Instant Pot Tomato Biriyani

A quick and easy rice recipe (takes just about 30 minutes) to make with fresh homegrown tomatoes. This Instant Pot Tomato Biriyani is a great one-pot meal to make for weeknight dinner or to pack for a lunch box.

One pot meals are always welcome in our family. Our typical weeknights are busy with kid’s activities and one-pot meals come in very handy and useful. And the best part is there is no standing and stirring involved to make the recipe.

Tomato Biriyani Rice made in Instant Pot - 2

I love my Instant Pot and I am so glad that I gave in and bought one (well, 2 actually). I don’t blog/write as much about the recipes I make in Instant Pot, but trust me I only cook these days in an IP.

What is a Biriyani?

Biriyani is a flavored and well-seasoned rice recipe that can be made with vegetables to make it a Vegetable Biriyani or can be made using different meats.

A general Biriyani has mixed vegetables and uses a lot of spices depending on what region we are focusing on. For quicker cooking, we can use store-bought Biriyani Masala to make the Biriyani instead of starting from scratch. That is how I have made this Simple Vegetable Biriyani here.

What other Biriyani Can I make?

So the vegetarian biriyani does not have to be just the ones made with an assortment of vegetables but can be made with just one vegetable.

My favorite in those lines would be this Cabbage Biriyani that I make very often as we love the crunch of the cabbage with the spices. This Tomato Biriyani is one such recipe that can be made during the tomato season when we have an abundance of fresh tomatoes.

This is more or less like the South Indian Tomato Rice recipe . I learned this recipe for the Biriyani from my attai / aunt when she visited us. We were going on a road trip and we were planning to make some tomato rice to carry with us.

That is when she said, that she makes another version of tomato rice which is even more flavorful because of the spices. She made it for the trip and we really enjoyed our lunch that afternoon.

Tomato rice in a white bowl served with cucumber raita - 3

What do we serve this Tomato Biriyani with?

A simple Homemade yogurt on the side will work great or my personal favorite would be Cucumber Raita . I would also serve some potato chips along with it for crunch. If you are not a fan of chips, then make a simple Potato curry

Let’s discuss the Ingredients to make Instant Pot Tomato Biriyani -

Tomatoes -

We need good quality tomatoes to make this Biriyani. I love using any tomato that has a thin skin and fewer seeds. So my first choice would be the Plum tomatoes.

I am also a big fan of Canned diced tomatoes. They give a beautiful color to the rice and also make it way quicker. If using canned tomatoes, I would suggest using low-sodium or no salt-added kinds for health reasons.

Basmati Rice or Regular long-grained rice?

Basmati rice is something that i use regularly for Biriyanis. Having said that, I would not say that I never used any other rice. I have used Sona Masoori quite often to make Biriyani as well.

Basmati rice has a beautiful aroma that adds to the flavor of the Biriyani. Along with it, it has a long and beautiful shape when cooked and that makes the dish looks very attractive.

I have also used Brown rice to make Biriyani, but be ready to have a different texture and look. I will stay away from any rice that is sticky as Biriyanis are meant to be fluffy and light.

Other ingredients that we use in the recipe are pretty straightforward. We need some onions. Red or yellow would work.

We need ginger and garlic . You could either use the homemade ginger and garlic paste or store-bought ones.

Garam Masala is an essential spice for this Biriyani as that is what gives it a nice flavor. You could substitute it with Biriyani masala. Apart from these, we need a few other basic spices that you can find below in the recipe card.

Butter or Oil to make Biriyani -

This is again a very popular question that I am asked. This is entirely based on personal preference. If I am cooking for a Vegan family, I would use all oil. Traditionally, I would use ghee (clarified butter) to make this or the next option would be butter. Many times, I use a combination of both butter and oil.

If you are still looking for more Tomato recipes, check out my mother’s best rasam recipe - Tomato Juice Rasam Recipe or this Andhra style Tomato Pickle with Garlic.

Biriyani made in Instant pot served with raita - 5

More Instant Pot Recipes for you to explore -

Instant Pot Vegan Thai Fried Rice - my go-to recipe if I am craving Thai flavors.

Fried Rice - I skip the eggs when making it vegan.

Mexican Quinoa - Love using Quinoa in place of rice.

How to make this Tomato Biriyani in Instant Pot -

Turn on the pot in Saute mode and heat the oil or butter. Add the seasonings, followed by onions, ginger, and garlic, and saute.
Next goes in the tomatoes along with spices and once it is cooked for a couple of minutes, we add the water needed and bring it to a boil.

Process shots to saute ingredients and then add tomatoes - 6

Now we add the rice and mix well. Turn off the saute function and set the pot to pressure cook for 5 minutes (high pressure, less cook), and then do a quick release in 10 minutes.
Fluff the rice with a fork and let it sit for a few minutes before serving.

Cooking them all together in an instant pot - 7

Use good quality tomatoes for the best result. This is the perfect recipe to use the homegrown tomatoes from your backyard.
Add slightly less water than usually required because the tomatoes have high water content and that would compensate for the remainder of the water.
Let the rice rest for 10 mins before stirring, otherwise, you would end up with mushy rice.
This recipe can be made on a stovetop as well. Follow all the steps in a heavy bottom pan and cover the pan after adding the rice. Now cook it on low heat for about 8 to 10 minutes or until the rice is cooked.

Recipe

Instant pot tomato biriyani in a plate - Featured Image - 8

Equipment

▢ Instant Pot

Ingredients

▢ 1.5 cups Basmati rice soaked for about ½ hr and then drained
▢ 2.5 cups Water
▢ 4 pieces Tomatoes chopped
▢ 1 Onion chopped
▢ 3 cloves Garlic minced
▢ 1 teaspoon Ginger grated
▢ 1 teaspoon Mustard seeds
▢ 1 teaspoon Cumin seed
▢ 1 teaspoon Kadalai paruppu/Channa dal
▢ 4 Red chilies
▢ ½ inch Cinnamon
▢ 1 Bay leaf
▢ 10 Curry leaves
▢ 1 teaspoon Garam masala
▢ Salt - to taste
▢ 1 tablespoon Oil/butter
▢ Cilantro for garnish

Instructions

Add oil and/or butter in the Instant pot. Press the saute button and let the oil / butter heat up.
Add the mustard seeds, cumin seed, channa dal, bay leaf, cinnamon, red chilies and curry leaves. Fry for a minute until the seasonings are aromatic and fried.
At this stage add the onion, ginger and garlic and sauté until the onions are golden brown.
Add the chopped tomato and cook for couple of minutes.
Now add the water, salt and garam masala powder. Bring it to boil.
Now add the soaked and drained rice. Turn off the Instant Pot from the saute function. Close the lid and set the seal to ‘sealing’ position. Cook on pressure cook mode for 5 minutes and then do a 10 minutes quick release.
Garnish with cilantro and serve with Cucumber raita or any raita of your choice.

Video

Notes

Use good quality tomatoes for best result. This is the perfect recipe to use the home grown tomatoes from your backyard.
Add slightly less water than usually required because the tomatoes have high water content and that would compensate for the remainder of the water.
Let the rice rest for 10 mins before stirring, otherwise you would end up with mushy rice.
This recipe can be made on stove top as well. Follow all the steps in a heavy bottom pan and cover the pan after adding the rice. Now cook it in low heat for about 8 to 10 minutes or until the rice cooked.

Nutrition

More Rice Recipes

Vellam Sadam | Sweet Jaggery Rice
Rasam Rice | One-Pot Rasam Sadam (Instant Pot Recipe)
Instant Pot Vegetable Masala Khichdi
Spicy Schezwan Fried Rice