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This Instant Pot Rice recipe is a healthier, juicier and flavor packed rice pilaf called plov. It all comes together in 1 pot (the instant pot!) and you won’t believe how quick and easy this is.
Traditionally, beef plov is made with white rice, but we used a brown rice which was perfect for the instant pot because it doesn’t get mushy while the beef becomes melt-in-your mouth tender. Brown rice is also way healthier and your hungry people may not even realize it is brown rice. It works so well in this recipe!
P.S. We’ve included our Amazon affiliate links below for the tools we used to make this recipe.
Watch How to Make Instant Pot Rice Beef Plov:
My husband gave me this Instant Pot for Christmas and I am already completely smitten with it! If you own an instant pot, chances are you are obsessed with it also. Let me know about your favorite instant pot recipes in a comment below. I’m so excited to put this amazing little pot to work!
Ingredients for Instant Pot Rice Beef Plov:
2 1/2 cups short grain brown rice (500 grams), rinsed and drained*
1 lb beef chuck or beef stew meat, cut into 3/4″ pieces
4 Tbsp olive oil
4 Tbsp butter
1 large onion, diced
3 large carrots, thickly julienned
3 cups (720 ml) very warm water
1 Tbsp salt (we used fine sea salt)
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground paprika
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 whole head garlic, unpeeled, cut in half crosswise.
1 Tbsp freshly chopped parsley to garnish – optional
*TIPS FOR SUCCESS: We used organic short grain brown rice (I buy the “Lundberg” brand bag sold in Costco). DO NOT USE quick cooking rice, parboiled or white rice – these would all need modifications in timing and water. Use a standard measuring cup or a kitchen scale to measure the rice (not the measuring cup that comes with your instant pot).
If you don’t own an instant pot yet, you can still make beef plov on the stovetop with this recipe and check out the creative grain we used in this newer version – wildly delicious!!
⬇Print-Friendly Instant Pot Rice (Beef Plov):
Instant Pot Rice (Beef Plov)

Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups short grain brown rice, 500 grams, rinsed and drained*
- 1 lb beef chuck or beef stew meat, cut into 3/4" pieces**
- 4 Tbsp olive oil
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 large onion, diced
- 3 large carrots, thickly julienned
- 3 cups 720 ml very warm water
- 1 Tbsp salt, we used fine sea salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp ground paprika
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 whole head garlic, unpeeled, cut in half crosswise.
Instructions
- Rinse and drain rice and set aside. Set Instant pot to sauté on high heat (push sauté twice to switch to high heat) and add 4 Tbsp olive oil. Once oil is hot (but not smoking), add beef in a single layer and sauté until lightly browned (5 min), stirring occasionally.
- Add 4 Tbsp butter and chopped onion and stir 3 minutes until softened.
- Add julienned carrots along with all seasonings (1 Tbsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp coriander) and sauté 5 minutes until softened, stirring occasionally.
- Spread rice evenly over the top (do not stir). Push garlic halves cut-side-down, halfway into the rice. Pour very warm (or hot) water directly over the garlic cloves so you don't disturb the rice. Use the back of a wooden spoon to poke 5-7 holes through the rice to the bottom of the pot (this helps disburse flavor).
- Cover and cook on high pressure 30 min (I used the "Multigrain" setting). Let instant pot rest and naturally depressurize 10 min before switching to the venting position to release steam. Make sure the steam is fully released and the pressure valve has floated down before opening the pot.
- Remove garlic and set aside. Stir rice well to combine ingredients. We squeeze the garlic cloves back into the pot because they are melt-in-your mouth delicious.
Notes
**The meat will brown easier if you leave it at room temperature 30 minutes before starting to cook it.
Nutrition Per Serving
If you make this recipe, I’d love to see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #natashaskitchen
This instant pot plov also reheats really well on a skillet the next day so leftovers are a great thing!
Have you gotten on the instant pot wagon? It was actually this recipe that made me fall in love with my Instant pot (ahem 2 hours instead of 15 hours? YES!!!).
What is your favorite recipe to cook in the Instant Pot? I am always looking for new ideas. Thanks in advance my friends. I always love hearing from you :).
This is such great and easy Plov recipe. Thank you for sharing! Made it several times and will continue to do so. My only advice to others is to make sure you poke enough holes for the water to get to the bottom. One time I only did a couple and got a burn notice.
I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Jane! Thank you for that awesome review!
Thank you Anna!
Hello, Natasha, Have been following your recipes…. just love them! This one, Instant Pot Beef Plov, has become one of our family favourites! I use a wild rice mix instead of the brown rice which gives it even more texture. It worked perfect! Thank you for the great recipe!
Hi Anna, thank you so much for sharing that with us. It’s great to know it works well with a wild rice mix.
That’s so great! I love it when the entire family loves a recipe! That’s so great!
Hello Natasha. I do not have an instant pot, I have a pressure cooker that has different options but not manual setting. Among the options: rice, risotto, beans or lentils which should I use? Thank you!
Hi Grace, we used rice in our recipe. I haven’t tested with the other options to advise. If you experiment please let me know how you like that.
I cooked it today, very delicious! Thank you!
That’s so great! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Kristina!
Awesome.
Mine turned out a little mushy but still kind of grainy. Not sure what kind of brown rice i used but it worked! Taste is exceptional for it being brown rice. Meat is tender. And it all took under an hr
The rice is more than likely the culprit. I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
I can’t get out for garlic bulbs. Can I substitute garlic from a jar?
Hi Yvonne, I imagine that should work. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe.
well I used minced beef as that was all I had. Everything good except I found brown rice was a little too chewy. Maybe try white rice. Couldn’t pressure longer as carrots would have been mushy. Flavour was great!
Hi Natasha, I’m planning to make this for dinner tonight. I made it once before and my husband (Uzbek and Turkmen parents) made this all the time when he was growing up. He was so happy I could replicate it for him! I accidentally defrosted two lbs of meat instead of one. Do I need to change the recipe except for amount of spices to make this work? I would prefer to not double the rice. Thank you!
Hi Alivia, I wouldn’t necessarily double the spices since you are not doubling the rice. But you can add more to the meat to ensure it is not bland. If you experiment I would love to know how you like this recipe.
Update: I had already turned on the IP when you replied, so here’s how it went.
I used 2lbs of beef stew meat and had to use 2lbs short grain brown rice (all I had with quarantine). Still used 3 cups water and doubled spices. Same 30 min multigrain cook time. It was perfect!
Awesome! Thanks for the update and for sharing your experience with us.
Hi Natasha. I love all of your recipes. Can you please let me know adjustments to make if using organic white rice and lamb? Thanks!
Hi Anna, I haven’t really tested that yet to advise but others shared that they used lamb and it went well. If you would like to do an experiment, please share with us how it goes.
Hello, I have followed the recipe, but the meat got all burnt at the bottom, should I change “multigrain” to something else? Thank you
Hi Svitlana, it sounds like maybe the heat was on too high when you were searing the meat. I would suggest sauteeing on medium next time if you find that high heat is too hot and burning your meat. Also, make sure you are using enough oil. It will help to scrape the bottom of the pan when you add the butter and onion to scrape off any stuck-on bits. You can cook it on manual high pressure as well, but I used the “Multigrain” setting
Would I be able to use jasmine rice for this recipe?
Hi Lilia, Jasmine rice is not ideal for this recipe because it would overcook in the time it takes for the beef to become tender.
It would be great to have this recipe with farro instead of rice.
Thank you for that suggestion. I’ll add that to my list.
Oh my goodness, Natasha, thank you so much for this delicious recipe! I’ve never heard of Plov, what a treat. I was upset because we couldn’t find short grain brown rice nearby, so I finally just used the brown Jasmine rice we had. I used 2 cups of water and crossed my fingers. It turned out moist and creamy and the beef so soft. Thank you!
Fantastic! Thanks for sharing that with us, Eloisa. Hope you love every recipe that you try!
Scrumptious!
Thank you!
This recipe is fantastic. It was the first thing I cooked in my new Instant Cooker. Valentine’s Day Winner. Wink wink. Thank YOU, NATASHA!!!
That sounds like the perfect dinner! Thank you for sharing that with me.
Hi, Natasha, i want to make this but without the meat, should there be any changes in cooking time or water quantity?Thank you!
Hi, to be honest, I haven’t tested this without the meat but if I were to experiment, I would probably leave the water proportions and timing the same. If you test this out, I’d love to hear how it goes.
It came out very good, i’ve done it before with the meat but without it is just as good and delicious! Thank you!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it!
Hi Natasha I made this today and followed the recipe 99% (only change was vegan butter bc nursing and baby has dairy sensitivity) and the flavors were great but end result was a bit watery and rice seemed a tad undercooked. Any idea what I could have done wrong? Used same brand short grain brown rice and 3 cups water and 30 min on multigrain. Would love to try again but not sure what I did. Thoughts?
Hi Rena, it is most likely due to using a different type of rice than what is called for in the recipe. Short grain rice is more starchy and cooks up differently and more creamy than long grain. That is probably why it came out watery and didn’t absorb the liquid properly.
Thanks for the reply. I used short grain brown rice from the same brand that you mention for the recipient. I thought the recipe calls for short grain brown rice? I really loved the flavor and want to try again but not sure what to tweak.
Short grain is correct Rena. If it was different rice it may have resulted in that. I would try it again just be sure to watch the pot settings & measure everything correctly. Without being there it really is hard to say. Crossing my fingers it works out for you next time.
The best recipe I have made in a while. The hubby said make this part of the rotation!!! Love it turns out perfect and I used long grain rice.
So great to hear that Lori. Thanks for the feedback and I’m really happy to hear that it was perfect!
Natasha, if I make this with long-grain white rice instead of brown… does anything change in the recipe? Water amount the same? My instant-pot has a button called Plov and it is for 20 mins. What time would you recommend if I used white rice? Thank you 🙂
Hi Lori, I haven’t had great results with white rice – the beef doesn’t get cooked well enough or the rice ends up over-cooked for the meat to be tender, this is why I used brown rice.
Ok, good to know, thanks again!
No problem!
Really easy and very tasty! The way I rate dinners in my home is if my daughter takes it to school the next day for lunch it was good. But if my spouse and my daughter takes it for lunch it was a HIT!!!!!! I am so happy to report this was a HIT!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Elizabeth! Thank you for the wonderful review!