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–+ servings
perfectly cooked quinoa in two small bowls
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4.80 from 10 votes

How to Cook Quinoa Perfectly

This recipe makes about three cups of cooked quinoa. You can eat it as-is or use it in a wide variety of recipes, including the ones linked in this post.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Additional Time10 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Course: Grains
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cook quinoa perfectly, how to cook quinoa in instant pot, how to cook quinoa perfectly
Servings: 6
Author: Carolyn Gratzer Cope

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (180 grams) dry white quinoa
  • 1 tablespoon (14 grams) butter or olive oil
  • 2 cups (475 ml) water or stock (for stovetop cooking) or 1 1/2 cups (355 ml) (for Instant Pot)
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt

Instructions

  • Rinse the quinoa extremely well in a fine mesh sieve under warm running water, using your hand to agitate it as you go. Keep rinsing until the water runs perfectly clear.

  • Stovetop instructions
  • Place quinoa into a medium pot along with water or stock, butter, and salt.
  • Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for about 15 minutes, until liquid is almost completely absorbed.
  • Remove from heat and leave covered for 10 minutes more.
  • Fluff with a fork and serve or use in a recipe.

  • Instant Pot instructions
  • Place butter or oil into bottom of IP. Add quinoa, water or stock, and salt.
  • Position the lid and set the vent to the sealing position.
  • Cook on manual, high pressure, for one minute. The pot will take several minutes to come up to pressure before the countdown begins.
  • Let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes before perorming a manual release.
  • Fluff with a fork and serve or use in a recipe.

Notes

  1. Raw quinoa is coated in bitter-tasting saponins. Although it's often rinsed before packaging these days, it still pays to rinse it very well before cooking.
  2. Whether you're cooking on the stovetop or in the Instant Pot, you can double this recipe without making any further changes. I usually do. Use the same cooking time in the IP.
  3. Stored in an airtight container in a nice cold fridge, quinoa will keep for a week. Freeze it for longer-term storage.
  4. To freeze, place cooked quinoa into a zip-top bag or other airtight storage container and keep frozen for up to a year. Defrost overnight in the fridge, reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop and serve or add to recipes. As with all frozen foods, the texture will soften a bit, but frozen grains hold up very well and shouldn't give you any trouble. 
I first published the stovetop method along with five recipes on Food 52 back in 2013. I've updated this post for clarity and added the Instant Pot method in the ensuing years.

Nutrition

Calories: 104kcal | Carbohydrates: 18.2g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 1.7g | Fiber: 2g