How Is The Instant Pot Different From A Stovetop Pressure Cooker
The Instant Pot is an electric pressure cooker with internally built heating element while the stovetop pressure cooker is fueled by heat from a stove, whether gas or electric. Learn how the Instant Pot works in more detail here.
A pressure cooker works on a simple principle: steam pressure. A sealed pot, with a lot of steam inside, builds up high pressure, which helps food cook faster. Here is a video explaining how a traditional stovetop pressure cooker works. The physics of high-heat and steam under pressure also apply to the electric pressure cookers, except they require no monitoring or manual timing.
Is Instant Pot Water Bath Canning A Good Idea
As for high acid water bath canning this is going to be perfectly fine if you have a larger model Instant Pot. The 8-quart instant pot may be capable of water bath canning small batches of high acid foods or pickled goods. Just go about it the smart and safe way. Use the proper accessories and take your time with the process.
If you do want to get into beginning canning then maybe you should consider getting one of these small pressure canners which are perfect for beginners to food preservation.
Chicken Wings That Are Finer Licking Good
Chicken wings are always a finger-lickin good choice that is totally worth the mess. For game day, barbecue parties and just preparing a super delicious dinner alongside a few simple sides. No matter what your craving, spice tolerance or sauce versus spice preference is, weve got an Instant Pot chicken wing recipe for you in todays roundup. Break out the napkins!
This vegan and gluten-free friendly Instant Pot chickpea stew is a delicious main meal full of Moroccan-influenced spices and flavors. Serve it over rice, couscous or with some crusty bread.
Learn more about the Instant Pot on their official website.
If you have any additional questions, ask away! If youre ready to purchase your Instant Pot, you can find the recommended model for beginners here.
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Tips For Using Your Instant Pot As A Slow Cooker
- Always make sure there is a minimum of 1 cup of liquid in the recipe.
- Choose the Slow Cooker setting on your Instant Pot, then select the Adjust button to choose normal or high.
- If you set the slow cooker function to normal and follow the recipe instructions, then you can cook a recipe on low in a slow cooker.
- The same way you would cook a recipe in a slow cooker on high, set the slow cooker to high on the slow cooker function, and cook it for as long as the recipe specifies PLUS 15 minutes more for every hour.
- Even though this post is designed to teach you how to use your pressure cooker as a slow cooker, the whole point of the Instant Pot is to speed up cooking.
But Can You Use An Instant Pot For Canning
Watch the video version of this blog post here!
Water bath canning works because the inside of the jar reaches over 212 degrees fahrenheit. The USDA tests recipes to ensure that the inside of your salsa, or raspberry jam gets to this temperature, which is hot enough to kill spoilers in a high acid environment.
Instant pots are not tested for canning- we have no idea how hot, for how long it is inside your tomato sauce if you tried to can it in an instant pot. Therefore, wed have no idea for how long to process any particular recipe to kill spoilers.
If youre a dyed in the wool rule breaker, consider this. An instant pot is designed to do a very different job than canning. It doesnt create steady heat- it builds pressure very, very quickly, and it is designed to cook foods with pressure, as fast as possible. Thats a very different job than what a steam canner or water bath canner does.
If youve tried it and your jar sealed let me tell you that it takes very little heat to seal a jar. Jars that have sat around a hot store shelf for long enough seal. The seal is only ONE part of the very important trifecta of elements that works to ensure water bath canning is safe.
Canning works by putting a high acid recipe in a jar and submerging the jar in heat. The heat kills the spoilers present in the jar and forces the oxygen OUT of the jar, creating a vacuum which causes the lid to suck inward and seal. A sealed lid alone is NOT enough to create a safe canning situation.
Read Also: How Long To Cook Frozen Pork Loin In Instant Pot
What Is A Pressure Canner
A pressure canner is a specialized pot specifically for preserving low acid foods safely.
A pressure canner operated at 10.5 pounds per square inch of pressure will reach an internal temperature of 240ºF at sea level. Higher elevations will require more pressure to reach that minimum temperature.
Processing jars at 240ºF is the only way to assure that the internal temperature of the food in each jar reaches a sufficient temperature to kill off any botulism spores that might be present.
Instant Pot Vs Slow Cooker
Theres also a heat source at the bottom of the Instant Pot. But a ceramic inner pot will not hold heat in its walls for a very long time . Also, the heat is generated by the steam trapped in the pot, which is great for quick cooking, but not so great for slow cooking.
Heat is distributed unevenly during cooking, which results in uneven textures and a slight change in taste. Therefore, professional chefs and foodies may know you cheated and used an Instant Pot instead of a traditional slow cooker.
The difference is likely to be incomprehensible to you and me. Therefore, we find the Instant Pot to be a great option for slow cooker recipes.
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Deep Clean An Instant Pot Ring
Instant Pot cooks have plenty of tricks to get the sealing rings squeaky clean. A popular one is to leave a ring in the Instant Pot and add two cups of white vinegar to the pot. Then run the Instant Pot on the Steam setting for two minutes, pop out the ring and dry it. Some cooks even like to put the ring in the freezer for a short time to dry it completely.
Another trick to try is to bake the sealing ring. Yes, in your oven. Dont turn the temp up too high, though. Set it to 250°F and place the ring on a cookie sheet. Bake for about 20 minutes to remove odors.
Common Instant Pot Mistakes And How To Fix Them
Its easy to see the appeal of an Instant Pot, a versatile multicooker appliance that can cook food in record speed, but there is definitely a learning curve when it comes to using one. At its core, the Instant Pot is a pressure cooker, and if youre unfamiliar with pressure cooking there are a few basic things to know to avoid some major problems, like burning your food to the bottom or causing the pot to overflow.
Whether youre brand new to cooking with an Instant Pot or still fine-tuning your cooking times and water ratios, youve come to the right place. We spoke with experts to learn the most common mistakes people make when using an Instant Pot and how to avoid them. Heres what you need to know:
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Rinse Rice Before Cooking It In The Instant Pot
Rice needs to be rinsed before instant pot rice is cooked. This ensures all the excess starch is removed from the instant pot rice, ensuring perfect instant pot rice every time!
Also make sure you use instant pot rice exactly how its written in your recipe. Using substitutes like instant brown rice or instant parboiled instant pot rice will change the instant pot rice texture and taste.
Different Models Of Instant Pot
When it was first launched, there was just one classic model called Instant Pot Duo 7-in-1. It came with an outer pot with button controls and a display screen on the front, the 6-quart stainless steel inner pot and the special lid with steam release handle and the pressure valve.
In the last few years, the Instant Pot company has released multiple new versions and sizes. We have Duo Plus, Nova, Viva, Ultra, and Max to name a few and most of them come in 3 popular sizes 6-quart , 3-quart and 8-quart . There is even a 10-quart version for extra-large batches of cooking. You can see the full range of Instant Pot multicookers on the official website here.
Each new model came with more functions and buttons, more sophisticated display screens and finer adjustment possibilities. The makers have also made some improvements to the lid, so the steam-release handle changed to a simple knob button on later versions.
However, as confusing as all these new models may seem, they all do exactly the same thing cook food under pressure in a controlled, safe environment. In our opinion, the newer models like Ultra and Max seem much more intimidating and overwhelming with bright digits and hi-fi buttons, so we prefer to stick with the classic models. All our website recipes are cooked in a 6-quart Instant Pot Duo or Instant Pot Duo Nova.
Also Check: Can You Make Tamales In An Instant Pot
Magical Ways To Use Your Instant Pot
20 Magical Ways to Use Your Instant Pot! From soups, to yogurt, to snacks, to drinks: it does it all! One of our favorite all-purpose kitchen gadgets.
This post was originally published a few years back, but guess what!? We added four more ways to use our favorite kitchen appliance texture-perfect applesauce, a big pot of spaghetti, comforting risotto, and our favorite pot roast. Let us know in the comments how else you like to use this magical machine.
THE INSTANT POT.
Lets talk about the Instant Pot. Hands up if youre part of the club?
For a first-timer, it can feel like some sort of mysterious potential-to-explode gadget that ends up sitting in the back of your kitchen cabinet for years out of fear. Or, its only lugged out to make that pot of brown rice or mysterious batch of dry beans .
But weve been around the Instant Pot block a few times. And were here to tell you that this little beauty basically lives on our countertop at this point. Its our rice cooker, soup maker, freezer meal magician, last-minute dinner miracle all in one. And we just cant stop.
You Should Consider Getting A Second Stainless Steel Insert
Your Instant Pot comes with one stainless steel insert, but a few of our readers have suggested getting a second one for a couple reasons. First, if you use your Instant Pot a bunch, its nice to have one available to use while the other one is in the dishwasher. The second reason is that you can quickly change settings on the Instant Pot and make a couple different dishes.
Buy: Genuine Instant Pot Stainless Steel Inner Cooking Pot, $30 for a six- or eight-quart pot
Are there any other words of wisdom youd give to someone who just purchased the Instant Pot? Please share in the comments!
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A Final Word About This Canning Apple Butter Recipe
See? Learning how to make apple butter in the Instant Pot for canning isnt hard! In fact, its pretty easy!
I do want to mention one thing real quick if you have never water bath canned food before, the processing time begins when your water is at a rolling boil. Not when you add the jars to the water.
Making sure your foods are processed correctly is the only way to safely can!
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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.
Read Also: What Do I Do If My Instant Pot Says Burn
The Instant Pot And Slow Cooker Heat Up Differently
Slow cookers heat from the bottom, but heat travels up the sides through heat spreading evenly through ceramic pots. Instant Pot heats similarly from the bottom, but the thin metal pot does not spread heat evenly. The heat is generated from pressurized steam that is trapped in the pot. This makes it less suitable for slow cooking.
Instant Pot Canning Recipes
Are you looking for Instant Pot canning recipes? Take your food preservation to the next level and use the Instant Pot! These seven recipes are all delicious recipes that are easy to make!
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In a Hurry? Get Started With Preserving Your Own Food NOW! Food Preservation Planner
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Mistake #: Forgetting To Deglaze The Inner Pot After Sauting
Speaking of preventing the burn error, scraping off the food on the bottom of the pot after sautéing and before pressure cooking is key. This is something that happens all the time and I made sure to call it out as an important step in the recipes in my cookbook, Bhadkamkar-Balan said.
If you get the burn error, follow the steps outlined under Mistake No. 2 above, then scrape up and remove any burned food from the inner pot. If you find a large area of the pot with burned food, Bhadkamkar-Balan recommends transferring any food that isnt burned to another container. Clean the inner pot thoroughly, and then return the food to the pot to resume the pressure cooking process, she said. Add more liquid as needed, up to one cup, but not too much!
To avoid making this mistake, make sure to properly deglaze the inner pot after sautéing if theres food stuck to the bottom, or if the bottom of the pot looks lightly browned or burned. To do this, Add a little liquid and scrape the bits of food stuck to the bottom of the inner pot using a wooden spoon, Bhadkamkar-Balan said.
All The Instant Pot Recipes You Still Need To Make
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What Is An Instant Pot
The Instant Pot is an electric pressure cooker. A pressure cooker is an appliance that uses physics to cook food at different temperatures. A pressure cooker boils the food down to its simplest level.
The Instant Pot can cook food at higher temperatures, which allows for faster cooking. There are two types available: those that can be used on a stovetop and those that can plug into an electric socket. An electric pressure cooker that can be used as a standalone unit is the Instant Pot. Although the Instant Pot has a slow cooker function you should know some tricks and tips to ensure that you are using it correctly.
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Add Liquid When Necessary
When cooking with a pressure cooker there is very little moisture lost, which is why you add only a cup of liquid for each recipe in the Instant Pot. This means that there doesnt need to be a lot of liquid to begin with. Cooking in the Crockpot is very different because its not a sealed environment and the cooking process takes a lot longer.
Make sure you add enough liquidespecially when cooking things like pasta, rice, and meat. This will help avoid dried out or undercooked meals. Also make sure youre not adding too much liquid, so your meal doesnt turn out too watery.
Can I Use My Instant Pot As A Water Bath Canner
Instant Pot canusedboiling-water canningInstant Potpressure canning
The 8-quart instant pot may be capable of water bath canning small batches of high acid foods or pickled goods. Just go about it the smart and safe way. Use the proper accessories and take your time with the process.
Additionally, can you put mason jars in a pressure cooker? Place a short rack on the bottom of the pressure cooker and pour 1 cup of water inside and place 3 pint size jars inside the pressure cooker. If the rack is too tall, the jars will not fit inside with the pressure cooker lid on, but you certainly do not want to place the jars directly on the pot.
In this manner, can I use my instant pot for canning?
A frequently asked question around the internet is whether or not you can pressure-can in the Instant Pot and the answer is simply no. Unless you have the Instant Pot Max. If you have a different model of the Instant Pot, you can, however, do boiling-water canning, which is great for pickles and jams.
Can an instant pot explode?
Instant Pot is a very safe pressure cooker with 10 proven safety mechanisms. Don’t worry. It is not going to explode on you anytime soon. ?? Most accidents happen due to user error and can be easily avoided.
Also Check: What To Do If Your Instant Pot Says Burn
