COURSE:
Baby Food, Dinner, Lunch, Main Course, Side Dish
Veggie Purées in the Instant Pot
Smooth, wholesome and incredibly easy to prepare, these Veggie Purées in the Instant Pot are perfect for babies, toddlers or anyone looking to add more vegetables to their meals. With gentle pressure cooking and simple blending, you can create silky purées packed with natural flavour and nutrients – all with minimal effort.
Perfect for Weaning and Beyond
Whether you’re starting your little one on solids or preparing nutritious additions to family meals, homemade vegetable purées are a fantastic option. From sweet potato and carrot to broccoli, peas or butternut squash, the Instant Pot softens vegetables quickly while helping retain their goodness and vibrant colour.
Quick, Gentle Cooking
Using the steam or pressure function, vegetables cook evenly and efficiently without the need for constant checking. Once tender, simply blend to your desired consistency – smooth for early weaning stages or slightly textured as your baby grows. You can also mix and match vegetables to introduce new flavours.
Customisable and Freezer-Friendly
Make large batches and portion into ice cube trays for convenient storage. Once frozen, transfer to airtight containers and defrost as needed. You can enrich purées with a splash of breast milk, formula or a drizzle of olive oil for added creaminess and calories where appropriate.
Not Just for Babies
These purées aren’t only for little ones – they’re also great stirred into sauces, soups or mashed potatoes for a hidden veg boost. It’s a simple way to increase vegetable intake for the whole family.
Fresh, Simple and Nutritious
With the Instant Pot, making homemade veggie purées is quicker and easier than you might think. Fresh, preservative-free and made exactly how you like them, they’re a wholesome staple you’ll feel good about serving.
Veggie Purées in the Instant Pot
Prep Time:
15 minutes
Cook Time:
4–9 mins pressure cooking per batch
Servings:
Flexible
Product:
Instant Pot Multi-Cooker
Ingredients
- Carrots
- Parsnips
- Sweet potato
- Butternut squash
- Potatoes
- Broccoli
- Cauliflower
- Zucchini
- Apples or pears
- Water, for the Instant Pot
- 250ml ramekins
Instructions
Peel and scrub your vegetables where needed, then cut everything into roughly 2 cm chunks so they cook evenly. Broccoli should be cut into small florets, zucchini diced, and apples or pears peeled, cored, and diced.
Pour 250 ml water into the Instant Pot insert and place the trivet inside. Arrange your vegetables in heatproof ramekins and place them on the trivet. There is no need to cover the ramekins.
Group vegetables by density rather than mixing everything together. Firmer, starchy vegetables such as carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, butternut squash and potatoes should be cooked together. Pressure cook on High for 9 minutes, then allow a natural pressure release. If the vegetables are not easily pierced with a knife after cooking, pressure cook for 1-2 minutes more.
Softer vegetables and fruit such as broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, apples and pears should be cooked separately. Pressure cook these on High for 4 minutes, followed by a quick pressure release.
Once cooked, carefully remove the ramekins. Some liquid will collect in the bottom of the ramekins during cooking, which is useful for blending. Tip the entire contents of each ramekin into a jug and blend with a stick blender until completely smooth, adjusting thickness with the cooking liquid if needed.
Spoon the purées into silicone ice cube moulds or small containers and freeze. Once frozen, the cubes can be transferred to freezer bags and stored until needed.
Notes
A practical guide to batch-cooking and freezing purées for babies starting weaning. Cooking vegetables separately lets you introduce flavours one at a time, spot sensitivities easily, and build a freezer stash that can later be mixed and matched into more interesting combinations.
Using and Combining Purées
Start by offering single-ingredient purées on their own so your baby can get used to each flavour and texture. Once these are well tolerated, frozen cubes can be combined to create more varied meals.
Some favourite combinations:
- Zucchini, broccoli blended with fresh parsley for a vibrant green purée with gentle bitterness and freshness.
- Parsnip, carrot and cooked chicken for a naturally sweet, savoury, high-protein purée that’s filling and well balanced.
- Cauliflower, butternut squash and sweet potato for a smooth, mellow orange purée with plenty of fibre.
For a breakfast-style purée, blend apple and blueberries until smooth, then stir in 1–2 tablespoons of soaked chia seeds until you reach a spoonable consistency. This makes a high-fibre, naturally sweet option that works well once fruit has already been introduced.
This recipe is perfect for Multi Cooker like the Instant Pot Multi-Cooker.
Veggie Purées in the Instant Pot
COURSE:
Baby Food, Dinner, Lunch, Main Course, Side Dish
Prep Time:
15 minutes
Cook Time:
4–9 mins pressure cooking per batch
Servings:
Flexible
Product:
Instant Pot Multi-Cooker
Ingredients
- Carrots
- Parsnips
- Sweet potato
- Butternut squash
- Potatoes
- Broccoli
- Cauliflower
- Zucchini
- Apples or pears
- Water, for the Instant Pot
- 250ml ramekins
Instructions
Peel and scrub your vegetables where needed, then cut everything into roughly 2 cm chunks so they cook evenly. Broccoli should be cut into small florets, zucchini diced, and apples or pears peeled, cored, and diced.
Pour 250 ml water into the Instant Pot insert and place the trivet inside. Arrange your vegetables in heatproof ramekins and place them on the trivet. There is no need to cover the ramekins.
Group vegetables by density rather than mixing everything together. Firmer, starchy vegetables such as carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, butternut squash and potatoes should be cooked together. Pressure cook on High for 9 minutes, then allow a natural pressure release. If the vegetables are not easily pierced with a knife after cooking, pressure cook for 1-2 minutes more.
Softer vegetables and fruit such as broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, apples and pears should be cooked separately. Pressure cook these on High for 4 minutes, followed by a quick pressure release.
Once cooked, carefully remove the ramekins. Some liquid will collect in the bottom of the ramekins during cooking, which is useful for blending. Tip the entire contents of each ramekin into a jug and blend with a stick blender until completely smooth, adjusting thickness with the cooking liquid if needed.
Spoon the purées into silicone ice cube moulds or small containers and freeze. Once frozen, the cubes can be transferred to freezer bags and stored until needed.
Notes
A practical guide to batch-cooking and freezing purées for babies starting weaning. Cooking vegetables separately lets you introduce flavours one at a time, spot sensitivities easily, and build a freezer stash that can later be mixed and matched into more interesting combinations.
Using and Combining Purées
Start by offering single-ingredient purées on their own so your baby can get used to each flavour and texture. Once these are well tolerated, frozen cubes can be combined to create more varied meals.
Some favourite combinations:
- Zucchini, broccoli blended with fresh parsley for a vibrant green purée with gentle bitterness and freshness.
- Parsnip, carrot and cooked chicken for a naturally sweet, savoury, high-protein purée that’s filling and well balanced.
- Cauliflower, butternut squash and sweet potato for a smooth, mellow orange purée with plenty of fibre.
For a breakfast-style purée, blend apple and blueberries until smooth, then stir in 1–2 tablespoons of soaked chia seeds until you reach a spoonable consistency. This makes a high-fibre, naturally sweet option that works well once fruit has already been introduced.
This recipe is perfect for Multi Cooker like the Instant Pot Multi-Cooker.
Veggie Purées in the Instant Pot
Smooth, wholesome and incredibly easy to prepare, these Veggie Purées in the Instant Pot are perfect for babies, toddlers or anyone looking to add more vegetables to their meals. With gentle pressure cooking and simple blending, you can create silky purées packed with natural flavour and nutrients – all with minimal effort.
Perfect for Weaning and Beyond
Whether you’re starting your little one on solids or preparing nutritious additions to family meals, homemade vegetable purées are a fantastic option. From sweet potato and carrot to broccoli, peas or butternut squash, the Instant Pot softens vegetables quickly while helping retain their goodness and vibrant colour.
Quick, Gentle Cooking
Using the steam or pressure function, vegetables cook evenly and efficiently without the need for constant checking. Once tender, simply blend to your desired consistency – smooth for early weaning stages or slightly textured as your baby grows. You can also mix and match vegetables to introduce new flavours.
Customisable and Freezer-Friendly
Make large batches and portion into ice cube trays for convenient storage. Once frozen, transfer to airtight containers and defrost as needed. You can enrich purées with a splash of breast milk, formula or a drizzle of olive oil for added creaminess and calories where appropriate.
Not Just for Babies
These purées aren’t only for little ones – they’re also great stirred into sauces, soups or mashed potatoes for a hidden veg boost. It’s a simple way to increase vegetable intake for the whole family.
Fresh, Simple and Nutritious
With the Instant Pot, making homemade veggie purées is quicker and easier than you might think. Fresh, preservative-free and made exactly how you like them, they’re a wholesome staple you’ll feel good about serving.
