Instant Pot rice button for long grain brown rice, does 1:1 actually work?

[Thomas Martinez]

Just stumbled upon a way to cook long grains brown rice in an Instant Pot using the Rice button directly. The water to rice ratio is what stand out here. For stovetop methods the ratio is around 2:1 or 2.25:1 but this method use 2 cup of rice and 2 cups of water by weight. The rice need to be rinse and the lid sealed. Then all you have to do is hit the Rice button and let it run its cycle.
The Rice program run on low pressure for 12 minutes and features a natural or quick release. This surprised me because the Rice button is for white rice, not multigrain or manual pressure. However, it seem long grain brown rice can take this setting if the water ratio are correct.
Using a 1:1 ratio of water to rice pose some concern. Most recipes uses more water to account for the bran layer in brown rice. Since the cook rinse brown rice before cooking though, it may work out. Another concern is the quick vs natural release. From what I understand, brown rice will turn out gummy using quick release. With long grain rice the bran layer might take longer to cook so quick release may not be the best. Have any of you tried this method and gotten good result?

 

[3D Karate Jr]

1:1 works for me but only using natural release. With quick release it will be firm to the bite almost al dente. Natural release is definitely better.

 

[Shiny Shark]

nah I use 1.25:1 and pressure cook for 22 minutes on manual high. Rice button is a joke for brown rice. 12 minutes on low pressure just isnt enough time for the bran on brown rice to break down properly.

 

[Breakable Baboon]

wait does the rice button detect how much rice is in the pot?

 

[Dull Dragonfly]

wait does the rice button detect how much rice is in the pot?

No. It has a fixed program. The only thing that change is when it starts the cycle (once it reaches pressure). There is no sensor for detecting rice in the pot.

 

[Breakable Baboon]

No. It has a fixed program. The only thing that change is when it starts the cycle (once it reaches pressure). There is no sensor for detecting rice in the pot.

huh ok so the rice button just does a 12 min low pressure cycle then. Isnt that the same as just hitting the low pressure button for 12 minutes though?

 

[Shiny Shark]

huh ok so the rice button just does a 12 min low pressure cycle then. Isnt that the same as just hitting the low pressure button for 12 minutes though?

Thats the point. Its just a convenient button for marketing purpose. You can program each of the buttons individually using manual settings.

 

[Crazy Crane]

Took a crack at 1:1 with natural release last weekend. Used a 2 cup batch of long grain brown rice from Trader Joes. Came out perfectly good, slightly firmer then usual when using stovetop methods. Not that I expect it to be softer since its brown rice but the grain were separate not sticky like some rice recipe can turn out. With quick release it ended up being slightly crunchier in the center. Otherwise, 1:1 with natural release work for me and is the best method. Quick release just isnt recommended unless you enjoy rice with a bite.

 

[Envious Emu]

long grain brown rice is the worst rice and I am tired of pretending it isnt. I would rather have short grain rice or basmati.

 

[Neo]

The bran layer issue is overblown. Just soak the rice for 20 minutes then cook using 1:1 ratio with whatever method work best for you. Its the dry bran that resist the water not the bran itself.

 

[Breakable Baboon]

Took a crack at 1:1 with natural release last weekend. Used a 2 cup batch of long grain brown rice from Trader Joes. Came out perfectly good, slightly firmer then usual when using stovetop methods. Not that I expect it to be softer since its brown rice but the grain were separate…

does soaking the rice change the required cook time?

 

[3D Karate Jr]

does soaking the rice change the required cook time?

Yes it do. If you soak your rice for 30 minutes you can reduce the cook time to 8 minutes on low pressure. I do this with brown rice because soaking soften the bran a bit. Its also a personal preference though so many recipe will instruct you to use 12 minutes for dry rice but that will overcook your rice if you soaked it first. For convenience I just use 1:1 with natural release and skip the soaking step for brown rice. The difference in texture between soaked and non soaked rice isnt worth the effort for me.