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When we need a fast dinner that everyone will actually eat, this Instant Pot ground beef recipe is always the answer. It turns simple pantry ingredients—ground beef, rice, beans, salsa—into hearty burrito bowls that taste like takeout but cost way less.
The best part? Besides being done in about 10 minutes, everything cooks right in the Instant Pot for minimal dishes and maximum flavor. Add your favorite toppings and let everyone customize their bowl for a weeknight meal that’s equal parts easy and satisfying.
Table of Contents
- Quick and Easy Dinners
- Ingredients for Ground Beef Burrito Bowls
- How Do I Make Instant Pot Ground Beef Burrito Bowls?
- What Toppings Should I Put on My Burrito Bowl?
- Burrito Bowls FAQs
- Storing and Reheating
- More Quick and Easy Dinner Ideas:
- How to Make Quick and Easy Instant Pot Burrito Bowls
- Ground Beef Burrito Bowls Recipe
Family dinner ideas that are quick and easy are something that I am always on the hunt for! The flavor of this is fantastic but my very favorite part, aside from the fact that you can add in or substitute anything you want, it’s done in 10 minutes! Do you hear that?! DINNER IN TEN MINUTES!
Quick and Easy Dinners
Life is so busy especially with three kids who are all in completely different stages of life. We are constantly on the go. We need meals that are healthy, quick, and kid friendly. Some of our favorites are 20 Minute Cheesy Pesto Pasta, 20 Minute Cherry Tomato Basil Angel Hair Pasta, 15 Minute Chicken Stir Fry, 15 Minute Pesto Pasta, and 15 Minute Beef Stir Fry.
These Instant Pot Quick and Easy Ground Beef Burrito Bowls are being added to that list. They are so flavorful and my kids love them! They can put whatever toppings they want on their own bowl. It not only allows them to be creative in the kitchen, but they are also more likely to eat something they have helped cook.
Ingredients for Ground Beef Burrito Bowls
I always like to include a quick list of ingredients so our readers can get a glimpse of everything they will need ahead of time.
- Ground Beef: Provides rich flavor and hearty protein; the slightly higher fat content adds juiciness and prevents the beef from drying out during pressure cooking.
- Olive Oil: Helps sauté the onions and brown the beef evenly while adding a touch of richness to the base of the bowls.
- Onion: Builds savory depth and sweetness that enhances the taco seasoning and balances the spices.
- Taco Seasoning: Layers in bold, Tex-Mex flavor with chili powder, cumin, and aromatics—instantly giving the dish that classic burrito bowl taste.
- Rice: Cooks directly in the broth to absorb flavor while adding bulk and heartiness—turning this into a complete meal, not just a topping.
- Black Beans: Add creamy texture, plant-based protein, and extra fiber to make the bowls more filling and nutritionally balanced.
- Tomatoes with Diced Green Chiles: Bring smoky depth, mild heat, and acidity that brighten the dish and prevent it from tasting heavy or one-note.
- Frozen Corn: Adds pops of sweetness and color while contrasting the textures of the beef and rice.
- Beef Broth: Infuses the rice with savory flavor as it cooks and keeps the beef mixture moist without watering it down.
- Colby Jack Cheese: Melts smoothly over the hot bowl, adding creamy richness and tying all the flavors together with just the right amount of indulgence.
How Do I Make Instant Pot Ground Beef Burrito Bowls?
- Cook the Ground Beef: Put your instant pot in “sauté” mode and brown your ground beef.
- What Kind of Ground Beef Should I Use? Before you ask, we prefer to use 85/15 ground beef. It has just enough fat to have a deep, delicious flavor but not so much that your dish is greasy.
- Sauté: After ground beef has been browned, add the taco seasoning and diced onions with some olive oil and sauté them until the onions start to soften and the ground beef is cooked through. Then add some olive oil and the uncooked rice.
- PRO TIP: We have found that sauteing the rice for a minute or two gives it such a great flavor.
- Cook: Add the last four ingredients (black beans, canned tomatoes, corn and beef broth) and give everything a good stir with a wooden spoon. Put the lid on your instant pot, lock it and set it to “manual” high pressure for 7 minutes.
read more: Looking for ground beef dinner ideas? Try our Cheesy Ground Beef Casserole, too!
If you are new to the instant pot or you want a concise list of the cook times for all your basic foods, check out our Instant Pot Cheat Sheet!
What Toppings Should I Put on My Burrito Bowl?
You can dish up bowls for everyone and let everyone put the toppings on that they want. It’s like choose your own burrito bowl adventure! We like to sort of make a burrito bowl bar with all the toppings out so everyone can personalize their bowl. The kids go crazy for this! Here are some of our favorite toppings:
- cheese
- tomatoes or pico de gallo
- sour cream
- avocado
- sliced jalapenos (fresh or pickled)
- chopped fresh cilantro
- sliced olives
- tortilla strips
- lime wedges
- creamy cilantro lime dressing
Burrito Bowls FAQs
Now, I know that no one wants to think about getting meat out to defrost, but it really is best to use thawed meat. And just in case you don’t, I tried partially thawed ground beef and it totally worked. NOT frozen, but frozen in the center. Hope my efforts to test help a stressed out mom.
We have had a lot of questions about what instant pot is the best. We still love our 6 Qt 9 Function Instant Pot. It is the perfect size for our family of 5. If you’re feeding more people, you might want to look into the 8qt size. If you’re cooking for one or two people, then the 3qt will be just fine.
When the instant pot has done its thing, you will want to do a quick pressure release. When the pressure has gone down, you can open the lid and give the rice a good fluff. Add the cheese to the top and put the lid back on for a minute or two until the cheese has melted.
Storing and Reheating
Leftovers should be stored in an airtight container in the fridge. They will keep for up to 5 days.
We don’t usually end up with many leftovers of this recipe, but I tend to reheat individual servings in the microwave. They make a great lunch the next day!
If your weeknights are as packed as ours, keep this Instant Pot ground beef recipe in your back pocket. It’s budget-friendly, customizable, and great for meal prep lunches or taco night leftovers. Don’t forget to bookmark or pin the recipe so you can whip up these burrito bowls anytime your dinner plans fall apart—we won’t tell.
We recommend topping it with some of our Restaurant Style Salsa too!
More Quick and Easy Dinner Ideas:
- Smothered Honey Lime Chicken Burritos
- Chicken Stir Fry
- Cilantro Lime Chicken Burrito Bowl
- Sizzling Italian Spaghetti
- 20 Minute Tomato Basil Angel Hair Pasta
- Shortcut Chicken Parmesan
- 10 Minute Garlic Butter Chicken
How to Make Quick and Easy Instant Pot Burrito Bowls
Ground Beef Burrito Bowls
Ingredients
Bowls
- 1 Pound Ground Beef, 85/15
- 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
- ½ Onion, yellow, minced
- 2 Tablespoons Taco Seasoning
- 1 Cup Rice, uncooked extra-long grain
- 15 oz Black Beans, drained and rinsed
- 14.5 oz Tomatoes, fire roasted with Diced Green Chiles, diced, drained
- 1 Cup Corn, frozen
- 2 ¼ Cups Beef Broth
- 1 Cup Colby Jack Cheese, shredded
Toppings
- Cheese
- Tomatoes, chopped
- Avocado, chopped
- Sour Cream
- Jalapeno, sliced
Instructions
- Press the Sauté button on the Instant Pot.
- Once hot, add ground beef to the pot, using a ground beef chopper to break up the meat.1 Pound Ground Beef
- Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and the onions and taco seasoning and cook until onions start to soften.3 Tablespoons Olive Oil, ½ Onion, 2 Tablespoons Taco Seasoning
- Add an additional tablespoon of olive oil and uncooked rice and toast uncooked rice for a minute.3 Tablespoons Olive Oil, 1 Cup Rice
- Stir in black beans, canned tomatoes, corn, and broth.15 oz Black Beans, 14.5 oz Tomatoes, 1 Cup Corn, 2 ¼ Cups Beef Broth
- Lock the Instant Pot lid in place and set to Manual, High Pressure for 7 minutes.
- Use Quick Pressure Release, and once pressure drops, open Instant Pot and fluff the rice.
- Sprinkle with the cheese, recover and let set for 1-2 minutes to melt cheese.1 Cup Colby Jack Cheese
- Garnish with fresh tomatoes, sour cream etc.Cheese, Tomatoes, Avocado, Sour Cream, Jalapeno
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This was good. I used ground turkey instead of beef and 1/2 cup brown rice and 1/2 cup lentils to make a little healthier. Cooked for 17 minutes. It was delicious , kids and husband approved! Topped with lettuce shreds, tomato, guacamole, cheese, plain Greek yogurt, jalapeños, and a few crushed up chips.
That sounds amazing! I love your substitutions! Thank you so much for taking time to leave a comment Brandy!
Thanks for sharing your subs!
They sound so yummy!
I am new to the instapot craze and can now understand why everyone loves it. It is just me and the hubby now so I was skeptical to get one. This was my 3rd recipe and I made some adjustments to use what I had on hand. I added probably a whole big onion to use up to halves I had (I didn’t want them to go to waste!) I didn’t have 1 – 14 5 oz can of diced tomatoes fire roasted with green chili’s so I used 2 – 10 oz cans. I didn’t drain them either!! (I didn’t see that I had to till I was reading comments looking to see if there were any comments about freezing!!!) It turned out GREAT! This is now my favorite recipe to make and is my hubby’s favorite to eat!!!
Yay! Love to hear this Kathleen! And thank you for taking time to leave us a comment!
I love this recipe and I’ve made it a few times now. My only issue with the recipe as written is that there is no mention of salt. Add that and this is perfect. I still couldn’t bring myself to take off a star for that though. It’s too good to be rated anything less than 5 stars!
Hi Melody! You are totally right. I thought I had added to season to taste, but it wasn’t in there. I’ve added a little salt to the recipe now. Thank you for the heads up! And thank you for the support!
I’ve made this recipe a ton of times!! It is a crowd pleaser!! Tell me why, after all the times, I forgot to toast the rice!! Crossing fingers I didn’t ruin, lol!!
It will still be delicious, but there is something about toasting it first that makes it soooo good!
This turned out great! I love using my IP and finding fool proof recipes! I skipped the diced chili’s, too much spice for me, but will probably my add salt and extra chili powder next time. It was delicious. Do you know if this freezes and reheats well??
Hi Halie! Thank you so much for taking time to leave a comment! Yes, it freezes great! It works a little better if you freeze without the cheese and then add the cheese right before serving. So glad you enjoyed it!
If I prepare Spanish rice separately but keep the rest of the recipe the same, how would I adjust the amount of stock? Any guesses? I’m trying to avoid soup. 😉
Oh man! Great question! If I was going to do it that way, I would honestly just make it on the stovetop and skip the Instant Pot. The whole point of the Instant Pot is to cook the rice quickly. You will omit the stock almost entirely would be my guess unless the meat mixture looks like it needs a little juice. I hope this helps!
This dish is delicious! Thank you for sharing. I have made it before with the long grain white rice and it turned out perfect. I don’t have any white rice, could I use brown? What would I need to change?
Hi Christa! Great question! And it is so good with brown rice. You’ll just want to add another 1/4 cup of beef brown and increase the cooking time to 20 minutes. Enjoy!
When making rice in the Instant Pot, the best rice/liquid ratio I have found is 1:1-1/4. I have made this many times using 1 cup rice and 1-1/4 cup broth. Then you do NOT need to drain the tomatoes.
I have noticed that when using tomatoes or tomato sauce, it may cause a Burn Notice. To prevent that from happening – Do Not Stir the ingredients. Layer them in the IP. For any recipe, not just this one – layer meat, veggies, rice, liquid. Gently push the rice under the liquid to make sure it all gets cooked nice and soft.
Hi Joan! Thank you so much for all the tips! This is so great!
What a great recipe, and easy to make. Very flavourful and filling! I added a can of pickled jalapeños as we like a bit of spice. To prevent the possibility of burning, stirred frequently after adding rice – no problem. This one is added to our go-to list!
Yay! Love to hear that! Thank you so much for the feedback!
After reading all the comments I was worried to make this because I knew with my luck, I’d get that horrible burn notice. I decided I’d try it anyway. I did. I got the burn notice. I used 1 cup rice to 1 cup beef broth. I got the burn notice, deglaze bottom of pot best I could and put it back to pressure cook. I got the burn notice again and decided I would just move all the food in the pot over to stovetop. I let it simmer for about 25 minutes with lid on Dutch oven (I added about another half cup of beef broth). When done, the bottom of the Dutch oven had a bunch of burned food but the top food was good. It was really tasty. It is even better as leftovers. I just wish I could figure out a way to make it in the Instant Pot without it burning. I will be making this again. 😃
That darn burn notice!! It’s so frustrating. We’ve never had that issue with the recipe, but I know a lot of people have. Did you pour the rice on top and just poke it under the liquid? I’m glad it turned out okay on the stove top.