Perfect Jasmine Rice in Instant Pot
If you haven't already tried, instant pot makes perfect Jasmine Rice. Before I jump into any info, I'm an Asian who eats rice every single day and sometimes for all three meals. Rice is life for us Asians. And if there's a way to make rice, I've tried them all (well maybe almost all). So if you have struggled with overcooked mushy rice or undercooked hard rice, Or, if you haven't tried making Jasmine rice in instant pot at all, I got you covered my friend. You just need good quality Jasmine rice, the right water ratio, and a few tips to get it perfect in the instant pot.
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I usually cook Jasmine rice in my small 3-cup rice cooker, and my aroma rice cooker works perfectly well for one small batch of rice. But whenever I have some guests over, or I want to make a big batch, I always use my Instant pot for that. I have a 6 QT instant pot and I can make 3 - 4 uncooked rice cups in it (which yields about 6 - 8 cooked cups of rice). If you want to make a small batch it's perfect to cook just 1 cup of rice as well.
Recipe Video
How to choose a good quality Jasmine Rice
A good quality Jasmine rice makes a HUGE difference. A perfectly cooked jasmine rice has a nice floral aroma, a fluffy light texture, and a subtle sweet nutty flavor. To get that, you need to buy good quality Thai Hom Mali rice that actually comes from Thailand. How do you know it comes from Thailand? You got to look for the 'Thai Hom Mali' certificate given by Thai foreign trade. You usually see it on the front of the package. It's a green circle with two rice strands coming from the bottom. And it also says, 'Thai hom mali rice', 'Originated in Thailand', and 'Department of Foreign Trade'. You can also go to their website and they have a list of rice brands that have the certification.
Popular Good Quality Jasmine Rice Brands
All these rice brands have Thai Hom Mali certification and popular among Asians for their quality. I'll add the links to buy them from Amazon here. You might find a better price at Asian Grocery stores so check them out as well.
- Three Ladies Thai Jasmine Rice
- Three Elephants Thai Jasmine Rice
- Organic Three ladies Jasmine Rice
- Royal Umbrella Jasmine Rice (This wasn't available on Amazon, but it's a good Jasmine rice if you can find it)
- Sunlee Jasmine Rice
Perfect Water Ratio
The water ratio slightly differs depending on whether your rice is old or new. Old rice usually needs a bit more water since the grains are drier than those of newly harvested rice. But it's very hard to tell if the rice is old or new just by looking at it.
What I usually do is, use 1:1 ratio rice and water as my base. This ratio works all the time for me. But if I feel rice grains can be a little softer, then when I cook the next time, I add a little bit more water. Or if the rice turned out too soft, I use slightly less water. It's all about how firm or soft you want to eat your jasmine rice too.
Manual vs Natural pressure release
When I make Jasmine rice to serve as a side for a stir-fry or a curry, I always wait for the pressure to release naturally. I usually turn off the Instant Pot as soon as it's done cooking (when the timer is up and when it automatically switches to warm function). I do not like to keep the rice on warm function since I notice the bottom layer of rice tends to stick to the pot when I do that.
But if I'm making rice for fried rice (such as Thai basil fried rice or Chinese pork fried rice), I turn off the Instant Pot when the rice is done and then do a manual pressure release or a quick release. This means I switch the little button on the top from 'seal' to 'vent'. Then I wait 5 - 10 minutes before I open the lid. This allows the rice grains to firm up in texture. Adding a little bit of oil when you cook rice helps the rice grains to separate too.
Serving Ideas
I make 2 uncooked cups of Rice in this recipe. This yields roughly about 4 cups of cooked rice. Which is about 2 - 4 servings depending on your serving size.
Jasmine rice is perfect to serve along with stir-fries. Here are a few of my favorites
- Pork belly and peppers stir-fry
- Chicken with chili bean sauce
- Chicken and mixed vegetable stir-fry
- Scallops and vegetable chopsuey
- Mushroom and peppers stir-fry
- Chicken with chili and cilantro
It also goes well with curries and it's a really good rice variety for fried rice.
I hope you give my easy recipe a try to make Perfect Jasmine Rice in Instant Pot. Let me know your questions and feedback as well.
Happy cooking!!
Follow this easy and quick recipe to make Perfect Jasmine Rice in your instant pot. Just water, rice, salt, and any model of Instant Pot is all you need.
- 2 cups Jasmine Rice
- 2 cups Water
- 1/2 tsp Salt
Add rice to the removable inner pot of your instant pot. Wash the rice well about three times until the water runs less cloudy. (You don't have to wash rice until water runs clear. This makes the rice absorb too much water and sometimes the rice grains break as well)
Drain the water from the rice completely, using your hand as a colander.
Measure the water and add to the rice. (The ratio is 1 cup rice: 1 cup water). Also add salt.
If you're planning to make fried rice with the rice, it's good to add about 1 tsp oil as well. It helps the rice grains to separate and become less sticky
Wipe the bottom of the pot to remove any water and place it inside the Instant Pot. Close the lid and make sure the switch/knob on the lid is in the "Seal" position. Turn on the instant pot and press the "Rice" preset.
If your instant pot doesn't have a rice preset, set the pressure to low and timer for 12 minutes.When the timer is up and the rice is done, turn off the Instant Pot, otherwise, the rice tends to stick to the bottom of the pot. Let it sit for about 15 minutes without touching, until the pressure reduces naturally. (see notes)
Open the lid and fluff the rice with a spoon before serving. Enjoy!
If you want to make firm rice (for fried rice for example), I reckon it's good to do a manual quick release of the pressure. This makes the extra moisture escape. To do this, carefully turn the switch from 'seal' to 'vent' when the timer is up.
