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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 was really really good! My whole family liked it and that’s surprising for us! 😉 I love your idea of using brown rice – it’s so smart for the instant pot and a better option health-wise.
I’m so glad you all enjoyed it! 🙂
I thought it lacked flavor. This recipe could really benefit from fresh herbs.
Hi Joel, we add fresh herbs at the end (parsley) and I think dill would be a great addition at the end as well. You wouldn’t want to add fresh herbs into the pot before turning it on or they would dissolve in a pressure cooker. You can add more spices if you prefer – this was the most family friendly version.
I made this today. I was so exited about this recipe after reviewing all the positive comments. I was disappointed. I follow recipe to the exact. It turned out very mushy and moist. I used short gain brown rice. It taste ok. The recipe call for 3 cups 💦. In my opinion, that’s too much water when cooking rice. Maybe that’s how it supposed to be. Or it could be the setting too. I follow the direction set it on multigrain for 30 minutes and 10 minutes natural release.
Hi Jody, please see the note at the top about rice and double check that it wasn’t quick cooking or parboiled rice. Also, did you make sure to measure the rice with a regular dry ingredients measuring cup rather than the measuring cup that comes with the instant pot?
Can I use crockpot instead of instant pot and white rice?
Hi Lori, both the instant pot and use of white rice would need significant modifications. I haven’t tested plov in a slow cooker so I can’t provide specific instructions. Sorry I can’t be more helpful. I do have a few stove-top versions as well if you don’t have an instant pot. They are also very good
Hello, I’m trying to make this dish for a big crowd. I have the same pressure cooker as you. Can I double it up?
Hi Inna, I haven’t tried doubling the recipe, but I think it should work in the same amount of time even if it is doubled since the timer doesn’t start on the pressure cooker until the proper heat and pressure are reached so it should cook in the same amount of time. That is my best guess 🙂 Let me know if you experiment! P.S. If the rice is too firm for you, you can run it for an extra 10 min.
Hi Natasha.
I did this recipe tonight with white rice and it came out awesome. I had to adjust the water and rice though. Also instead of pressing “multigrain” option I did “white rice” and it cooked for 15 minutes instead of 30. It was just right, not dry and not wet. I loved it. Thanks for the recipe. Will look forward to more instant pot recipes.😊
You’re welcome Natasha! I’m glad to hear the recipe was a success. Thanks for sharing your great review! 🙂
Natasha, did you use the same amount of water (3 cups) for the white rice?
Hey there! I own an instant pot and the best thing I love to use it for is BBQ ribs. We love ribs but they take a while in the oven, but not in the instant pot. I make a brine for the ribs… season up the ribs, sear them in the instant pot and theyre done in 25 minutes! Just falling off the bone. After that I take them out, slather them with barbecue sauce, and broil for about 6 to 10 minutes. No one ever leaves our house disappointed after having ribs…..they are the main star of the evening!
Yum, sounds delicious! Thanks for sharing your great suggestion with other readers Lana!
Hi, I just made this rice and I did exactly as the recipe says; I have the same exact pot. My rice (I used the organic short grain brown rice from Costco as well) came out too hard. The meat is good, carrots cooked through and it’s nice and moist but rice is just too hard. Is it supposed to be like that? Or maybe I did something wrong?
Hi Nadia, brown rice does have slightly more bite to it than white rice but it should be fully cooked at the end of that cooking time on high pressure. Did you give it an opportunity to depressurize naturally? If you want the brown rice to be even softer, you could let it depressurize for 15 minutes instead of 10 giving it a little more time to soften. Per the Instant Pot manual, normally brown rice takes 22 minutes of cooking on high pressure plus a 10 minute wait for it to naturally depressurize before turning the venting knob to release the steam. So after 30 minutes on high pressure plus 10 minutes depressurizing, it should have been pretty well cooked and soft. I hope that reply helps! 🙂
Same thing happened to my rice a few days ago and also the meat is came out super dry.
Hi Vicki, I added some notes above regarding the rice – I suspect folks might be mis-measuring or using a different kind of rice. I hope that helps!
Would this recipe fit in 3 quart instant pot?
Hi Bermet, one of my readers, Nancy, shared the following: “Made this tonight,,,absolutely delicious!… Bought a three quart, the recipe fit no room to spare.”
Thanks for sharing!!
Hi! I have the instant pot ip-duo80 I believe. And pressing saute twice doesn’t change the temp to high. I press adjust for the “more” feature ri be lit up. Just a little fyi, in case someone is pressing the saute button 100 times and it’s not working lol
Thanks for sharing your helpful tip Inna!
It was really good, thanks! We switched to brown rice permanently now! My children were asking for thirds!
You are very welcome Inna 😀
Hi,
This looks wonderful. Can I cook this in a Dutch oven since I don’t have a pressure cooker or instant pot.
Thanks
Hi Deborah, it would need some modification for the stovetop. I would recommend checking out our stovetop plov recipes. We have our classic beef one and another one with buckwheat (my personal favorite).
for the cups of rice, do you mean CUPS of rice as in the standard measurement cup, or the rice cup that comes with rice cookers which is significantly smaller?
Hi Dave, the rice as a standard measuring cup (or by weight of 500 grams if you prefer to measure it out with a scale). That is an excellent question though and I will specify that!
Hi your recipe states 2.5 cups of rice (500 grams) I am very confused how this is possible when 1 cup is 340 grams.
Also, do you add salt at all to the recipe? Thank you
Hi Vika, I weighed it to be sure, but 1 cup of brown rice is about 200 grams (195 grams to be exact) so if you multiply that by 2.5 cups = 500 grams (487 grams to be exact, but I rounded it up for simplicity). Here is another source that will help with calculating rice grams in weight if you don’t have a kitchen scale.
I am planning to make this tonight. This will be my first time using my pressure cooker. I have the Bella 6qt pressure cooker. It does not have multigrain setting any suggestions on what button I should use? Rice/risotto/steam, meat/chicken, soup/stew, pressure cook/slow cook. Thank you!
Hi Jessica, I’m not sure how those other settings convert but I would probably use the manual pressure cook setting.
Would barley be a good substitute for the brown rice in this recipe?
Hi Pam, Hi I haven’t tried pearl barley, but according to this chart from Cook’s Illustrated, the pressure cooking time is very similar to brown rice so possibly it might work. Sorry I can’t give you a more concrete answer.
Hi Natasha, I have a different brand pressure cooker without the multigrain set button, would I use a stew button or manually set a time to cook. Thank you
Hi Chris, you could manually set the timer for the pressure cooker for the same timing. The multigrain setting cooks on the high pressure setting.
Natasha,
I love your recipes and enjoy cooking them immensely. The plov looks wonderful and is it possible to make it without buying instant pot? Right now I make your smashed potatoes and plan to use lobster recipe for Valentine’s day.
Hi Elena, I hope you love the potatoes and lobster! 🙂 Such fun dishes to make! I would recommend checking out our stovetop plov recipes. We have our classic beef one and another one with buckwheat (my personal favorite).
Natasha, do you think the buckwheat plov recipe can be modified for an IP?
Hi Zhanna, I don’t think it would save too much time to modify it for the IP since you would have to open the pot mid cooking to add the buckwheat (so you will have to depressurize and wait for it to pressurize twice). Otherwise, if you let it cook long enough for the meat to be tender, the buckwheat would be way overcooked, which is why regular brown rice works so well in this recipe – there is no need to open the pot mid way. I sure do live that buckwheat version (my all-time favorite!)
Natasha, thank you for this flavorful and fast recipe. It is definitely a keeper in our family.
You’re welcome Anna! I’m glad to the recipe is one the whole family can enjoy. Thanks for sharing!
Can i use chicken instead of beef? And would the cooking time change?
Hi Vicky, I have made a chicken plov before and it worked well. Chicken thighs will give you a little more flavor than chicken breast meat. You will still need the time for the rice to finish up cooking. You could probably drop it down to 25 minutes and still be ok since the chicken does not require as much time in the pressure cooker as does beef, but you will have brown rice that is a little more firm to the bite. Still enjoyable but just slightly more firm.
Will basmati brown rice work for this recipe?
Hi Lidia, Basmati brown rice will cook slightly faster than short grain brown rice. My guess is that it will be done with 25 minutes on high pressure rather than 30 minutes.