If you like risotto but don’t particularly enjoy the part where you’re standing at the stove, stirring rice and adding broth one ladleful at a time, this one is for you.
This Beef and Rice with Butternut Squash is inspired by arroz caldoso, a Brazilian-style brothy rice dish. It has some of the same cozy, creamy qualities as risotto, but the method is much more relaxed. There is no special risotto technique here. The rice cooks right in the flavorful liquid, becoming tender and creamy while the beef, potatoes, and squash make it a complete meal.
I use arborio rice, which gives the dish that lovely starchy texture, along with everyday stewing beef from the grocery store. The beef is cooked until tender, then shredded and returned to the pot with the rice. Onion, garlic, potatoes, butternut squash, and a little full-fat coconut milk round everything out.
And because I have absolutely no interest in wrestling a butternut squash on a Wednesday night, I usually use frozen butternut squash. It goes straight into the pot and makes this dinner considerably easier. Fresh works perfectly well too—just cut it into pieces about the same size as the frozen cubes.
The result is somewhere between a soup, a stew, and a risotto: brothy, hearty, creamy, and very comforting. Basically, exactly what I want from a one-pot dinner.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Easy one-pot meal: The Instant Pot does most of the work.
- No risotto stirring marathon: Arborio rice gives you that creamy texture without traditional risotto technique.
- Made with everyday ingredients: Stewing beef, potatoes, rice, onions, garlic, and squash.
- Frozen squash-friendly: No peeling or wrestling with a whole butternut squash required.
- A complete meal: You have beef, rice, potatoes, and vegetables all in one bowl.
Equipment
- 8-quart electric pressure cooker — this is what I used to make the recipe.
Don’t have an electric pressure cooker? You can make this in a regular heavy-bottomed pot with a good-fitting lid. The cooking times will be different, but the same basic steps apply. A traditional stovetop pressure cooker works, too.
Ingredients
Stewing Beef
I use the regular stewing beef you can find at pretty much any grocery store. There’s no need to buy an expensive cut—the pressure cooker does a wonderful job of turning those tougher pieces into tender, shreddable beef.
Arborio Rice
I use arborio rice, the same short-grain rice commonly used for risotto. Its high starch content is what gives this dish its creamy, almost risotto-like consistency.
Butternut Squash
Frozen butternut squash is my weeknight shortcut of choice. No peeling, chopping, or wrestling required.
You can absolutely use fresh butternut squash. Just cut it into pieces roughly the same size as the frozen cubes so that it cooks evenly.
You can also substitute it for Kabocha pumpkin if that is what you have on hand.
Coconut Milk
A small can of full-fat coconut milk adds richness and a subtle coconut flavor. You don’t need a large amount—the goal isn’t to turn this into a coconut curry, just to add a little creaminess to the rice.
Potatoes, Onion and Garlic
These simple ingredients do a lot of work here. The potatoes and carrots make the dish even heartier, while the onion and garlic create the savory base.
How to Make Beef and Rice with Butternut Squash
1. Brown the beef
Set your Instant Pot to sauté and brown the stewing beef in a little oil. You don’t need to cook it through—just get some good color on the outside. If your pot isn’t large enough to brown all the beef without crowding it, work in batches. Don’t overcrowd the pot or the beef will release its moisture and steam instead of getting that nice browned sear.
2. Cook the beef and vegetables
Add the onion, garlic, potatoes, and water. Pressure cook until the beef is tender enough to shred.
3. Shred the beef
Remove the beef and shred it with two forks. Return it to the pot along with the arborio rice and butternut squash.
4. Cook the rice
Cook until the rice is tender, stirring occasionally so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot. Stir in the coconut milk toward the end of cooking.
Keep an eye on the consistency—you want this to remain brothy, not dry. The rice will continue absorbing liquid as it sits.
Recipe Tips
Use frozen butternut squash. This is one of those recipes where the freezer aisle is doing you a favor. You can use it straight from frozen.
Don’t skip browning the beef. It adds a lot of flavor to the finished dish.
Keep stirring while the rice cooks. Arborio rice is wonderfully starchy, but that also means it has a tendency to stick to the bottom of the pot.
Don’t let it get too thick. Arroz caldoso is supposed to be brothy. It should look looser than a traditional risotto when you’re finished cooking.
Can I Make This with Fresh Butternut Squash?
Absolutely. Fresh butternut squash works just as well as frozen.
Peel and seed the squash, then cut it into pieces about the same size as the frozen cubes. The only reason I reach for frozen is convenience—on a busy weeknight, I’m happy to let someone else do the peeling and chopping.
Kabocha squash is another great option if you can find it.
Can I Use Another Rice?
Arborio is my preference because its starchiness gives the dish that wonderful creamy texture.
If you substitute another type of rice, the cooking time and amount of liquid may need to be adjusted, and the final consistency won’t be quite the same.
How to Store
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
This dish is absolutely fine to eat later, but I think it’s best freshly made. The rice continues absorbing the liquid as it sits, so the consistency changes considerably. What starts out as a lovely brothy arroz caldoso will be much thicker the next day.
When reheating, add a little water to loosen it back up.
A Note About the Texture
This is one of those recipes where the texture is part of the charm.
It’s not quite soup. It’s not quite stew. And it’s not quite risotto.
It’s arroz caldoso—rice cooked with enough liquid to make it wonderfully brothy and spoonable, with the starch from the rice giving everything a creamy quality.
And unlike risotto, you don’t need to spend the entire cooking process standing over the pot. Which, to me, is a pretty good trade.
Beef and Rice with Butternut Squash
Equipment
- 8-quart Instant Pot or electric pressure cooker
- wooden spoon or silicone spatula
- Two forks for shredding the beef
Ingredients
- 1 lb stewing beef 495g
- 1 small onion diced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 small potato peeled and diced
- 1 small carrot peeled and diced; (1 cup)
- 2 cups butternut squash fresh or frozen; 185g
- 1 cup arborio rice 185g
- 1 small can full-fat coconut milk (160 mL / ⅔ cup);
- 900 ml water
- 1 2 tablespoons olive oil or other cooking oil
- salt to taste
- parsley to taste
Instructions
- Brown the beef. Set the Instant Pot to Sauté and add the oil. Make sure the pot is hot before adding the beef. Brown the stewing beef well on all sides. If the pot is too crowded, work in batches. Crowding the beef will cause it to release moisture and steam instead of searing. Remove the beef and set aside.1 lb stewing beef, 1 2 tablespoons olive oil or other cooking oil
- Sauté the aromatics. Add the onion and garlic to the pot and sauté for about 2 minutes, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom.1 small onion, 3 garlic cloves
- Pressure cook the beef. Return the beef to the pot and add the potato, carrot, butternut squash, salt to taste and water. Secure the lid and cook on High Pressure for 40 minutes. When the cooking time is complete, quick release the pressure.1 small potato, 1 small carrot, 2 cups butternut squash, salt, 900 ml water
- Shred the beef. Remove the beef from the pot and shred it with two forks. Return the shredded beef to the pot.
- Cook the rice. Add the arborio rice, butternut squash, and coconut milk. Leave the lid off and set the Instant Pot to Sauté. Cook until the rice reaches your desired doneness, about 15 minutes in my pressure cooker. Stir occasionally at first, then more frequently toward the end as the rice thickens to prevent it from sticking to the bottom.1 cup arborio rice, 1 small can full-fat coconut milk
- Finish and serve. Stir in fresh parsley, taste and adjust the seasoning, and serve immediately while the rice is still loose and brothy.
Notes
- Coconut milk: Use 1 small 160 mL (⅔ cup) can of full-fat coconut milk, not the large can. The smaller amount adds richness without overpowering the other flavors.
- Don’t crowd the beef: If your pressure cooker isn’t large enough to brown the beef in a single layer, work in batches. Proper browning adds much more flavor.
- Fresh or frozen squash: Frozen butternut squash is my preferred weeknight shortcut. If using fresh, peel and cut it into pieces about the same size as the frozen cubes.
- Kabocha squash: You can substitute kabocha squash for the butternut squash.
- Keep it brothy: The finished dish should be looser than traditional risotto. The arborio rice will continue absorbing liquid after cooking.
- Stir the rice: Arborio rice is very starchy and can stick to the bottom of the pot, so stir occasionally while it cooks.
- Best eaten fresh: This recipe is perfectly safe and delicious to eat later, but the texture will change as the rice continues absorbing the liquid. Leftovers will be considerably thicker.
- Storage: Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Add a splash of water when reheating to loosen the consistency.
- Pressure cooker alternatives: You can also make this in a traditional stovetop pressure cooker or a regular heavy-bottomed pot with a tight-fitting lid. Cooking times will vary and you will need to add more liquid as it evaporates.
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