Quick & Delicious Instant Pot Vegetable Biryani Recipe for Busy Days

Do you love Indian food but don’t have a lot of time to spend in the kitchen? This vegetable biryani recipe made in an Instant Pot is quick, easy and delicious. Packed with flavorful vegetables and aromatic spices, it’s a perfect for busy days or weeknight meal that will leave your taste buds satisfied.

vegetable biryani in instant pot is a delicious one-pot veg biryani made using south Indian spices and flavors. I used basmati rice in this vegetable biryani, but this can be prepared using the native Indian rice variety called seeraga samba rice. I have added lots of vegetables to this veg biryani instant pot recipe.

This vegetable biryani instant pot can be made even in the pressure cooker or an open pot method. Veg biryani instant pot is not the same as the veg pulao. Please don’t confuse both. I will share the veg pulao instant pot recipe soon. This is one of the easy instant pot veg biryani in the south Indian version you will love to make it again and again.

What is biryani ?

Biriyani also known as biryani is a mixed rice dish originated from the Muslims of the Indian subcontinent. It is made usually with Indian spices, meat in addition to some vegetables. Biryani is a very popular recipe throughout India.

Vegetable biryani is a traditional Indian rice dish that consists of fragrant basmati rice, mixed vegetables, aromatic spices. It’s typically prepared in layers, with the rice at the bottom followed by a layer of cooked vegetables and spices.

The veg biryani is then steamed to allow all the flavors to meld together. Biryani originated in the Indian subcontinent but has since become popular all over the world as a delicious and satisfying meal option. With this Instant Pot vegetable biryani recipe, you can enjoy all the flavors of this classic dish in just a fraction of the time it would take to prepare it on the stovetop.

Why you’ll love this veg biryani instant pot recipe

• Less than 20 minute recipe. Once you chop the vegetables or have a frozen one with some basmati rice and spices ready in your kitchen ,your instant pot veg biryani is ready in minutes,
• Perfect one pot rice dish for all your parties  and can be enjoyed by all ages.
• This is my goto recipe when we have friends over for lunch since i always have some frozen vegetables in stock.

Variations and substitutions for the instant pot biryani recipe

This Instant Pot biryani recipe is versatile and easy to customize according to your preferences. You can use any vegetables you have on hand, including carrots, peas, bell peppers or fenugreek leaves can be added to this instant pot biryani. If you prefer a spicier dish, add more chili pepper or red pepper flakes to the recipe. For a protein boost, try add cooked chickpeas,soya chunks ,panner or tofu. You can also substitute brown rice instead of white rice . You can adjust the seasoning to taste .

If you are a vegan,You can make this instant pot biryani by just substituting ghee with oil and also you can remove the yogurt to make this a instant pot vegan biryani

Common (veg biryani instant pot) ingredients

Spices and herbs – I have used cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, bay leaves, and other optional ingredients like star anise, dried pomegranate seeds, stone flower, etc to add extra flavor.

I also used store-bought fried onions in this veg biryani recipe for extra crunch in the end.

Rice – For biryani in southern India they normally use seeraga samba rice variety. You can use long grain basmati rice too. You can use Royal basmati rice or zafrani basmati rice.

Vegetables – Since this veg biryani recipe I try to add as many vegetables like carrot, potato, green peas, green beans, etc. You can even add cauliflower to this recipe. If you want some extra protein you can even add paneer to this instant pot veg biryani recipe.

Yogurt – I added around 2 tbsp of yogurt to get the extra tang. If you are looking for vegan vegetable biryani please skip the yogurt.

Spice powder – To keep it simple I used turmeric powder and some south Indian biryani masala.

Herbs – I used only cilantro leaves if you have mint leaves you can add a fistful to make it even more flavorful.

Fried onions – I had some fried onions at home so I just sauteed a little in the beginning and kept it aside and added it before serving. This is optional

Ginger – garlic paste – Add around 1 tbsp of ginger garlic paste. I even tried this veg biryani instant pot recipe without ginger garlic it tasted fantastic. I always prefer to use freshly crushed ginger and garlic for any recipe.

Step by step guide on making vegetable biryani instant pot

Preparation for vegetable biryano instant pot

• Wash the Indian basmati rice in the running water couple of times and soak the basmati rice for 15 minutes maximum and drain the water completely and keep it aside.
• Chop the vegetables and keep it aside.I used roughly 3 cups of vegetables for this vegetable biryani instant pot recipe.
• Keep the whole spices mentioned below and keep it ready.

How to make veg biriani instant pot

Turn on the instant pot to saute mode. Once it displays ‘hot’ add the ghee (clarified butter) and oil. If you are using fried onions for this recipe then saute it now and keep it aside.

In the same oil, add the spices mentioned one by one. Wait for a minute for the flavor of spices to get into the oil. Add raw onion and saute for a minute and add ginger garlic paste. Then add tomato and saute for a minute.

Add all the vegetables, salt, biryani masala, and turmeric powder and saute for 2-3 minutes. Turn off the instant pot and add yogurt and mix it well. Make sure nothing is stuck to the bottom of the instant pot inner pot.

Add the rice and mix well. Don’t mix rice too hard else the rice will break. Now add 1.5 cups of water for 1 cup of rice. Add water and mix it gently.

Close the instant pot lid and turn on pressure cook mode for 5 minutes and do a quick release after 10 minutes.

Open the instant pot lid and leave it for 5 minutes without touching and after that fluff the veg biryano instant pot with the fork and add the fried onions on top and serve it with your favorite raita.

Tips and tricks to make perfect vegetable biryani in pressure cooker :

• Always buy good quality indian basmati rice to make perfect instant pot vegetable biryani.
• If you cut the vegetables too small it will become too mushy so always cut little bigger.
• If you are using frozen vegetables adjust the water quantity accordingly.
• To avaoid burn sign always deglaze the pot before doing pressure cook
• The taste of vegetable biryani instant pot depends on the biryani masala you use.So always choose fresh and good quality of biryani masala.

If you like this recipe, check out my other one-pot rice recipes:

• Instant pot basmati rice
• sona masoori rice
• Instant pot lemon rice
• Instant pot fried rice

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South Indian vegetable biryani instant pot

Vegetable biryani instant pot is a delicious one-pot veg biryani made using south Indian spices and flavors. In this vegetable biryani, I used basmati rice but this can be prepared using the native Indian rice variety called seeraga samba rice. I have added lots of vegetables to this veg biryani instant pot recipe.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Indian

Keyword biryano, veg biryani instant pot, vegetable biryani instant pot

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

saute time 5 minutes

Total Time 25 minutes

Servings 4

Author Nithya KB

Ingredients

• 2 number bay leaf
• 1 inch cinnamon
• 2 number green cardamom
• 1/2 tsp shahi jeera or cumin seeds
• 1 strand mace optional
• 1 number star anise
• 1 small piece stone flower optional
• 2 number cloves
• 1 number green chilli
• 1 cup basmati rice
• 1.5 cup water
• salt to taste
• 1 number onion medium size
• 1 number tomato
• 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
• 2 cups mixed vegetables carrot,green peas,green beans,potato
• 1 fistful coriander leaves
• 2 tbsp yogurt
• 2 tsp biryani masala
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder

Instructions

1. Turn on the instant pot to saute mode. Once it displays ‘hot’ add the ghee (clarified butter) and oil. If you are using fried onions for this recipe then saute it now and keep it aside.
2. In the same oil, add the spices mentioned one by one. Wait for a minute for the flavor of spices to get into the oil. Add raw onion and saute for a minute and add ginger garlic paste. Then add tomato and saute for a minute.
3. Add all the vegetables, salt, biryani masala, and turmeric powder and saute for 2-3 minutes. Turn off the instant pot and add yogurt and mix it well. Make sure nothing is stuck to the bottom of the instant pot inner pot.
4. Add the rice and mix well. Don’t mix rice too hard else the rice will break. Now add 1.5 cups of water for 1 cup of rice. Add water and mix it gently.
5. Close the instant pot lid and turn on pressure cook mode for 5 minutes and do a quick release after 10 minutes.
6. Open the instant pot lid and leave it for 5 minutes without touching and after that fluff the veg biryani instant pot with the fork and add the fried onions on top and serve it with your favorite raita.

Recipe Notes

Tips and tricks to make perfect vegetable biryani in the pressure cooker :

• Always buy good quality Indian basmati rice to make perfect instant pot vegetable biryani.
• If you cut the vegetables too small they will become too mushy so always cut a little bigger.
• If you are using frozen vegetables adjust the water quantity accordingly.
• To avoid burn sign always deglaze the pot before doing pressure cook
• The taste of vegetable biryani instant pot depends on the biryani masala you use. So always choose fresh and good quality biryani masala.