Make creamy and delicious Brown Rice Risotto with practically no stirring involved! This Instant Pot risotto recipe is done in just 24 minutes at high pressure and is a delicious and healthy vegetarian risotto recipe the whole family will love.
Who has time for all that stirring?!
Love risotto but don't have the patience to be standing at the stove stirring until it's done? I hear ya. On a leisurely weekend, I'll happily stir a risotto into creamy perfection. But on a weekday? Get outta here!
I love playing around with whole grains - I am a nutritionist after all - and the good news is that you can make risotto using short-grain brown rice that's every bit as delicious as the classic recipe. It just takes a bit more liquid and a lot more time to achieve the same results.
I love this Baked Pumpkin Risotto recipe, but I'm calling in the big guns today with this tested-till-perfect Instant Pot Brown Rice Risotto. Let your pressure cooker do the heavy lifting, cooking the rice in a fragrant mixture of white wine, vegetable broth, herbs, and aromatics. All you need to do is stir in some butter and cheese at the end to enjoy a truly delicious and mostly hands off meal.
We tested the heck out of this recipe, calling in several recipe testers from around the globe, so be sure to check out some of their notes below. Oh, and you may want to double the recipe so you'll have enough left over to make our crispy air fryer risotto balls. They are so, so good.
Let's make Instant Pot risotto together!
You'll find detailed instructions in the recipe card at the end of this post, but for now here's a visual walk-through.
Step 1: sauté
Using the sauté setting in your Instant Pot, heat the olive oil over "normal" heat for a minute. Add the onion, and sauté for 2-3 minutes until it becomes translucent.
Add the garlic, thyme, and a good pinch of salt, and sauté for 3-5 minutes, stirring often, until the onions are golden brown.
Add the rice, and stir to combine with the onions, toasting the rice for about one minute.
Step 2: deglaze
Add the wine, and stir constantly until it is mostly evaporated. Be sure to give the bottom of your Instant Pot a good scrape with a wooden spoon to pick up all those bits of flavor.
Hit cancel on your Instant Pot to end the sauté setting. Add the vegetable broth, and stir well. Put the lid on the pot and ensure the vent is set to "sealing". Set to manual / high pressure for 24 minutes.
Step 3: season
When the cooking cycle is complete, allow the pressure to release naturally for 15 minutes, and then quick-release the remaining pressure.
Remove the lid, and add the butter and the Parmesan cheese. Stir for 1-2 minutes to create a creamy texture.
Step 4: add your mix-ins
Stir in the frozen peas if you like, or other mix-ins.
That's it! You're done! Go enjoy your risotto.
🧑🏻🍳 Notes from our recipe testers
To make sure this recipe was absolutely perfect, I had recipe testers from around the world with different sized Instant Pots give it a go. We tested the recipe several times using different lengths of natural release, and landed on a 15-minute natural release, with both short and long-grain brown rice, as the golden number.
Remember, if it's too liquidy you can always put the lid back on and wait for the liquid to absorb. If the risotto has absorbed all of the liquid and you feel that it needs more, you can always add a bit of extra vegetable broth, splash by splash, until you reach your desired consistency.
Instant Pot Brown Rice Risotto
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 1 ½ cups short-grain brown rice
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- ½ cup frozen peas optional
Instructions
- Using the sauté setting, heat the olive oil over "normal" heat for a minute.1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- Add the onion, and sauté for 2-3 minutes until it becomes translucent.1 medium yellow onion
- Add the garlic, thyme, and a good pinch of salt, and sauté for 3-5 minutes, stirring often, until the onions are golden brown.2 cloves garlic, ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- Add the rice, and stir to combine with the onions, toasting the rice for about one minute.1 ½ cups short-grain brown rice
- Add the wine, and stir constantly until it is mostly evaporated.½ cup dry white wine
- Hit cancel on your Instant Pot to end the sauté setting. Add the vegetable broth, and stir well, scraping the bottom of the pot to ensure there aren't any bits stuck to the bottom.3 cups vegetable broth
- Put the lid on the pot and ensure the vent is set to "sealing". Set to manual / high pressure for 24 minutes.
- When the cooking cycle is complete, allow the pressure to release naturally for 15 minutes, and then quick-release the remaining pressure.
- Remove the lid, and add the butter and the Parmesan cheese. Stir for 1-2 minutes to create a creamy texture.2 Tablespoons butter, ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Stir in the frozen peas if you like.½ cup frozen peas
- Serve topped with more Parm.
Notes
- Nutrition values are an estimate only
- If the risotto seems too liquidy when cooking is complete, replace the lid and wait 5-10 minutes for the liquid to absorb.
- If the risotto is too thick, add extra vegetable broth bit by bit until you have reached your desired consistency.
Nutrition
Laura says
This turned out perfectly! I added cubed butternut squash at the start, plus the peas at the end and it was so good. Hardly knew it wasn’t Arborio rice and not high fat.
Katie Trant says
I'm so happy to hear that, Laura! I love the idea of adding butternut squash at the beginning of the cook time.
Drew says
Great recipe! I did add mushrooms and used vegan butter and some truffle oil and it really came out well. Thanks very much for sharing.
Katie Trant says
So happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe as much as we do, Drew!
Andrew says
Rice is very mushy. Is it supposed to be like that?
Katie Trant says
No, it definitely shouldn't be mushy. Did you use brown rice?
alice says
Hi Katie, I don't have an insta-pot. (I know, I'm stuck in the dark ages:( Can you help me make this risotto another way? I really like the sound of this dish.
Katie Trant says
Alice, get yourself an instant pot! But without one you can just make it as you would a traditional risotto, adding a ladle-full of broth at a time and stirring until it's absorbed, and so on, until the rice is cooked. It'll take longer than a regular risotto since the rice is brown, and you'll need more broth for stovetop than you would for instant pot. But it can be done!
Carrie says
Absolutely delicious! Even the hubby loved it, and he’s a picky eater. I substituted vegetable broth with chicken stick & the flavor was amazing! So many possibilities with this dish. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Katie Trant says
So glad you enjoyed this one as much as we do!
Holly says
Hi Katie,
I don't have brown rice on hand, would this work with sushi rice or Basmati?
Katie Trant says
Hi Holly - if you don't have short-grain brown rice on hand, I recommend using a traditional risotto rice like arborio or carnaroli. Basmati rice isn't starchy enough and sushi rice I'm really not sure! You'd also have to adjust the time and liquid in this recipe for using white instead of brown rice.
Holly says
Appreciate the information!
Thanks I buy some brown rice this week!
S says
Look for Parmesan cheese that is certified kosher. It won't be made with rennet
Katie Trant says
Great tip, thanks!
Karen says
Love this recipe. So easy to make and so delicious. 4 out of 4 family members gave this recipe a thumbs up. The risotto is so creamy and delicious. (I was one of the testers for this recipe) My family has asked me to make it a several times and we rarely have leftovers (and when we do, they are gone the next day)