This Instant Pot brown basmati rice recipe is a quick and easy way to cook healthy whole grain rice. The Instant Pot allows you to cook brown rice in a fraction of the time it takes to cook it on the stovetop, without sacrificing flavor or texture. Learn how to make perfect brown basmati rice every single time.

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Table of Contents
ℹ️ Introduction
What is Brown Basmati Rice?
Basmati rice is an aromatic, long-grain rice typically grown in the foothills of the Himalayas in India. Both white and brown basmati rice have a distinct aroma and nutty flavor.
When rice is first milled, the outer layer or husk is removed. What remains is brown rice. Brown rice is a whole grain version of white rice, which means it contains bran and germ.
If the rice grain is further processed and the bran and germ are removed, what’s left is the starchy endosperm which is white rice.
Long grain brown rice has a denser, chewier texture than white rice. It is rich in fiber, vitamins, and minerals and is a good source of antioxidants.
Basmati brown rice helps you feel full longer and improves digestion. Due to its low glycemic index, it doesn’t increase your blood sugar as quickly as white basmati rice can.
All in all, due to the health benefits, brown rice is a better choice than white rice for overall health. You can cook Instant Pot brown jasmine rice too. And if white rice is more to your liking, try my pot in pot rice recipe for white basmati rice.
Learn more about your Instant Pot…
- Natural or Quick Release: What is Instant Pot natural release vs quick release and when should you use them?
- Instant Pot Tips and FAQs: What are Instant Pot frequently asked questions?
- Instant Pot Not Sealing: Why is your Instant Pot not sealing and what can you do to fix it?
- Common Instant Pot Problems: This Instant Pot troubleshooting guide explains common problems and errors and how to solve them.
- Sous Vide Button: How to use sous vide Instant Pot function for perfectly cooked foods.
Why Cook Basmati Brown Rice in Instant Pot?
You can have mixed results when you cook brown basmati on the stove top. Many people (including myself) get inconsistent results where some grains are cooked more than others.
When you cook rice in the Instant Pot pressure cooker, you don’t have to worry about any of this. Here are some reasons the Instant Pot is better:
- You don’t have to constantly babysit the stove or keep a watchful eye on the water so it doesn’t boil over. The Instant Pot allows you to set it and forget it!
- The rice cooks up evenly without parts that are undercooked or overcooked. This produces consistent results every time.
- The Instant Pot takes less time to cook the brown basmati rice than the stove top does.
- The pressure cooker’s sealed cooking environment helps seal in and retain the intrinsic nutrients present in brown rice by preventing excessive evaporation.
- Making rice on the stove top can cause spills from water overflowing. The Instant Pot doesn’t have this issue, which makes cleanup easy.
- The Instant Pot has a Keep Warm mode, which allows you to keep the rice warm until you’re ready to serve it.
- You can cook a large batch of rice at a time, which makes it great for meal prep.
More Instant Pot Rice Recipes
- Converted Rice is also known as parboiled rice. It’s healthier than regular white rice and is less sticky.
- Fried Rice is an Asian style rice and vegetables recipe cooked together as a one-pot meal.
- Brown Fried Rice is a healthy fried rice with vegetables recipe that’s an easy last minute side dish.
- Instant Pot Basmati Rice is rice cooked using the pot-in-pot method and is super convenient.
💡 Tips for Instant Pot Brown Basmati Rice
How to Get Fluffier Rice
- Rinse the rice before adding it to the pressure cooker. This washes away the starches which can make the rice clumpy.
- Fluff the rice with a fork after you open the lid. This separates the grains while the rice rests for a few minutes.
How to Keep the Rice from Sticking
- Spray the inner pot with a spritz of oil spray before you pressure cook brown basmati rice.
- Use a nonstick inner pot if you own one.
- Let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes before releasing the remaining pressure.
Using the Pot in Pot Method
Sometimes you may want to cook a small quantity of rice or you might want less cleanup. Use my Instant Pot pot-in-pot brown rice recipe for detailed step-by-step instructions on how to cook brown rice in the Instant Pot in a separate container.
Flavorings
You can increase the flavor of brown basmati rice by adding any of the following ingredients to the rice when it’s being pressure cooked:
- Bay leaf
- Salt
- Butter
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Chicken broth instead of water
- White miso
- Lime juice
- Lemon juice
- Soy sauce
❓ FAQS
If you soaked the rice ahead of time, you may end up with mushy and sticky rice. For this recipe, you just need to rinse the rice. It’s also possible that you need to add a little less water.
Yes, you can double the recipe. Use 4 cups of rice and 8 ½ cups of water. Just make sure you don’t go over the ½ full mark. Keep the cooking time the same.
You can halve the recipe by using one cup of brown basmati rice and one cup of water + two tablespoons.
I highly recommend rinsing the rice out to get rid of excess starch, which can cause the rice to be clumpy or sticky.
🧂 Instant Pot Brown Basmati Rice – Ingredients
Quantity provided in the recipe card at the bottom of this post
📝 How to Cook Brown Basmati Rice in the Instant Pot Pressure Cooker
- Add rice and water to the Instant Pot
- Pressure cook and release pressure
- Fluff the rice
Add Rice and Water to Instant Pot
- Place the rinsed rice in the Instant Pot.
- Add water to the Instant Pot.
Program the Instant Pot and release pressure
- Close the lid.
- Program the Instant Pot to pressure cook on high pressure for 22 minutes.
- The display will go from On to 22:00. The float valve will go up after a few minutes. The display will count down to 00:00.
- Do a 15 minute natural release of pressure. Wait 15 minutes and release any remaining pressure. Once the float valve goes down, the lid can be opened.
If you’re new to the Instant Pot and aren’t familiar with how to use it, you might find it helpful to first read one of the following guides and then come back here to learn how to make this recipe.
- General Instant Pot Instructions for Beginners
- Instant Pot ULTRA Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO EVO PLUS Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO NOVA Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO GOURMET Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot DUO CRISP Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot PRO Beginner’s Manual
- Instant Pot PRO CRISP Beginner’s Manual
Fluff the Rice
- Once the rice is cooked, it may appear sticky or wet.
- Fluff up the cooked rice with a rice paddle or fork. Let the rice rest for a few minutes for perfect Instant Pot brown rice. The rice paddle that comes with some Instant Pots is super useful!
Instant Pot Tips and Tricks
Delay Start
Learn about how to use the Instant Pot Delay Start feature, which allows you to begin pressure cooking at a future time.
Pot in Pot
Find out how to use the Instant Pot pot in pot cooking method, which allows you to cook multiple foods together.
Cooking Times
Find out Instant Pot Cooking Times and what method of pressure release to use.
More Instant Pot Rice Recipes
Do you love the ease of cooking rice in the Instant Pot but are looking for new recipes? Here are a few of my favorite Instant Pot rice recipes that are easy, delicious, and fast to make.
- Instant Pot brown jasmine rice is another brown rice that’s a great substitute for its counterpart, white basmati rice. This recipe can be used for other long grain brown rice varieties too.
- Try making pot in pot brown rice using the PIP method for smaller quantities of rice and easy cleanup.
- The pot in pot rice technique for white rice is convenient and comes out perfect every time.
For more rice recipes, be sure to check out my list of amazing Instant Pot rice recipes you need to try!
Brown Basmati Rice in Instant Pot
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups brown basmati rice
- 2 ¼ cups water or broth
Instructions
- Rinse rice thoroughly till water runs clear. There's no need to soak rice.
- Place rice and water in the Instant Pot inner pot. Add ghee and salt if using. Stir to combine and close the lid.
- Pressure cook on High Pressure for 22 minutes. **
- Once pressure cooking is complete, do a natural pressure release (NPR) or a 15-minute natural release if you're short on time. Open the lid. [Read More: The Different Pressure Release Methods]
- Open the Instant Pot and fluff the brown basmati rice with a fork and let the rice rest for a few minutes before serving.
Notes
- * You can add between ½ and 1 teaspoon of salt per cup of dry rice.
- ** If you want the rice to be more al dente or chewy, decrease the pressure cooking time to 21 minutes.
- For 1 cup of rice, use 1 cup + 2 tablespoon of water.
- Increase pressure cooking time by 1 minute for softer rice.
- Different brands of rice may need a bit more water. I use Royal.
- See the blog post for more detailed recipe tips. You don’t want to miss any!
Nutrition
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I am not a certified nutritionist. I provide my best estimate of nutritional information merely as a courtesy to my readers. If you depend on nutritional information for dietary or health reasons, I suggest using your favorite online nutrition calculator to confirm the nutritional value of this recipe based on the actual ingredients that you use.
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Nina says
Outstanding and perfect. Amazing it is so easy and good. Made a number of times and each one as exact and delicious as the first. And the pot in pot method works so well. Have even added sushi blend of rice vinegar, sugar and salt, hard to not stand over pot with fork and munch away.
Follow instructions as given for a pot of rice that will do you proud and please all you serve.
Neena Panicker says
Thank you, Nina! I’ve become a brown rice convert and love the way it turns out in the Instant Pot too! Sushi rice sounds amazing.