Using the Instant Pot

[CaptTom]

Ours lives on the countertop. Used for almost every home-cooked meal.

I scoffed at using it for simple things I've always done on the stove, like corn on the cob or pasta. But after filling the kitchen up with steam both times, I'm sold. I'll use the IP next time. Although my wife makes a great one-pot lasagna in it, I still like making the "real" layered stuff. But honestly, it's just as good from the IP.

Another huge plus is the ability to saute in the pan. Saves all those extra pots, and the mess on the stove.

We've never found anything which takes longer (overall) in the IP. 50 minute natural release time seems way out of the norm for us.

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaptTom We've never found anything which takes longer (overall) in the IP. 50 minute natural release time seems way out of the norm for us.

Also, even if something takes a while to cook, I don't have to do anything with it. No need to stir, watch to keep it from boiling over, and so on. I can just sit there on my bar stool at the counter, play my video game, and ignore the Instant Pot until done.

As for the natural release time, I never use it. Actually I think it is fun to open the valve and watch that steam shoot upwards. OK, it doesn't take much to entertain me. Anyway, I have only had my Instant Pot for about a month and have a lot more to discover about it.

[AnneG]

Most recipes will tell you which release method to use. Meat should always be done with a natural release but it’s fine after about 10 minutes. Veggies need the quick release so they don’t get mushy.

Agree with the set it and forget it part - I used to slow cook things on top of the stove and it required constant monitoring- with the IP, I can just leave it alone.

[braumeister]

I was under the weather the last couple of days and when I started feeling a little better I wanted some comfort food. The first thing that came to mind was rice pudding, which I have always loved. Half an hour later I had a nice bowl of it. Instant Pots rule!

[dvalley]

I'm going to try this recipe/method for frozen chicken breasts in my IP.

https://fitfoodiefinds.com/instant-pot-chicken-breast/

If it works that would be a huge win because it's so simple (that I'm not even convinced it'll work). Then again I can never cook meat (especially chicken and steak) without it turning dry. Last time I tried making shredded chicken following a recipe in the IP book I got to finish it alone over the next 3 days...if that tells you how it turned out lol

[Time2re]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dvalley I'm going to try this recipe/method for frozen chicken breasts in my IP. https://fitfoodiefinds.com/instant-pot-chicken-breast/ If it works that would be a huge win because it's so simple (that I'm not even convinced it'll work). Then again I can never cook meat (especially chicken and steak) without it turning dry. Last time I tried making shredded chicken following a recipe in the IP book I got to finish it alone over the next 3 days...if that tells you how it turned out lol

I make shredded chicken frequently. I add a couple of tablespoons of the pot juices after shredding with a mixer. Very moist, but needs lots of spices.

[dvalley]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Time2re I make shredded chicken frequently. I add a couple of tablespoons of the pot juices after shredding with a mixer. Very moist, but needs lots of spices.

Now which kind of pot are we talking about here?

[Pellice]

Quote:

Originally Posted by EastWest Gal I like Indian food, and using my pressure cooker (Instant pot equivalent) really cuts the time and mess. I can brown the meat/chicken, remove to a plate, fry to onions, add the ginger, garlic and spices, and whatever else the recipe calls for, purée with a stick blender, then add the protein back in, pressure cook fo a few minutes, add finishing ingredients, and I’m done. Cooking cauliflower is a cinch. Hard-boiled eggs (there’s a whole thread on this topic) are amazing. How do you cook a cheesecake in an instant pot? Wouldn’t the crust be mushy?

I have some reservations about the saute function. The surface area is too small for much browning proper, and the two saute settings do not allow for much fine-tuning, which matters for some things. And if you add all the time spent, including the pressurizing and depressurizing, does it really save time? But I do use mine a lot!

[AnneG]

Quote:

Originally Posted by EastWest Gal ... How do you cook a cheesecake in an instant pot? Wouldn’t the crust be mushy?

They sell a 7" springform pan that fits inside the instant pot on top of the trivet. You cover the top with tin foil to keep the condensation from getting it wet. It actually works pretty well. I always use a nut crust instead of a graham cracker one and the crust was fine - not mushy at all.

[audreyh1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pellice I have some reservations about the saute function. The surface area is too small for much browning proper, and the two saute settings do not allow for much fine-tuning, which matters for some things. And if you add all the time spent, including the pressurizing and depressurizing, does it really save time? But I do use mine a lot!

I have had terrific results browning in the instant pot using the sauté setting and I have three levels of control.

You have to do things in batches, depending on the recipe. For stews I follow the good advice of dadcooksdinner.com and brown just on one side to save time. For larger pieces of meat like lamb shanks I brown on most sides.

Here is an example of the lovely browning on a piece of chuck roast in preparation for pot roast in the IP.

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fosterscik I use mine almost every night. […] My favorite meals are […] baby-back ribs

Thanks for the suggestion!!! I cooked baby back ribs in my Instant Pot for dinner last night, and they were amazingly good. I never would have thought of cooking them in my Instant Pot so thanks again.

I get my meat from butcherbox dot com. They send a fairly random selection of meats, but lately they have included ribs in every box. I never normally cook or eat ribs (not my kind of food!!). So, I didn't really know what to do with them and they were stacking up in the back of my freezer. I have five packages of them stacked up in there by now. Anyway, now I know what to do with them. They were so surprisingly delicious when cooked in the Instant Pot. So tender, fall-off-the-bone tender as they say.

I didn't use any BBQ sauce or other sauces or ingredients because I don't like BBQ plus I am working hard on weight loss. They were still fabulous and satisfying. Much to my surprise, this morning my weight is down another pound too. The calories were not as high as I had thought they would be.

[walkinwood]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pellice ...I have found the "natural release" to take twice as long as advertised. Supposed to be a maximum of 25 minutes for most items; mine goes much longer than that, 50 minutes yesterday. I'm going to check the valve, but it doesn't look clogged.

I had a similar experience last week when I made brisket in the instant pot. I released the steam after 15 minutes of natural release and was surprised at how much steam came out. It went on for almost a minute! This was the first time that's happened to me. Usually, after 15 minutes, it splutters a bit and is then done.



It shouldn't depend on the pressure valve or any other valve since pressure reduces because the cooker & contents cool down. The pot was quite full and that may be the cause.



I've used a stove top pressure cooker for years and it takes about 15-20 minutes to lose pressure after turning off the heat.


At first, I was skeptical about the instant pot. The selling point for me (to use it - DW bought it) is that I don't have to monitor the flame & turn it down to maintain pressure & then turn it off at the exact time. The deep pot also keeps oil from soiling the stovetop when sauteeing, but that's true in a stove top pressure cooker too. Once I get it started, I can walk away and wait for it to be done. If I'm not there at the exact time, it doesn't matter that much except for delicate items.



IMHO, pressure cookers are a waste of time for delicate items unless they somehow taste better or have a better texture when cooked under pressure.

[fosterscik]

Quote:

Originally Posted by W2R Thanks for the suggestion!!! I cooked baby back ribs in my Instant Pot for dinner last night, and they were amazingly good... ...I didn't use any BBQ sauce or other sauces or ingredients because I don't like BBQ plus I am working hard on weight loss. They were still fabulous and satisfying. Much to my surprise, this morning my weight is down another pound too. The calories were not as high as I had thought they would be.

Glad you enjoyed them!
One of the benefit of the recipe is the ease with which you can modify the spices and seasonings. I use the rub in the Dad's recipe but I make my own variation of the sauce used at the end. Like you I avoid sugary things so I eliminate the brown sugar, honey etc. in most recipes. In this case I eliminate the honey, keep some ketchup (I know, lots of sugar in that ) and add sriratcha.

[DFDubb]

Wish I could find a way to like the IP. I bought one after reading people constantly praise them on sites similar to this one. After a year or so, my thoughts are meh. A couple of things I've made were decently good, but most have been lackluster at best. Tried making baby back ribs once and they just came out like a weird lump of rib meat (think mcdonalds rib sandwich). I'm no slouch in the kitchen by any stretch, but this thing has gotten the better of me. It's about to become a soup only making machine.

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by fosterscik Glad you enjoyed them! One of the benefit of the recipe is the ease with which you can modify the spices and seasonings. I use the rub in the Dad's recipe but I make my own variation of the sauce used at the end. Like you I avoid sugary things so I eliminate the brown sugar, honey etc. in most recipes. In this case I eliminate the honey, keep some ketchup (I know, lots of sugar in that ) and add sriratcha.

Thanks for the suggestions!

[dvalley]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dvalley I'm going to try this recipe/method for frozen chicken breasts in my IP. https://fitfoodiefinds.com/instant-pot-chicken-breast/ If it works that would be a huge win because it's so simple (that I'm not even convinced it'll work). Then again I can never cook meat (especially chicken and steak) without it turning dry. Last time I tried making shredded chicken following a recipe in the IP book I got to finish it alone over the next 3 days...if that tells you how it turned out lol

I tried this and it worked! Next time I'll up the cook time to 13mins instead of 12mins because the thick part of the breast was a hint crunchy but frozen to cooked in less than 20 mins is awesome!

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by DFDubb Wish I could find a way to like the IP. I bought one after reading people constantly praise them on sites similar to this one. After a year or so, my thoughts are meh. A couple of things I've made were decently good, but most have been lackluster at best. Tried making baby back ribs once and they just came out like a weird lump of rib meat (think mcdonalds rib sandwich). I'm no slouch in the kitchen by any stretch, but this thing has gotten the better of me. It's about to become a soup only making machine.

I have been a little perplexed by mine too, but I am getting into it gradually. One thing that helped me was looking at youtubes of people showing how they cooked various things in the Instant Pot. I have gone from just staring at it, to using it maybe 3 times a week.

I have never tried soup in it yet! I can tell that I have lots more to try and experience. I do love homemade soups.

Here's what I like about the Instant Pot:

(1) My favorite thing about the Instant Pot is that it won't burn the house down if I forget about it for a few hours by mistake. I am (sometimes) a little drifty and tend to get distracted easily if something interests me, just like my late mother. I need to plan around that.

(2) I also like that I don't have to do anything once it starts, so I can just sit by it and play my video games or whatever.

(3) Finally, I like that cleanup is such a breeze.

[Another Reader]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dvalley I tried this and it worked! Next time I'll up the cook time to 13mins instead of 12mins because the thick part of the breast was a hint crunchy but frozen to cooked in less than 20 mins is awesome!

I tried it too. Browned the frozen chicken, added onions, carrots, and garlic and some low sodium chicken broth and cooked for 13 minutes. Used the natural release, less than 15 minutes. I might try cooking 12 minutes next time, as the chicken was slightly dry. Fine for chicken salad or any other use requiring cut up or cubed cooked chicken, and the flavor is excellent.

The 6 quart I have does have one issue, a hot spot. Things tend to stick there and once something stuck and burned to the pot. Did not wreck the dish I was preparing, but I keep it in mind now.

[gromit]

For people that have Facebook accounts, there's a group with 500,000+ members for "Instant Pot Recipes Only". For this group every post must include a recipe. Many of the posts are along the lines of "here's a link to a recipe I liked, or I changed this linked recipe a little and like it better my way", etc. I don't read the group frequently, but if I want to see new ideas for say a chicken dish, I can search the group for "chicken" and then read through a bunch of chicken recipe posts.

[dvalley]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Another Reader I tried it too. Browned the frozen chicken, added onions, carrots, and garlic and some low sodium chicken broth and cooked for 13 minutes. Used the natural release, less than 15 minutes. I might try cooking 12 minutes next time, as the chicken was slightly dry. Fine for chicken salad or any other use requiring cut up or cubed cooked chicken, and the flavor is excellent. The 6 quart I have does have one issue, a hot spot. Things tend to stick there and once something stuck and burned to the pot. Did not wreck the dish I was preparing, but I keep it in mind now.

I followed the recipe exactly so I didn't brown the chicken first. I also did the quick release so as to not overcook it. Turned out almost perfect for me. The broth it made (I just used 2 tablespoons of water, salt and pepper) was also very tasty