Instant Pot Risotto Recipe

Parmesan Instant Pot Risotto Recipe is a fast and simple way to make traditional risotto in less than half the regular cook time! Cooking risotto in your Ninja Foodi pressure cooker couldn’t get any easier than this! 

Who doesn’t love perfectly cooked rice topped with freshly grated parmesan, salt, and pepper? It’s one of our favorite family meals because we all love the texture and taste of this delicious creamy risotto.

Quick Risotto Recipe

Can you make this with other brands of pressure cookers? Of course, if it is an electric version they all basically work the same for the functions you need here anyway. With the Foodi you will want to use the lid that is not attached for the high pressure step.

It really is amazing how rice that is pressure-cooked tastes so much better than rice that is cooked on the stovetop!) I mean you can cook slow cooker risotto as well but if you don’t have endless hours to wait for that one to be done, this is your answer.

Ingredient Notes

• Butter makes this creamy and a bit salty. Dairy free plant based sticks work too but don’t have as much flavor to it.
• Onion finely diced is optional but a nice cheap add in that adds texture and some more flavor too.
• Arborio rice is the type of grain you will use. If you can’t find this, use short grain white variety.
• Rosemary I like to add for a nice gentle seasoning that is traditionally used in this style of rice.
• You need a liquid to cook the grains in, chicken broth is better than water to add flavor
• Parmesan cheese is a must but optional of course

Cooking Arborio rice on high pressure is what gives it that taste and texture that we’ve all come to love. I like to add in a tad bit of olive oil and dry white wine to really enhance the overall flavors as well. I also really like to add chicken stock in to add some great taste. The liquid portion can vary a bit but you need to find something that you love to add. 

What type of rice do you use to make risotto?

Making this style of rice in Instant Pot really does depend on the variety that you use.  You should be using Arborio rice because it’s short-grained and starchier than other types of rice. It will also have the right texture once cooked which is to be creamy and a “sticky” type mound that sits on your plate. (but make certain you’re not confusing it with sticky rice as that’s a whole different recipe entirely!)

What is the ratio of Arborio rice to liquid in Instant Pot?

You will want to use twice the liquid to rice as the right ratio for grains to get tender but not mushy. Another thing to remember when cooking this with high pressure is to allow for a bit of a natural release. This step will allow each piece to fluff up a bit better than if you were to quick release the steam when time is up.

You can absolutely serve risotto as a main dish or side dish. It goes well with beef, pork, chicken or serve it alongside a heaping pile of delicious vegetables as well! The point to remember is that rice risotto is really versatile and can easily take on the flavors of the ingredients that you add.  Adding in certain spices can make this dish sweet, savory, or spicy, too. 

Variations

There are actually a lot of ways that you can add more flavor to this dish. I like to add in some extra butter for a richer flavor or you can stir in parmesan as well.  Adding in thyme, rosemary, and even some Italian seasoning is a great way to enhance and change up the flavor fast. You could add sliced Instant Pot mushrooms as well.

Don’t forget the wine!  Some people add in wine, and some people don’t. I’m one of those people who totally like to add in a bit of wine. (It gets cooked out so there’s nothing to worry about if you’re concerned about kids eating the dish.)

Don’t forget that you can add in onions and garlic and even more parmesan cheese as well. (you can never have too much parmesan cheese, right?!)

Vegetarian

I’ve made this with vegetable broth too which is great. You can leave out the cheese or use nutritional yeast to add a umami flavor. You can make it sweet with a bit of honey or even sugar, or spicy as well by adding in some hot sauce and some cayenne pepper. There are literally so many options and flavor varieties that you can easily do! 

How Long to Cook Risotto in Instant Pot

You are going to need 9 minutes including 1 for a natural release to make it fluff up a bit before letting out the rest of the steam. Typically the rice button will auto set for 12 minutes so I don’t use that. You want to keep a bit more “bite” with this dish, that is typically how it is served vs. regular Instant Pot white rice.

Tips

Don’t over stir your risotto 

You’ll read that some recipes want you to stir it all the time, but not this one. Since the pressure pot is doing all the work for you, you’re not going to have a chance to stir it all actually and that is okay. Once the steam naturally releases and the heat has subsided a bit, you can then give it a stir to break it up some. Remove lid and fluff pressure cooker rice. Sprinkle in parmesan cheese and fluff again incorporating it within.

I have to admit that the taste of both is really a nice change and keep this meal tasting new time and time again. (don’t get me wrong though). The recipe listed below is the perfect way to start. Only change up the flavor after you’ve made it that original way a couple of times!

Other pressure cooker sides you’ll love

Looking for other Instant Pot side dishes? We have tons on our site, here are a few of our favorites:

• Our homemade Instant Pot baked beans get 5 stars from everyone who tries them.
• You can make Instant Pot refried beans for your next taco Tuesday get together.
• For pressure cooker bean cook times you can refer to this free printable here.