How To Remove Beets Stains
We found that if we wash our hands, towels, or chopping board with tap water immediately after handling the beets, the red coloring washes off fairly easily. But when we let it sit too long, the blood-red stains can be a little scary on your fingers.
But dont worry! Lemon juice or baking soda will work their magic in removing the beet juice stains.
How To Tell When Its Cooked Through
When its your first time cooking beets, you might not be sure when your beets are tender and cooked through.
Simply take a fork and pierce the beet, like you would a potato. If the fork goes through easily to the center, you know its done. If its still not done, simply put the lid back on, close the valve and cook an additional 2 minutes, then test again.
An Easy And Delicious Way To Cook Beets
Beets! Yall I love me some beets! I grew up eating them. My mom had a huge garden and would can them all the time.
I can still remember my brother and I fighting over who would get the last bite. Now, that is a smart mom. She got her kids to fight over vegetables. #momgoals
Honestly though, they are a good entry level vegetable because they are already kinda sweet. In fact Ive been giving these to Maddie and she absolutely loves them, went through 3 slices herself!
This notorious vegetable is known for its red hue. Some people use it as a dye. My friend even uses to color her homemade chapstick.
When I was looking through the most asked questions about beets on google, here is what came up.
It was pretty funny to see how many different ways people ask about bowel movements and what they look like after eating beets. haha People were very curious.
Ok. Moving on.
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Boiling Vs Steaming The Beets
I know its a personal preference but I prefer to steam beets instead of boiling them in water. Steaming helps retain nutrients better. When you boil them and discard the water, nutrients go with it.
Use steamer basket or trivet to elevate the beets without touching the water while cooking. Cover and cook so the moisture and nutrients get locked in.
How To Cook Beets In The Oven:

If you want instructions on how to make beets on the stove head over to this post.
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What Can You Do With Cooked Beets
- eat them on their own
- drizzle with balsamic and olive oil
- add them to a salad!
- stir chopped beets into yogurt along some spices to make beet raita
- make this beet thoran
- blend it into hummus
- stir-fry them with their greens
Beets come in all sizes and while its true that cooking time can vary, Ive found that my method results in perfectly cooked beets no matter what the size.* That said, if your beets are HUGE, then you can always add an extra few minutes if you find they arent as tender as youd like. I think the secret to cooking them perfectly is the two cups of water I add to the bottom of the pot it takes longer to reach pressure and that extra time seems to help cook larger beets as well.
How To Cook Beetroot In Instant Pot
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Tips For Best Results
- The choice to peel the beet is up to you. Its possible to eat it, but some find it to be much like eating the skin on a russet potato. Its not great.
- Use a trivet or steamer basket for easy removal of pressure cooker beets from the pot. It will be hot!
- The skin should peel off easily, however, they do stain so be careful. If youre like me and dont want to use disposable gloves, peel off using a compostable paper towel. Alternatively, you could just use a vegetable peeler.
- Beets should be fork tender. Dont be afraid to close the lid and cook for a few extra minutes if need be.
- When beets are fresh they are typically sweeter. The earthier deeper flavor comes from beets that are slightly older. It doesnt mean they cant be eaten, its just good to be aware of the difference in taste when you want to use them in other recipes.
Tip: Beets will be very hot to the touch. Be very careful taking them out of the pot. If you are not using a steamer basket for easy lifting, make sure to use tongs to lift them out one by one.
Tips For Best Beets In Instant Pot
MORE BEETROOT RECIPES:
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What To Serve With Cooked Beets
This recipe goes great as a side dish for practically any meal. Served alongside a cooked meat dish like Oven Roasted Chicken or Grilled Lamb Chops and you have yourself a wonderful meal!
Theyd also make a great addition to the Thanksgiving table too.
- Trim the tops and bottoms off the beets.
- Place the trivet in the Instant Pot or Pressure Cooker insert.
- Pour the cup of water into the bottom of the insert.
- Place the beets on top of the trivet.
- Place the lid on the pressure cooker and place the vent in the “sealing” position.
- Turn the pressure cooker on Manual High Pressure for 25 minutes.
- When the 25 minutes are up, quick-release the vent. The beets should be fork tender.
- Remove the beets from the instant pot. Using a towel, paper towel, or gloved hands, gently rub the skin off of the beets. It should come right off.
- Turn the Instant Pot on saute mode. You’ll have to set a time, so just set it to 10 minutes or higher so it doens’t turn off before you’re ready.
- Chop the beets into 1-inch pieces.
- Add the olive oil to the Instant Pot. Add the beets, salt, pepper, and balsamic vinegar.
- Stir and cook until slightly caramelized, about 5 minutes.
How Long To Cook Beets In Electric Pressure Cooker
Cook on MANUAL or PRESSURE COOK Mode. The size of the beets will determine how many minutes you need to cook whole beets.
- small size; cook for 10-12 minutes
- medium size beets choose between 15-18 minutes and
- larger beets cook for 20-25 minutes.
- If you cut the beets in half or into quarters, you can reduce cooking time to 10 minutes across the board.
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Youll Enjoy Instant Pot Beets Because:
- Its a nutrients powerhouse that improves your health: rich in antioxidants, essential vitamins, low in calories, high in iron, fiber, vitamin C, no cholesterol.
- Super easy to make and easy to incorporate them into your regular diet
- Great source of beneficial carbohydrates to give you energy
- Great crunch & satisfying texture
Instant Pot Canned Beets

Im canning beets today from our garden. I cleaned them really well, leaving a portion of the tops. Then I put them in the Instant Pot with 1 cup of water 12 minutes on high pressure. Do a Quick Release releasing the pressure manually. Put the beets into a colander and run under cold water. They were so easy to peel, I was able to do it with one hand while filming with the other.
Then proceed like you normally do with your canning recipe. This is how I do mine. I peel and quarter them and place in sterilized jars. I add boiling water leaving 1 head space. Add, 1/2 tsp salt to each pint jar. Put on lids and rings. Beets need to be processed in a pressure canner for 30 minutes using #15 lbs pressure The pressure canner looks like this:
This was the easiest way to prepare beets that Ive ever done and Ive been doing this for over 48 years.
I made a video, but I called it a pressure canner instead of Instant Pot! DUH;??Its one reason I dont do videos, Im not very good at it! lolIt was the last beet to do thats why I didnt retake it, but I will share it with you anyway! You have to give me credit for shooting a video with one hand and peeling the beet in the other.
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How To Cook Beans In The Instant Pot
Once you’ve got your timetable picked out and you know how long your bean is going to take, it’s time to get cooking.
All you need to do to cook beans in the instant pot is add them into your pot, followed by 2 3x that amount of water. So if you’re using 1 cup of dried beans , you’d follow that with about 2 3 cups of water.
Basically, you want the beans to be fully submerged or else they won’t cook evenly.
From there, just pop on your lid, make sure your vent is sealed, choose your time and TURN OFF the keep warm setting! I’ve found this to be a really helpful trick to avoid mushy beans as the keep warm setting continues to cook them.
Once your Instant Pot has come to pressure, let it do its thing until the timer runs out. Then let the pressure naturally release we’ve also included those times in the free guide and you’re done.
See how simple? It’s seriously a game changer!
Ingredients For Pressure Cooker Beets
All it takes is 2 simple ingredients to add to the pot. Once the beets are cooked to perfection you can then season them and use them as you like!
Beets: I use about 2 lbs of medium to large beets. The large ones I cut in half to make sure they cook evenly. Wash and trim the root and leafy parts. Dont throw out the greens, you can use them!Water: Added to the bottom of the pot to create steam. Just a cup of water will be enough to cook the beets.
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What Types Of Beans Can You Cook In An Instant Pot
That’s a great question! And the answer is most. There’s really only one type of bean I wouldn’t bother cooking in the Instant Pot and that’s red lentils. Red lentils are super delicate, cook very quickly on the stove already and you’ll end up spending more time cooking them in your pressure cooker.
All other beans are fair game!
If you’re wondering where to get dried beans, my friends at Bob’s Red Mill are always my go-to! Their beans are super high quality and they have an amazing selection to choose from. Just check out the bean section on their site to see what I’m talking about!
Handling & Storing Cooked Beets
Beet juices will stain your fingers bright pink. You can wear kitchen gloves while handling the beets OR you can peel them under running water.
When slicing beets on a cutting board, we recommend placing a piece of parchment paper over the top. If the board or the kitchen bench do get stains, you can remove them with a bleach-water solution. If you wipe them quickly enough, you might avoid stains in the first place.
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Reasons To Cook Beets In The Instant Pot:
- They cook faster than roasting or baking.
- Because you can cook them whole in the Instant Pot, they keep nutrients and can improve your health: rich in antioxidants, essential vitamins, low in calories, high in iron, fiber, vitamin C, and contain no cholesterol.
- Beets cooked in the pressure cooker or Instant Pot are easy to peel. Just slide a pairing knife on and the peel comes off quickly.
- Versatile use to make soups, salads, grain-free pasta/zoodles, juices, smoothies, and more.
- Easy to incorporate into your regular diet
- Energy-boosters because they are a source of beneficial carbohydrates
Pro Tip:;you can also eat beets raw after washing, peeling, and slicing.
Cooling & Peeling Beets
Once the beets are done cooking, turn off the instant pot, leave the lid off and let them cool in the instant pot.
Once the beets are cooled down, you can easily handle them and remove the outer peels. The nice thing about cooking in the instant pot, is the peels come off so easily!
Some people prefer the skin on the beets, and thats totally fine. Theyre edible!
If you decide to leave them on, theyll add a chewy texture to the outside of your pickled beets.
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How To Boil Beets On The Stovetop
Wondering how long to boil beets? Boiled beats cook faster than steamed beets. Fair warning though, you will likely have more of a red, stained cooking liquid to deal with.
To reduce the red liquid mess, try leaving the beets intact, including much of their tails.
- Scrub the beets and place them into a saucepan.
- Cover with water, allowing the water to cover the beets fully, ensuring an additional 2 inches of water above the beets.
- Partially cover with a lid, leaving it slightly off the pot to allow steam to escape.
- Boil for about 20-25 minutes until the beets are tender.
- Whole beets will take closer to 34-45 minutes to cook fully.
Zero Wastage Beets In Instant Pot

Do not discard those beet greens and stems that you trim off. Beet greens are nutrients powerhouse, it can be used in so many ways.
Beet Greens & Stem You can use it raw in salads or saute it like collard green.
Finely chop greens including the stem. Heat a skillet with olive oil or butter. Saute chopped beetroot greens . Add generous pinch of salt and freshly ground pepper until it wilts and turns soft.
Use sautéed beet greens to stir in pasta, use it as stuffing for omelette .
Beet Skin is Edible! Thats right, beetroot skin once cooked in turns soft and is completely edible. Prepare to be amazed with the wonderful earthy flavors of the skin.
Cooking Water left over water after cooking beets are full of nutrients. Rinse beetroots well before cooking. Cooking water can be used. Use it to make stocks, save the way to make a smoothie. You can drink it up as it is too, trust me it tastes sooo good!
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