Instant Pot Carrots...The BEST!

These Instant Pot carrots are the perfect easy side dish with simple ingredients like whole carrots, fresh herbs, and water! Serve alongside weeknight dinners for a healthy meal. 

Instant Pot recipes are my favorite because they have little prep time and clean up! Not only that, but I think an Instant Pot makes softer carrots than the oven or stovetop.

I used to struggle trying to find a healthy and easy side dish to serve alongside hearty dinners. Cooking vegetables in a slow cooker or Instant Pot has been a total live saver!

These pressure cooker carrots are a great side dish to our gluten-free meatloaf, instant pot broccoli cheddar soup or roasted chicken! The meat and vegetable combo is such an easy dinner idea that the whole family will enjoy. This Instant Pot chicken pasta is another quick and delicious Instant Pot dish.

I love how versatile they are too. If you like a sweeter version, these brown sugar carrots are the best!

Simply remove the salt, pepper and parsley and add in ¼ cup brown sugar with butter and toss to coat in the hot pot. They are one of my favorite side dishes.

This instant pot carrots recipe is super easy because you only need to use the pressure cook setting on your instant pot. As simple as the touch of a button! And be sure to save some for this carrot and lentil soup.

How long does it take to cook vegetables in the Instant Pot?

It only takes a few minutes to cook vegetables in an electric pressure cooker. These carrots only take two minutes to cook but some vegetables may take 4-6 minutes.

The Instant Pot will take a few minutes to come to pull pressure and then a few more minutes after the quick pressure release, but the total time is under 20 minutes.

Why make them in the Instant Pot?

Instant pot baby carrots are the best for so many reasons! The using an Instant pot frees up space in your oven/stove for the main dish as well as uses minimal dishes for easy clean up.

Also, I find that the instant pot makes softer carrots in a shorter amount of cooking time compared to the oven or stove. Also, there's less chance of burning or overcooking your carrots.

It really is a foolproof method for making the best cooked carrots ever!

More Instant Pot recipes

As I said before, Instant Pot recipes have been a lifesaver for weeknight dinners! These instant pot meatballs are so flavorful and ready in less than 30 minutes! And this instant pot chicken noodle soup recipe is the best for a cold fall or winter day.

I also use my instant pot for dessert recipes! Instant pot apple crisp and cinnamon roll french toast casserole have been my go-to desserts lately.

What you need

Here are a few of the ingredients you will need with some more information about what I recommend for them.

Carrots

You can use any carrots here but for ease we recommend baby carrots. I have also done peeled and cut fresh whole carrots and in my opinion, they definitely have more flavor but require more effort on your part. You can save some for this easy carrot soup as well.

Butter

Kerrygold is my FAVORITE butter and I think the best for this recipe. It gives the carrots so much more flavor! Dairy-free butter also works here if you need it.

Parsley

I always use dried parsley because that's what my mom did but fresh certainly works as well. You will just need double what we call for in the recipe if you are using fresh.

Salt

Real Salt is always my go to when it comes to salt but I also love Maldon's flaky sea salt and it works fantastic as well!

How to make it

This recipe is so simple! You can keep the carrots cooked with no seasonings or add a few things like butter, parsley and salt and pepper like we do for a truly delicious side dish.

1. Place 1 cup of water in the bottom of your instant pot
2. Place carrots in the steamer basket and place in the instant pot

3. Pressure cook on high for two minutes then quick pressure release
4. Remove the steamer basket from inner pot and discard water

5. Put carrots back in the instant pot with butter, parsley and salt and stir to coat

Top tip: For sweeter carrots, feel free to add 2tbsp of maple syrup before serving! I like to add maple syrup to steamed carrots and sweet potatoes for extra flavor.

What to serve with these carrots

I like to serve these instant pot baby carrots with some type of protein/fat. Mississippi chicken pairs perfectly with these carrots as well as our IP creamy Italian chicken!

Can you make them dairy free?

Absolutely, simply, use dairy-free butter!

How do you store leftovers?

You can store these leftover carrots in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, simply microwave until desired temperature is reached. You can top with extra fresh herbs or maple syrup before serving.