Instant Pot Jasmine Rice

Instant Pot Jasmine Rice is the perfect compliment for all your Asian dishes! This rice recipe gives you perfect, fluffy, Jasmine rice every single time.

Rice to Asians is like pasta is to Italians or potatoes to Americans, meaning, it’s a staple carb in our cuisine and we hardly eat a meal without it. Alone, there isn’t much flavor but that’s just like pasta or potatoes, right? Once you add the right seasonings and flavorings to it, it completely elevates and changes the entire landscape!

In a million years, I would never imagine myself making rice in the Instant Pot. As an Asian, that is basically sacrilege. We live, breathe, and sleep with our rice cookers (slight exaggeration) and we wouldn’t be caught dead using the stovetop or *gasp* an INSTANT POT, of all appliances to make rice! I know, we seem so stuffy but it’s really the only way to cook rice, in our humble opinions. I personally have never cooked rice any other way and when I have tried the stovetop, it has always been disaster. So imagine how surprised I was when making jasmine rice in the Instant Pot came out just as good as the rice cooker. Omg, I hope my grandparents don’t roll over in their graves with my bold statement.

So, this is me admitting that you don’t necessarily need a rice cooker to make rice. It is hella convenient and I still think it is a staple appliance to have, but if you already have an Instant Pot, you don’t need to run out to get another appliance. I’m all about using what you’ve already got!

What is jasmine rice?

Jasmine rice is primarily grown in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and southern Vietnam. It is a long-grain rice variety and is mildly fragrant and people say it smells sort of like pandan and popcorn.

Why You’ll Love This

• No need for another small appliance. If you don’t have a rice cooker, that’s okay because now you can make rice in the Instant Pot. Most already have an Instant Pot and using what you have is what I always recommend.
• Quick, easy, and consistent results. It takes about 7-10 minutes for the Instant Pot to come to pressure, another 4 minutes to cook the rice and then if you let it naturally release for 10 minutes (recommended), the total time it takes to make Instant Pot jasmine rice is less than 30 minutes and it is always perfectly cooked!
• Perfect accompaniment for all your curries and other Asian dishes. I love serving jasmine rice with Tofu Coconut Curry, but I also love serving it with some Korean Beef Bulgogi.

What You’ll Need

Instant Pot jasmine rice only requires jasmine rice, an Instant Pot (mine is a 6 quart), and water!

How To Make Instant Pot Jasmine Rice

Here is a general overview of the steps involved to make jasmine rice in the Instant Pot. Be sure to scroll to the bottom of this post for the full recipe.

• Thoroughly wash and rinse your rice. I have been taught this ever since I was old enough to be in the kitchen with my mom. You want to wash the rice multiple times to rinse the starch off – and you will definitely see the water change each time you wash it; it becomes clearer and less foggy – but this is also the perfect time to pick out imperfect rice.

• Add rice to the Instant Pot. After you’ve washed, rinsed, and drained the rice thoroughly, add it to the insert of the Instant Pot.
• Add the water. Next, add the water the rice in the insert.
• Set the pressure and time. Place the lid on the Instant Pot and make sure the venting knob is on SEAL. Press MANUAL, HIGH pressure, and set the time to 4 minutes.
• Release pressure and fluff. Once the rice is done, I typically like to wait about 10 minutes then manual release the pressure. I take a fork and fluff the rice then serve it with whatever dish awaits!

Substitutions and Variations

• Add some flavor. You can cook the rice with chicken stock or vegetable stock for extra flavor, if desired. One of my favorites is adding in coconut milk for a Thai-inspired dinner. You may even throw in some flavorings like saffron. If you’re going to add an herb to it, I suggest adding it while you’re fluffing the rice.
• Rice variations. There are so many variations of rice and this specific recipe is for jasmine rice, however, it’s not really about the type of rice but moreso the water. This method for cooking rice will work for all different kinds of rice (sushi rice, basmati rice, etc.) but not instant rice. Be sure to check out the section below on the rice to water amount.

Tips for Success

Making rice is easy. Once you’ve got the rice and water down, you can make any kind of rice! Here is what I’ve learned on how to make the best rice in the Instant Pot – or rice in general.

• Rice and water. Quite possibly the most important thing when it comes to successfully cooking rice is the rice and water amount. You may have heard that Asians use the “knuckle” test where you stick your pointer finger into the rice and water and measure that way. While my mom did teach me this method along with actually measuring, I’m too much of a perfectionist to use this the knuckle method. The table below shows how I measure rice and water. This may vary with different varieties and brands of rice but in general, I have found with all the rice I’ve cooked in my lifetime, this form of measuring works.

Dry Rice (Cups)	Water (Cups)
1	1.5
1.5	2.0
2	2.5
2.5	3
3	3.5
3.5	4
4	4.5

• Reduce sticking to the insert. If you find that your rice is sticking a lot to your insert, you can lightly spray it with cooking spray before adding the rice and water and this should help the cooked rice not stick.

Frequently Asked Questions

My rice is mushy and sticky, what did I do wrong? Okay, so the most common reason is because there was too much water. You’ll have to adjust based on different brands, however, the measurement table above usually works so just make sure you are draining the rice well before adding it into the insert. A rice colander/strainer works really well for this to ensure it’s drained well.

Rice is all stuck to my insert and I can’t get it off. Don’t panic! To ensure rice doesn’t stick to your insert, spray your insert with a little bit of cooking spray before adding the rice and water. Also, I noticed that if you don’t scoop out the rice right away while it’s warm, it ends up sticking to the insert so you may want to consider doing that and putting it in a glass container after it’s done cooking. If you soak your insert with water and soap and gently scrub, the rice will come right off with no residue!

How come I have to rinse the rice? Rice is really starchy and the exterior starch causes the cooked rice to be sticky. Also, it’s just more sanitary to wash the rice because of whatever processing it goes through. It also allows you to be able to carefully examine the rice for imperfections and toss it out. When I say imperfections, I mean that sometimes I’ll find gravel in mine or sometimes a piece of rice is half black or whatever it may be. It just ensures you’ll have perfect jasmine or perfect whatever rice every time!

Storage and Reheating Instructions

I store my cooked rice in a glass storage container with a lid. I let it cool before I close the lid.

To reheat, I keep the rice in the glass container without the lid and put a damp paper towel over top of the rice then microwave it for 2 minutes (or less depending on how much rice you have). The damp paper towel acts like a steamer to steam cook the rice and keeps it soft. I noticed if I don’t use a damp paper towel, the top layer of my rice is always crusty and dried out. The damp paper towel really makes a difference!

What to Serve with Instant Pot Jasmine Rice

Oh my goodness, there are so many dishes to serve with jasmine rice. Here are some of my favorites:

• Sweet and Sour Tofu
• Coconut Harissa Curry Braised Chicken
• Green Curry and Coconut Rice Bowl
• Crockpot Honey Sesame Chicken
• Ground Chicken Teriyaki