This flavorful, vegan Instant Pot quinoa burrito bowl is an easy, weeknight meal. It also works great as a meal prep recipe for the week!
What I love about a quinoa burrito bowl is that it's all about the toppings. When you have a family with diverse palates, like mine, that sort of meal is ideal. We can all pile on (or leave off) whatever veggies and other toppings we want!
Table of Contents
Recipe notes
I love that this recipe all comes together in a single pot, leaving you less cleanup. And while everything cooks at pressure, you can do other things until dinner is served.
To start this recipe, you hit your pot's Sauté button. This essentially turns your Instant Pot into a temporary frying pan. Heat the oil, and sauté the bell pepper, onion, and garlic until they begin to brown. Watch them carefully, so they don't burn!
Now, add the spices and quinoa to the pot, stirring to toast them for just a few seconds. Then, hit Cancel.
Pour in your water and stir, then and add cooked black beans and frozen corn, and you're ready to cook at pressure! Don't stir in the beans and corn, because this can cause a burn warning, depending on your pot.
When the cooking time is up, fluff the quinoa mixture with a fork, just like you would rice, while mixing in a generous squeeze of lime juice.
Serving suggestions
You can serve this immediately for dinner or pack it up in meal prep containers for your week's lunches. If you're doing a meal prep, I recommend keeping toppings separate, so you can heat the quinoa burrito bowl in the microwave, then add the cold toppings.
Need some toppings ideas? I have lots! Try piling on:
- vegan sour cream
- vegan cheese shreds
- sliced tomatoes, olives, or cucumbers
- chopped cilantro and/or green onion
- pickled jalapeno guacamole
- pineapple salsa (or jarred salsa)
- vegan queso
- crushed tortilla chips
The sky's the limit, really, so raid your fridge and have fun with those toppings!
How to store
Leftovers will keep for four to five days in the fridge in an airtight container. You can also divvy it up between meal prep containers for lunches.
I recommend storing the toppings separately, so you can reheat the quinoa burrito bowl without heating up toppings that are best fresh and cold on this dish, like cilantro or guacamole.
Instant Pot quinoa burrito bowl
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup chopped bell pepper
- 1 cup chopped sweet onion
- 4 cloves of garlic - minced
- 1 tablespoon paprika or chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup quinoa
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1 ½ cups fresh or frozen corn kernels
- 15 ounce can of black or pinto beans - drained and rinsed
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
Toppings
- vegan sour cream
- vegan cheese shreds
- guacamole
- your favorite salsa/pico de gallo
- fresh cilantro
- green onion
- diced tomato
- black olives
- diced cucumber
- crushed tortilla chips
Instructions
- Hit your Instant Pot's saute button, and cook the bell pepper, onion, and garlic until they just start to brown. Add the dried spices, salt, and quinoa to the pot. Stir constantly to toast for just a minute, then add the water, stirring one more time. Now add the beans and corn to the pot, but don't stir them in, as this can cause a burn warning, depending on your pot.
- Cover the pot, lock the lid, and cook at pressure for 6 minutes with a 10-minute natural release. Then, open the pot, add the lime juice, and fluff the quinoa with a fork.
- Divvy up the quinoa mixture between your bowls and pile on your toppings of choice!
Have a question? Tried this recipe? Share your thoughts!