Simple, easy, healthy and delicious Instant Pot Red Quinoa. Learn how to make this extra nutritious and nutty variety of quinoa in your pressure cooker + tips and tricks for the fluffiest results, health benefits and the best recipes for making use of your perfect Instant Pot Red Quinoa!
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Quinoa is one the quickest, easiest, and healthiest things you can make in your Instant Pot. But, if you’ve ever tried to make the red variety of quinoa in your pressure cooker using the same method as white quinoa, you may have discovered that it doesn’t exactly come out the same way!
Red quinoa inherently has a bit more of a bite than white quinoa regardless of cooking method (think of brown rice vs white), but if you throw your red quinoa into the pressure cooker for just one minute, you will be sorely disappointed. Hence, this recipe!
But first, let’s learn more about red quinoa . . .
What are the Benefits of Eating Red Quinoa?
- Red quinoa has a high fiber content (even higher than the white variety of quinoa).
- It is a complete protein (it contains all nine essential amino acids).
- Red quinoa is rich in zinc, iron, magnesium, calcium, copper and B vitamins.
- It has anti-inflammatory properties.
- It promotes healthy gut bacteria.
This naturally gluten-free super seed is beneficial for a variety of chronic illnesses and helps provide optimum health!
In just a few simple steps, you can have perfectly delicious and fluffy red quinoa straight from the Instant Pot!
How to Make Red Quinoa in an Instant Pot Pressure Cooker:
Instant Pot Red Quinoa uses a 1:1.5 ratio. So for 1 cup of red quinoa, use 1 1/2 cups water.
- Rinse and drain quinoa.
- Place rinsed quinoa in Instant Pot with water and salt. Stir.
- Place the lid on. Make sure the vent is sealed.
- Cook on manual High Pressure for 14 minutes.
- Wait 10 minutes then release pressure.
- Optionally, drizzle with oil and fluff with a fork before serving.
This Instant Pot Quinoa is
- Super healthy, flavorful and easy to make.
- Naturally gluten-free, vegan, nut-free, soy-free and dairy-free.
- A great choice for meal prepping. It stores and freezes well!
- Filled with a wonderfully chewy & nutty texture and flavor.
Top Tips
- Be certain to rinse your quinoa before placing it into the Instant Pot. Sometimes quinoa contains a bitter outer coating called saponin that can cause digestive irritation if not fully rinsed off.
- You can double or triple the recipe, just keep the ratio the same. So for 2 cups of quinoa use 3 cups of water. For 3 cups of quinoa use 4 1/2 cups of water. The time will remain the same.
- You can keep quinoa stored in the refrigerator in airtight containers for up to one week. You can also store in freezer bags or freezer-safe containers for up to 10 months. Just be certain to let the red quinoa cool completely before storing.
- It isn’t necessary, but I find drizzling the just cooked quinoa with a little olive oil and then fluffing with fork helps separate the grains and lends itself to a fluffier result.
- I find pre-salted quinoa to be the most versatile for using in dishes, but you can certainly omit the salt for a low-sodium version (quinoa itself is naturally low in sodium).
- You can add any variety of spices you would like before cooking this pressure cooker red quinoa.
More Quinoa Recipes You Might Enjoy:
Quinoa Flatbread Pizza Crust (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
White Cheddar Quinoa Bites With Hot & Spicy Buffalo Sriracha Sauce (Gluten-Free)
Sweet And Spicy Quinoa Peanut Stir Fry (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
Crispy, Cheesy, Mixed Green Quinoa Cakes (Gluten-Free)
Quinoa Cocoa Molasses Crunch Granola (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
Spicy Roasted Pumpkin Quinoa Bowl (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
Roasted Green Chile, Potato, & Quinoa Soup (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
Quinoa & Steel Cut Oat Granola Bars (Gluten-Free, Vegan Option)
Sweet & Spicy Green Power Tofu Quinoa Bowl (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
Spicy Southwestern Corn, Potato, Quinoa, And Red Lentil Chowder (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
Spicy Chickpea Quinoa Crackers (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
I hope you enjoyed this Instant Pot Red Quinoa how-to post! xo.
📖 Recipe
How to Cook Red Quinoa in the Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked red quinoa rinsed & drained
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- olive oil optional
Instructions
- Place quinoa, water, salt into the inner pot of your Instant Pot.
- Stir, then put the lid on your Instant Pot and make sure the vent is sealed.
- Cook on manual high-pressure for 14 minutes.
- Let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes and then open the vent and release the steam.
- Optionally, drizzle with a touch of olive oil and then fluff the quinoa with a fork before serving.
- Enjoy!
BethAnn says
Perfect!! Thank you so much!
Kristen Wood says
So happy to hear it! 🙂
Connie says
My Ultra instant pot gave me a”burn” message. I used 2cups rinsed red quinoa and 3 cups water and set it for Hi 14 minutes. It preheated for a very long time and when I opened it it seemed to be cooked but never went to the count down. I have only used my pot once to cook kale. Guess I did something wrong but the quinoa was not burned and appeared to be cooked! Hopefully I will get better at using the IP Ultra! I pulled the plug and opened it as soon as the pressure went down! My package of red quinoa said to use two cups water per cup of red quinoa but I used 1.5 per cup as recipe stated. I gave a five rating for your recipe but a 1 to myself for not operating my pot correctly!
Barbara Payne says
I was not super familiar with quinoa, especially in IP. I followed this recipe and it was fabuous! Perfectly cooked.
Now I have a question, What about tricolor quinoa? All the recipes I'm finding say, like, 1 to 2 minutes. Since tricolor contains both red and black quinoa, what time do you recommend? I know I can trust your judgment because this red quinoa recipe was spot on!
Thanks.
Kristen Wood says
Hi, Barbara! Wonderful. Thank you for sharing! Tricolor operates a lot like red quinoa and has a bit of a "bite", so I would advise cooking it just as you would red quinoa. I hope this helps! 🙂
Catherine says
The cooking time seemed long when I first read the recipe, but at an altitude of 8400' it turned out perfect for my taste. I did rinse the quinoa well before cooking.
Kristen Wood says
I'm so happy to hear that! 🙂
kushigalu says
Love quinoa. Thanks for all the tips and tricks to make in IP. Pinned this post.
Tavo says
Very informative, now my quinoa is always turning perfectly cooked and not soggy! thanks
Cynthia | What A Girl Eats says
Thanks for the tips. I have always struggled with my IP, but I love quinoa. This made it light and fluffy.
Beth says
You are correct. Great recipe and the cooking time was spot on.
Nair says
Tried this method, Perfectly cooked red quinoa.
Kristen Wood says
I'm so happy to hear! 🙂
Danita says
is the 14 min cook time a typo? Every recipe I've seen for quinoa in an instant pot it's 1-3 mins max then a natural release.
Kristen Wood says
Not a typo! 1-3 mins works perfectly for white quinoa. Red quinoa takes longer. It is very similar to the differences that you find between white and brown rice, for instance. I tested a large variety of cook times and 14 minutes produced the best red quinoa, in my opinion. May I ask why the 1 star? Did you try it and have a bad experience? Thanks! 🙂