Instant Pot Mexican Quinoa Bowl is a quick and easy vegan meal when you’re short on time. It’s made with simple ingredients, such as quinoa, black beans, frozen sweet corn, and canned fire-roasted tomatoes. Toss all the ingredients into one pot for an easy weeknight dinner. Includes stovetop instructions.
The Instant-Pot can be a very intimidating appliance! At first, I only cooked dried beans and made Spanish rice in it. But after having one for a few months I finally ventured into making more than just rice and beans––I decided to make dinner in it!
Instant-Pot Mexican quinoa bowls were for dinner.
However, my first dinner attempt was a semi-failure. I didn't add enough liquid to the pot and undercooked the quinoa. To try and save the meal I added a bit more broth and sealed it back up for another cycle.
Success! The quinoa was cooked and dinner was delicious! It was a quick and easy vegan meal the whole family actually enjoyed.
Now I love making vegan mac and cheese, breakfast potatoes, and even jackfruit tamales in the Instant Pot!
Quinoa Bowls are great for busy weeknights
Once I perfected the liquid ratio and cook time, Mexican quinoa bowls have been my go-to for busy nights. It's a delicious, yet simple dinner made fully in the Instant Pot. Which also means fewer dishes! Because if there is one thing I hate–it's pots and pans in the sink!
Perfect Instant Pot Quinoa Bowl TIP
The key to success, or at least Instant-Pot quinoa bowl success, is to allow it to sit for at least 15 minutes after the cooking time has finished. This will help the quinoa to fully cook. So it’s a crucial step to keep the lid on and sealed for 15 minutes even if the pressure has naturally released. Unless undercooked quinoa is your thing… I won’t judge!
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Recipe
Instant-Pot Mexican Quinoa Bowl (vegan)
Instant-Pot Mexican Quinoa Bowl is loaded with simple ingredients, such as quinoa, black beans, frozen sweet corn, and canned fire-roasted tomatoes. Toss everything into your Instant Pot for an easy and healthy dinner any night of the week!
Ingredients
Quinoa Bowl
- 1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
- 1 cup sweet corn, frozen
- 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 (15 ounce) can fire-roasted tomatoes, drained
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 and ⅓ cups vegetable broth
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon chipotle powder, optional for mild heat
- ½ teaspoon Himalayan pink salt, or to taste
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
Optional Toppings
- Diced avocado
- Fresh cilantro
- Freshly squeezed lime juice
Instructions
Instant Pot Instructions
- Press the sauté feature on your IP. Sauté the onion and garlic in 1 Tablespoon oil for 5 minutes or until the onions begin to soften. For an oil-free version, sauté in veggie broth.
- Stir in the seasonings and quinoa. Sauté for another 3 minutes then, press the cancel button on the IP.
- Mix in the veggie broth, corn, and black beans. Then add the fire-roasted tomatoes and gently spread them on top. (See the video above)
- Press the manual button and set the time for 8 minutes on high pressure.
- Once the cooking time is up, allow the IP to naturally release pressure, then carefully remove the lid.
- Give the quinoa a final mix.
Serve topped with diced avocado, fresh cilantro leaves, and freshly squeezed lime juice.
One-Pot Stovetop Instructions
- In a large pot sauté the onion and garlic until they begin to soften.
- Stir in the seasonings and quinoa and sauté for a few more minutes.
- Stir in the remaining ingredients, cover, and simmer for 25 minutes, or until the quinoa is fully cooked.
- Give the quinoa a final mix.
Serve topped with diced avocado, fresh cilantro leaves, and freshly squeezed lime juice.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1 bowlAmount Per Serving: Calories: 254Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 7gSodium: 139mgCarbohydrates: 38gFiber: 11gSugar: 5gProtein: 9g
**Nutritional info is provided as an estimate based on the ingredients I used and for convenience and as a courtesy only.**
*Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.
Patricia
I like the taste of this recipe but I have so much trouble getting it to cook properly. Either my Instant Pot doesn’t seal, because it keeps expelling steam but without enough pressure to seal the valve; or it does seal because I poke and jiggle the valve to try to get it to seal, but the quinoa doesn’t cook correctly. Some of the quinoa is fine, but some of it is still undercooked and crunchy despite my having stirred it well. Is this something that can be fixed by adding more liquid? (Slightly more liquid doesn’t help—tried that already.) I do lay the tomatoes on top and follow the other directions. Why do I seem to be the only person having this problem? How can I fix it? I’d like to make this more frequently but instead am about to take it out of rotation because of the frustration. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Marlena Luna
It sounds like there isn't enough liquid to satisfy the IP and cook the quinoa. When all of the ingredients are in the Instant Pot is the quinoa fully submerged in liquid? It should be fully submerged but still visible. If not, you can try adding a total of 1 and 2/3 cups of broth, or enough to cover the quinoa. Also, you can leave the beans out and then add them to the pot after cooking in case they are absorbing some of the liquid. I hope this helps!
Patricia
Thanks for your reply, Marlena! I tried adding more liquid and that worked fine in terms of proper sealing and cooking, but it made the dish a bit mushy. I think leaving the beans out might help. Will try that next. Thank you very much for the idea!
Marlena Luna
I hope it works!
Kat
Can I use water if I am out of vegetable broth?
Marlena Luna
Yes, but you may want to increase the seasonings to make up for the loss of flavor.
Terri Carter
Can this be frozen?
Marlena Luna
I haven’t tried freezing it yet, but I’m sure it will be just fine. Enjoy, Terri! :)
Sarah
Just made this in preparation for to-go meals for the week. SO DELICIOUS! Thank you!
Marlena Luna
Awesome to hear, Sarah!
Chris
Made this tonight; very good. It’s a keeper.
Marlena Luna
Yay! I'm glad you enjoyed the recipe, Chris!
Megan
Anybody tried this with dry beans? How did you tweak the recipe?
Marlena Luna
This recipe does not work well with dried beans. The beans need to cook much longer than the quinoa causing the quinoa to overcook.
Kimberly
I love this recipe. Have made it several times. Do you know the nutritional breakdown?
Marlena Luna
Hi Kimberly! I just updated the recipe card to show the nutritional info. However, it is only an estimate from Nutritionix based on the ingredients I used. :)
Violet
Flavors were great, but this turned to mush. I followed instructions but released pressure manually after only 7 minutes. Maybe it was the quinoa brand? I used Trader Joe's.
Marlena Luna
I’m sorry to hear that Violet. It sounds like there was too much liquid. Perhaps the canned tomatoes had more liquid than usual. I’d suggest only adding 1 and 1/4 cups of vegetable broth next time.
kim
Tried the Mexican quinoa bowl and really enjoyed it! Quick recipe to put togather
Marlena Luna
Yay! I'm so glad you enjoyed it Kim!
Ellie
I know this is a vegan recipe.. but if I wanted to add ground turkey to this, would I double the liquid?
Marlena Luna
Hi Ellie, I'm not sure but I don't think there would be any need to double the liquid.
Karen
i want to make a double batch... would I double to cooking time in the instapot?
Where you get your protein!
Hi Karen! No need to double the cooking time, it should be fine. Let me know how it comes out! Enjoy! :)
Janice
How can you make this if you do not have an Instant Pot?
Marlena Luna
Hi Janice! There are stove top directions included at the bottom of the recipe. Enjoy! :)
Heather
Yum! I've been eating a lot of quinoa lately. I'll have to give this a try, it looks delicious!
Marlena Luna
Thank you Heather! Enjoy! :)