This fork tender, no-mess-to-peel instant pot beets takes 15 to 30 minutes only to cook. The texture of the beets is by far THE BEST you ever made! That’s our guarantee! Cook beets easily in instant pot and use it in any dish of your choice – salads, soups, make spirals or just snack on it!
How Good Is Beets Cooked in Instant Pot?
- This will be the best beets you ever cooked. The texture is unbelievable, it’s AMAZING!
- You have total control on how you want your beets to be cooked. If you are after soft but with slight crunch, reduce time by 10 minutes. And if you love fork-tender-unbelievably-soft-beets, cook as mentioned in the recipe.
- Beets of any size can be cooked in instant pot.
- Best part, you don’t even have to peel, cut or do any extra work. Just dump whole beets inside the pot and cook!
- PREP WORK is minimal or zero! Simply scrub beets and wash off dirt if you are using fresh beets from your garden. Store bought beets are usually dirt free and can be used directly (or after a quick rinse under tap water if you are a germ phobia like me wondering how many hands touched those beets!)
- Don’t worry about the skin, they come off like magic once cooked. It’s no-mess-peel !
- You will be greeted with the best tender and juicy beets of your life!
- Try beets in instant pot, you’ll never want to cook beet any other way, ever again!
Ingredients Needed
Beets and water. That’s all you need.
Beets – different size (in reference to the diameter of the beets), cooking time will vary. Smaller beets take lesser time and big ones take a little longer to cook.
Note: cooking time widely depends on how you want your beets to cook. Firm and little crunch = lesser time, soft and tender all the way = slightly longer time.
How To Cook Beets In Instant Pot?
- Scrub beets to remove dirt. Wash it under tap water to get rid of the dirt. If there are stems attached to beets, cut and remove it. Place the trivet or steaming basket inside. Add 1 cup water into the pot. Arrange beets on the trivet or basket.
- Secure lid, make sure pressure knob is in SEALING position.
- Select PRESSURE COOK and adjust timer to 30 minutes. Different size (in reference to the diameter of the beets), cooking time will vary. Smaller beets take lesser time and big ones take a little longer to cook. NOTE: please bare in mind 30 minutes on the timer does not include the time to build the pressure inside the pot. It takes approximately 12-17 minutes for the instant pot to build pressure inside before it starts cooking.
- Once cooking time completes, immediately release all pressure from the pot by carefully turning pressure valve from SEALING POSITION to VENTING POSTING.
- Open lid.
- Check if all beets are cooked by piercing it with a knife in the center. If knife cuts through flesh easily, it’s cooked. If hard to pierce, cover lid and cook for additional 5 to 8 minutes depending on the size of the beets.
- Remove beets from the instant pot using thongs. Place it on cutting board and let it cool down little until it’s safe to handle. Peel the skin off beets using fingers. YES, that’s right, the skin easily comes off. Pro-Tip: don’t want to mess up your manicured nails and finger, use disposable gloves while peeling the skin off. If you got beet stains on your finger, you can get rid off it by using baking soda. Rub soda on your hands and wash it off. Not all beets leave stain on your fingers. Most of it comes off immediately when you rinse them. I used bare fingers to peel the skin off, no beet stained finger for me! It all depends on the beets you use!
- Use cooked beets in any dish of your choice.
- Use beets cooked in instant pot in salads, soups, to make beet hummus, use whole beets to make spirals, or snack on it directly. Trust me, those thinly sliced beets slices went down as it is in no time.
How Long Does It Take To Cook Instant Pot Beets?
Cooking time for beets depending widely on the size of the beets. Smaller beets = less time, bigger ones = longer time.
Measuring size of the beets is done by measuring it’s circumference.
| Beet Size | Cooking Time (for firm and little crunch in the center) | Cooking Time (for soft tender beets) |
| 5 to 7 inch | 8 minutes (with Quick Manual Pressure Release) | 10 minutes (with QMPR) |
| 8 to 10 inch | 12 minutes (with QMPR) | 15 minutes (with QMPR) |
| Large beets, above 10 inch size | 20 minutes(with QMPR) | 30 minutes(with QMPR) |
How To Eat Cooked Beets?
There are many ways to use beets cooked in instant pot. As you will be cooking whole beets, you get to chop them into desired size or shape and use it in dishes.
Chop beets into smaller or larger chunks and use it to make simple, yet delicious beet salad. Beets salad recipe can be made in so many ways. One of the simple salad recipe consists of cooked beets, arugula leaves, toasted walnuts and feta cheese.
Roughly chop beets and use it to make one of the healthy appetizer dips – Beet Hummus.
Cut thin slices of beets and snack on it as it is. You don’t even need seasoning, it tastes great as it is.
Use whole beets for spiralling and use it as healthy alternative to spaghetti pasta (just like zucchini noodles).
Cooked beets can be pureed and used it various desserts! Beetroot brownies, beetroot cupcakes, beetroot fudge, beet cookies, so many options.
Use cooked beets to make soup.
Use it in your weekly meal prep.
How To Store Beets?
Cooked beets can be stored in the fridge for 4 to 5 days making it great to use for make ahead meal prep recipes.
Transfer cooked beets into air tight containers and store it away in the fridge for 4 to 5 days.
If you want to store it longer, transfer beets into freezer friendly zip lock bags and freeze for months. I’ve tested for 2 months and it stays good. Might be able to store longer.
How To Reheat Frozen Beets?
To reheat frozen beets in instant pot, pour 1 cup water into the pot. Place frozen beets on trivet or steamer basket. Set timer to pressure cook 0. And allow NPR (natural pressure release) for 10 minutes.
0 timer essentially means you only wait for the pressure to build up which will start heating up the pot and the beets.
Reheating in microwave is another option. Thaw frozen beets inside refrigerator overnight. Microwave thawed beets in microwave at high pressure for 3 to 5 minutes.
ZERO WASTAGE Beets In Instant Pot
Do not discard those beet greens and stems that you trim off. Beet greens are nutrients powerhouse, it can be used in so many ways.
Beet Greens & Stem – You can use it raw in salads or saute it like collard green.
Finely chop greens including the stem. Heat a skillet with olive oil or butter. Saute chopped beetroot greens (along with stem). Add generous pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper until it wilts and turns soft.
Use sautéed beet greens to stir in pasta, use it as stuffing for omelette (along with some cheese).
Beet Skin is Edible! That’s right, beetroot skin once cooked in turns soft and is completely edible. Prepare to be amazed with the wonderful earthy flavors of the skin.
Cooking Water – left over water after cooking beets are full of nutrients. Rinse beetroots well before cooking. Cooking water can be used. Use it to make stocks, save the way to make a smoothie. You can drink it up as it is too, trust me it tastes sooo good!
Tips For Best Beets In Instant Pot
- Choose same size beets for even cooking. Size of beets does matter for the cooking time. Refer to sections “How Long Does It Take To Cook Instant Pot Beets” for more details.
- No need to peel skin or chop beetroot before cooking. Note – if you do chop up raw beets, cooking time will again vary. You will need to reduce the cooking time.
- Rinse beets well before cooking, so left over cooking liquids can be used to make stock, smoothies.
MORE BEETROOT RECIPES:
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How To Cook Instant Pot Beets
Ingredients
- 7 medium sized beets choose beets of almost the same size for even cooking
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Scrub beets to remove dirt. Wash it under tap water to get rid of the dirt.
- If there are stems attached to beets, cut and remove it.
- Add 1 cup water into the pot.
- Place the trivet or steaming basket inside.
- Arrange beets on the trivet or basket.
- Secure lid, make sure pressure knob is in SEALING position.
- Select PRESSURE COOK and adjust timer to 30 minutes. Different size (in reference to the diameter of the beets), cooking time will vary. Smaller beets take lesser time and big ones take a little longer to cook.NOTE: please bare in mind 30 minutes on the timer does not include the time to build the pressure inside the pot. It takes approximately 12-17 minutes for the instant pot to build pressure inside before it starts cooking.
- Once cooking time completes, immediately release all pressure from the pot by carefully turning pressure valve from SEALING POSITION to VENTING POSTING.
- Open lid.
- Check if all beets are cooked by piercing it with a knife in the center. If knife cuts through flesh easily, it’s cooked. If hard to pierce, cover lid and cook for additional 5 to 8 minutes depending on the size of the beets.
- Remove beets from the instant pot using thongs.
- Place it on cutting board and let it cool down little until it’s safe to handle.
- Peel the skin off beets using fingers. YES, that’s right, the skin easily comes off.Pro-Tip: don’t want to mess up your manicured nails and finger, use disposable gloves while peeling the skin off. If you got beet stains on your finger, you can get rid off it by using baking soda. Rub soda on your hands and wash it off.
- Not all beets leave stain on your fingers. Most of it comes off immediately when you rinse them. I used bare fingers to peel the skin off, no beet stained finger for me! It all depends on the beets you use!
- Use cooked beets in any dish of your choice.
- Use beets cooked in instant pot in salads, soups, to make beet hummus, use whole beets to make spirals, or snack on it directly. Trust me, those thinly sliced beets slices went down as it is in no time.
Video
Notes
- Choose same size beets for even cooking. Size of beets does matter for the cooking time. Refer to sections “How Long Does It Take To Cook Instant Pot Beets” for more details.
- No need to peel or chop beets before cooking. Note – if you do chop up raw beets, cooking time will again vary. You will need to reduce the cooking time.
- Rinse beets well before cooking, so left over cooking liquids can be used to make stock, smoothies.
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