Frugality and flavor combine in this Instant Pot Korean ground beef and rice!
You’ll love how easy it is to make Instant Pot Korean ground beef AND rice at the same time in your pressure cooker!
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I’m all about keeping dinner simple around here, but without sacrificing flavor. I mean, we want our food to taste good, right?
The good news is, you can have a tasty meal without spending a ton of time cooking. The Instant Pot is super handy for making this happen!
If you love Asian-style takeout food, you’re going to want to make this Instant Pot Korean ground beef pronto!
It’s a super simple Instant Pot Asian-inspired recipe that cooks quickly. Plus, it uses ground beef, so it’s far less expensive than buying the more traditional cuts of meat used in Korean beef.
But one of my favorite things is that you can cook the rice along with the beef, so there’s no need to babysit a pot of rice on the stove!
I have a feeling this will be one of your new favorite Instant Pot ground beef recipes. 🙂
More Better-Than-Takeout Recipes for Your Instant Pot:
- Easy Teriyaki Bowls in the Instant Pot
- Instant Pot Sweet and Sour Chicken
- Instant Pot Kung Pao Chickpeas
- Easy Instant Pot Sesame Chicken
- Instant Pot Chicken Fried Rice
- Instant Pot Bourbon Chicken
- Instant Pot Pepper Steak
Making Korean Beef and Rice Bowls
This beef and rice recipe is pretty easily adaptable and can be paired with a lot of different additions, if desired.
You can eat the rice and beef plain, sprinkle on some sliced green onions or sesame seeds, or serve it with some eggrolls.
My neighbor gave me some Korean Shishito peppers and some Korean zucchini from her garden. I blistered the peppers and sauteed the zucchini to serve along with the beef and rice.
Feel free to add your favorite veggies or peppers to your bowl, too!
How to Make Korean Ground Beef in the Instant Pot
It’s really easy to make this simple yet flavorful meal! All you need is basic pantry staples, beef, and rice to get started.
Ingredients You’ll Need:
- Ground beef
- Onions
- Garlic powder
- Low sodium soy sauce
- Beef broth
- Brown sugar
- Sesame oil
- Red pepper flakes
- Ground ginger
- White rice
- Cornstarch
- Water
How to Make It:
(Full printable recipe is available below)
Cook beef and onions. First, you’ll brown the beef with some diced onions, using the Saute setting on the Instant Pot. Drain any excess grease and turn off the Saute function once it’s cooked through.
Make the sauce. Next, in a small bowl, you’ll whisk together the garlic powder, soy sauce, beef broth, brown sugar, sesame oil, red pepper flakes, and ground ginger. Pour this over the ground beef.
Add rice. Place the trivet on top of the ground beef. I use the trivet that came with my Instant Pot. If you don’t have a trivet, you can get one here on Amazon.
In a pan that fits in your pressure cooker (I use this one), combine rice and water. Lower the pan onto the trivet.
If you want to cook the rice separately ahead of time, use my Instant Pot white rice recipe.
Pressure cook. Close the lid and set the vent to the sealed position, then pressure cook for 4 minutes, followed by a 5 minute natural release.
Thicken. Remove the pan of rice and trivet from the Instant Pot. Fluff the rice with a fork.
Create a cornstarch slurry and whisk it into the Korean beef mixture, allowing the heat to thicken the sauce a bit.
Spoon the beef mixture over the rice to serve!
Notes and Adaptations:
- You can easily double the amount of beef and sauce in the Instant Pot, and the cook time will remain the same. However, whether or not you can double the rice depends on the size of your pan. If your pan cannot contain more rice, simply cook the rice on the stove top instead.
- You can adjust the seasonings of Korean ground beef based on personal taste. If you prefer spicier, add more red pepper flakes. If you prefer less sweet, cut back on the brown sugar a tad. Add more sesame oil if you want a stronger sesame flavor. It’s up to you!
- I used plain, long-grain white rice in this recipe. If you are using basmati rice, increase the cook time to 6 minutes. For jasmine rice, the cook time will remain 4 minutes. If you prefer brown rice, I’d recommend cooking the rice separately, since it requires a longer cook time.
Recommended Equipment:
- Instant Pot
- Bundt pan for cooking the rice
Instant Pot Korean Ground Beef
Instant Pot Korean ground beef is a frugal Asian-inspired recipe that allows you to enjoy the flavors of your favorite take-out dish at home!
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1/2 cup diced onions
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 1/2 cup beef broth
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/2-1 tsp sesame oil
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1 cup white rice
- 1 1/4 cup water
- 1 Tbsp cornstarch + 2 Tbsp water
Instructions
- In the insert pot of the Instant Pot, add ground beef and onions. Use the Saute function to brown the ground beef, breaking it apart as it cooks.
- Once beef is browned, turn off the Saute function and drain any excess grease, if needed.
- In a small bowl, combine garlic powder, soy sauce, beef broth, brown sugar, and sesame oil (use more or less oil, depending on whether you want the sesame flavor to be more or less pronounced), red pepper flakes, and ground ginger. Add the mixture to the ground beef, stirring to combine.
- In a separate baking dish that fits in your Instant Pot (I use and recommend this bundt pan), combine rice and 1 1/4 cup water.
- Place the trivet in the insert pot, resting it on top of the cooked ground beef mixture. Lower the baking dish of rice into the pot, resting it on the trivet.
- Close the lid and set the vent to the sealed position. Select a cook time of 4 minutes at high pressure.
- After the cook time is complete, allow a 5 minute natural release, followed by a quick release of remaining pressure. After the pressure has released and the valve has dropped, carefully remove the lid.
- Carefully lift out the baking dish of rice and use a fork to fluff the rice. Remove the trivet as well.
- Stir the cornstarch slurry into the beef mixture, stirring to thicken the sauce slightly.
- Spoon the beef and sauce over the rice and serve!
Notes
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 456Total Fat: 21gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 101mgSodium: 798mgCarbohydrates: 32gFiber: 1gSugar: 16gProtein: 34g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and is not guaranteed for accuracy.
I like it but also need to add something else. Other suggestions besides my zucchini and HOT peppers?
Hi Celia! You could always add some steamed or roasted broccoli, or some Asian-style dumplings or egg rolls on the side. Hope that helps! 🙂
Delish I added carrots and used ground pork, the family loved it.
Thank you, Summer! I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed it! 🙂