Instant Pot Quinoa

5 from 47 votes

Recipe by Amy + Jacky | PressureCookRecipes.com

Easy way to cook Fluffy & Tasty Instant Pot Quinoa! Deliciously rich & nutty Supergrain with a slight bite. A simple healthy side dish, salad topping or substitute for rice.

Servings 4

Total Time 17

Ingredients

▢ 1 cup (190g) quinoa
▢ 1 cup (250ml) unsalted chicken stock or cold water
▢ ¼ teaspoon fine salt
▢ 1 tablespoon (15ml) olive oil

Equipment

▢
Instant Pot Pressure Cooker

Instructions

Rinse Quinoa: Most packaged quinoa has been pre-rinsed to remove the saponin to reduce the bitterness. If necessary, give it a quick rinse with cold water, then drain really well to avoid throwing off the "Water to Quinoa Ratio".
Optional Flavor Aroma Boosting - Toast Quinoa: Press Saute button on Instant Pot, then wait 1 minute. Pour in 1 tbsp (15ml) olive oil, then add quinoa in Instant Pot. Toast quinoa until fragrant (~2 to 3 mins).
Pressure Cook Quinoa: Add ¼ tsp fine salt and 1 cup (250ml) unsalted chicken stock or cold water in Instant Pot. Use a wooden spoon to scrub the bottom to make sure no quinoa is stuck to the bottom.
With Venting Knob in Venting Position, close the lid, then turn Venting Knob to Sealing Position.
Pressure Cooking Method:
Toasted Quinoa: Pressure Cook at High Pressure 0 (zero) minute, then Natural Release for 10 minutes.
Non-Toasted Quinoa: Pressure Cook at High Pressure 0 (zero) minute, then Natural Release for 12 minutes.
After natural releasing, turn the Venting Knob to the Venting position to release the remaining pressure. Open the lid carefully.
Serve Quinoa: Fluff quinoa & serve. You can use quinoa as a side dish, toss into your salads or soups. Enjoy~

Notes

1) “Zero-Minute” Method: From our experiments, this works best for cooking quinoa in Instant Pot. By setting the pressure cooking time to "0 minutes", we’re using the heat generated during the “building pressure” stage and "releasing pressure" stage to cook the quinoa.

If your Instant Pot doesn’t let you set “zero minutes”, set it to “Pressure Cook at High Pressure for 1 minute”. Once it comes up to pressure, press “Cancel” to stop the pressure cooking process. Then release the pressure as stated in recipe.

2) Double the Recipe: You can double the recipe and use the same pressure cooking time.

3) Quinoa: We developed this recipe using white quinoa. Try to buy pre-rinsed quinoa.

4) Unsalted Chicken Stock: We develop recipes with unsalted ingredients so we can better control the flavors. If you’re substituting it with salted chicken stock, keep in mind that the sodium level can vary a lot between different brands. Always taste and adjust accordingly.

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Author: Amy + Jacky

Calories: 196kcal

Nutrition