Instant Pot Steamed Cauliflower

Name: Instant Pot Steamed Cauliflower
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 1 min
Total time: 21 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Healthy
Ingredients: 1 cup water; 1 large head of cauliflower, broken into florets (about 4 cups)

by Carrie Forrest, MPH in Nutrition | Mar 23, 2022

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Here’s how to make Instant Pot Cauliflower Florets for an easy, healthy side dish. Serve the cooked cauliflower with almost any main dish. This recipe takes only 20 minutes.

Cauliflower is such a great vegetable! It’s mild in flavor, budget-friendly, and available all year round. Plus, it’s a cruciferous vegetable with a ton of health benefits.

My favorite way to cook cauliflower is to make Instant Pot Steamed Cauliflower. It’s beyond easy and only takes one minute cook time.

Contents hide

1 Why You Need This Recipe

2 Key Ingredients

3 Recipe Steps

4 Recipe Tips & Substitutions

5 Recipe FAQs

6 Other Instant Pot Vegetable Recipes You Might Like

7 Instant Pot Steamed Cauliflower

Why You Need This Recipe

This recipe is very versatile. You can make it fat-free or serve it with your choice of topping. Steamed cauliflower is naturally vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free.
Steamed cauliflower can be served with olive oil, salt, and pepper, Or, you can blend it with some ghee, butter, or vegan butter into a delicious cauliflower mash.
Freeze your Instant Pot Steamed Cauliflower to use in a cauliflower smoothie later. Once the cauliflower is frozen and blended with ingredients like frozen fruit and peanut butter, you can’t taste the cauliflower at all! This is a great healthy hack for getting picky eaters to eat more veggies.

Key Ingredients

head of cauliflower on a table with a knife to cut into florets.

You’ll need a head of cauliflower to make this recipe for Instant Pot Cauliflower. Or, you can buy cauliflower that has already been broken up into florets.

One head of cauliflower yields about 4 cups of cauliflower florets. Look for heads of cauliflower that are full with no black spots or browning around the edges.

You will also need some water to add to the Instant Pot to bring it up to pressure.

Recipe Steps

Step One

If you are starting with a head of cauliflower, use a sharp knife to cut the cauliflower in half. Then, use your hands to break off each of the florets.

Place them in a colander to rinse with fresh water. This will ensure that you remove any dirt or little bugs that may have hidden inside.

Step Two

Place the trivet or steamer basket in your 6-quart Instant Pot pressure cooker. Add 1 cup of water. Then, add the rinsed cauliflower florets.

Lock on the lid and set the time to 1 minute on high pressure.

cauliflower florets inside of an instant pot pressure cooker.

As always, please do see the recipe card at the end of this post for the exact ingredients and measurements.

Step Three

Once the cooking time is complete, I recommend using the quick-release when the cooking time is up to make sure the cauliflower doesn’t get mushy.

Step Four

If you’re going to eat it right away, just use tongs to serve it up. Otherwise, I like to rinse the cauliflower with cold water (or transfer it to an ice water bath) to stop it from cooking.

After you put the cauliflower in an ice bath, you’ll need to drain it in a colander.

steamed cauliflower drained in a colander.

Serve your Instant Pot Steamed Cauliflower plain or topped with your choice of butter, ghee, vegan butter, plus some salt and pepper for seasoning.

Recipe Tips & Substitutions

If you want to freeze the cooked florets, place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze for 2 hours before transferring them to a zip-top bag. They’ll keep in the freezer for up to 2 months.
One large head of cauliflower yields about 4 cups of florets.
The total cooking time includes approximately 10 minutes for the Instant Pot to come up to pressure.

Recipe FAQs

Can I cook frozen Instant Pot florets?

Yes, you can! Just cook them for 2 minutes on high pressure, and use the quick release.

Can I cook a whole head of cauliflower in the Instant Pot?

I prefer breaking it up into florets to ensure that the cauliflower gets steamed evenly.

Do I have to use the trivet when steaming cauliflower?

It’s best to use the trivet to keep the florets out of the water. This helps prevent the cauliflower from getting soggy. You can also use a steamer basket.

Other Instant Pot Vegetable Recipes You Might Like

Or, see my entire index of Instant Pot Vegetable recipes.

I hope you make this recipe! If you do, please leave a comment and a starred review below.

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