Beet Rice Pilaf / Beetroot Rice – Instant Pot

Beetroot Rice or Beet Rice Pulao made in the Instant Pot, is a great way to sneak in some beets into your diet. Easy, vegan & gluten-free meal perfect for busy days.

Recently I tried ordering produce from imperfectproduce.  They are creating a marketplace for produce that goes to waste as it does not look perfect to be in a supermarket, but is as nutritious and delicious.  What a great idea!  I wanted to support it, and subscribed to their service.  I got my first box of produce with lots of beets, which are awesome in summer.  So here is the recipe for beets with an Indian twist – Beet Pulao or Beet Rice prepared in the pressure cooker.

Growing up in India, I have always known beetroot.  However as I was browsing recipes, I saw most of them just mentioning beet.  I wondered maybe it is a short version, until I checked wikipedia (the most trusted source ;-).  I found that “The beetroot is the taproot portion of the beet plant, usually known in North America as the beet, also table beet, garden beet, red beet, or golden beet.”.  So it is not just a nickname, it is really the name and hence the name of this recipe now “Beet Rice”.

Beetroot Nutrition 

I always like to write about the nutrition of the main ingredients used in the recipe.  So here is a bit about Beets.

“Beet is of exceptional nutritional value – low in fat, full of vitamins, minerals, iron, and packed with powerful antioxidants – a health-food titan“.   They are also an excellent source of folic acid and a very good source of fiber, manganese and potassium.  Although I don’t use the beet greens in this recipe, they are also very nutritious and can be cooked up and enjoyed in the same way as spinach.

Ready to use up some of the beets in this nutritious rice?  Not just nutritious, this pulao is also very easy to prepare in our very loved Instant Pot.  So let’s get going!

How to make Beetroot Rice in Pressure cooker

This is a fairly easy preparation for the beet rice.  The first step is to heat the oil and sauté the whole spices.  I like to throw in some whole spices for the aroma they add to the dish, but frankly they are optional.

Then add in the onions, ginger, garlic paste and sauté for a few minutes.  Add the chopped beets and any other veggies you want to add.  I added green peas, as that is what I had at hand.  Other possible options to add are potatoes, bell peppers, carrots and edmame.

Now you are ready to add the rice and water, and cook the rice on manual or pressure cook mode for 4 minutes at high pressure.  That is it for the active time to prepare this rice!

When the instant pot beeps, do a 10 minute natural pressure release.  This means let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes, then release the pressure manually.

Beetroot Rice is ready.  Mix in the lemon juice and fluff the rice. If you like, you can garnish with cilantro and/or cashews.  Enjoy it with raita or homemade yogurt.

I love the colors in this beet rice.  Since I started preparing this dish 2 weeks ago, I have already made this 4 times and served to friends, who all loved it.  Who wouldn’t?? 🙂

Try this Beet Rice and let me know how you like it. If you are looking for more rice recipes, check out Lemon Rice, Vegetable Pulao, Chicken Biryani and Khichdi recipes on Piping Pot Curry.

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Beet Rice Pulao Recipe - Instant Pot Pressure Cooker

A mildly flavored rice pulao with beets, green peas and aromatic spices in Instant Pot or Pressure Cooker.  

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Keyword beetroot pulao, beetroot rice, instant pot, pressure cooker

Diet Gluten-free, Nut-free, Vegan

Method Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Servings 4

Calories 239kcal

Author Meeta Arora

Ingredients

• 1 cup Basmati Rice (1 cup=250ml)
• 1 1/4 cup Water
• 1 tbsp Ghee or Oil
• 1/2 tsp Cumin seeds (Jeera)
• 1/2 tbsp Ginger paste
• 1/2 tbsp Garlic paste
• 1/2 Onion thinly sliced
• 1 Beet or Beetroot cut into small pieces
• 1/2 cup Green peas
• 1 tbsp Lemon juice

Whole Spices (optional)

• 1" inch Cinnamon (Dalchini)
• 1 Bay leaf (Tej Patta)
• 1 Star anaise
• 6 Black Peppercorns
• 3 Cloves (Laung)

Spices

• 2 tsp Salt
• 1/2 tsp Cayenne or Red chili powder
• 1/2 tsp Garam masala
• 1 tsp Coriander powder (Dhaniya powder) (optional)
• 1/4 tsp Ground Turmeric (Haldi powder)

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

• Start the instant pot in sauté mode and heat it. Add ghee, cumin seeds and whole spices and sauté them for 30 seconds until the cumin seeds change color.
• Add the sliced onions, ginger, garlic and sauté for 3 minutes.
• Add the beets, green peas and spices. Mix well.
• Add the rice and water to the pot. Stir the ingredients in the pot. Close the lid with vent in sealing position. 
• Change the instant pot setting to manual or pressure cook mode for 4 minutes at high pressure.
• When the instant pot beeps, do a 10 minute NPR. This means let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes, then release the pressure manually.  
• Add the lemon juice and fluff the rice.
• Beet Pulao is ready. Enjoy with homemade yogurt or raita.

Notes

• Adding whole spices is optional.  You can enjoy this beet pulao even if you don't have all the whole spices in your pantry.
• To reduce spice, skip the cayenne. 
• I added green peas along with the beets, as that is what I had at hand.  Other possible options to add are potatoes, bell peppers, carrots and edmame.  
• If you don't have an instant pot, you could also prepare this beet pulao in the stovetop pressure cooker.  I suggest one whistle for the rice, and let the pressure release naturally.   

Note: Nutrition values are my best estimates. If you rely on them for your diet, use your preferred nutrition calculator.

Nutrition

Calories: 239kcal | Carbohydrates: 44g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 9mg | Sodium: 1193mg | Potassium: 184mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 4.8% | Vitamin C: 14.4% | Calcium: 2.4% | Iron: 6.4%

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