How to cook quinoa in a rice cooker- this trick makes cooking quinoa hands off and even easier! No more worrying about your water boiling over, and perfect fluffy quinoa every time.
You might be surprised to hear that your rice cooker is good for more than just cooking rice- though I do have 7 rice recipes for you to use on the blog. We also love cooking quinoa in the rice cooker!
Rice cooker quinoa is such a revelation- absolutely perfectly fluffy each and every time, and you don’t need to watch a pot on the stove…just push a button and walk away!
Why use a rice cooker to cook quinoa?
- it gives you perfect quinoa
- it won’t boil over
- you won’t be tempted to peek
- it makes cooking hands off so you can focus your attention on other things
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Step by step directions
One of my favorite meal prep tips is to get your quinoa or rice cooking in the rice cooker while you prep your other ingredients.
- Spray the rice cooker insert with oil- I find it really helps to keep the quinoa from sticking and drying. My faves are either coconut oil or avocado oil.
- Rinse the quinoa- often boxed quinoa comes pre-rinsed, but I like to give it another quick rinse in a colander before cooking. This helps remove saponins from the surface of the quinoa, which can cause it to taste soapy.
- Add the water- use the same ratio as you do for stove top quinoa– 2 parts water to 1 part quinoa. For Instant Pot quinoa, we use a different ratio.
- Cook- If you have a choice between white or brown rice, select ‘white rice’. If your cooker only has one button, push the button. That’s seriously how easy it is.
Storage
After cooking, cool the quinoa completely before storing.
- fridge- store in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 4 days
- freezer- store in a sturdy freezer bag, meal prep container or reusable silicone bag for up to 3 months
- reheat- heat your quinoa in the microwave until steaming hot
Food safety tips
- do not reheat your quinoa more than once
- discard quinoa that has been left at room temperature for longer than 2 hours
- discard quinoa if it develops an ‘off’ smell, or has mold growing on it.
- read more quinoa food safety tips here
Which rice cooker should I buy?
Hands down my top pick for a rice cooker is the Aroma 8 Cup
. It is small, the lid is super easy to wash, and it cooks basmati rice in under 30 minutes (our first cooker took a full hour for basmati!!!).
If you have a large family, I’d advise going for the Aroma 20 Cup model. When they say 8 cups, they are talking fully cooked rice. So that’s maybe 2 cups uncooked rice you can do.
How much water do you put in a rice cooker for quinoa?
You want 2 cups of water for every 1 cup of quinoa you cook. Check the capacity of your cooker so you do not overfill.
How much quinoa can you cook in a rice cooker?
It depends on the model. For my 8 cup rice cooker, I can cook at most 2 cups of uncooked quinoa. This will make 6-7 cups of cooked quinoa.
Does quinoa double in size as it cooks?
Quinoa actually triples in size!
- For 2 cups of cooked quinoa add 3/4 cup of uncooked quinoa
- For 3 cups of cooked quinoa add 1 cup of uncooked quinoa
More quinoa recipes
- Quinoa Egg Muffins
- Broccoli Salad with Almonds + Quinoa
- Perfect, Fluffy Instant Pot Quinoa
- Broccoli Quinoa Casserole
- Refreshing Black Bean Quinoa Salad
- Apple Quinoa Breakfast Bars
- Cheesy Spinach Quinoa Cups
How to Cook Quinoa in a Rice Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 spritz oil (optional)
- 1 cup quinoa
- 2 cups water see note 1https://sweetpeasandsaffron.com/rice-recipes/
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
- Spray the rice cooker insert lightly with oil (optional but I find it helps keep the quinoa nice and fluffy all the way through).
- Rinse quinoa under the tap for 20 seconds in a fine mesh sieve. Shake off excess water and add to the pot.
- Add a pinch of salt, then 2 cups of water.
- Cook rice using the 'white rice' function (if your rice cooker has that option; otherwise just press cook).
