These Instant Pot brownies are easily made from scratch, with the perfect balance of cake and fudge textures. Completely addictive.
There are few desserts as perfect as a warm batch of brownies topped with some vanilla ice cream. However, I can't say that I love the texture you get from a box mix. There's just something distinct about that powder that I don't enjoy. Well, this Instant Pot brownies recipe is incredibly easy to make, and yields a perfectly balanced texture between cake and fudge. They're everything you want a brownie to be!
Makes a deceptively large batch!
Because we're cooking this dessert in an Instant Pot, you might not expect there to be a lot. But I'm here to tell you that you can serve a lot of people with this pan of brownies. Not only are the brownies very rich, but they're perfectly thick too. Not as thick as a slice of cake, but just the right size to cut into about 16 wedges.
Why use the Instant Pot?
One of the number one questions we get is "Why use the Instant Pot for brownies? Wouldn't the oven be faster?". While yes, oven baked brownies typically have a shorter cook time than these Instant Pot Brownies, there are several reasons I decided to give brownies in the Instant Pot a try. First, this recipe was developed in the middle of summer. Living in Florida, I prefer to avoid turning on the oven during summer whenever possible. Second, not everyone has access to an oven. Some of our readers travel with their Instant Pot, cooking from hotel rooms or campers that lack a kitchen. Others are using their Instant Pot because they're in the middle of a home renovation. And then there's those of us who love our Instant Pot so much that we'll take any excuse to cook in them. No matter what your reason is, you won't regret trying these delicious brownies!
The Process
And the AMAZING Result…
FAQs
What if I don't have a 3" trivet? You can find a 3" trivet on Amazon
for just over $5. We haven’t tested the recipe with the trivet that comes with the Instant Pot as it would sit so close to the water. Several readers have told us that using the trivet that came with their pot worked for them, but their brownies did not rise quite as much and were a bit denser. Other readers have used a small pan turned upside down to elevate their pan.
Wouldn't it be quicker to cook them in the oven? Please see "Why use the instant pot?" at the top of the post.
Why is the cook time so much longer than when I make brownies in the oven? There are two reasons they take longer in the Instant Pot. First, these are deep dish brownies. Second, the Instant Pot is steam baking, unlike the oven which uses dry heat. The temperature in the Instant Pot is less than in the oven.
Can I make this gluten-free? Yes! We frequently make a gluten-free version for my wife by swapping the flour for Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten-Free Flour. They are slightly softer in the center, but otherwise delicious. We recommend letting the batter sit for 5 to 10 minutes before cooking when using gluten-free flour.
Can I use a spring form pan instead of a push pan? Absolutely!
★ Did you make these Instant Pot Brownies? Please give it a star rating below! ★
📖 Recipe
Instant Pot Brownies
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup cocoa powder
- ½ tsp. baking powder
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Place butter in large mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer, mix butter just a few seconds to get it going. Then add sugar and continue mixing until fully combined. Add eggs and blend until fully incorporated. Add vanilla extract and mix again.
- In a separate mixing bowl, add all dry ingredients: flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Whisk together until combined.
- Pour dry ingredients into bowl with wet ingredients. Gently mix until fully combined. Add chocolate chips to batter. Then, using a rubber spatula, mix well.
- Spray a 7×3 push pan with nonstick cooking spray. Pour batter into pan and spread out evenly.
- Add a 3-inch trivet and 1 ½ cups of water to cooker. Place push pan on top of trivet. Cover pan with aluminum foil. This will keep out moisture.Â
- Lock lid and cook for 50 minutes at high pressure. Once cook time is complete, allow pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes. Then quick-release remaining pressure.
- Remove pan from cooker, take foil off and allow brownies to cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before removing from pan.
- Serve warm with vanilla ice cream!
Video
Notes
- Store cut brownies in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 to 2 days. A full pan's worth, uncut, can be stored for as long as 4 days, or in the freezer for 3 months.
- You can find a 3″ trivet on Amazon
 for just over $5. We haven’t tested the recipe with the trivet that comes with the Instant Pot as it would sit so close to the water. Several readers have told us that using the trivet that came with their pot worked for them, but their brownies did not rise quite as much and were a bit denser. Other readers have used a small pan turned upside down to elevate their pan. - To make these gluten-free, swap the flour for Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten-Free Flour. They will be slightly softer in the center, but otherwise delicious. We recommend letting the batter sit for 5 to 10 minutes before cooking when using gluten-free flour.
- Why is the cook time so much longer than when I make brownies in the oven? There are two reasons they take longer in the Instant Pot. First, these are deep dish brownies. Second, the Instant Pot is steam baking, unlike the oven which uses dry heat. The temperature in the Instant Pot is less than in the oven.
 for just over $5. We haven’t tested the recipe with the trivet that comes with the Instant Pot as it would sit so close to the water. Several readers have told us that using the trivet that came with their pot worked for them, but their brownies did not rise quite as much and were a bit denser. Other readers have used a small pan turned upside down to elevate their pan.Nutrition
More Instant Pot dessert recipes:
- Halloween Brownies in the Instant Pot
- Instant Pot Banana Bread with Peanut Butter and Chocolate
- Instant Pot Pumpkin Cheesecake with Maple Glaze
- Gingerbread Cheesecake in the Instant Pot
- Instant Pot Pumpkin Bread Made from Scratch
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Travis
I was making these and pot roast for dinner. Both in the Instant Pot. Decided to make these first and let them sit while the roast did its thing. That was a bad idea. No one, not even the adults could keep their hands off of them. By the time I had finished searing the roast the brownies were already half gone!
These are definitely made for a brownie sundae with how rich and chocolate they are. There was no time for all that this time though. The family was enjoying them like they had never had a brownie before.
Top notch recipe. Thanks for posting it for everyone to enjoy!
BONNIE FERGUSON
I have tried making these 3 times and every time was a complete fail.
They come out super gooey I have had to pour them onto a plate and microwave for 3 minutes.
What a hot mess? I followed the directions to a tee every time.
Why am I having such a bad turn out - it's heart breaking my baking is always amazing.
My husband wants to throw my instant-pot away
Gary White
I'm sorry to hear that! I would try increasing the cooking time by 5 minutes.
Deb
Not making this recipe again. Big disappointment. After50 minutes, top was still raw. Had to finish in the oven.
Susi
Very fudgy and dense. Delicious. Serve with ice cream or glass of milk.
Faye
Absolutely delicious! Ate a piece right out of the instant pot and it was chocolatey and gooey; waited for awhile to cool down ate another piece and they set up nicely and they are still wonderful. I will be making these again. Two thumbs up on this recipe.
Alison
Best brownies ever. Definately in my favorite list. I had to cook a lot longer but I think its my instant pot that has a problem, I have to cook everything longer.
Robert
Swing and a miss; at least for me. I really wanted these to turn out for Super Bowl. Unfortunately they tasted like something one would buy at a vegan, no flour, no sugar, health food store. And I did follow all of the directions and included all the ingredients. Trivet, push pan, aluminum foil covered, foil sling, etc. Oh well-on to the next recipe...
donna heffernan
absolutely loved this method
MG
When you cool in the pan after cooking, should the foil be removed? These had really deep, rich flavor. More dense like fudge than brownie, but nothing wrong with that! Thanks for the yummy recipe.
Gary White
Yes, remove the foil to cool. Glad you enjoyed them!
Ima Domom
👌
Deborah
these are amazing!~ An excellent and very easy recipe. i used my 6 qt instant pot and a push pan with the Instant pot silicone "lifter" and the original trivet.
Came out extra rich and fudgy even better the second day!
Erin
I have made these at least 5x now, and I seriously will never make brownies any other way again. They are just the best!! Had company over the other night and had the brownies cooking while we had dinner. They make for a pretty presentation in a neat little slice with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a few raspberries. They could not get over how good they were. Thanks so much for sharing!!
Nancy
Made this last week with dark chocolate baking cocoa and it was soooo good. Going to make it again this week using light cocoa powder to see which one I like best, but I will say this, these are so easy and so good it has become a favorite for me !
Darius Moolman
I was looking for a recipe to make pot browny as in the once that got you high but this is a great recipe.