The Nourishing Gourmet

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The Low Energy Guide to Healthy Cooking

Perfect Instant Pot Black and Brown Rice

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A bowl full of black and brown rice.

Rich in antioxidants, black rice (also known as purple or forbidden rice) adds a light nutty flavor and a wealth of nutrients to this simple dish. It is a striking side dish with subtle flavor, a not-so-subtle color, and many nutrients. 

Black rice is thought to have been reserved for royalty in ancient China, and was also called longevity rice because of its health-promoting properties. It is believed to have been cultivated for thousands of years, making it a traditional food. 

While you can easily cook black rice alone, my family found it more appetizing when mixed and then cooked with brown rice. Because black rice can be expensive, this helps stretch it out. Black rice contains the antioxidant anthocyanin, which gives this dish not only its beautiful color, but is also responsible for potential health benefits such as reducing inflammation, and helping protect against various diseases. It also contains high amounts of lutein and zeaxanthin, which support eye health. In one controlled study for weight loss, they found that women who frequently ate a brown and black rice diet, instead of white rice, lost more weight, although they ate the same amount of calories. 1, 2, 3.

There are various kinds of black rice, some of which I am eager to try, but haven’t been able to find locally or online. Two accessible brands are Lotus Forbidden Black Rice and Lundberg Black Pearl Rice. I’ve had success using both short and long-grain brown rice in this recipe. 

Many of my readers enjoy “soaking” their grains to reduce anti-nutrients, such as phytic acid in grains. Pressure cooking is an excellent form of cooking to reduce anti-nutrients without soaking. It’s our current preferred way to make rice! Feel free to add a soaking period to this recipe, if desired, however. Rice is traditionally rinsed or washed before cooking, and we now know that it also washes away arsenic in rice, so it is recommended for both culinary and health reasons. 

You can use whatever ratio of brown to black rice that you like, including using this recipe to make all black rice, if desired. 

I am feeding a family, so I use the 6-quart Instant Pot.

Serve with:

Perfect Instant Pot Black and Brown Rice

Printable PDF, Serves 4-6 people 

You can make a smaller portion of this dish by keeping the ratios the same in smaller amounts. (For example: ¼ cup black rice, ¾ cup brown rice, 1 cup water or broth, ¼ teaspoon salt.)

  • 1 cup of black rice 
  • 3 cups of brown rice 
  • 4 cups of water or broth 
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

  1. Rinse rice by placing rice in a fine sieve and rinsing under the faucet until the water runs clear. Or wash the rice by placing rice a large bowl, covering with cold water, and then gently swirling. Pour out the water, and then repeat until the water runs clear and is no longer cloudy. Add drained rice to the instant pot. 
  2. Add water or broth and salt. Secure the lid and then ensure that the steam release valve is in the sealing position. 
  3. Select manual at high pressure and set to 25 minutes. *
  4. Once the cooking time is done, let it naturally release for 10 minutes (natural-release simply means leaving it alone) and then release any remaining pressure by moving the steam release valve to venting position. 

*Many find that 20 minutes is adequate for cooking brown and black rice, but I find that I need the 25 minutes.

Spicy Korean Beef and Cabbage

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A bowl full of spicy Korean beef and cabbage.

This simple main dish is not only full of healthy protein and vegetables, but is also bursting with flavor! Even better, it is a fast main dish to make on busy nights and is incredibly frugal. We usually eat this once a week on a night when I have 30 minutes or less to make dinner. 

With food costs where they are right now, I am loading our menu with meal options that fill us up for less, and this fits the bill. My kids and husband eat this over rice, and I usually eat a bowl of it plain or served over konjac noodles for a grain-free option.

One of the secrets of this meal is using the Korean spicy fermented red chili paste called gochujang. This spicy paste is the secret to many Korean dishes, and I always keep it on hand. (Many of them contain gluten, but this brand is what I use and is gluten-free. Unless you like things really spicy, I recommend buying mild or medium.) I even noticed that Trader Joe’s was carrying gochujang for a great price recently! 

However, if you are not a K-drama junkie like we are (and don’t usually cook Korean-inspired meals), you can easily substitute red chili flakes or sriracha sauce instead. (I really love this organic sriracha sauce, and we use it to top this dish to add more flavor when serving!)

Note: While I am calling this recipe “Korean” because of the gochujang sauce, this is not a traditional Korean dish.

We do a lot of Asian-inspired meals in our family, as they are flavorful, protein and produce-rich, and are naturally gluten and dairy-free with just a few tweaks (like using tamari instead of soy sauce). 

While I am avoiding grains most of the time right now, my family enjoys this meal with rice which is a very frugal carbohydrate. I also can get a 2 pound package of coleslaw mix at Sam’s Club right now for slightly over 2 dollars. Cabbage is on the Clean 15 list, a list of produce with the least amount of pesticide residue, making this a not only very frugal ingredient but also a safer one too! 

Other Recipes You Might Like:

Bowl of spicy Korean cabbage and beef

Spicy Korean Beef and Cabbage

Serves 4, Printable PDF

  • 1 pound coleslaw mix (slightly more, or slightly less cabbage will work too!)  
  • ⅓-½ cup water 
  • 1 pound of lean ground meat (I usually use lean grassfed beef, but ground turkey is lovely too.) 
  • 1 tablespoon onion powder 
  • 3-6 garlic cloves minced (or 2-4 teaspoon garlic powder) 
  • 1-2 teaspoons of dried ginger powder (or 1 to 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger) 
  • 1 tablespoon gochujang (to add spice without gochujang paste, substitute 1 teaspoon or so of red chili flakes, or a tablespoon or two of sriracha sauce, to taste.) 
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar (unflavored and unsweetened) 
  • 2 tablespoon tamari (GF soy sauce option) 
  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil 
  • Sesame seeds and/or chopped green onions, to finish (optional)
  1. In a large pot, add the coleslaw mix and the water. Cook for 3-5 minutes over medium high heat, until water is mostly gone, and cabbage is wilted, stirring to prevent any sticking. Start with ⅓ cup of water and add more if needed. 
  2. Add ground beef, onion powder, garlic, gochujang, vinegar, and tamari. Stir, and break ground beef into small pieces, and cook until meat is cooked (no longer pink), and moisture is mostly gone again. 
  3. Add 1 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil and stir to disperse. Now taste test, and add more tamari, vinegar, gochujang or sesame oil to desired taste. 
  4. To serve, eat in bowls with or without rice, and sprinkle with chopped green onions and/or sesame seeds. We also like a drizzle of this sriracha sauce.

Creamy Curry Red Lentil Soup

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This creamy, dairy-free soup is frugal and comforting on a cold winter’s night. Cumin, garlic, ginger, and curry powder all help give this soup a robust flavor profile, while the balsamic vinegar provides just the right tang. 

Red lentils cook up in a hurry, making this a wonderful last-minute meal. I love lentils as they are full of essential nutrients, a frugal source of protein, and are delicious too! 

I add gelatin to the soup to add more protein, but that’s optional. This soup is easily made with broth or water, vegetarian or not. 

Serve with muffins, bread, or over brown rice, and a large salad for a complete meal. For those on THM, this makes a wonderful “E” Meal.

Tips

For easy blending, use an immersion blender.

For more protein and collagen, use the optional gelatin. This is a good brand.

I like to keep all of the ingredients for this soup on hand. They are easily made into a variety of dishes, and I can also make this soup for last-minute meals!

Other Soup Recipes 

Creamy Curry Red Lentil Soup

  • 1-2 tablespoons fat or oil of choice 
  • 3 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced 
  • 1 onion, peeled and chopped 
  • 3 celery, thinly sliced 
  • 3-6 garlic cloves, peeled and minced 
  • 2 cups red lentils, rinsed in a fine sieve (remove any small pebbles, if there are any)
  • 8 cups broth or water 
  • 1 heaping teaspoon cumin 
  • 1 heaping teaspoon dried ginger or one tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger 
  • 2 teaspoon curry powder 
  • ¼ cup of gelatin in 1 cup of cool water, optional
  • Around 1 – 2 tablespoons of salt 
  • 2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar 

1. In a large pot, add the fat/oil (just enough to lightly cover the bottom of the pot) and turn on medium heat until the fat is just hot. Add the carrots, onion, and celery, and lightly sprinkle with salt. Stir here and there, and cook until the vegetables start to soften (about five minutes) and add the garlic and cook for one or two more minutes. 

2. Add the red lentils and broth/water, turn heat to high, and bring to a simmer. Turn down to keep at a gentle simmer. Remove with a large spoon any foam that may come to the surface of the soup. 

3. Add the spices. Simmer for around twenty minutes, or until the lentils are soft. 

4. Stir together the gelatin and the water, soften for a few minutes. Stir into the soup, along with salt (to taste, you will need more if you used water) and balsamic vinegar. 

5. For a creamier texture blend part or all of the soup. The easiest way to accomplish this is to use an immersion blender, which you can put right into your pot for easy blending. OR, carefully scoop out some of the soup, and blend in a blender (follow procedures for your specific blender for how to do this safely. For my blender, I vent it, and only fill halfway, and blend on low to start). For blending in a blender, you will need to do at least several batches. I blend about half of the soup. 

6. Check the flavor, and adjust with salt, vinegar, or pepper, and enjoy!

Instant Pot Mexican Shredded Chicken

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This easy recipe takes just a couple of ingredients and can be thrown together in mere minutes, but produces flavorful shredded chicken that’s perfect for tacos, burritos and burrito bowls, and taco salads.

If you’ve followed this blog for a while, you may have noticed that we tend to love dark meats, such as chicken thighs. But chicken breast can be delicious too! This recipe is suitable for most gluten-free, grain-free, paleo/primal diets. I most often eat this on the THM (Trim Healthy Mama) plan as part of my E meal.

For those of us coming to THM from the traditional foods world, eating some meals that are higher in the slow carbs, but lower in fat is a real transition. However, look at how satisfying this meal is below!

What’s in this bowl: Brown rice, pinto beans, Mexican shredded chicken, cabbage slaw tossed with a teaspoon of oil and lime juice, fresh garlic and salt, salsa, and nonfat Greek yogurt.

If you are interested in why I decided to start combining what I had learned from other experts in the holistic world with THM, you can read my story here and learn about my coaching as well.

For an S meal, or other Mexican-inspired recipes, check out this juicy Carnitas recipe as well as my Simple Mexican Coleslaw. Delicious!

But regardless of your dietary lifestyle, this recipe is delicious!

Instant Pot Shredded Chicken

  • 2-3 Chicken Breasts
  • 1 and 1/4 cup salsa or Picante sauce
  • 1 teaspoon each chili, cumin, garlic powder
  1. In a 6 quart Instant Pot add the salsa or sauce. An IP needs at least 1 cup of liquid, so if your salsa is dry, add chicken broth. Add the chicken and spices.
  2. Secure lid, set steam release valve to closed, and program for ten minutes on high on manual.
  3. Let rest for five minutes, and then release. Check to make sure chicken is cooked all the way through.
  4. Shred chicken, then pour the sauce over it. Enjoy!