Go Back
Print
Polenta in a white bowl on wooden board

Instant Pot Polenta

Instant Pot Polenta is easy to cook in your electric pressure cooker. Creamy and delicious pressure cooker polenta in less time and less stirring than on the stove!

Course Side Dish, Vegetarian
Cuisine American, Italian
Keyword pressure cooker polenta recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 7 minutes
Total Time 12 minutes
Servings 4 servings
Calories 130 kcal
Author Sandy Clifton

Ingredients

For Basic Polenta

  • 4 ¼ cups Water or Broth
  • 4 Tbsp Butter
  • ½ tsp Salt (or more to taste)
  • 1 cup Polenta (aka, coarse corn meal, coarse corn grits)

For Creamy, Cheesy Polenta (Add to the Basic Polenta when it is done cooking)

  • 1 cup Parmesan Cheese grated
  • ¾ cup Milk (or half and half)
  • ½ tsp Pepper

For Feta and Sun Dried Tomato Polenta (Add to the Basic Polenta when it is done cooking)

  • 8 oz Feta Cheese crumbled
  • ⅔ cup Milk
  • ½ cup Sun Dried Tomatoes chopped
  • 8 Large Basil Leaves chiffonade (sliced in ribbons)
  • Salt to Taste

Instructions

To Cook the Basic Polenta

  1. Press the Sauté (normal, medium heat) button on the Instant Pot.

  2. Add the water, butter, and salt. Bring to a simmer.

  3. Whisk in the polenta, and put the lid on the pot. Set the steam release knob to the Sealing position.

  4. Cancel the Sauté function (usually by pressing the Keep Warm/Cancel button).

  5. Press the Manual (or Pressure Cook) button, and then the + or - button to select 7 minutes (4 minutes for the quick cooking variety). When cook cycle ends, turn off the pressure cooker and let the pot naturally release the pressure for 10 minutes. Then manually release the remaining pressure.

  6. When the pin in the lid drops, open the lid and stir the polenta well, scraping up any that may have stuck to the bottom of the pot (I have the ceramic coated Instant Pot liner that is non-stick. It is perfect for this).

  7. Serve with your favorite sauce or toppings.

For Creamy, Cheesy Polenta

  1. After you have opened up the pot when polenta is done cooking, stir it well and add the parmesan cheese. Stir to incorporate.

  2. Stir in the milk.

  3. Taste and adjust salt to if needed.

  4. Serve warm.

For Feta and Sun Dried Tomato Polenta

  1. After you have opened up the pot when polenta is done cooking, stir it well and add the feta cheese. Stir to incorporate.

  2. Stir in the milk, sun dried tomatoes, and the basil.

  3. Taste, and adjust salt if needed.

  4. Serve warm.

Recipe Notes

Here is the recipe for the Chorizo Tomato Sauce