I’m ready to cook some rice in my Instant Pot Duo Mini. I’ve heard that it can be tricky making rice in the Instant Pot. For instance, it can come out super sticky or Mount Vesuvius erupts out of the vent holes. There are a couple of tips that will help you make perfect rice each time. We’ll see if they actually work.
My first attempt will be basmati rice as it’s my favorite. If you’ve never tasted it, it has a slight nutty flavor. My mom says it smells like popcorn.
First, Set Up Your Instant Pot
I won’t include these instructions every time, but since this was my first attempt at real cooking, let’s run through them.
- If you removed anything from the inside of the lid such as the anti-block shield or the float valve, put them back in place.
- Press the seal into the inside of the lid, so that it is secure.
- Make sure the steam release valve is closed. The pot won’t heat up if it is set to vent.
Now that’s out of the way, let’s make some rice!
Rinse Your Rice
Rice has an outer coating that builds up as its jostled around during shipping. Rinsing off this coating prevents sticky build up in your Instant Pot.
The best practice, according to the Instant Pot recipe book and those in the know is to rinse rice with a fine mesh strainer. Then, soak it in a bowl for 15 minutes. Rinse one more time, then cook.
The rinsing will remove this outer coating. The soaking cuts down on the cooking time.
How to Make Basmati Rice in Your Instant Pot
Cooking rice is pretty simple. After doing the above steps for rinsing, soaking, and re-rinsing, cook that rice!
- Put equal parts water and rice in your instant Pot. If you have 1 cup of dry rice, add 1 cup of water
- Put the lit on the cooker and turn to seal.
- Press the Manual or Pressure Cook button.
- Press the – or + buttons to set the time to 4 minutes.
- Let the rice sit for 10 minutes to do a natural release of pressure.
And, you’re done! You’ve just made basmati rice in your Instant Pot.
Please note that the ratio of water to rice varies depending on the type and whether it has been pre-soaked. This chart lists quantities and cooking times.
This recipe works in the Instant Pot Duo Mini as well as the larger Instant Pots. I made 1 cup to test it out. The product information says that the mini can make 7 cups of cooked rice which pretty much more than I can handle.
If you have an Instant Pot, do you have trouble making rice? Have you learned any tricks that make the task easier? If so, tell us in the comments.
