Why Cook Risotto In An Instant Pot?
- QUICK AND EASY – Most people don’t attempt to make risotto at home, and I can understand why. It is traditionally a dish that takes a lot of time and a lot of care. One ladle of hot broth is added to the rice at a time until it is absorbed and then the process is repeated. The result is a creamy consistency that tastes amazing. But who has time to do that very often? Cooking Risotto in an Instant Pot solves all those problems! It’s so straightforward and the whole process only takes about 20 minutes, start to finish!
- DELICIOUS – There are a few dishes I have eaten in my life where I fall in love in the first spoonful, risotto was one of these meals. From the minute it hit my lips, I was in love. It is no wonder, I can’t seem to get enough parmesan cheese and there aren’t very many rice dishes I don’t like. You’ll fall in love with this Risotto made in an Instant Pot too!
- OIL – You will saute your onions in garlic in the oil. You can use any oil you’d like, as long as it’s got a high smoke point. We used Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO).
- GARLIC – Minced. You can either use fresh garlic cloves or buy the stuff in a can.
- ONION – Diced. We like using yellow onion for it’s softer, milder flavor. But you can use red onion if you’d like.
- RICE – We used Arborio Rice. See below for more information on rice.
- CHICKEN BROTH – You can substitute the chicken broth for vegetable broth to make this vegetarian.
- PARMESAN CHEESE – We recommend using fresh grated parmesan cheese. Don’t buy the pre-shredded stuff. It doesn’t melt as well.
- SALT AND PEPPER – To taste.
- FRESH PARSLEY – Chopped. For garnish.
What Rice Should you use for Risotto?
Storage, Leftovers and Freezing
This recipe is best eaten fairly quickly after it is done. Don’t worry, this won’t be too hard as it is delicious and everyone won’t want to wait to try it! But, that doesn’t mean you can keep leftovers for later. It just won’t ever have as much of that creamy texture as it was when it was fresh.
Just keep leftovers in an airtight container in your refrigerator. You can either reheat on the stovetop on a low heat or in the microwave. If the risotto is a little dry, you can mix in some liquid. Water, butter or chicken broth could work.
You can freeze Risotto. Let it fully cool and put in freezer safe containers or freezer bags. You can pack in individual portions if you’d like. It should be good in your freezer for 3-4 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Notes, Tips and FAQs
- ADD PEAS OR MUSHROOMS – If you want to make mushroom risotto it is super easy to add your sliced mushrooms in your pot when cooking the onions and garlic. If you’d like to add the peas, you can add frozen peas as well!
- ADD PROTEIN – You could also add a protein like chicken, pork, or turkey. Add during the saute phase of cooking and you are good to go.
- WHAT IF MY PRESSURE COOKER DOESN’T HAVE A “RICE” FUNCTION? -To make this easy risotto recipe I used the “rice” function on my Instant Pot. If your pressure cooker doesn’t have a rice function you can you use Low Pressure for 12 minutes or High Pressure for 6 minutes. Whatever method you choose to cook your risotto under, you will be quickly releasing the steam.
We hope you enjoy this Instant Pot Risotto Recipe! Please leave us a comment to let us know how it turned out for you!
Instant Pot Risotto
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1/2 cup diced onion
- 2 cups arborio rice
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Add oil, onion, and garlic to the instant pot and saute until onions are tender and garlic begins to brown.
- Add broth and rice and mix well.
- Place lid on the Instant Pot and seal shut. Close pressure release valve. Set instant pot to rice.
- Once the cooking cycle is complete, quick release steam.
- Stir in Parmesan Cheese and parsley and enjoy!
Notes
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Sharing of this recipe is encouraged and appreciated. Copying of full recipe to any social media is prohibited.
Adele Aiken says
This looks great – do you think you wold have to make any changes if you double the recipe?
Mom says
No, the cooking time and everything would be exactly the same.