What have you found Most Useful when using an Instapot?

I have spent most of the morning on the Insatpot website looking at recipes.

I understand that many recipes can be cooked in the Instapot without adding any other equipment.

Many recipes call for a 7 x 3 pan, like for cakes.  I feel if I am going to buy a pan the best choice would be a cheesecake pan because the bottom is removable.

Though I wonder if the pans I already have will work.  I have two stainless mixing bowls that will fit inside the Instapot and all my Corningware will fit inside.

What have you bought or have that works well with the Instapot?

I'm no help. We got one for Christmas last year and haven't used it yet. We are about to though. It's ready for unboxing right next to me. So, I'm interested to see what info the thread churns up as well.

Anne Miller wrote:

I understand that many recipes can be cooked in the Instapot without adding any other equipment.
...
Though I wonder if the pans I already have will work.  I have two stainless mixing bowls that will fit inside the Instapot and all my Corningware will fit inside.
...
What have you bought or have that works well with the Instapot?

( stream of contiousness, not quite coffee'd yet, thank you in advance for the accomidation )

First off I'm an evanjelical instant pot pusher.  Not for money mind you, but for ideals and saftey.  


I have purchasd at one time or another, basicly all the different types of add ons.   I have mostly given them away to new instnat pot owners.  I recmoend getting an all in once set of all the sillicone things, egg trays, steamer baskets, whever.  See if they work for you then pass the ones that do not on to others.  This clears up the fomo that you might get dithering over it.   The isntant pot can save a pile of money.  I used some of the saved money to get all the things to prove I don't need them _and_ that you arn't missing out.


The ones that I use are a steamer basket ( currently one that was in the kitchen before the instant pot showed up but ifts well enough)... A few extra silicon sealing rings, so I can have rings used for spices and seperate ones used for bland things like yogert.  That's it, that, and a sillicon lid for the fridge is all I use.  An extra pot might be useful for the logicstics of cooking.  E.g. Slow cook something for the day, then swap in another pot for quickly steaming some veggies or potatoes or something.


I do use the instant pot for light canning.   at 11 PSI check your tables for times and what you can do with it.  For steaming I do use the included wire rack.


Speaking of steam diverters.  Especially if you have one of the versions that can be programed for specific heats,  Some tubing that goes from the steam output port ( take off the thing that looks like a jiggler, and there's a nice hollow metal post that tube can be clamped to ) to whatever receiptical you can find.  


Why?  Because you have just made a still for making water safe, really really safe.   Some tube, and a hose clamp or two is enough.  Use copper if you are worried about reactions, off gassing or want hgiher throughput ( there is a lot of energy in steam ).


I hear good things about the 6 qt air frying lid.    I'm trying one out now.   It'll never be as good as a real oven, an oil fryer, or a rocket stove pizza cooker, and that is not the nitch I'm shooting for.   I can see it being @#$@#4 perfect for less hasttle off grid tater tots in 20 minutes.  ( assuming there are some solar pannels and big batteries around ).  FYI : 200 g of tots, @ 400 degrees for 9 minutes for less than 0.20 KWH.   Or about 1500 watts when running.  ... so technically I guess a kill-o-watt or equivilant ( Poniie PN1500 Portable Micro Electricity Usage Monitor Electrical Power Consumption Watt Meter , have been good to me and are what I'm using now ) would be a good addition.


Happy instanting !

I take one as my lunchbox all winter, I bought a stacking Tiffin bowl set so I can have three plates of food ready to go.  Me and my two sons have hot grassfed beef and veggies for cheaper than cold lunchmeat.

Tom, thank you for the useful tips.  I find them as handy as a shirt pocket!

I like the idea of having an extra pot when making a pot of chili, stew, or beans, I can see where that is really useful.

The tip about the extra sealing rings is really a great idea.

If I used it every day I can see the tubes for the steam diverters really a great idea.

R Scott, I like the idea for the stacking Tiffin bowl set.  Where did you buy yours?

I bought the silicone egg bites because our daughter really likes hers and uses the egg bites every day.

Has anyone baked cakes in their instant pot or is this a new function?

Anne Miller wrote:
Has anyone baked cakes in their instant pot or is this a new function?

It's definitely not a new function. I had this cookbook (which was VERY helpful for me in learning to cook beans and soups with the IP) and she talks about stacking pans to cook a three course meal (including cake). I'm old school and didn't get into that, but the recipes looked yummy.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1624143385?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

I second the extra silicone rings. I try to use one for sweet things/neutral things and one for savoury and strongly spiced things. I use the steamer rack that came with it a lot, and sometimes put canning jars I am cooking stuff in on-top of the steamer rack, for yoghurt making or custard making. I haven't done any baking in mine, but have no issues putting pyrex glass in mine.

Amazon is FULL of accessories, most of them pretty cheap (the tiffen set is NOT). Make sure to check the reviews, as there are multiple versions of everything!

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B079G7GS13?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

Most useful… well 4 out of 6 of the products she mentions I’m so glad I bought: “Instant Pot Must Haves! 6 Accessories That Make Using Your Instant Pot Easier!”  

1. An extra pot to make a side of grains or steamed veggies after your main dish

2. A clear glass top lid (this is very useful when steaming veggies, when you like multiple types of veggies Al dente, and warming up leftovers)

3. InstantPot silicone lids… I thought, would I really use these? How hard is it to just put leftovers in another container? But I’m so glad I bought 2 of these.

4. An extra silicone ring to have one for sweet and one for savory. The two desserts I tried weren’t that good and I find I have a sensitivity to eggs and dairy so this didn’t get much use.

When reheating leftovers I’ve kept them in Pyrex dishes and placed them on top of the stainless steaming rack in the InstantPot with filtered water under but the stainless pans look cool too.

I wouldn’t toss my slow cooker and use the InstantPot for slow cooking but with these accessories I’d definitely take it as my only kitchen appliance I could on a road trip where I had electricity during my stay or living in Mexico without a stove or kitchen.

I bought an Oxo set of silicone accessories for a good price at Costco but I feel like I can taste & smell the silicone when I use them…

I was given a stainless steel pot with a lid to use inside the IP. 1-2 servings of steel cut oats is my favorite thing to cook in the little pot. The main IP pot just seems too big for our 2 servings, and I can eat my breakfast straight from the pot that it's cooked in.

Primarily we use it for rice.

I use my instantpot a ton, but I've never really gotten into all the gadgets for it. I make stock, rice, beans, soups, curries,  and reheat leftovers most frequently.

I use the wire trivet and set my round pyrex storage containers on it to reheat. Imo, it's a FAR superior method to using a microwave. The food gets thoroughly and authentically heated, and no weird malformed chicken bits like in a microwave. And since the glass container is heated too, if you put the top on, wrap it with a towel, and put it all in an insulated lunch bag, it will stay warm from morning til lunchtime. That also works with a wide-mouth pint jar, which I'd use to freeze chili and the like. Thaw overnight, heat in the morning, and wrap it up in the lunchbag until lunchtime.

I also had an existing springform pan that fit in my 6 qt model, and I have used it to make cakes. It works ok, but I only use it in the summer if I don't want to turn on the oven. And if we want a treat in the summer it's usually something icey, so I don't end up doing that too often.

Alana Rose wrote:

2. A clear glass top lid (this is very useful when steaming veggies, when you like multiple types of veggies Al dente, and warming up leftovers)

Yes!  I think the "Steam" setting actually is pressure cooking - it's definitely making a seal and my food gets way overcooked.  So I actually use the glass lid from a saucepan and the "Sauté" setting to steam.