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rice

Best-ever 4 minute Instant Pot Rice

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If Ray could live off one food for the rest of his life, hands down it would be rice (Ok…and lamb). I was historically impartial to rice (I’m a mashed potatoes kind of girl), but I was forced to fall in love with it during my pregnancy once I started slowing down and had to pass the dinner-making reins to Ray. The important thing to know about him is he has 2 speeds in the kitchen:

1) a slow cooked simmered something that requires to be served over rice and;

2) the trifecta: protein on grill + sautéed greens + well…rice.

So it was safe to assume that from April to August, I ate rice for dinner. Therefore it’s also safe to assume that Sebastian is made of 50% rice…and conservatively 50% Ben & Jerry’s New York Super Fudge Chunk.

Ray is a man of simple pleasures and simple flavors so my best-ever 4 minute Instant Pot Rice is inspired by his with an Eva flare (read: just more spices). It’s a great base recipe with infinite ways to pump it up, so I have full confidence this will become a go-to dish in your house no matter what.

By the way, we’re those weirdos who are obsessed with their Instant Pot , who always want to sell everyone on the glory, the magic that is the Instant Pot. Like, you can’t come into my kitchen until you sit through my infomercial about this amazing appliance. So I’m telling you, this is a recipe for THE perfect, most flavorful, fragrant rice and the Instant Pot does all the heavy lifting. Also… if you DON’T own one of these or even worse, you own one and don’t use it every night (hi, Marina!) then you’re not living your best life. You’re just not and I can’t even argue with you about it, it’s just fact. OK?

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Fragrant 4-minute Instant Pot Rice

Prep

Cook

Inactive

Total

Yield 4-6 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 cup thoroughly rinsed basmati or jasmine rice
  • 1 cup chicken stock (or any stock). 
  • 1 T olive oil
  • 4 cardamom pods, broken open
  • 2 tsp cumin seeds (ideally toasted but not required)
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 bay leaf

Instructions

  1. Place all ingredients in the Instant Pot and stir.
  2. Close lid and valve and set to "pressure cook" on high for 4 minutes.
  3. Once cooked, release pressure valve and let sit for additional 10 minutes. DO NOT take off lid until 10 minute resting period is done. Sip wine, set the table, call your mom while you wait.
  4. Fluff and serve.

Notes

If you don't have stock or broth on hand you can stir one heaping teaspoon of "Better Than Boullion" into warm water as a replacement.

Courses Dinner

 

Insta(gram) good: Baked stuffed peppers with brown rice and spinach

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smokshow peppers

As my brother would say, this dish is a total smokeshow…OK, I think he uses that in reference to chicks, but let’s diversify its meaning. I wasn’t planning on posting this on the bloggy but one of my friends just asked for the recipe on Instagram and then I realized that I’d like to remember how I made this too! I really hate peppers and I really hate brown rice but for some reason I always crave this dish, especially after the gym. It’s quick, easy, hearty, healthy and vegetarian…oh, and cheap, that’s always a plus. What’s not to love? Here’s what you need to make: Baked Stuffed Peppers with Brown Rice, Spinach and Pepper Jack Cheese.

Makes 2 really huge post-gym servings

  • 3/4 dry cup of brown rice, cooked per instructions (yields about 1.5 cups, cooked)
  • 1.5 cup sour cream
  • 3/4 cup grated pepper jack cheese
  • 2 medium white onions, diced
  • 3 garlic cloves, or if you’re me, 5 cloves
  • 2 packages frozen spinach, defrosted and drained
  • 3 beautiful bell peppers, tops cut off and ribs removed or cut in half with ribs removed
  • smoked paprika
  • cayenne pepper
  • S/P

Pre-heat oven to 350.

In a large, shallow pot, heat 2 T olive oil at medium-high heat. Add diced onions and crushed or pressed garlic cloves. Soften for about 5-7 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Reduce heat to medium-low. Take the spinach by hand and break apart into the pot and mix in with the onion-garlic mixture. Fold in the cooked brown rice, sour cream and 1/2 cup of the pepper jack, reserving the rest for the tops of the stuffed peppers.

Sprinkle about 1.5 T of smoked paprika and a few shakes of cayenne depending on your preference over the mixture.  Adjust flavors accordingly, it might need more salt and more garlic at this point.

While the spinach, cheese and sour cream warm, line a cookie sheet or casserole dish with tin foil, placing the bell pepper halves snuggly together, insides facing up. Salt the bell pepper halves lightly; no need for oil as there is enough moisture in the peppers to keep them from sticking or burning.

Spoon the delicious mixture into each of the pepper halves, packing it down as you go. Sprinkle the remaining pepper jack cheese over the stuffed peppers and bake in the oven until golden brown and fragrant, about 30-35 minutes.  Serve as is, or with shrimp, chicken or salmon.

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