Instant Pot Basmati Rice

At just 4 minutes in a pressure cooker, basmati rice cooks thoroughly without becoming mushy or overcooked, preserving its natural texture and distinct aroma. The Instant Pot is a time saver and using it to make rice is a great idea for anyone who wants to prepare meals quickly without compromising taste and quality. You can make perfect basmati rice in large batches in only a few minutes (like I do with pressure cooked brown rice), then use it throughout the week in other recipes or for meal prepping. It can be frozen for later use too.

One of my favorite ways to use basmati rice is to serve it under Syrian kebab hindi, which is a lamb meatballs, carrots and potatoes stew. You can also use it to make stuffed pepper soup, Instant Pot fried rice, or serve with Middle Eastern stuffed peppers and stuffed cabbage rolls.

Cooking white basmati rice in your Instant Pot provides efficient and consistent cooking, enhances flavors and preserves the rice's signature aroma. These factors contribute to the deliciousness of the final dish, making pressure cooked basmati rice an easy and delicious choice!

What Is Basmati Rice?

Basmati rice is a long grain rice variety that is known for its distinct aroma and delicate flavor. It has a slender and elongated grain with a fine texture and a characteristic nutty fragrance. When cooked, the grains remain separate and fluffy, making it a popular choice for various rice dishes. Its unique flavor profile complements a wide range of cuisines, particularly in Indian, Pakistani, Middle Eastern, and Persian dishes.

What's To Love About Pressure Cooking Basmati Rice

Pressure cooking basmati rice can result in delicious rice due to a few reasons:

• Enhanced Flavors: Pressure cooking allows the rice to cook in a sealed environment, trapping the steam and moisture. This helps the rice absorb more flavors from the cooking liquid, such as broth or spices, resulting in a more flavorful rice compared to traditional cooking methods.
• Efficient and Even Cooking: Pressure cookers create high pressure conditions that accelerate the cooking process. This means that basmati rice can be cooked more quickly and efficiently, resulting in evenly cooked grains.
• Retention of Aroma: Basmati rice is renowned for its aromatic qualities. When pressure cooking, the sealed environment helps to retain the fragrant compounds within the rice. As a result, the cooked rice maintains its characteristic aroma, making it more appealing and enjoyable to eat.
• Time-saving: Pressure cooking significantly reduces the cooking time of basmati rice compared to traditional stovetop methods.

Tools And Ingredients Needed

To make white basmati rice in the Instant Pot you'll need:

• White basmati rice: it may be called "Indian basmati rice" or "authentic basmati rice".
• Salt and saffron: the saffron is optional and is used just to add some color and a little bit of flavor.
• Pressure cooker: you can use a 3 quart Instant Pot to a 10 quart Instant Pot, depending on how much rice you're cooking.
• Silicone sling (optional): if you prefer to use a cake pan and sling to pressure cook your rice.
• Cake pan (optional): a cake pan that is small enough to fit in your pressure cooker. With the cake pan and sling method, you'll be able to fit 2 cups of uncooked white basmati rice in your Instant Pot. This is about 5 ½ cups of cooked rice once fluffed.
• Fork: to fluff the delicious cooked rice!

How To Make Perfect Basmati Rice In A Pressure Cooker

It's incredibly easy and hands off to make perfect basmati rice in your Instant Pot in only 2 steps.

STEP 1: To the inner pot, add the 1 cup white basmati rice, 1 ¼ cups water, and ¼ teaspoon salt. If using ¼ teaspoon saffron, add it now. Stir. Close and seal the lid.

*If using a silicone sling: Pour the recommended amount of water for your size pressure cooker into the inner pot. Add the rice, water, salt and saffron to the cake pan. Stir and place the cake pan on the silicone sling. Transfer the sling and cake pan to the inner pot.

STEP 2: Set to pressure cook (or manual) on high for 4 minutes. When pressure cooking is complete, naturally release the pressure for 10-15 minutes, then quickly release any remaining pressure.

Remove the pressure cooker lid and fluff the rice with a fork. Serve warm.

What To Serve With Basmati Rice

• Slow cooker kebab hindi (lamb meatballs and vegetables), or the traditional stovetop version.
• Use as the base for crock pot pepper steak or this tasty beef and broccoli dinner.
• Make a garlic lime shrimp and rice bowl.
• Air fryer kielbasa and peppers, or just air fried kielbasa.
• Serve under this delicious, cheesy jalapeño cheddar chicken.
• Mix into slow cooker birria stew or chile rojo stew.
• Air fryer salmon and broccoli.
• Use with sheet pan fajitas.

Recipe Tips

While making basmati rice in your Instant Pot remember these important tips:

• Make plain white basmati rice if using in other recipes or for versatile meal prepping options.
• Add fragrant herbs to your rice before pressure cooking when you're using it for a specific meal.
• Instead of water, use chicken, beef or vegetable broth to add a little flavor to plain rice.
• Don't rush the pressure release time- you'll have perfectly fluffy textured rice when following this recipe exactly!
• If you're worried about the rice sticking to the bottom of the pot, use a silicone sling and a cake pan. To pressure cook basmati rice in a cake pan, pour 1 cup of water into the inner pot. In a separate cake pan, mix the rice and water. Put the cake pan on a silicon sling (or trivet) and transfer to the inner pot. Pressure cook as the instructions state, and you won't have to worry about the rice sticking to the bottom of the inner pot!