Why You Will Love Making Pasta In The Electric Pressure Cooker
- Your days of babysitting pasta are OVER. Add your ingredients, push some buttons, do some yoga
- NO MORE STARCHY WATER FOAMING OVER ONTO YOUR STOVETOP thats the golden reason right there
- With this magical formula, you are almost guaranteed perfectly cooked pasta every time. As always, times may vary slightly depending on the brand, model, and altitude
- So easy your kid can do it. Thats worth the cost of an Instant Pot right there
Converting Cook Times For Pressure Cookers
Probably your biggest remaining question is how long to cook your slow cooker recipe in the Instant Pot. Below are some guidelines, but we recommend you take notes of what works for you and what doesnt. For many people, theres a learning curve to using a pressure cookertrial and error is part of the fun! Also, its important to read the manual that came with your electric pressure cooker for cooking specific meats thoroughly.
Instant Pot Vs Slow Cooker
The Instant Pot also has one heat source at the bottom. However, the inner pot is too thin to retain heat in its walls for long. Also, the heat is generated by the steam thats trapped in the pot, which is fantastic for quick cooking, but not so great for slow cooking.
The uneven heat distribution will have an effect on the final texture of the food and a slight impact on it’s taste. So professional chefs and foodies may know you cheated and used an Instant Pot instead of a traditional slow cooker.
But you and me, probably won’t be able to understand the difference. So for us, Instant Pot is a great option for slow cooker recipes :]
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How To Tackle Cooking Times
Probably the most difficult part of of converting any recipe is figuring out how long to cook and at what temperature. Instant Pot cooking times are much lower than Crock Pot cook times, so youll always want to extend the time it takes to cook a recipe in the crock pot.
For example, Crock Pot Carnitas take about 40 minutes in the Instant Pot. It would take about 15 minutes to build pressure and the natural pressure release would add 10-20 minutes, so a total of just over an hour for pressure cooking, but theyd take a few hours to slow cook.
There are some resources out there that will give you a general idea of how much you are cooking and what temperature/time it will require. There is a great guide on Crock-Pot.com but they keep moving it, so I cant link to it. Id google and search for it 🙂 The guide gives you cooking times, fill levels, and even some conversions between high and low temperature cooking time.
Remember that when you are cooking meat, its important to be sure that the internal temperature reaches a safe level. Use the recipes as a resource but always check your meat temperatures before eating.
Convert Slow Cooker To Instant Pot Cooking Times
The time difference between crock pots and instant pots is a ton! As you can see from the conversion chart, while fish cooking time in the slow cooker is pretty quick at 1-2 hours on low, that same fish fillet is only 5 minutes in an instant pot.
White rice is similar with 1 1/2- 2 hours in the slow cooker and only 5 minutes in the instant pot.
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First Off What The Heck Even Is An Instant Pot
Hear the name, and its easy to assume that Instant Pots are magical gadgets that transform raw chicken into perfectly tender dinner in the blink of an eye. And, yes, while these appliances do cook foods quickly, theyre not actually transmorgification devices. Instant Pots are simply user-friendly, well-branded pressure cookers with lots of bells and whistles.
Pressure cookers were invented in the mid 17th century, but werent brought into common use until the early 20th century. They work by trapping steam in a sealed environment which raises the pressure and temperature of water. Instead of braised and simmered dishes topping out at 212 degrees , the water inside a pressure cooker can get up to 250 degrees, which allows food to cook much, much faster. The first mass-produced pressure cookers were used exclusively on the stovetop and had a reputation for being, well, explosive. Over time, they have become more user-friendly, with safety valves and greater temperature control. Electric pressure cookers with were invented in 1991, and the Instant Pot itself came on the market in 2010.
The Quick Way: Pro Tip For Converting From Instant Pot Recipes To Slow Cooker
I try to keep in mind that not everything is meant to be cooked in the crockpot. The same goes for the Instant Pot. Make sure that the recipe you are trying to convert is suitable for the crockpot.
Now for the good stuff: the cheaters path to quickly converting slow cooker recipes.
Find a similar crockpot recipe and use that as a base for your temperature and cooking time base.
A great example is cooking something like my Instant Pot Lasagna. Although my recipe is a healthier alternative you can use a regular crockpot lasagna recipe as a guide for how to layer the lasagna and how long to cook it for.
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Tips On How To Make Slow Cooker Recipes In An Instant Pot
Tip #1: Adjust the Liquid Level
Every Instant Pot recipe must start with at least 1 cup of liquid. The liquid is required to prevent burn and to help the Instant Pot build pressure correctly.
Because the heating is so gradual in a slow cooker, the odds of something burning are slim BECAUSE enough juices from the food has been released by the time the slow cooker has reached its highest heating temperature.
Tip #2: The Instant Pot is designed to get really hot, really fast.
This means you have to START with liquid, otherwise your food will burn before its had a chance to release any juices.
- With that said, anytime you make a slow cooker recipe in an Instant Pot, you need to adjust the recipe so that youre starting with at least 1 cup of liquid. This might mean adding additional liquid in order to reach the minimum needed.
- This additional liquid can be water, stock or the same liquid that the slow cooker recipe calls for its your call. But make sure theres 1 cup of liquid at the bottom of your Instant Pot before you start cooking.
Tip #3: Natural Pressure Release vs. Quick Pressure Release
Anytime you make a recipe, the Instant Pot must build pressure, then cook your food, and then release the pressure. The pressure is typically released one of three ways:
The type of pressure release you choose for your slow cooker turned Instant Pot recipe matters, because anytime there is pressure inside the Instant Pot, your food is cooking.
Other Ingredients to beware of:
How To Use Your Instant Pot As A Slow Cooker
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Why Cook Beans In A Slow Cooker Or Pressure Cooker
Here are 4 great reasons:
1. Price: You get 5 6 cans worth of beans for the price of about one can of beans2. Taste: They taste so much better and you can add your own seasonings and spices3. Health: You can control the amount of sodium in your beans, if that is a concern for you4. Safety: You dont have to worry about exposing your family to BPA or whatever else is in a cans linings that might not be safe for us to consume
Plus its so easy!
How Exactly To Use Your Pressure Cooker As A Slow Cooker
yes…but#1 Use the Right Lid#2 A Slow Cooker and Instant Pot Heat Up Differently#3 Cooking Times Are a Little DifferentOn your Instant Pot, those settings are called Less, Normal, and More
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What Happens In Case You Dont Boil Water Ahead Of Adding Pasta
Absolutely no longer. You need to keep the water as hot as possible unless you need slimy, overcooked, horrible pasta. The water will have to be boiling vigorously when the pasta is added, stay the warmth top to go back to complete boil as rapidly as imaginable, then adjust the warmth as essential to save you a boil-over.
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Slow Cooker To Instant Pot Conversion
At its basic, the slow cooker is easier to guess because the answer is alwaysa really long time. Instant Pot cooking times are super quickin many cases so quick that I wouldnt have guessed it correctly.
For instance, roast beef takes 15 minutes per pound in the Instant Pot and 8-10 hours on low in the slow cooker!
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How To Convert Slow Cooker Recipes To Instant Pot
If youre on social media, you know that the Instant Potor any variation of electric pressure cookeris super hot right now. You may have even gotten yourself a shiny new Instant Pot for Christmas. But you might also be a bit intimidated to dive in. And, if you’ve been a long-time fan of slow cooking, youre probably wondering if you can use your favorite slow cooker recipes in your Instant Pot.
What do you know? We have tips on how to convert your slow cooker recipes to Instant Pot recipes! By converting your recipes, you can keep making your familys faves even when you dont have time for the slow cooker.
Should You Use Your Instant Pot As A Slow Cooker
I know I can use my Instant Pot as a slow cooker, but should I ? Were giving you the scoop about if its all its cracked up to be.
I think before jumping into the question in the headline of this article, we have to answer a different one first. Can you use your Instant Pot as a slow cooker? Absolutely. In fact, its one of the appliances purposes. The Instant Pot is most often used as an electric pressure cooker but yes, it also has a slow cooker setting.
Should you use it? Ah, thats another question altogether.
An Instant Pot is great at cooking things fast. Thats because its intended to be used as an electric pressure cooker. It does amazingly well in this regard. You can drop all your ingredients inside and have a ready-to-eat meal in under an hour.
A slow cooker takes a longer approach to cooking, often taking between 4 and 12 hours to complete a meal. The longer you cook in a slow cooker, the more tender and flavorful your food. So, in theory, the Instant Pots ability to serve as both a slow cooker and an electric pressure cooker should make it a one stop shop for all your cooking needs, right?
Not so much
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Which Lid Should I Use For Slow Cooking
The best option is to get the Instant Pot glass lid. This lid has a steam vent and stainless steel rim, and it’s a great option when you slow cooking with the Instant Pot.
It allows moisture loss and prevent your chili from swimming in water.
And since it’s clear, it give you the option to peak in, which is always nice :]
Making Pressure Cooker Bow Tie Pasta In An Instant Pot
An Instant Pot is one of the most popular brands of electric pressure cookers. They are easy to use and your Instant Pot can help you create this delicious Bow Tie Pasta!
Ive mentioned before how much I like cooking pasta in the pressure cooker vs. on the stove. With the pressure cooker, I dont have to worry about the noodles boiling over or tomato sauce bubbling and making a mess on my kitchen backsplash.
You can use any type of Bow Tie pasta in this recipeincluding gluten-free and whole wheat pasta varieties.
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What Is An Instant Pot
An Instant Pot is a brand of electric pressure cooker . A pressure cooker is an appliance that makes use of a fundamental piece of physics to cook food at different temperatures. To boil it down to its most basic level, a pressure cooker prevents boiling from occurring in liquids. This means that the Instant Pot can use much higher temperatures to cook food, leading to faster cooking times for food that would traditionally require a long cook time. There are two types of pressure cookers available on the market: stove-top ones, and standalone units that plug into an electrical socket. The Instant Pot is a type of standalone, electric pressure cooker. The Instant Pot does have a slow cooker function, but its important to know a few tips and tricks to make sure youre using that setting correctly.
Prepping For Dinner Success
Their system of meal prep and super customizable meal plans is the perfect solution to the chaos of everyday life.
We all want to have a calm dinner with our family!
I know that one of the things I was worried about was planning ahead. I know that will sound crazy to some of you, but I had fear of meal planning!
But the 5 Dinners 1 Hour plan took that fear away within the first day because it made my life so much easier.
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Do You Seal The Instant Pot When Slow Cooking
No. There is no need to seal the Instant Pot completely when you use your Instant Pot slow cooker function.
When slow cooking in the Instant Pot, you can cover the pot using a tempered glass lid or the regular Instant Pot lid.
If you are using the Instant Pot lid, you need to move the steam release valve to the “venting” position.
The Slow Cooker Setting On The Ip
Most electric pressure cookers have not only the slow cook function but and a whole suite of buttons on the interface. Were only going to dig into the slow cook button in this blog post. While this function is great, there are a few differences that will trip you up if youre not careful. With the Instant Pot, the slow cooker function has a set of temperatures ranging from low to high. These temperatures are NOT same as the ones which are on a typical slow cooker. Here are a couple of conversions to make a note of to ensure optimum cooking in an instant pot:
Slow Cooker WARM setting = Instant Pot Slow Cook LOW settingSlow Cooker LOW setting = Instant Pot Slow Cook NORMAL settingSlow Cooker HIGH setting = Instant Pot Slow Cook HIGH+
conversion chart
*The Instant Pot HIGH setting never gets as hot as the slow cooker HIGH heating setting. If you are using a slow cooker recipe which calls for HIGH heat in a slow cooker, put your Instant Pot slow cooker function onto high and then add an extra 15 minutesof cooking time for every hour of that the recipe calls for. The longer cooking time is needed to compensate for the difference in temperature between the two appliances and make sure your food is fully cooked all the way through.
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What Is The Slow Cooker Setting On An Instant Pot
Now that you know the downsides of using an Instant Pot on the slow cooker setting, we will tell you how to set the Instant Pot onto the slow cooker setting. Following these steps will allow you to slow cook with an Instant Pot:
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While you can use your Instant Pot for slow cooking, please remember that its primary purpose is pressure cooking to speed cooking up.
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