Why buy frozen side dishes when making your own is so easy? Do you have an Instant Pot or pressure cooker? How about a pot or pan? My Veggie Pilaf is a delicious, and easy to prepare, side dish everyone will love! You can use it as a side dish for people who eat animal proteins as well as for those who only eat plant-based proteins. It makes a great base for bowls. Add fried tofu, or tofu puffs, sauteed soy curls or your favorite veggie ground and raw veggies of choice for a complete meal.

Instant Pot or pressure cooker
Pot or large pan (for slower stovetop method)

1 cup rinsed basmati (or other long-grain) rice
1/2 cup quinoa
3 Tbsp homemade Veggie Bouillon
2 cups cold water (Instant Pot)
2 1/2 cups cold water (pressure cooker)
3 cups cold water (pot or pan)
1 small onion, diced
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 small zucchini, diced
1 large tomato diced (or 10 cherry tomatoes cut in half)
1 small bell pepper, diced
6 small mushrooms, chopped or sliced
1 handful of chopped greens (kale/spinach/collards/Swiss chard)
1 Tbsp oil for frying
Salt and pepper to taste

This recipe can be done all in one pot/pan or the rice and quinoa can be cooked separately from the veggies and then mixed together when both are cooked. Instructions will be for the combo method as it allows the rice/quinoa to soak up the flavour of the veggies while cooking.

Heat up your pot/pan/pressure cooker on a medium setting, or set your IP to sautee and allow it to heat up. Add the oil to your pot/pan/IP/pressure cooker and let that heat up for 30 seconds to a minute.

Toss in your onions, stir, and allow them to cook down until they’re translucent. Add your garlic, then peppers. Sautee until the peppers are on the softer side. Add the zucchini and mushrooms. Cook until the zucchini looks softer and the mushrooms are wilted. Add tomatoes and chopped greens and stir until combined.

Add your rice, quinoa, salt, pepper, water (use the amount listed for your cooking method), and veggie bouillon to your veggie mixture. Stir to combine.

For Instant Pot: Seal and set to pressure cook on high for 5 minutes and allow to depressurize naturally.
For Pressure Cooker: Seal and cook on high until steam blows, then turn element down to med-low and cook for 5 minutes. Allow to release pressure naturally.
For Stovetop: Put lid on the pot/pan, bring to a boil on med heat, then turn to low. Remove lid to keep liquid from boiling over. Once foam has settled, put lid back on and cook until liquid is absorbed.

Fluff with fork and use as part of a larger creation or scoop out into a large bowl for everyone to help themselves at the table. Buon appetito!

If you haven’t made my veggie bouillon and want to use a commercial bouillon instead, consult the packaging for quantity to use with the amount of water listed. You can also use veggie stock instead of water, in the same amount listed, for your cooking method.