One of my goals this year is to eat more whole grains. Yes, this means using whole wheat flour (as well as other grains like spelt and einkorn), but it also means making the subtle switch of white rice to brown rice.
Honestly, I’ve never been a fan of brown rice. It takes way too long to cook and it tastes like cardboard.
But then I made Instant Pot brown rice and fell in love!
To be fair, I’m not sure if the awesome flavor is because of the Instant Pot or because of the type of brown rice I picked, but I’m calling it a win in either case.
(By the way, I bought brown basmati rice because that’s what Costco had. I’ve always purchased my rice from Costco because they have the best deal per pound, hands down. Now that we’ve switched to brown rice though, I need to research my local stores and online stores to double check that this is still the case!)
Instant Pot Brown Rice
Let’s talk about the Instant Pot for a moment.
First, I bought mine a few months ago. I chose the 8 quart Instant Pot because 50% of my family have yet to hit the teen years… meaning their appetites are only going to get bigger.
I also own this 6 quart slow cooker, and on a handful of occasions, it’s not big enough. I wanted to err on the side of my Instant Pot being too big, than it being too small.
I wrote an articles on 20+ things to consider before buying an Instant Pot that I highly recommend reading if you haven’t purchased an Instant Pot yet and are still on the fence (including being unsure of what size to get).
Second, it makes brown rice CRAZY fast. As in, it takes just 22 minutes to cook!!
If you’re new to the Instant Pot, you might not know that it takes time for the Instant Pot to come to full pressure BEFORE your food actually cooks. And it takes time to come back down AFTER your food has cooked too.
A good rule of thumb is whatever the cook time is, that’s how long it takes to come to pressure.
So while this Instant Pot brown rice will cook in 22 minutes, it will take closer to 44 (ish) when you include coming to pressure, plus another 3-5 minutes as the pressure comes down.
Still, this is MUCH faster than any previous brown rice I’ve ever made.
And did I mention the fact that when you make Instant Pot brown rice, it’s pretty much idiot-proof?
I’m referring to myself here.
You see, I’m notorious for turning a burner on and leaving the room to do something else… and then coming back to an empty pot or a scorched pot or ruined dinner. On some occasions, it’s all three!
But cooking brown rice in the Instant Pot means I can dump it all in, hit a couple buttons and walk away CONFIDENTLY.
The pot will beep at me when it’s ready, and then I can walk over and flip the pressure release valve and open up the pot to perfectly cooked brown rice.
Really, it’s the multi-tasker’s saving grace.
One more reason to make Instant Pot brown rice – you can make TONS and freeze it for later.
This concept is part batch cooking (when you make multiple batches of something at one time) and part freezer cooking (when you cook something for the freezer).
Brown rice – or any rice for that matter – freezes BEAUTIFULLY.
I measure 4 cups into plastic freezer bags. Seal, lay the bag flat to evenly distribute the rice, then open the bag slightly and suck out all the air. (You can use a vacuum sealer if you have one, but I don’t.)
Lay the bags in the freezer flat to freeze, then you can store them vertically like bookshelves. That’s the best way to maximize your freezer space. And don’t forget to label the bags!!
To thaw, place a bag in the fridge overnight. If you need the rice faster, place it in a sink full of hot water. Then serve or use in a recipe as desired!
- 4 cups brown rice (I used brown basmati)
- 5 cups water
- 4 Tbsp butter (optional)
- 2 tsp salt (optional)
- Combine all the ingredients in the Instant Pot and stir gently.
- Hit “pressure cook” or "manual" and make sure "high pressure" is selected.
- Set the time for 22 minutes.
- When the timer goes off, turn the pressure release valve to quickly release the pressure.
- Serve warm.
What to learn more Instant Pot Recipes? Sign up for the Instant Pot Basics Challenge! Learn more HERE.
Have you tried different varieties of brown rice? Which kinds do you like best? Have you tried brown rice in the Instant Pot?
My number one goal is to NOT GET LAZY and let everything I learned in Grocery Bootcamp go by the wayside. I was extremely skeptical at first and thought I had trimmed every ounce of fat from my budget and boy was I wrong. Every time I thought about taking a short cut or not doing part of the assigned homework I thought about what I had paid for the class (which in retrospect was just a pittance) and decided it was just plain stupidity if I paid and then didn’t take advantage of what was offered — sort of like going out for a meal, ordering exactly what I wanted and then not eating it. Seriously, I trimmed my budget by 40% and, if anything, we have seen an improvement in what I am buying and preparing. I got lazy in October and for the first time since completing the course went over budget. I just need to keep that in mind. And as a by the way comment, this has allowed us to accelerate payment of debts and by May first the only bill we will have is our mortgage. After we build up our savings a bit, we will double up on payments on it.
Holy smokes Charlotte – what an amazing testimonial!! I’m so glad you posted it here. 🙂 Can I share this on the GBB page as well?
Absolutely.
If you have a Trader Joe’s in your area, try their brown jasmine rice. I made it in my instant pot and love it! It freezes really well too.
Ooh, I’ll have to see. TJ’s isn’t close, but if brown jasmine is good, I’ll price compare that against basmati!
We have Price Rite here and they beat Costco on the rice prices but the Costco light brown rice is honestly so good, I’ll probably just buy it again anyway.
Thanks Tabitha!
Can the recipe be halved? If so, is the water lessened as well? Same cooking time though, right? I feel the same about Brown rice and would love incorporating into our meals. Thank you.
Yes! Halve the rice, halve the water and same cooking time – you got it!
I notice you didn’t double the water for the amount of rice (4 cups rice, 8 cups water). Is that because of the kind of rice you used, or because the IP doesn’t need that much water? I don’t have an IP, I have a small pressure cooker. Would I used the same proportions you did?
The proportion of rice to water is 2 cups rice to 2 1/2 cups water. I doubled that in my recipe and because we’re starting off with so much liquid, it doesn’t burn. Does that help better?
Hi Tiffany, you have such a balanced approach to food and health so I’m curious what you think of the claims that brown rice has a lot of arsenic? What made you decide to go with brown over white? Thanks! I always appreciate your insight.
Hi Sonia! I’ll admit that I haven’t done a whole lot of research on the topic, but here’s my opinion (since you asked!):
– Brown rice contains more arsenic than white, but white still has arsenic too.
– No matter which rice we pick, there will be arsenic because of how the plant grows.
– Everything in moderation, which means enjoying other whole grains too like buckwheat, millet, etc. (which I will look more into as the year goes on!)
– Cooking rice in lots of water (like pasta) reduces the arsenic, so that’s an option if it’s a true concern (and easy to do in the IP!) ♥
See, I knew you would have some good thoughts on the matter. I didn’t know that water eliminates some of it. Thanks for getting back with me. Love this blog! Wish I could pick your brain over coffee 😀
I am interested in pot in pot cooking chicken thighs and brown rice but am warried that the chicken will dry out because of the 22 minute cooking time; any thoughts thanks excellent site
jerry
Hey Jerry! I’d recommend adding the chicken partway into the rice cooking… So if your chicken takes 10 minutes (not sure if it does, but let’s pretend), then you’d cook the rice for 12, quick release, add the chicken, cook for 10!
I couldn’t find brown basmati rice but I did find some brown jasmine. Just cooked up a batch using these directions. Smells very nice- like popcorn!- and turned out well.
Glad this worked for you Melanie!
This turned out AMAZING! This is my first time to cook brown rice, i followed the recipe, except i made quarter of the quantity since i needed only one cup.
Thank you SO much!
You’re very welcome!
I tried this just now for lunch, and withing 30 minutes the rice was ready and it seems even softer than rice cooked in the rice cooker. Next time I will try it in some broth for flavor. Thank you!
You’re very welcome Suzanne!
I don’t usually leave comments on blogs but this recipe is fabulous. Thank you so much! This brown rice is the best I’ve ever tasted! So much better than the brown rice made in a rice cooker.
Thanks for leaving a glowing review Kaylee!! ♥
Does this recipe take 22 minutes or 44? In your description of cooking in the Instant Pot you mentioned doubling the time, yet the recipe sYates the total time to be 22 minutes?
The cook time is 22 minutes, but the time from when you put the ingredients in the pot to when the the pressure is done being released could take up to 44 minutes.
Cooking for a crowd, what would my time and measurements be if I were cooking six cups of rice?
Wow! Wow! Wow! I’ve been a brown rice failure for years! We just bought an 8 qt Instant Pot and tried your recipe for the first time tonight. Perfect brown rice!! I can’t believe it. Thank you! This is a keeper for sure. Goodbye white rice forever! 🙂
YAY!! I’m so glad you liked it!
Hi, thanks for this – rice is useful in so many dishes.
Wondering if proportion of water is the same for plain brown rice, rather than brown basmati? Would it need a higher water quantity?
Thanks
I haven’t tried plain brown rice, but I bet the same ratio would give fine results, Bec!