This tender, beer-infused Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage is the perfect way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Using the pressure cooker function makes it easy and convenient to cook a traditional corned beef dinner in less time.
For a recipe without an Instant Pot, try my Beer-Braised Corned Beef or Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Cabbage.
Before You Start Cooking
- Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage is a one-pot meal that shaves off about an hour from start to finish compared to braising in a Dutch oven. Compared to slow cooker corned beef, which takes 8 to 9 hours, the Instant Pot meal is substantially quicker.
- This recipe was developed using a 6-quart Instant Pot Duo Plus. You’ll need the handled trivet that comes with the Instant Pot—this makes it much easier to lift out the brisket once it’s cooked and tender.
- You’ll need a 4-pound corned beef brisket for this recipe. I use flat cut for the best slices, but readers have told me they’ve also used point cut with good results. (Check out Brisket: Flat Cut vs. Point Cut from Cuisine at Home to read about the differences between the cuts.)
How to Make Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage
Before cooking, remove the corned beef from its packaging and rinse brisket thoroughly with cool water (2-3 times) to remove excess brine from the surface of the meat. This will help prevent the corned beef from being too salty after cooking.
I don’t recommend trimming the fat cap before cooking. The fat adds flavor and moisture to the meat, and can be trimmed before serving, if needed.
Step 1: Fill the Instant Pot
Add peeled and sliced yellow onions, whole peeled garlic cloves, and pickling spice (or the spice packet included with your corned beef) to your Instant Pot insert. Pour in 2-1/2 cups of cool water.
Place the rinsed corned beef brisket, fat side up, on the trivet that came with your Instant Pot. Nestle the trivet into the pot, then pour a 12-ounce bottle of beer over the brisket.
Tip: Choosing the Right Beer
As with my Beer-Braised Corned Beef, I prefer to use a lager that isn’t too strong or hops-forward. I most often use a bottle of Samuel Smith Pure Brewed Organic Lager or Sam Adams Boston Lager.
If you want to use stout, go for a milder one like Guinness Draught, which is less bitter than Extra Stout, or Murphy’s Irish Stout.
Before sealing the lid, check the liquid level—it should reach up the sides of the brisket. The amount of water you need may vary by your brisket’s dimensions.
While the Instant Pot might only need 1 to 1-1/2 cups of liquid to pressurize, this is not enough to draw the salt out of the meat. Adjust the quantity of water as needed, but don’t exceed the insert’s 2/3 fill line.
Step 3: Pressure Cook the Corned Beef
Lock the Instant Pot lid in place and set the vent to sealing. Cook the corned beef at high pressure for 85 minutes for a 4-pound brisket, followed by a 20-minute natural release. With this timing, the meat comes out fork-tender but still sliceable against the grain without falling apart.
Keep in mind that the Instant Pot takes about 15 minutes to come up to pressure for this recipe, so the total cooking time comes out to approximately 2 hours.
We always make corned beef that weighs around 4 pounds to ensure leftovers, but much smaller briskets will take a little bit less time. We’ve found 70 minutes at high pressure to be sufficient for 2-pound briskets, with a 15-minute natural release.
Once the cooking is complete and the remaining pressure is released from the Instant Pot, carefully remove the corned beef. Strain the cooking liquid, discarding the pickling spices and solids.
To keep the meat warm and juicy, place the corned beef in a dish with a small amount of the strained liquid and cover it with foil while you cook your vegetables.
Step 4: Pressure Cook the Vegetables
Adding vegetables to an Instant Pot corned beef dinner is a breeze. I love the flavor that the pressure cooker infuses into the potatoes, carrots, and cabbage from the beer-based cooking liquid.
I don’t usually get that excited about boiled or steamed cabbage wedges, but I really enjoy the flavor of these.
To cook the vegetables, add 1-1/2 cups of the strained cooking liquid back into the Instant Pot insert. Layer in baby carrots, creamer potatoes (red and/or yellow, about the size of golf balls), and a head of cabbage cut into 8 wedges (leave the core intact so they don’t fall apart.)
Be sure not to layer the vegetables past the pot’s 2/3 fill line. Pressure cook on high for 3 to 4 minutes (depending on how soft you like your vegetables), with a manual (quick) release.
Don’t want to cook vegetables in the Instant Pot? Skip this step and try my Roasted Cabbage Wedges on the side or a bowl of creamy Colcannon instead.
Serving Your Instant Pot Corned Beef Dinner
When ready to serve, slice the corned beef against the grain into 1/8 to 1/4-inch slices.
If the corned beef has a substantial fat cap, you might want to trim it down or remove it entirely before slicing. This is entirely a matter of personal preference. We like to serve the brisket with some of the fat left on.
When serving, spoon a little bit of the strained cooking liquid over the sliced corned beef on the platter to keep the meat juicy. While the meat is flavorful on its own, I usually offer guests whole grain mustard or horseradish sauce (like my Creamy Horseradish Sauce or Roasted Garlic Horseradish Sauce) on the side.
When adding the vegetables to the serving platter, I like to drizzle them with a little bit of melted butter and finish with a sprinkle of chopped parsley for a pop of color and freshness.
Don’t forget loaf of Irish Soda Bread, sliced and slathered with Irish butter!
Storing and Using Leftovers
Store leftover corned beef and vegetables in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. To keep the meat from drying out, add a small amount of the strained cooking liquid over the slices.
Looking for ways to enjoy your leftovers? Try these favorite recipes:
- Corned Beef Hash: A classic breakfast with crispy potatoes and eggs.
- Reuben Sandwiches, Reuben Sliders, or Reuben Dip: With tangy sauerkraut and melty Swiss cheese.
- Corned Beef Sandwiches with Coleslaw: A deli-style favorite.
- Corned Beef and Potato Cakes: Pan-fried and crispy!
More St. Patrick’s Day Recipes
- Stout Beer Braised Short Ribs (Dutch oven or Instant Pot)
- Guinness Beef Stew
- Irish Scones
- Stout Braised Short Rib Cottage Pie
Craving more? Check out my full collection of St. Patrick’s Day recipes.
Instant Pot Corned Beef
Ingredients
- 1 small yellow onion , sliced (use 1/2 if large)
- 4 cloves garlic , peeled and lightly smashed with the back of a knife
- 2 tablespoons pickling spice (or the seasoning packet that came with your corned beef)
- 2-1/2 cups water
- 4 pound corned beef brisket , rinsed in cool water to remove excess salt/liquid brine
- 12 ounces lager-style beer (nothing too bitter)
- 1 pound tiny potatoes (about 1-1/2 inches in diameter), or red-skinned potatoes cut into 1-1/2 inch wedges
- 1 head cabbage , cut into 8 wedges
- 1 pound baby carrots
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley , for garnish
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter , melted (optional)
- grainy mustard or horseradish sauce , for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Combine onion, garlic, pickling spices, and water in the insert of a 6-quart Instant Pot. Place the corned beef brisket, fat side up, on a rack on top of the onions. Pour beer over the brisket.
- Seal lid and set the unit to HIGH pressure for 85 minutes. Let pressure release naturally for 20 minutes, then manually release the remaining pressure.* Remove corned beef and place on a dish or a cutting board, spooning a bit of the cooking liquid over the top. Cover with foil to keep warm.
- Strain cooking liquid and discard solids. Return 1-1/2 cups of liquid to the Instant Pot and add potatoes, carrots, and cabbage wedges. (Reserve remaining cooking liquid.) Seal lid and set the unit to HIGH pressure for 3-4 minutes, depending on how soft you like your vegetables. Quick release pressure.
- Slice corned beef against the grain. Spoon a little bit of the reserved cooking liquid over the corned beef slices on your platter. Sprinkle parsley over the vegetables, and if desired, drizzle with melted butter. Serve corned beef with mustard.
Notes
To Glaze The Corned Beef (Optional)
This corned beef is also delicious served with my Irish Whiskey-Mustard glaze. The ingredients and directions can be found in my recipe, Beer Braised Corned Beef with Whiskey Mustard Glaze. After fully cooking the corned beef in the Instant Pot (instead of Dutch oven braising), follow the directions to “Glaze and Serve”.Nutrition Estimate
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Please note that our recipes have been developed using the US Customary measurement system and have not been tested for high altitude/elevation cooking and baking.
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Editor’s Note: This reader-favorite recipe was originally published on Striped Spatula on March 3, 2018. We’ve updated this post in 2022 and 2025 with improved copy to best serve our readers.
Made this exactly as written and it was SOOO good!!! Everyone loved it!
Excellent recipe! Made this with a 3 pound corned beef. It was tender and tasty. Used a Stella Artois beer. Thank you for the great recipe the video was also nice for quick reference!
So good! First time using my pressure cooker for a corned beef and I stumbled on this recipe. Who needs to only eat corned beef on St Pats Day? Perfect for a cold/rainy NJ winters day.
Deliciousness in an Instant Pot! Tender, tasty, easy. I had a 3,3 lb and used high pressure for 82 minutes, then I did the vegees for 4 minutes. Next time I’ll try 3 minutes on the vegees. They were really good, but could have been just a tiny bit less done for my liking. Total time between from start to finish of everything was about 2-1/2 hours. **A hint for those who don’t like waiting for IP to come up to pressure…I throw it on saute before pressure with just the liner in for about 30 seconds. It’s just enough heating of the element so that it comes up to pressure much quicker!
Oh my goodness the cook time was PERFECT. So tender and falling apart!! I just suggest using math to figure out your exact cook time. The recipe called for 85 minutes for 4 pounds, so just do 85÷4.. (21.25 minutes per pound) then multiply 21.25 by your brisket weight (outs weighed 2.74) and that will give you the exact number of minutes to cook your brisket!
This is my absolute GO-TO for corned beef! It’s the best out there.
I’m so glad you enjoy it as much as we do, Karen!
I made this with 3 lb corned beef. high-pressure 77 minutes to accommodate for smaller size. It was perfect. Did veggies high pressure 1 minute with quick release. Put potatoes in first then carrots then cabbage. Cabbage slightly underdone carrots slightly overdone potatoes were perfect. Next time I’ll do cabbage first then potatoes then carrots for 1 minute. This is going to be one of my favorite recipes that I go back to a lot it’s the best. Thank you so much for sharing it.
Made this today with 3.2# corned beef brisket – 85 minutes, then did the veggies afterward as suggested. Used an NA beer for the lager & the pickling spice packet provided with the meat, (which was about 1/2 of what the recipe called for.) It turned out very well. The beer lent a flavor to the meat that seemed almost sweet but it was subtle & yummy. We will make this again.
Absolutely delicious! I added more liquid…another cup of water.
Hands down the best food to emerge from our IP!! You nailed deliciousness with this recipe.
Made this and enjoyed with friends who also thought it was delicious! Easy! Hardest part is waiting for the pressure to come back up for the veggies. Will make again!
I made this yesterday for my husband and it was a huge hit! I used Guinness instead of a lager as I like that richer taste and also used the link for your mustard. I am in love and cannot wait to make this recipe again!
Making this tonight and I can’t wait to try it after reading all of the comments! Quick question, the 3-4 minutes for the vegetables is after the pressure builds again?
Hi Ashley, the 3-4 minutes is after the veggies come to pressure (depending on how soft you like them cooked). Enjoy!
Delicious! We substituted a can of hard cider for the lager since I’m gluten free. Wonderful light apple infused broth. Perfectly cooked veggies. My husband was very skeptical of the 4 min for the veggies. He was pleasantly surprised. Excellent
We have loved getting to know our Instant Pot and I have to admit I was a bit nervous about trying corned beef this way… but this was by far the BEST corned beef we’ve ever had!!! Homemade OR in a restaurant! I love that the veggies are cooked much less time but in the juices from the beef. The cabbage was actually the tastiest and was gobbled up by all!!! Thank you for putting this out there – I would love to see other recipes from you for the Instant Pot – I’ll start hunting around!!! I’m sure google has them somewhere!!! Do you have a cookbook out there I can purchase?