup white jasmine rice (or basmati) rinsed
- 4 dashes Italian seasoning
- 1 tablespoon butter
Instructions
- Press the sauté button on your Instant Pot. Add the oil and onion and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Stir in the garlic, then add the chicken broth, lemon juice, rice (rinse it first), Italian seasoning, and butter. Leave the sauté button pressed so it heats up as you're adding the ingredients.
- Give the ingredients in the Instant Pot a good stir, and then close the lid, set the valve to "sealing", and cook on high pressure for 10 minutes. It will take 5-10 minutes to get it up to pressure.
- Do a quick pressure release once the countdown has completed. Give it a stir and then serve. The rice will be soft and creamy. Sort of like a faux risotto.
Notes
- I have tested this recipe multiple times in my 6-quart Instant Pot, and it has worked every time without a burn warning (I've heard this can happen in some of the larger Instant Pots when cooking certain recipes - such as ones with rice). I suggest following my instructions exactly as written for best results.
- If desired, use low-sodium chicken broth. I found this recipe to be perfectly seasoned with regular chicken broth, though.
- Makes 4 generous servings, but it'll easily serve 6 as a side.
- Inactive time indicates the time it takes the Instant Pot to get up to pressure.
- Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy only and should be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. Ingredients can vary and Salt & Lavender makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I made this exactly according to your recipe, and it is hands-down the BEST rice I’ve ever eaten. And so easy!
I am SO pleased to hear that, Laura!! 🙂 Thanks so much for letting me know!
I followed the directions exactly, and it was soup after 10 minutes on manual in my instant pot. Weird. When I cook plain rice, I use a liquid measure for 1 cup broth to every rice scoop (1 cup) rice. When I read the recipe I thought it a bit odd that it called for so much liquid, but I thought maybe adding the other ingredients called for more liquid.
Hi Adrianne! Hmm mine definitely isn’t soupy… that is odd. Mine has sort of a risotto-like consistency. I keep reading things saying how differently older and newer Instant Pot models behave (mine is older). I wonder if that’s what’s happening here. It seems like people either get the burn warning or it ends up soupy. So odd how consistency from IP to IP varies so much. 🙁
I just made with white rice and had to start the IP up again for another minute of pressure cook because there was a little too much liquid! Really good though
Hmmm that’s annoying!! Sorry about that. Seems Instant Pots vary a lot. I’ve had people tell me they have rice stuck on/the burn warning. I have yet for that to happen in my Instant Pot.
I just made it again tonight because I loved it so much last time, and I used a little less liquid, it was perfect! 🙂 it’s a keeper, I’ll be making this with fish every week!
I am so happy that you liked it! 🙂
I made this earlier this week and it tasted great. Definitely had that risotto consistency. I followed the recipe exactly as stated (used chicken broth and basmati rice). Thanks for posting this.
Wonderful! I am so happy you liked it. 🙂
I made this tonight and it was so so so delicious. Hardly any prep and very quick to cook in the IP. I did make a couple small changes however. I noticed it only called for 1 cup of rice, I used 1.5 cups since I wanted to have some leftover. And instead of 2.5 cups of broth I used 3 cups. Also, instead of jasmine rice I used well-rinsed Calrose rice since that was all I had. Calrose rice is a bit sticky by nature. It turned out incredible. A lovely creamy texture, similar to risotto. We had it with salmon and broccoli for dinner tonight. I absolutely love this dish and am about to recommend it to all my friends on Facebook❤️
I am so glad you liked it!! Thank you ❤️❤️
I tried this and while it tasted very yummy, it was very wet.
Hmm I haven’t heard that before. That’s interesting. Usually the opposite. 🤔
I agree. Normal rice recipes are 1:1. This was 1:2.5 (or 1 cup rice to 2.5 cups liquid). I was a skeptical, but tried the recipe to the tee. The rice was very, very wet.
Not sure what else to say other than I’ve been finding out Instant Pots tend to vary model-to-model a LOT. What works perfectly in my Instant Pot seems to either burn in another or be too watery. It is very frustrating since obviously I want my recipes to work well for everyone.
I just made this and it was like rice soup.
I set it to cook for a second time and then it came out perfect.
There is way too much liquid to rice.
I have an older IP.
I’m glad it worked out the second time around! It doesn’t come out rice soup for me.
Hi can I cook this on the stove top as I dont own a pressure cooker ?
Hi Tina, you could definitely try, but I can’t offer any suggestions on timing or whether it’ll get that same risotto-like quality that comes from the pressure cooking, unfortunately. This was a happy sorta accidental discovery in the Instant Pot for me haha.
Could this be modified for brown rice? Maybe a little more broth and a few more minutes? 🤔
Hi Nina! I haven’t tested it. I’m not sure brown rice will ever give that perfect risotto/sticky kinda consistency, but I think it’s worth trying. It’s on my list to test next time I have brown rice at home haha. Let me know your results if you do test. I’m sure others are probably wondering the same thing. 😊
I’m going to need to try it! I will let you know.
I just make ethics with the brown rice- brown jasmine to be exact. It is amazingly delicious and definitely has that creamy risotto like quality – i used just a splash more broth but probably
About twice the amount of time, i ended up having to restart the IP a couple of times as the liquid wasn’t quite absorbed. So it is definitely doable with brown rice, and though i haven’t yet made the white rice version, I imagine ithis was the desired result. Now to figure out the precise proportions and timing. So so yummy
Very interesting!! Thanks for your comment, it’s very helpful!
Also just made a double batch with brown basmati… Cooked on rice setting for 19 mins and let it sit for 50 mins after it beeps as done. Turned out perfect and delish!
That’s awesome!! Thanks for the tip!
“People will be asking for seconds.” Yeah not likely since you never made firsts for me. With vegetable broth. Do it now.
HAHAHA NO.
So I am just learning to use the Instapot, and I made this tonight. It was really good, but mine came out more like a risotto than the pictures show. I will make it again regardless, but what did I do wrong?
Seems like it came out perfectly! The rice looks drier in the photos than it actually is. And I’m learning that Instant Pots (especially the newer models) seem to vary so results can differ from person to person.
Hi! Wondering if this will work if I sauté the onion on my stovetop, and then follow the remainder recipe using my pressure cooker (no Instant Pot here). It sounds so yummy – I’m hoping it will! Thanks!
Hi Hannah! I haven’t tested this in a normal pressure cooker (don’t own one), so I really can’t speculate. I am very curious, so if you do give it a try, please report back! 😊
I’ll give it a try this week and report back! Cross your fingers for me!
Good luck! Haha
I wonder if it would help with the burn warnings if after the sauté, to add the stock and scrape the bottom of your pot clean? I did this with another recipe recently and had success. Looking forward to making this! Also is plain white rice not recommended? Thanks!
Hi Lisa! You’d think that would help! I definitely do that when I stir it. It’s a mystery to me why so many burn warnings occur for people. I would say any common variety of white rice should work (jasmine, basmati, etc.). I have never bought the generic “long grain white rice”, but I think I will try and see if it makes much difference in recipes. Let me know how it goes for you!