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Instant Pot?

Emily K

(website)

Veteran

I made a comment on Janet's thread about slow cookers, but thought I'd start a new conversation as well. Do any of you use the Instant Pot? What do you think? If it works as described, it sounds almost too good to be true. (Essentially, it's a programmable pressure cooker that can also do slow-cooker duty...or rice-cooker duty...or even function as a yogurt maker.) It's also supposed to have sauté capability which is an important criteria for me--I'd want to know how well that works before buying.

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37 replies

Latest reply was from Jeanie

minimalist

Veteran

Oh, no...on your description alone, this is sounding like something I should look into.

I've heard rave reviews, but based on the name imagined they were making individual portions of instant ramen in a small hot-pot.

kellygirl

Veteran

I'm a convert. I got mine on Black Friday and I've used it every week, several times a week since. The sauté function is awesome because I don't have to get another pot dirty when I'm hustling up a meal. I've made chicken curry, Mexican style chicken, steel cut oats, rice, braised kale, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes and pasta to name a few things. It's not any faster than my stovetop pressure cooker but it doesn't require as much babysitting. It is programmable and has a warm function. TBH, I haven't used the programmable option yet though so I can't really comment on how that works. if you can't tell, i really like it. It is much more versatile than my crock pot.

ETA: hard boiled eggs are amazing in this thing too. They come out so easy to peel!

Emily K

(website)

Veteran

Minimalist--I know, right?
kellygirl--Thanks for the feedback. My crockpot recently died--I was not a huge fan, but did use it sometimes. And, I've wanted a pressure cooker for some time, but failed to pull the trigger. This device sounds SO perfect for me. Special thanks for the intel on sautéing.

For Sautéing, do you use the pot liner directly on the stovetop like a pan?

deb

Veteran

Here is a complete review of the Instant pot with video.

https://marianoskitchen.com/instant-pot/

rachylou

Veteran

Oh, I'm intrigued! My mum's kitchen reno has a month to go and she doesn't like the hot plate that the project coordinator brought her. Cooking in the foyer doesn't seem like a good idea at all. I got her a 700-watt microwave... the 1100 is too much for the outlet with the fridge also plugged in there. But Lean Cusines morning, noon and night aren't doing it her.

Style Fan

Veteran

I have never heard of this. I will look into it. Thank you for bringing it up.

elpgal

Veteran

I am still considering buying one. We use a pressure cooker regularly and my usual procedure is to to cook and then add sauteed aromatics.

kellygirl

Veteran

@EmilyK: There is a saute function on the pot so I saute using the liner in the instant pot. There is no sautéing on the stove for me. For instance, for curry, I throw in a little coconut oil and sauce onions, curry seasoning and jalapeños in the instant pot. When those are soft, I turn the sauce function off and add the chicken, coconut milk, etc, put the lid on and pressure cook.

The other cool thing is doing Pot in Pot cooking. Foods that have similar cooking times can be cooked together in separate containers. I haven't done that yet but plan to try it soon.

carter

Veteran

I have had one for about a year, and I love it. As KG said, you really can do a meal from start to finish in the InstantPot. I've made pot roast, short ribs, beef stew and curries in it with great success. The thing I use it most often for though is shredded chicken for use in various recipes throughout the week...so maybe chicken salad for lunch, taco salad with chicken, chicken and veggie soup, chicken white chili, bbq pulled chcken, etc.

The one thing I will say is that I find the stainless liner somewhat of a pain to clean. If anyone has any ideas there, please share.

texstyle

(website)

Veteran

I love mine! I've had it for about two years now and use it all the time for stews and beans in particular. The saute feature is excellent! You can also boil eggs that come clean from the shell much more easily - look up instructions for how to do it!

Emily K

(website)

Veteran

Thank you, everybody! It is seeming more like a win/win all the time!
Carter--is it something about the size/shape that makes it hard to clean, or just the super-baked-on fats? That is a tough problem to solve. Our pans are All-Clad and it is hard to clean around the rivets. I use a combo of copper scrubby, brillo pad, and Bar Keepers Friend powder--whatever I have on hand. If I get it all, every time, I can keep up on it. Unfortunately, my husband does not share my rigor on this issue, so keeping the pans sparkling is a tough task.

Glory

Veteran

I've had one for about 1.5 years and have made loads of different things. So far no fails. I will admit I was a bit slow on the uptake. I liked my crock pot, stove top etc and was so familiar it made it hard to change. Once I did ... I was converted. I have made yogurt, rice, pudding, you name it. Fabulous! Extra bonus for me is that the designer is a local fellow in my hood!

Echo

Veteran

I bought one during Amazon's sales before the holidays, but I haven't used it much. I think the main issue is what Glory mentioned; it is difficult to make the change to something new. Additionally, I don't seem to be able to find a lot of recipes - and you would think with google searches a person could find a million. But none that sound really good. I need to get it out and try it again...

Emily K

(website)

Veteran

I found this useful article about converting recipes to different cooking methods--stove top, slow cooker, pressure cooker--the part about the differences in taste/efficacy of dried herbs and spicing was new to me as I don't frequently convert a recipe from one cooking method to another--and there is info about converting cooking times.

https://www.washingtonpost.com.....e-a-recipe

carter

Veteran

Emily, it's the non-sparkling part that irks me. My typical pots, pans and other cookware are anodized aluminum, ceramic, or glass...all easy to clean without harsh chemicals or excess elbow grease;-) I probably just need to get over my OCD self and call it clean enough.

Isabel

Veteran

Wow, that sounds incredible. My mom regularly used a pressure cooker. I have been afraid to. But the modern ones are suppose to be amazing. My interest is piqued.

JAileen

Veteran

I talked about this item with a friend of mine. She was thinking about getting one and I started reading up about them. This website had several articles:

http://www.thekitchn.com

The thing is, I already have a pressure cooker, a rice cooker, and a slow cooker. However, the first two are more than 30 years old and have been used regularly over the years, and the third hasn't been used much, so I'm not sure there's a need other than to satisfy my curiosity. But I'm definitely curious!

crazyone

Veteran

I have one, and I love it. I somehow haven't used the saute function much in it yet, but I should get around to that. I have used it to:

steam cook/pressure cook veggies
make yogurt using the yogurt making function
cook beans from dried
make cheesecake (yes, you can "bake" in your pressure cooker)
make rice and oatmeal (I find it very convenient that I can cook smaller quantities by putting the bowl on a trivet with some water inside the larger lining)
make mulled cider or wine (cider on the high pressure setting, wine on the slow cooker setting)

I got rid of my rice cooker once I got the instant pot. I have kept my stovetop pressure cooker, but I don't use it nearly as much any more. I personally find the instant pot less messy to clean and also much easier to use than the stovetop versions, since you can just step away from it once you program it. The stovetop versions ARE faster though, so that is one big advantage.

Anonymous

I have one but haven't used it that much. I really love my slow cooker, rice cooker, and easy-to-clean Belgique stainless steel (made in Belgium - bought 30 years ago) and Calphalon nonstick anodized aluminum (Unison and Signature) cookware. I have a gas cooktop and wouldn't trade it for an electric if you paid me.

UmmLila (Lisa)

Veteran

I bought one last week. But I haven't read the manual yet.

JAileen

Veteran

Here's an interesting article about them:

http://www.hippressurecooking......t-for-you/

Karie

(website)

Veteran

I'll have to go back and read all the comments later, but I popped in to say that DH got me one for Christmas and so far I love it! I've used it several times already. Last week I made a chicken dinner and then chicken soup and both were delish.

Anonymous

I'm sold.

kkards

Veteran

never even heard of this....and now I am off to investigate.....one quick question for people who own it, would it work even if you are only making meals for one? or does it have to be 3/4ish full?

crazyone

Veteran

yes, it works for smaller quantities too! Just use a smaller steel bowl placed on a trivet with some water poured in on the bottom. Of course, this won't work for the saute function, but should work for other things.

UmmLila (Lisa)

Veteran

Off the subject a little, but I made beef bourguignon last week in a traditional manner with a cast iron le creuset pot, which I have often avoided using due to difficulty washing. The friend who gave me the recipe told me to use barkeepers friend (a product I use for sink cleaning usually) on the le creuset and it worked ...wonder if it would be good on the Instant Pot. I still haven't used mine but the first thing I though of when looking at it was "crap, this will be hard to clean.'

Beth Ann

Veteran

Ooh......going to check it out now! I'm working later in the evenings, and I don't care for "slow cooker texture" for my meats and veggies.

elpgal

Veteran

Beth, you nailed it! Exactly why I don't like the slow cooker much for vegetables. It's great for beans and lentils.

Marmee

Veteran

I just got mine, and have used to make a couple of soups and number of batches of chicken stock. This Thai red curry soup was a winner, although I added the kale and coconut milk at the end, because I was worried about the kale overcooking and the coconut milk curdling.

I've sautéed in it with good luck, and haven't had trouble cleaning out the insert. I will say that I have found it a bit more work to get the chicken stock smell out of the lid.

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