A step by step guide to cooking basmati rice in the Instant Pot using the PIP (Pot in Pot) method. Perfectly cooked Instant Pot rice every time, quick and easy.
You may be wondering whether Instant Pot
rice is as quick, easy and perfectly cooked as rice made in a rice cooker. I had used a rice cooker for many years and always loved it.
Once I got my Instant Pot and started making rice in it, I found that I have no need for a rice cooker at all. Making rice in the Instant Pot works just as well as the rice cooker. It’s great because there’s no need to plan ahead.
For instance, last night I realized that we didn’t have enough rice to go with leftover Fish Molee Curry, and I cooked a batch of pot in pot Instant Pot rice on the spot a few minutes before dinner.
There are two ways to make Instant Pot rice:
- You can cook it directly in the inner pot that comes with the Instant Pot
- You can cook it in a smaller oven-safe bowl that’s placed inside the inner pot. This is called the “Pot in Pot” method (often referred to as “PIP”). I use a
Pyrex glass bowl and it works perfectly for one cup of uncooked rice. I think it could easily accommodate 1.5 cups of uncooked rice.
Pyrex glass bowl and it works perfectly for one cup of uncooked rice. I think it could easily accommodate 1.5 cups of uncooked rice.I’ll be showing you how to make Instant Pot rice using the pot in pot method.
Click Below to Check out all my Indian Recipes!
Tips and Substitutions
- If you’d like to make a larger quantity, you can cook the rice directly in the inner pot using my Fragrant Instant Pot Jasmine Rice recipe.
- For Instant Pot basmati rice, I find that using a 1:1 ratio of rice to water works just great.
- If you’d like to make Instant Pot Jasmine rice, increase the quantity of water a bit. I use a 1:1.25 ratio of Jasmine rice to water.
- You could try and substitute chicken broth or coconut milk mixed with water if you’d like to try something different. The coconut milk needs to be thinned out or your Instant Pot may not come to pressure.
[Read More: Instant Pot Jasmine Rice and Instant Pot Brown Rice]
If you’re new to the Instant Pot and aren’t familiar with how to use it, please read the Instant Pot DUO Beginner’s Quick Start Guide or the Instant Pot ULTRA Beginner’s Quick Start Guide first and then come back here to learn how to cook perfect Jasmine Rice in the Instant Pot.
How to make Instant Pot Pot in Pot Rice (Step-by-Step Instructions)
- Rinse out 1 cup of basmati rice in a fine mesh sieve.
- Transfer rice from sieve to a Pyrex glass bowl.
- Add 1 cup water to the bowl.
- Pour 2 cups water into inner pot.
- Place trivet in the inner pot.
- Place glass bowl on trivet.
- Close the Instant Pot.
- Make sure the steam release handle is in the ‘Sealing’ position.
- Press ‘Manual’ (or ‘Pressure Cook’) and ‘+’ or ‘-‘ until the display reads ‘6’.
- Instant Pot display will change to ‘On’.
- Once the Instant Pot is pressurized and the float valve is up, display will count down from 6 to 0.
- Display will read ‘L000’ and start to count up.
- Wait till the count-up timer reads L0:10 (10 minutes.)
- Do a Quick Release: move the steam release handle to ‘Venting’. I like to place a folded towel over the steam release handle and move it to the venting position. Remove the towel after turning the knob.
- When your Instant Pot is depressurized, the float valve will be in the down position.
- It’s now safe to open the Instant Pot. (Press ‘Cancel’ to turn off Instant Pot.)
- Your Instant Pot rice should be perfectly cooked.
- Fluff Instant Pot rice with a fork and serve.
Instant Pot Rice | Pot-in-Pot Method (PIP)
A step by step guide to cooking Instant Pot Pot in Pot (PIP) Rice. Perfectly cooked rice every time, quick and easy.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 2
Calories: 206kcal
Ingredients
- 1 cup basmati rice
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Rinse out 1 cup of basmati rice in a fine mesh sieve.
- Transfer rinsed rice and 1 cup water to an oven-safe glass bowl.
- Pour 2 cups water into the Instant Pot’s main compartment (inner pot) and place trivet in water.
- Place glass bowl on trivet and close Instant Pot. Make sure the steam release handle is in the ‘Sealing’ position.
- Cook on ‘Manual’ (or 'Pressure Cook') mode for 6 minutes. Let the rice stay in ‘Keep Warm’ mode for 10 minutes after cooking is complete.
- Release remaining steam to depressurize Instant Pot.
- Open Instant Pot and fluff rice with fork before serving.
Video
Notes
- To substitute Jasmine rice, change the ratio of rice to water to 1 : 1 1/4 and only cook for 4 minutes.
- See the blog post for more detailed recipe tips.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cup | Calories: 206kcal | Carbohydrates: 45g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 0.4g | Sodium: 2mg
Have you made this recipe?I love seeing your photos! Tag me on Instagram @PaintTheKitchenRed hashtag #paintthekitchenred
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.
If you loved this recipe, please give it a 5 Star rating in the comment section below and please share it on social media using the social media share buttons at the top and bottom of this post. Thank you so much!
You might also like to try these Instant Pot Recipes:
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| Instant Pot Jasmine Rice | Instant Pot Brown Rice | Instant Pot Pot-in-Pot Method |
Kelley
January 2, 2017 at 1:57 amI just got my instant pot for Christmas, and this recipe, plus your quick start guide are the most helpful instant pot guides that I’ve read so far! Do you know what times I would use for brown basmati rice? Thanks for your guidance!
Paint the Kitchen Red
January 2, 2017 at 4:50 pmHi Kelley! Comments like your’s are so motivating – thanks for the feedback. Try this for brown basmati:
Using same PIP method: 1 cup rice with 1.25 cups water. Cook in Manual mode for 20 mins. Allow to cool naturally for 10 minutes and release pressure. Fluff rice with a fork.
Jenn
January 17, 2017 at 5:31 pmIs it one regular cup of rice or one cup of the rice cup measure? I get my poor head wrapped so far around the axle. Thx in advance!!
Paint the Kitchen Red
January 17, 2017 at 6:03 pmJenn, it’s the ratio that’s important. So just use the same cup to measure the rice AND water – it doesn’t matter which cup you use. I use just a regular cup measure because it’s a larger quantity than the measure that comes with the Instant Pot and we eat a lot of rice! For the water in the inner pot, I just fill the inner pot to the line that says ‘2’ (2 cups). Hope that helps!
Donna
January 23, 2017 at 1:03 pmI’ve been reading a ton of IP recipes from tons of sources and yours was BY FAR the best formatted of them all! Great job with clear, concise instructions that include every single step so folks who are new can follow it! Wow, I am very impressed! Thank you!
Paint the Kitchen Red
January 23, 2017 at 8:44 pmHi Donna, Thank you so much for the positive feedback – you made my day! I will make sure I keep doing the step by step Instant Pot recipes. Sometimes, I don’t know if it’s helpful to people, but when I get comments like your’s I am reassured!
Linda
January 23, 2017 at 2:28 pmThank you. How would you make 4 or more cups of rice in IP? Are the rice to water ratio same for other types of rice – i.e. long, white grain?
Paint the Kitchen Red
January 23, 2017 at 8:41 pmHi Linda, you can cook long grain rice at the same ratio, but for Jasmine I add a tiny bit more water (about 1: 1 + 1/8) and cook for only 4 minutes. For larger quantities of rice, I just cook directly in the inner pot (not pot in pot) with the same ratio as PIP. Just make sure you don’t fill past the 1/2-full mark, because of expansion.
Sydney Lorenz
December 13, 2017 at 7:18 pmFor Jasmine rice directly in the pot (I like the crust at the bottom) how long for NPR? Thank you!
Paint the Kitchen Red
December 13, 2017 at 7:37 pmHi Sydney, I usually wait at least 10 minutes, but sometimes leave it longer if I’m not around. Works fine for me – I like my rice well done. Here’s my Jasmine rice post:
https://www.paintthekitchenred.com/fragrant-instant-pot-jasmine-rice/
Anne
February 6, 2017 at 5:50 pmHi there, I made this tonight and the rice (medium grain) wasn’t even close to cooked after manual 6 minutes at high pressure ad and 10 min NPR. I had to put it on manual for 10 more minutes for it to be done. what might have gone wrong?
Paint the Kitchen Red
February 6, 2017 at 8:32 pmHi Anne, I’m sorry you had trouble. So some basic questions: 1. Did the Instant Pot come to pressure (i.e. did the float valve come up?) 2. Did you use white rice? Could it have been brown rice? 3. Have you made anything else in the Instant Pot, and was your time close to the recipe time? This method should have worked for you, even if you’re off by a minute or two, but not by 10 minutes. I would definitely give it another try after double checking what I mentioned above. Please do keep me posted and best of luck.
Anne
February 10, 2017 at 10:08 amHi, thanks for the reply. Yes, I have been using the IP for about a year and have cooked all kinds of things in it. The float valve came up and the time counted down as usual. It was medium grain Nishiki white rice. I will try it again sometime. When I finally DID get it to cook it was good.
Paint the Kitchen Red
February 10, 2017 at 10:24 amSounds like you’re a pro! Hmmm, Nishiki rice I have no experience with but look at what I found from a user on the Instant Pot official website: “The ratio of Rice to Water is 1:1.25 (same as brown rice). I rinsed rice; used rice button on Instant Pot; 10-minute natural pressure release. The rice was perfect – even better than when I use our Japanese electric rice cooker….” Maybe you can try this. Best of luck.
Anne
February 13, 2017 at 7:58 amHi again,
Thanks for this. I did try it again with the specifications you mentioned, and it was still not cooked. So yesterday I used jasmine rice, did 10 minutes on the rice button and then quick release and it was perfect. Maybe it’s just the type of rice, or my particular pot. Anyway, thanks again , happy rice cooking!
Paint the Kitchen Red
February 13, 2017 at 7:04 pmI’m so sorry that you had trouble with the Nishiki rice. I do use this same method with Jasmine rice as well, just a tiny bit more water (1:1 1/8) and 4 minutes. Good luck and thanks for the update.
Irene
February 7, 2017 at 4:45 pmThank you for the clear instructions (the link directly to the recipe is my favorite) and no intrusive ads!!
Paint the Kitchen Red
February 7, 2017 at 7:34 pmThanks for the feedback, Irene! Enjoy your Instant Pot.
Emily
April 8, 2017 at 6:09 pmI just love your detailed instructions. Thanks.
Shelly Lucier
April 24, 2017 at 3:10 pmI have not bought my Instant Pot yet, but I’ve been looking at many many recipes for it. I have to say I love how you illustrate everything! It really takes away from the intimidation factor. Thank you so much.
Paint the Kitchen Red
April 24, 2017 at 8:08 pmGlad to be of help. I hope you get your Instant Pot soon and come back and try one of these recipes. And let us know what you decide to make first.
Laura
July 7, 2017 at 12:51 pmCould you use coconut milk instead of water?
Paint the Kitchen Red
July 7, 2017 at 10:28 pmIf you want to use coconut milk you’ll need to dilute it with water or broth. Otherwise, it will probably stick to the bottom and not come to pressure. You can experiment by trying 1/3 quantity coconut milk and then increase the next time you try. good luck.
Sue
July 17, 2017 at 8:47 amI made this for my first time making white basmati rice in my IP. It came out perfect 🙂
Please post more recipes- vegetarian friendly would be great!
Paint the Kitchen Red
July 17, 2017 at 12:49 pmThanks for the feedback Sue. Yes, it’s a delicate balance veg vs non-veg. I will try to post something veg soon – as a matter of fact I have the perfect recipe in mind. If you want to subscribe to the newsletter, you’ll get an email when I post a new recipe.
Marie
July 26, 2017 at 5:21 pmI have 6 qt DUO, used long grain white rice in 1:1 ratio, pyrex glass bowl on trivet that came with the IP, water on the bottom. 6 Min Manual, 11 min natural release, rice is not even cooked, maybe 1/2 cooked. Pot came to pressure fine. I wonder if it’s because long grain requires more water like the jasmine?
Paint the Kitchen Red
July 26, 2017 at 9:10 pmMarie, sorry you had trouble. I don’t think the timing should have been a problem – I suspect it was the quantity of water. Did you rinse the rice before cooking? Next time, you might increase the water to 1:1.25 or maybe even 1:1.5. Best of luck.
Beth
January 22, 2019 at 5:22 pmSame thing happened to me – and I had already added 2 minutes for the altitude (live in Colorado)… Rinsed, white medium grain rice. Rice was still crunchy, and water still in the bottom of the Pyrex. Trying again now.
Marianne C
November 11, 2017 at 2:48 pmAbsolutely spot on! Super step-by-step, clear, great follow along photos! My brown rice (Tru Roots sprouted rice quinoa blend, to be exact) turned out perfect. Brown rice nirvana ! Wow
Paint the Kitchen Red
November 11, 2017 at 10:32 pmThanks, Marianne! I’m glad it worked for you. How many minutes did you cook for (for the benefit of other readers)?
Marianne c
November 12, 2017 at 10:52 am6 minutes, 10 NPR…the product I prepared is a mixture of different grains (including quinoa) so I was apprehensive about cooking time being correct. Also, of note, I used a Pyrex dish -despite some opinions to the contrary – again, super pleased with results. Thanks for your excellent instructions…
Sydney
November 16, 2017 at 7:50 amHi! What fantastic info you have in this post and love all the additional varothat have come from the comments. I’ve been using my IP for about a month and in most recipes (for rice and beyond) the guidance is to use the manual setting versus the programmable settings that are in the IP ( such as “rice” or “soup” ). What is your opinion about the programmable settings? Are they valuable or just a gimmick? Thank you!
Paint the Kitchen Red
November 16, 2017 at 1:52 pmHi Sydney, if you have an Instant Pot that ‘remembers’ your previous settings for a particular program, then I feel the programs are valuable. For example, I cook eggs at 2 minutes (with 15 minutes natural release), always. So if I pick the egg function and change the time to 2 minutes, the next time I want to cook eggs I can just select the egg program and press start – that’s pretty convenient. However on some Instant Pot models, some specialized functions (like ‘Rice’ which cooks at low pressure) are not useful for me because I like to cook rice at high pressure. btw, this does not apply to the Ultra, where I can change the Rice pressure to high. I hope that answered your question. Thanks for visiting!
Barbara
December 20, 2017 at 6:22 amBy “cup of rice” are you referring to the 6 oz. rice cup that came with the IP, or a standard 8 oz. measuring cup? I just discovered why so many of us have had trouble with the difference in those two!
Paint the Kitchen Red
December 20, 2017 at 4:35 pmHi Barbara – I never use the IP measuring cup 🙂 The important point is that it’s a matter of ratios. So even if you were to use the smaller cup, as long as you use that same cup for the rice AND liquid, you should be fine. Let me know if you have any further questions!
Kanwal Rahman
December 30, 2017 at 9:46 amHi Neena! So glad to have found your site! I am of Indian origin so I do like to cook Indian dishes every now and then although mostly I cook Italian/American food on the stove. I just bought myself this Duo60 V3 (which does not have a MANUAL and ADJUST button) for Christmas. I had a Fagor 4 QT Elite Stove top Pressure cooker which I may have used about 5 in total for the last 3 years I had. I wanted an electric pressure cooker, but it seems complicated and I don’t want to experiment on and on and waste valuable raw materials in the process. I love your simple step by step instructions and will follow as soon as I get the courage to even do the steam cook for water, LOL! I will post then the result of the Basmati rice as that is the rice i eat everyday. Thanks again!
Paint the Kitchen Red
December 30, 2017 at 6:11 pmHi Kanwal, thanks for commenting! So the ‘Manual’ mode on your model is ‘Pressure Cook’ and to adjust the level of cooking between less, normal and more, you will repeatedly press the button of your choice. e.g. press ‘Saute’ multiple times to toggle between the settings. I think you’re really smart to start with rice (eggs is good too) so you get used how the IP works. Watch my beginner’s guide videos (first videos I did – so forgive the production quality 🙂 ) to get started. Feel free to ask if you have any questions. I try to respond as quick as I can. Good luck!
Donna
January 10, 2018 at 4:00 pmI have an off brand pressure cooker and it does not have high and low pressure. It is only capable of 8lbs pressure. If the person with the DUO had the same situation that would explain why their rice was not done. Gotta add more time for lower pressure machines.
Dhanya
February 1, 2018 at 10:51 amHi Nina,
Do you need to soak the Basmati rice for 20-30 minutes before cooking it using the Pot in Pot method given above? I’m so used to soaking my Basmati rice before cooking it in my electric rice cooker, so I was just wondering.
Thank you for your help!
Paint the Kitchen Red
February 1, 2018 at 10:56 amHi Dhanya – no, I don’t soak – I just rinse and it comes out great. Make sure you fluff it and let it sit for a couple of minutes after cooking. Good luck!
Mindy
April 2, 2018 at 5:48 amFINALLY! Rice that came out perfect! I am usually cooking for just two and 1 cup of rice makes the perfect amount for dinner with two servings for leftovers. I love making it with the “pot-in-pot” method–less cleanup–but couldn’t get the texture right with other recipes. I used a “Texmati” rice (Texas basmati-comes in a plastic container), and it was just right. Thank you!!!
Paint the Kitchen Red
April 2, 2018 at 12:19 pmThanks for your lovely comment! I’m really happy you found it helpful.
jb
April 16, 2018 at 1:51 pmHi! My chicken recipe calls for 8 minutes on manual. Will that be too long for pot-in-pot jasmine rice?
Paint the Kitchen Red
April 16, 2018 at 8:39 pmJB, yes I think it would get mushy. What you could do is cut the chicken into small pieces. I cook bite-size chicken thighs for 4 minutes – the same time as Jasmine rice. Or cook the chicken for 4 minutes, do a quick release, add the rice and cook for 4 minutes. Good luck.
Karen P
June 4, 2018 at 7:14 pmSimple directions written in easy step by step format. I love it when food bloggers write their recipes like this because they easily transfer to the My Cookbook App I use on my phone. So convenient! Thank you very much.
Paint the Kitchen Red
June 7, 2018 at 12:48 amThank you Karen 🙂 I’m always happy to hear that!
Lindsey
August 5, 2018 at 5:14 pmSimply perfect! This was my first time using the pot-in-pot method. Your instructions were so clear and easy!
Paint the Kitchen Red
August 5, 2018 at 8:05 pmThanks for letting me know, Lindsey! The first of many times I hope.
Jackie
August 23, 2018 at 2:09 pmI want to try this while making beef stroganoff. My recipe calls for high pressure for 12 mins then quick release. Would this work? Any suggestions?
Paint the Kitchen Red
August 23, 2018 at 2:17 pmHi Jackie – great question. Unfortunately the cooking times for rice and the beef are too far apart – if it had been just a couple of minutes, I’d have said ‘go for it’. So your option is: cook the beef for 6 minutes less i.e. for 6 minutes. Do a quick release (QR), put in the steam rack and rice, and then continue cooking for another 6 minutes. Another option is to cook the rice and beef for 6 minutes and do a 10 minute natural release, take out the rice and rack and then continue to cook the beef for another 6 minutes. Hope that makes sense!
Joan
November 20, 2018 at 7:18 amMy Instant Pot Ultra 8qt is on the way. I’m checking recipes to plan first use. I want to try the P-I-P rice method but don’t have a glass bowl. Can I use one of my Ben safe pottery bowls? Thank you.
Paint the Kitchen Red
November 20, 2018 at 8:38 amHi Joan, thanks for your question. Oven-safe ceramic bowls have worked just fine for me. If it’s something like rice, you might need to figure out the right cooking time. Cooking time can change slightly with different types of bowls. Do you have any stainless steel bowls? Those work too.
Lynda Brown
January 3, 2019 at 12:33 amThank you rice worked out great been struggling to get it right in a sauce pan on the stove this was perfect
Paint the Kitchen Red
January 3, 2019 at 6:58 amYou’re welcome, Lynda! The Instant Pot is the only way I make rice. You may like to try brown rice too – it comes out really well in the IP.
Terry
January 6, 2019 at 4:20 pmThanks for your clear directions. I have long grain white rice to use up before buying basmati. I’ve tried your recipe several times with different tweaks and times and my rice is either underdone or overdone. I’m a seasoned IP user, so haven’t skipped/missed any steps. Today, I tried the 1.5 cups liquid to 1 cup rice and it wasn’t finished, so I added it to a sealed pot on my stovetop on low heat for 10 mins and then left it covered off the burner for another 10 mins and it turned out perfect. This seemed counter productive, as I might as well have done it the old Fashioned way on the stove top from start to finish. I’ll try one more time with 1 cup rice to 1.25 cups liquid as you suggested and failing that, I’ll resume making it straight in the inner pot, which has always worked fantastic for me
Paint the Kitchen Red
January 7, 2019 at 9:33 amOh, how frustrating for you. Sorry you’ve had trouble. I use the same settings in the inner pot and PIP! Let me know if you have success with your latest try.
David
January 13, 2019 at 10:18 pmI want to try the pot in pot rice recipe. How much water for long grain rice?
Paint the Kitchen Red
January 16, 2019 at 5:52 pmDavid, I do a 1:1 ratio for long grain white rice.