Instant Pot Beets

Beets.

Nutrients-bombs ruby gems with earthy robust flavors & fragrance.

Love the refreshing crunch with a soft chew, slightly juicy & sweet.

None can escape being beet up with blood-stained tongues & fingers…

What Are Beets?

Beets or beetroots are an ancient root vegetable – a health-boosting, immune-boosting nutrients goldmine.

Some research found that beets may possibly lower blood pressure, drop risks of heart disease, boost endurance performance, help fight inflammation, prevent chronic diseases, and help purify your blood and liver.

Even endurance athletes and bodybuilders try to incorporate beets into their regular diet.

Why Eat Beets?

Beets are on the road to becoming a rock star, gaining the spotlight on the healthy food stage.

You’ll Enjoy Instant Pot Beets Because:

• It’s a nutrients powerhouse that improves your health: rich in antioxidants, essential vitamins, low in calories, high in iron, fiber, vitamin C, no cholesterol.
• Super easy to make and easy to incorporate them into your regular diet (fits gluten-free, grain-free, vegetarian, vegan, paleo, whole food diets)
• Great source of beneficial carbohydrates to give you energy
• Great crunch & satisfying texture

Instant Pot Beets are Great for:

• Side dish or snack – enjoy it as is, marinated or pickled
• Adding into salads, soups, entrees, desserts as an ingredient
• Making beet puree or even smoothies!

*Pro Tip: you can also eat beets raw after washing, trimming & slicing off the skin

Instant Pot Beets Experiment

Beets vary widely in sizes. So, how long should we pressure cook them for?

The best pressure cooking time highly depends on the thickness of the food item, so there’s no one-size-fits-all cooking time for these ruby health-boosting gems.

Time for another pressure cooking experiment! 🙂

Pressure Cooker: Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker
Altitude: close to sea level
Liquid: 1 cup cold water
Pressure: High Pressure (10.15~11.6 psi)
Beets Circumference: 5 inches – 9 inches
Pressure Cooking Time: 8 mins – 30 mins
Release Method: Quick Release

Instant Pot Beets Experiment Results

We conducted 9+ tests with various sizes of beets at different cooking times in our Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker.

Instant Pot Beets Experiment Conclusion

From the experiment results above, we’ve created a handy time chart for cooking Instant Pot Beets!

Instant Pot Beets Time Chart

Ingredients for Instant Pot Beets Recipe

• 6 (1 3/4 lb, 784g) medium beets (7.5” circumference)
• 1 cup (250ml) cold water

Tools for Instant Pot Beets Recipe

• Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker
• Steamer Basket
• Optional: Disposable Gloves

Instructions for Instant Pot Beets Recipe

Step 1
Prepare Beets

6 (784g) medium beets (7.5” circumference)

Rub and wash the beets under cold running tap water.

If your beets come with greens & stems, trim them off and save them for another dish (stir-frying with garlic tastes great).Trim off & discard the roots.

Step 2
Pressure Cook Beets

1 cup (250ml) cold water

Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker
Steamer Basket

*Pro Tip: Measure your beets’ circumference with a measuring tape, and adjust your pressure cooking time accordingly using the time chart below.

Beets Pressure Cooking Time Chart:

Pressure Cooking Method: High Pressure, then Quick Release

• Beets Circumference: Texture Preference (Firm & a little crunchy – Soft with some chew)
• 5 inches: 11 – 15 minutes
• 5.5 inches: 14 – 18 minutes
• 6 inches: 17 – 21 minutes
• 6.5 inches: 18 – 23 minutes
• 7 inches: 20 – 25 minutes
• 7.5 inches: 24 – 28 minutes
• 8 inches: 27 – 31 minutes
• 8.5 inches: 30 – 34 minutes
• 9 inches: 32 – 36 minutes

Pour 1 cup (250ml) cold tap water in the pressure cooker.Place a trivet or steamer basket in the Instant Pot, then place 6 medium beets (784g, 7.5” circumference) on the trivet.

Close the lid and cook at High Pressure for 24 minutes (firm and a little crunchy) – 28 minutes (soft with some chew) + Quick Release (immediately release the pressure by turning the venting knob to venting position).

Carefully open the lid.

Step 3
Peel and Serve Instant Pot Beets

Optional: Disposable Gloves

The skins are edible. To peel or not to peel is of personal preference.

Cut beets into quarters (you can wear disposable gloves to handle the beets if you don’t want beet-stained fingers).

Season with salt if desired and serve hot or cold.

*Storage: Cooked Beets can be stored in refrigerator for up to 4 – 5 days.

Cooking Tips for Instant Pot Beets Recipe

1. Choosing Beets

As mentioned above, the best pressure cooking time highly depends on the thickness of the beets, so choose beets roughly the same size to have evenly cooked beets!

2. How to Remove Beets Stains?

We found that if we wash our hands, towels, or chopping board with tap water immediately after handling the beets, the red coloring washes off fairly easily. But when we let it sit too long, the blood-red stains can be a little scary on your fingers.

But don’t worry! Lemon juice or baking soda will work their magic in removing the beet juice stains. 🙂