1 week Ago By [email protected] (Erin Bashford)
While making rice in an Instant Pot is super straightforward, it’s also easy to make some big mistakes. If you want fluffy — but not mushy — rice, follow these quick and simple steps for the best Instant Pot rice ever. These steps work with both long-grain (basmati) and short-grain (sushi) white rice, and while some Instant Pots come with a ‘rice’ setting, I’ve found (through plenty of trial and error) that the default settings aren’t the best way.
Because Instant Pots are designed to pressure cook and therefore have a very strong seal around the lid of the machine, you'll see less water loss through steam than if you were to cook your rice on the stove or in a rice cooker. The first time I cooked rice in an Instant Pot, I put in rice and water in a 1:1 ratio and let it run for 12 minutes. The rice was super mushy and sloppy.
The second time I used less water, but still found mushy rice. Since then, I’ve perfected the best way to make rice in an Instant Pot. And no, it's not the 'rice' setting.
How to make rice in an Instant Pot How to clean your Instant Pot Although rice is notoriously difficult to get off saucepans, the Instant Pot inner pots are actually dishwasher safe! So you can put the pot in the dishwasher and let the machine do all the hard work. If you want to wash by hand, though, I found the best way to clean white rice off an Instant Pot is to fill the pot with warm water and dish soap, leave it to soak for an hour or so, and then scrub it with a gentle sponge. Dry with a clean towel and you’re done! Need to know If you want fluffy white rice, you don’t need a rice cooker.
Instant Pots are incredibly versatile devices with a multitude of settings you can adapt for your own specific needs. You can use the ‘steam’ setting to make cakes, bao buns, and steam veggies. You can use the ‘pressure’ setting to make rich beans in 40 minutes, or pasta in 5! The possibilities are endless with Instant Pots.
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