Learning to use an Instant Pot Cooker

Learning to use an Instant Pot Cooker

This is something I have wanted since the first day I saw one sitting on our daughter's kitchen counter.  Were they called Instapot when they first came out?  Or is that a different brand?  The one I received for Christmas is an Instant Pot.

I spent several days looking at a lot of recipes on the Instant Pot website.

I picked one that I liked and fixed it last night.

Everything went well except for the recipe.  There was an optional ingredient that when made with the option it might have been fine though I didn't use it and the recipe came out way too salty.

I feel that the next thing I make I am going to use my own recipe and learn to adjust the time.

Has anyone found a calculator or something that helps adjust the time from an oven to the Instant Pot?

We are having burgers today so in a few days maybe I will make a peach cobbler or maybe a steamed pudding.

Don't get stuck on just insta pot recipes, look at pressure cooker recipes.

Anne Miller wrote:

Has anyone found a calculator or something that helps adjust the time from an oven to the Instant .

I've used one for over 4 years now and love it. So there are a lot of tricks. I mostly use it for rice, stews, chili's, shredded meats, oatmeal, steamed veggies and broth to name a few. Haven't played too much in deserts.

I usually research instant pot times on some recipes and just play with it. White rice is 3 min with natural release. Regular chicken for shredding is 10 min natural release.  I've cooked whole rotisserie chicken and I believe its 35 min with natural release. Most chili's and stews I cook up the meat and set for 10 mins.

Send me a pm if you wanna chat more. I love the IP!

Thank you, Robert and Jennie!

I have two recipe books that came with my pressure cookers so I'll check them out for recipes.

Those cooking times are handy thanks!

This thing looks like a pressure pot.
A pressure pot works in half the time the unpressured pot with its lid. Just start counting once the steam is going out.

My family has been using one for a few months now, and I don't think anyone has used an actual recipe yet.

We follow the rule of pressure canning, and choose the time based on the ingredient that needs the longest. From there, just toss everything in and press start.

That might not work so well with pasta or white rice, but Mom's doing keto so we aren't eating those very much. Most of our meals are meat, vegetables, and sometimes potatoes, with whatever seasonings the cook feels like using that day.

It seems to work.

I've been using the InstaPot to cook steel cut oats: I mix 1.5 cup oats and 1.5 cups red split lentils, and cook on high for 4 minutes with 6 cups of water. They have the same cook time and work well together, high fiber and good protein. I then toss in some mixed berries and ground flax for my normal breakfast and get several servings that way. Also works well for cooking rice. There's a cooking time chart that comes with it, next up will be cooking chickpeas to make some homemade hummus.