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Katie's Cucina » Recipes » Instant Pot

Instant Pot Beets

Published: Feb 4, 2023 by Katie · This post may contain affiliate links

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White bowl filled with cooked peeled beets with recipe title text on image for Pinterest.
White bowl filled with cooked beets with recipe title text on image for Pinterest.
Hand in glove holding peeled beet with recipe title text on image for Pinterest.
White bowl filled with cooked beets divided by recipe title text with bowl of cooked beets in bowl of water below.
Sliced beet tops on a cutting board divided by text with an instant pot filled will beets below.
Raw beets in an instant pot with logo on right corner.
White bowl filled with cooked beets with recipe title text on image for Pinterest.

Instant Pot Beets are cooked in under a half hour and come out fork tender. You can eat them as is or add them to salads and smoothies. You will never want to cook beets any other way again.

White bowl filled with cooked beets on a blue and white checkered cloth.

If you enjoy beets you will love this easy recipe for Instant Pot Beets. One of my biggest complaints about beets is the time it takes to cook them. That’s when it occurred to me that I should try cooking them in my Instant Pot. After I tried this method once I was hooked.

While the beats cook I like to sautee the beet greens for an easy side dish for dinner and then once the beets are done I eat them as is or make my favorite beetroot and feta salad. However you like to enjoy beets–I’m confident that you will love this quicker method of cooking beets.

Jump to:
  • Why this Recipe Works
  • Ingredients
  • How to Cook Beets in the Instant Pot
  • How to Peel Beets
  • FAQs
  • Tips & Tricks
  • Easy Beet Recipes
  • Instant Pot Beets

Why this Recipe Works

Cook beets quickly and with ease thanks to the Instant Pot.

Rinse, chop tops off, set it in and let the Instant Pot cook for you!

Make a large batch of beets for salads, side dishes, and more.

Ingredients

Fresh bundle of beets on a marble countertop.
  • Beets – This is really the only thing you need for this recipe. You can use any color you would like.
  • Water – A cup of water is all you need to cook the beets.

How to Cook Beets in the Instant Pot

Raw beets with tops cut off sitting on a cutting board with a knife.

First, wash and cut the tops off of the beets.

Instant Pot filled with raw beets and water.

Place the beets on a wire rack inside the Instant Pot. Add a cup of water to the pot.

Six cooked beets in an Instant Pot.

Place lid on Instant Pot. Set to the “STEAM” setting for 20 minutes. As soon as the beets are done cooking. Carefully force pressure out of the Instant Pot.

NOTE – You can do a natural pressure release if you happen to need to leave the house and run an errand or two. The beets will be completely fine if this is needed instead. With that being said. I would recommend you reduce the cooking time by 5 minutes (only steam for 15 minutes) since they will sit longer in the Instant Pot.

How to Peel Beets

Glass bowl filled with beets soaked in water and ice.

Once you’ve cooked the whole beets in the Instant Pot, carefully remove the beets using tongs and place them into a bowl filled with ice water. Let the beets sit for 1 minute in the ice bath. This ice bath is necessary in order to be able to handle the beets for peeling. If you skip this step they will be too hot to hold.

Hand in glove holding a beet with skin peeled back over a bowl of beets in water.

Before you peel the beetroot make sure you put on food safe gloves. Carefully pick up a whole beet. Then, make a light slit using a pairing knife into the beet skin. Carefully, peel the skin off the beet. Repeat until all your beets have been peeled. Then, enjoy immediately or add to your favorite salad.

FAQs

What is the best method for cooking beets?

I prefer to use the Instant Pot which is an electronic pressure cooker to quickly cook the beets. However, you can boil the beets for 30-40 minutes or roast them in the oven for an hour.

How long does it take beets to cook in the pressure cooker?

I have found that 20 minutes is all that is needed to cook about 6 average size beets. If you have beets on the smaller side you can reduce the cooking time to 15 minutes. Or if you have extra large beets you may need to add on an additional 5 minutes.

Should beets be washed before cooking?

Yes, you should always wash all the dirt and grit off beets before cooking. Regardless of the cooking method you don’t want to cook dirt on your food.

Can I drink the water from boiled beets?

Yes, you can drink the water from boiled beets as long as you’ve scrubbed them well before cooking. You can also add in a tablespoon of vinegar to the cooled water and dye eggs for Easter in the beet water. Beets are a great natural egg dye.

Do you peel beets after cooking?

There is no reason to peel beets before cooking. Beets are hard to peel when they are in the raw form. I highly suggest waiting to peel them until after they have been cooked. See my notes above on how to easily peel beets.

Tips & Tricks

Here are all my tips and tricks when cooking beets in Instant Pot.

  • Gloves – I highly recommend you wear food safe plastic gloves whenever you handle beets. From the cutting of the raw beets all the way to the peeling the skin off.
  • Staining – Beets will instantly stain your hands and anything around it. Be extremely careful with your kitchen countertop so you don’t ruin it if it’s a lighter color.
  • Peeling – I never peel beets before cooking. I always use the water bath method and peel while they are hot. They peel with ease and in seconds!
  • Storing – You can store cooked beets in an airtight container for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.

Easy Beet Recipes

Not sure what to make with your steamed beets? Check out these delicious beet recipes.

  • Close up of beet greens in a frying pan on a white and blue striped cloth.
    Sautéed Beet Greens
  • Beet, Bacon, and Citrus Salad with Garlic-Citrus Vinaigrette
    Beet, Bacon, and Citrus Salad with Garlic-Citrus Vinaigrette
  • Three bright purple popsicles on white parchment paper with bananas and strawberries around it.
    Strawberry Beet and Banana Popsicles
  • Harvest Quinoa Salad with Pumpkin Yogurt Dressing
    Harvest Quinoa Salad with Pumpkin Yogurt Dressing

If you make this pressure cooker beets recipe, I would be honored and love for you to take the time to leave a ⭐ star rating and comment! I spend hours developing and testing these recipes, and always love to hear feedback and user experience!

Don’t forget to FOLLOW ME on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram, and subscribe to my email list!

White bowl filled with cooked beets.

Instant Pot Beets

Instant Pot Beets are cooked in under a half hour and come out fork tender. You can eat them as is or add them to salads and smoothies. You will never want to cook beets any other way again.
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Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Diet: Gluten Free, Low Calorie, Low Salt
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 3
Calories: 71kcal
Author: Katie

Equipment

  • 1 Instant Pot

Ingredients

  • 6 Beets stems removed
  • 1 cup Water

Instructions

  • Wash and cut the tops off of the beets.
  • Place the beets on a wire rack inside the Instant Pot. Add a cup of water to the pot.
  • Place lid on Instant Pot. Set to the "STEAM" setting for 20 minutes. As soon as the beets are done cooking. Carefully force pressure out of the Instant Pot.
  • Using tongs, carefully remove the beets to a bowl filled with ice water. Let the beets sit for 1 minute in the ice bath. Put gloves on and make a light slit into the beet and peel the skin off the beet. Enjoy immediately or add to your favorite salad.

Notes

  • Gloves – I highly recommend you wear food safe plastic gloves whenever you handle beets. From the cutting of the raw beets all the way to the peeling the skin off.
  • Staining – Beets will instantly stain your hands and anything around it. Be extremely careful with your kitchen countertop so you don’t ruin it if it’s a lighter color.
  • Peeling – I never peel beets before cooking. I always use the water bath method and peel while they are hot. They peel with ease and in seconds!

Nutrition

Serving: 2g | Calories: 71kcal | Carbohydrates: 16g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 0.3g | Saturated Fat: 0.04g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 132mg | Potassium: 533mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 54IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 29mg | Iron: 1mg
Tried this Recipe? Tag me Today!Mention @KatieJasiewicz or tag #katiescucina!
« Sautéed Beet Greens
Beet Salad with Feta »

About Katie

Katie is a busy mom of 2 children who loves to feed her family delicious meals that don't take hours to cook! She started her blog 10 years ago as a way to help others get cooking in the kitchen.

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I'm Katie Jasiewicz: home cook, food blogger, and recipe developer. A busy mom of two children who loves to feed her family delicious meals that don’t take hours to cook! My mission is to create easy-to-make modern comfort food for the busy family. (more)

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