One of the reasons to love the instant pot is perfectly cooked brown rice. You don’t need to keep that extra rice cooker anymore and can free the counter space. Even though I love white rice, I try to include more and more brown rice in our diet as it is more nutritious than white rice (well, debatable!). If you are looking for pot-in-pot (PIP) Brown Rice in the instant pot, go here.
Is Brown Rice better than White Rice?
There is a big debate over which rice it better. All rice consists almost entirely of carbs, with small amounts of protein and practically no fat. Brown rice is a whole grain, which means it contains all parts of the grain — including the fibrous bran, the nutritious germ and the carb-rich endosperm. Brown rice has more fiber and antioxidants, as well as a lot more important vitamins and minerals.
White rice has had the bran and germ removed, which are the most nutritious parts of the grain. This leaves white rice with very few essential nutrients, which is why brown rice is usually considered much healthier than white.
On the other hand, brown rice contains the anti-nutrient phytic acid which reduce our body’s ability to absorb certain nutrients such as iron and zinc. Brown rice may also contain higher amounts of arsenic, a toxic chemical. However this is only a concern if you eat a lot of rice.
With the above facts, I am not recommending either one is better. You make the choice! I prefer to include both brown and white rice in our diet.
How to cook Brown Rice in Instant Pot?
Cooking rice needs perfection on the amount of water and time. I was never able to get that for brown rice prior to using the instant pot. Sometimes there would be water left, sometime the rice would be undercooked. However now with the instant pot, I can always cook perfect brown rice.
This is a no soak method. Just wash the rice, 22 minutes pressure cook (high pressure) in the instant pot and 10 minutes natural pressure release. Sounds easy…it actually is!
I like to have rice al dente, and separate. I don’t like sticky or mushy rice. Hence I use a 1:1.25 rice to water ratio, which has consistently given me perfect results.
Traditionally cooked basmati rice in a saucepan needs double the water amount than the rice. However in the instant pot, less water is enough to get perfectly cooked rice.
Main things to remember for perfect Brown Basmati Rice
- No soaking of rice
- Rice to water ratio – 1:1.25
- Pressure Cook / Manual for 22 minutes (high pressure, vent sealed)
- 10 minute NPR – Manually release the pressure 10 minutes after the instant pot beeps
Enjoy this perfect brown rice with any curry such as Chana Masala, Chicken Curry and Dal Makhani.
Try out the brown rice and let me know how it turned out. If you want to make Brown Rice using the pot-in-pot method (PIP), check out the recipe here.
You can also check out other variations of rice – Basmati white rice, Jeera or Cumin rice or other basics recipes such as Steamed Broccoli and Instant Pot Beets .
Brown Basmati Rice Recipe - Instant Pot Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 cup Brown Basmati Rice
- 1 1/4 cup Water
- 1 tbsp Ghee or Oil (optional)
- 1/2 tsp Salt (optional)
Instructions
- Wash brown rice until the water runs clear.
- Add water and rice to the instant pot insert. If using, add the oil and salt.
- Start the instant pot in manual or pressure cook mode for 22 mins at high pressure with vent in sealing position.
- When the instant pot beeps, do 10 minutes natural pressure release, which means release the pressure manually 10 minutes after the instant pot beeps.
- Fluff the rice with a ladle or fork. Rice is ready to be served with your favorite curry.
Notes
- If you like very soft rice, then increase the amount of water by 1/4 cup.
- Cooking time remains the same even if you double or half the recipe.
- This recipe was created in a 6qt Instant Pot DUO60 Multi-use Programmable Pressure Cooker.
Note: Nutrition values are my best estimates. If you rely on them for your diet, use your preferred nutrition calculator.
Jan Smith Boyle says
Perfect, perfect, perfect. Other recipes call for soaking, which is antithetical to instant pot cooking.
Meeta Arora says
Hi Jan – Glad the brown rice came out perfectly!
Nicole says
I was looking for an instant pot recipe specifically for brown basmati rice and this worked great! I used chicken stock instead of water though. Thank you!
Meeta Arora says
Hey Nicole – Glad the brown rice recipe worked well. Thank you for sharing back your review!
Jo Wo says
This rice came out much better than my rice cooker. Thanks for sharing.
Meeta Arora says
Hey Ja Wo – So glad to hear the brown rice cooked perfectly in the instant pot. Thank you for sharing back your review.
Margaret Power says
Well, this was perfect! It takes just about exactly the same amount of time as chopping vegetables and making stir-fry.
Meeta Arora says
Isn’t that great? Instant Pot has enabled parallel cooking. I am usually making a curry/lentils/beans in the instant pot, which making Indian flatbread and a starry veggie on the stovetop :-). Thank you for sharing back your review, Margeret!
Elisabeth says
What if I want to make 12 cups of rice? Also can I use chicken broth instead of water? White basmati cooked in coconut milk is delish, I can’t wait to try it with brown.
Piping Pot Curry says
Hello Elisabeth – Chicken broth would definitely work in place of water in this brown rice recipe. Depending on the size of instant pot you have, increase the quantity of rice. I have heard readers made up to 5-6 cups of white rice in the 6qt instant pot. If you have an 8qt, you will be able to make more quantity. Just make sure you are below the fill line once the rice and liquid are added. Hope you enjoy it!
mohit kumar says
Thanks for the recipe.
Going to make this in the upcoming days.
Kay says
Thank you! The basmati rice is perfect!
Piping Pot Curry says
Hey Kay – Glad to hear rice turned out perfectly. Thank you for sharing back!
Mjm says
Hi,
Will this recipe work for PIP (Pot in Pot Method)?
Piping Pot Curry says
Hello – Yes, this same cooking time will work for pot-in-pot too. I make brown rice PIP with many curries that take anywhere between 22-30 mins at high pressure. Just a reminder to add 1-2 cups water to the main pot 🙂
Grace says
What is NPR?
Piping Pot Curry says
NPR is natural pressure release. Basically letting the instant pot release the pressure on its own. You might find this useful – http://pipingpotcurry.com/instant-pot-terminology/
Paige says
Thank you so much – your instructions were PERFECT and saved me from another RiceFail! 🙂 I’ve been trying to figure out the ratio for my different brown rice varieties and it’s been a lot of ‘okay, it’s edible’ but nothing exactly right. Now I have ‘basmati’ , at least!
Piping Pot Curry says
Hello Paige – Glad the rice turned out perfectly. Thank you for sharing back!