Instant Pot Review

I'm sure you have heard something about this  Instant Pot IP-DUO 7-1 Programmable Pressure Cooker craze.  I wasn't sure I wanted to waste my money on something that was sure to do one or two things amazingly well but come out once or twice a week like the rice cooker.  Space is a valuable asset in my kitchen, also who hasn't heard a story of grandma's stovetop pressure cooker "blowing up"!  After spending sometime on the Instant Pot community Facebook page and watching a lot of youtube videos I was convinced this was worth a shot.

First impressions: It looks a lot like my digital rice cooker and vegetable steamer. Its big but doesn't take up more counter space than my crockpot it is taller though. I did the recommended water test you will find in your manual to get a feel for how the vent works and how long it takes to come pressure.  The stainless steel cooking pot was a big sell for me as I've been slowly getting rid of all teflon in our home.

My first meal in the Instant Pot (newly named McSteamy because everyone on this crazy page names their pots and who doesn't love McSteamy on Grey's Anatomy!) was a Sweet and Sour Country Style Ribs recipe found here. I adapted to fit what we had in the house. They were scrumptious and they turned out perfect not over cooked like my family is used to when I make pork!

I made brown rice to be sure it cooked as good as if not better than my rice cooker so I could sell it! The rice came out just right a feat which even my electric rice cooker has managed to fail at. (see above photo)A note on cooking rice you will only the "Rice" button if cooking white rice, see your manual for directions on brown rice as well as many other grains! Quinoa was also so easy and fast!

This Chicken recipe was absolutely amazing and will be cooked again soon! I don't remember where I found the original I tweaked it to what I had on hand and it turned out great!

6 boneless chicken breasts
1/2 C. Italian dressing
1/2 C. BBQ sauce
2 t. Chili Powder
1/4 C. Water
Mix together place half under and half on top of chicken. "Poultry" setting.
I timed this recipe:
Turned on at 6:25
Came to pressure at 6:39
and finished at 6:56
 I let it naturally release for 10-15 mins I have read if you QR=Quick Release meat it will dry it right out. I served this meal over rice, but it could also be yummy in tortillas or all by it self!



Speaking of Chicken I put raw chicken (many use frozen as well!) into the pot with a cup of water and around 30 mins I had perfectly shreddable (if that is a word?) chicken. If you aren't using your hand mixer to shred chicken you are wasting your time, try it I promise you won't go back to your fork and knife ever again!

Macaroni and Cheese took me no more than 20 minutes start to finish and was so creamy! This is the recipe I used from Dad Cooks Dinner. My oldest will only eat Annies boxed mac n cheese but we are working on him the other two gobbled this up.

Let's talk about vegetables, baked potatoes and a full acorn squash done in under 30 mins??? Yes please and they turned out amazing! You pour your 1 cup of water into the pot add the rack and place your vegetables on top of it. A tip I learned to help the pot heat up and therefore reach pressure quicker is to turn on the "Saute" function while you are filling the pot so the water will heat up. I washed the potatoes and sprinkled with sea salt. For the squash my first attempt at cutting it in half first turned out better than the second try when i dropped the thing in there whole this resulted in a bit mushier squash than I prefer.

 

Bone Broth, have you heard of it? It's a fairly new idea to me I've read about it but the thought of watching a crock pot or stove top for 12-24 hours is crazy!! First I cooked my whole chicken in the pot under an hour of course!  I saved the yummy broth and vegi's from cooking, boned the chicken and added all skin and bones back into the pot. Added 1/4c of apple cider vinegar (I use Bragg's but any organic ACV with the "mother" will do the job) and some garlic. Here is the recipe I used for all the details. After sealing the pot it took 120 minutes for this glorious broth to be finished.

Proofing bread in this baby takes a fraction of the time especially if your house is cold like ours!
Never again will it take half a day to make fresh bread!





Made a delicious beef roast tonight took a total of 60 minutes for something that would have taken hours in the crock pot it was so tender and juicy! A note on meat in the IP if you QR (quick release) it will dry out your meat. It's best to let NR (natural release) for a good 15 minutes before releasing the rest of the pressure if there is any to keep the juices inside the meat. Not in the IP but I tried out roasted cabbage tonight in the oven. I think it needed to roast longer for my liking but my 6 year old gobbled it up before even asking me what it was!!









Up next to try is  yogurt which everyone on the Facebook page RAVES about I've seen many posts of folks taking milk and making creamy greek yogurt at a fraction of the price of the grocery store. Overnight oats are a big hit as well as hard boiled eggs which up until finding this gem I was unable to make. Proofing bread in this baby takes a fraction of the time especially if your house is cold like ours! Oh and let's not forget the cheesecakes, one would think this is all people use their IP's for, personally i'm not a big fan of them so I haven't tried it myself yet but its worth a shout out if  you like them!

Do you have any questions? Please ask I would love to help you out. Promise me this kitchen gadget is worth every.single.penny!!  Instant Pot IP-DUO 7-1 Programmable Pressure 

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