This easy and delicious Instant Pot shrimp risotto recipe features a touch of lemon, peas and lots of Parmesan and is perfect for a weeknight dinner.
INSTANT POT SHRIMP RISOTTO OVERVIEW
This shrimp risotto with peas and lemon is quick and easy to make. Using the Instant Pot is a great way to make a risotto for anyone who is a little intimidated by this dish. It’s quick to prepare with minimal stirring and perfect results every time!
This risotto features lemon, peas, and frozen shrimp, which is more affordable and works better with timings as you can cook everything together. Butter and Parmesan are added at the end for extra flavor and creaminess and a few shrimp are grilled or pan-fried to be served on top.
The risotto is super creamy with a little tang from the lemon and plenty of umami flavors from cheese, stock and shrimp. Enjoy!
- A crisp, fresh green salad will lighten up the whole meal. You can use any lettuce but some arugula, baby spinach or other darker green leaves will add more nutrients. Candied or maple walnuts or pecans, beets or cherry tomatoes would go well for a little sweetness in the salad.
- Steamed or grilled broccoli, asparagus, Brussels sprouts or zucchini with garlic would be a very complimentary here.
- Want to add even more substance to this meal? Bake some garlic bread or serve garlicky toast on the side, which will goes well with any risotto.
INGREDIENTS FOR SHRIMP RISOTTO
- Arborio rice – this is special risotto rice that contains lots of starch and makes the dish so creamy; don’t rinse the rice before cooking!
- Shrimp – we are using frozen shrimp as it’s more affordable and you don’t have to peel it, plus it allows you to cook everything together. Raw, thawed shrimp would require very little cooking compared to rice, so frozen is better in this recipe. A few shrimp pieces are thawed out in lukewarm water and pan-fried or grilled separately to be served on top of the risotto.
- Stock – you will need lots of stock to make sure there is enough to absorb into the rice and to leave some in the pot for thickening into that creamy sauce. Vegetable or chicken stock will work well. You can add some fish or seafood stock but it can overpower the risotto so I recommend mixing it with vegetable stock. You can use stock cubes or get ready-to-use liquid stock.
- Vegetables & stuff – onions, celery, garlic, peas and lemon are our other components and add flavor and nutrients.
- Final touches – butter and Parmesan cheese are two essential ingredients in the risotto
Step 1. Divide the shrimp into two batches. Keep one batch frozen and place the other batch in a bowl of lukewarm water to defrost. You may need to swap the water once it cools down.
Step 2. Press the Saute button on the Instant Pot and once hot, add the olive oil and butter to the pot.
Step 3. Add onions, celery and salt and cook for 2-3 minutes to soften.
Step 4. Add garlic, lemon zest, rice (unwashed) and stir through. Press Cancel to stop the Saute process.
Step 5. Pour in the 4 cups of stock. Stir through, making sure to scrape the bottom of the pot to prevent anything from being stuck.
Step 6. Add half of the frozen shrimp on top of the rice, no need to stir.
Step 7. Lock the lid and set to pressure cook on HIGH for 5 minutes. Once done, naturally release the pressure for about 2-3 minutes and then do the quick release. Don’t leave on natural release for longer than that!
Step 8. While the risotto is cooking, pan-fry the defrosted shrimp in a little oil and butter for 2-3 minutes until pink and slightly browned. Season with a little salt. Remove and set aside.
Step 9. Add the frozen peas to a bowl with boiling water and allow to defrost. You may need to swap the water once it cools down. Strain and set the peas aside.
Step 10. Open the lid. Add butter, grated Parmesan cheese, lemon juice, pepper and defrosted peas and stir through the hot risotto.
All done! Taste for salt and add more if needed. Finish by topping the risotto with pan-fried shrimp and scallions or chives.
Instant Pot Shrimp Risotto
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 4
- Category: Main
- Method: Instant Pot
- Cuisine: Italian-American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Perfect for a weeknight dinner, this delicious Instant Pot shrimp risotto recipe comes with a touch of lemon, peas and lots of Parmesan and is quick and easy to make.
Ingredients
14 oz – 1 lb (400 – 500g ) frozen shrimp, peeled
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 medium onion, finely diced
1 celery rib, finely diced
½ teaspoon salt
4 cloves garlic, finely diced
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1.5 cups uncooked Arborio rice
4 cups vegetable or chicken stock
TO FINISH
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons lemon juice
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 cup frozen peas (defrosted)
⅓ cup chopped chives or scallions (to garnish at the end)
Serve with extra parmesan cheese on top/on the side
Instructions
- Divide the shrimp into two batches. Keep one batch frozen and place the other batch in a bowl of lukewarm water to defrost. You may need to swap the water once it cools down.
- Press the Saute button on the Instant Pot and once hot, add the olive oil and butter to the pot.
- Add onions, celery and salt and cook for 2-3 minutes to soften.
- Add garlic, lemon zest, rice (unwashed) and stir through.
- Press Cancel to stop the Saute process.
- Pour in the 4 cups of stock. Stir through, making sure to scrape the bottom of the pot to prevent anything from being stuck.
- Add half of the frozen shrimp on top of the rice, no need to stir.
- Lock the lid and set to pressure cook on HIGH for 5 minutes. Once done, naturally release the pressure for about 2-3 minutes and then do the quick release. Don’t leave on natural release for longer than that!
- While the risotto is cooking, pan-fry the defrosted shrimp in a little oil and butter for 2-3 minutes until pink and slightly browned. Season with a little salt. Remove and set aside.
- Add the frozen peas to a bowl with boiling water and allow to defrost. You may need to swap the water once it cools down. Strain and set the peas aside.
- Open the lid. Add butter, grated Parmesan cheese, lemon juice, pepper and defrosted peas and stir through the hot risotto.
- Taste for salt and add more if needed.
- Finish by topping the risotto with pan-fried shrimp and scallions or chives.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1.5 cups
- Calories: 499
- Sugar: 7.4 g
- Sodium: 1140.1 mg
- Fat: 21.4 g
- Carbohydrates: 38.7 g
- Fiber: 2.5 g
- Protein: 37.9 g
- Cholesterol: 205.5 mg
Keywords: Instant Pot Shrimp Risotto, Shrimp Risotto, Shrimp, Risotto, Shrimp Recipes, Gluten-Free, Rice, Peas, Dinner
First experience cooking rissoto. Instructions clear to follow. Unfortunately in my haste I misread cooking time of 3 mins instead of 5 mins and quick releas immediately without waiting for 2 mins. Rissoto was watery at the beginning so I saute for 3 minstobtry to thicken it before serving. Good lemony taste. Will try again with longer cook time. Thank you!
★★★★
It’s a learning process, but we are happy you are trying new recipes.
In. a hurry to get to softball practice for my granddaughters. Cooked the rice as called for, however I thawed out the shrimp and threw the raw shrimp and the frozen peas in at the end. I closed the lid, shut off the pot and left. When we got home the shrimp was perfect, peas still had a pop and stirred in a little extra parm. Delicious!! My husband was thrilled.
★★★★★
Good use of time management. Impressive!
This recipe did not work well for me. Followed the steps but you’ve missed some key points. Do not recommend and won’t make it again. Classic risotto at the stove is the way to go.
Hey Anonymous, it would be great to know what exactly didn’t work or what ‘key points’ were missed. We just re-read through the past and I can’t figure out what key points you are talking about. Some more feedback would be appreciated if you feel like the recipe didn’t work for you. Thanks!
I love this recipe. However I used slightly larger shrimp…just our preference…and sautéed the thawed shrimp in the beginning in the instant pot then did everything else. I covered the shrimp with foil after sautéing to keep warm. Only one pot this way and didn’t have to wash a frying pan. Very good recipe.
★★★★★
Thanks, Shirley. Good idea to saute the shrimp first in the IP if you don’t want to mess more pots!