Instant Pot barley risotto with spinach and sun-dried tomatoes
Nutty, chewy pearl barley cooked into a creamy risotto with sun-dried tomatoes, spinach, parmesan and lemon, with no stirring at all.
- 50 min total
- 10 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 4
- About $2.41 a serving
- 400 calories
- Good the next day
- Vegetarian
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1¼ cups pearl barley, rinsed
- ⅓ cup dry white wine (optional)
- 3½ cups vegetable broth
- ⅓ cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
- 3 cups baby spinach
- ½ cup grated parmesan
- 1 lemon, zested and juiced
From your pantry
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
Each serving has about 400 calories, 12 g protein, 60 g carbs and 13 g fat, and costs about $2.41 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No butter? Ghee works.
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No baby spinach? Kale or arugula works.
- No grated parmesan? Parmesan wedge works.
- No lemons? Limes work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Set the Instant Pot to and heat the oil and butter.
Sauté. Sautéing means cooking cut-up food in a little oil or butter over medium to medium-high heat, stirring now and then. It cooks things quickly and browns them lightly without burning.
How you’ll know: You hear a steady, lively sizzle, not a hiss and spit, and the edges start to soften and color.
Add the onion and cook, stirring, 4 minutes, until soft.
Timer: 4 min
Stir in the garlic for 30 seconds.
Add the barley and stir 2 minutes, until it smells toasty. If you’re using wine, pour it in and stir until it’s mostly gone.
Timer: 2 min
Pour in the broth, add the sun-dried tomatoes and salt, and scrape the bottom well. Press Cancel.
Lock the lid, set the valve to Sealing and cook on High Pressure for 20 minutes.
Timer: 20 min
Let the pressure come down on its own for 10 minutes, then turn the valve to Venting.
Timer: 10 min
Dolly’s tip: Keep your hand and face away from the valve. The steam is very hot.Stir in the spinach, parmesan, lemon , lemon juice and pepper until the spinach and it turns creamy.
Zest. Zest is the thin, colored outer layer of citrus peel, rubbed off on the smallest holes of a grater. It holds the fruit’s fragrant oils, so it adds bright flavor without the sourness of juice.
How you’ll know: You see bright flecks and smell citrus right away; stop when you reach the white layer, which is bitter.
Wilt. Wilting means cooking leafy greens just until they go soft and collapse. Greens shrink a lot, so a big pile of spinach becomes a small handful, and that’s normal.
How you’ll know: The leaves turn soft and deep green and slump into the pan, usually within a minute or two.
Dolly’s tip: Barley stays pleasantly chewy even when it’s done. If it looks soupy, let it sit 2 minutes and it thickens up.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
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One-pan dinners ›Vegetarian dinners ›What to make with spinach and parmesan ›