Why You Will Love Instant Pot Infused Water
- To reiterate, it’s fast, easy, and instantly satisfying.
- The Colors!!!; Healthy drinking has never looked so good!
- Healthy, satisfying refreshment.; Drinking plain water can get boring, this is the best way to jazz it up!
- Cheap!; For the cost of one store-bought flavored water, you can have nearly 10x that amount of homemade infused water.
Mistake: You’re Using Too Much Oil
Adding oil;to your dishes can definitely take the taste, texture and consistency to the next level. The problem is when you add too much, you run into the same problem as using sauces to cook your food instead of water: There’s simply not enough water content to make sure your pressure cooker can do its job. To make sure the machine is able to come to pressure properly, never use more than 1/4 cup of oil or fat content.
Why Do I Get The Burn Message When Making A Recipe And How To Fix It
Okay, I get this so much and honestly it drives me little crazy too at times.
Thats because I have my 6qt DUO for 2 to 3 years and in all these years I must have cooked hundreds of meals in it and I have never got the BURN message ever once!
So when you guys ask me why I got the burn message, sometimes its really hard for me to answer because I have never faced it.
But after doing a lot of research, heres what I have found out about the BURN problem-
the burn issue is more prevalent with the newer models, especially the 8 qt. A lot recipes online are developed using the 6 qt but since the 8 qt has bigger surface area, sometimes the liquid is not enough and hence the burn message.
So if you have a 8 qt, you might consider adding little more water than the recipe calls for especially while cooking rice, pasta etc. And make sure water is underneath the food.;
another reason why you get this is when you are using thick sauces like pasta sauce, canned tomatoes. Whenever you are using a thick sauce, add water first to the pot then add sauce at the end and after adding Do NOT stir!;
starchy food items like pasta, rice, spaghetti also cause the burn issue. In case you face the problem, simply layer things and add the rice/pasta etc.; on top and do not stir after adding them if your model is prone to getting burn messages.;
If you dont de-glaze the pot, it will not come to pressure and you will get the burn message.;
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Instant Pot Slow Cook Setting
The Slow Cook is a non-pressure cooking setting that is compatible for use with any common slow cooker/Crockpot recipe. The pot is heated but is not pressurized and the Less, Normal and More modes correspond to Low, Medium and High slow cooker settings but you will need to adjust the time manually.;
You might want to use this setting for making dishes ahead of time while youre away from home or overnight. There are times when slow-cooking might work better for certain recipes than quicker pressure cooking. Below are the steps for how to use the Slow Cook setting on Instant Pot.;
Overfilling Your Instant Pot Can Lead To A Messy Kitchen And Undercooked Food

No matter how hungry you are, your Instant Pot can only handle so much food. Overfilling the appliance can result in poorly cooked food or even leakage.
“This is a messy mistake because you risk a lot of splatter in the kitchen. Pay attention to the max fill line to avoid this,” registered dietitian Rachel Fine told Insider. ;
Make sure your Instant Pot is never more than 2/3 full. And if you’re cooking food that expands, such as rice or quinoa, don’t fill the appliance more than halfway.
Also Check: How To Cook An Artichoke In An Instant Pot
How To Make Rice In Instant Pot
Here are step-by-step instructions for making medium-grain and long-grain white rice such as Basmati or Jasmine rice. We used Instant Pot Duo Nova 6-quart pressure cooker for this recipe.;
Step 1. Prepare the ingredients. Wash the rice under cold water 4-5 times to remove excess starch. This will result in fluffier, most separated cooked rice. Use your hand to rub the rice underwater. Strain and add rinsed rice to the inner pot.
Step 2. Add water and salt and stir. Pop the lid on top, secure and lock in place.;
Step 3. If using classic Instant Pot Duo, check that the steam release handle is pointing to Sealing. Select Pressure Cook button . Make sure the pressure level is set to HIGH and use and + buttons to adjust the time to 4 minutes. If you need to change from LOW to HIGH, press Pressure Level to toggle between settings.; You can leave the Keep Warm default setting on.;
After 3 beeps, the display will show ON and two status icons at the top indicating that the pot is heating up and the pressure is building. This will take about 5 minutes.;
Step 4. Once pressure is built up, the cooking timer of 4 minutes will display. The float valve on the lid will also rise up as the pressure is built up. Once the cooking timer is done, the Keep Warm cycle will begin with a new 00:00 timer. During this stage, the Instant Pot will start to depressurize and cool down. Leave it undisturbed for 3-4 minutes to release some of the pressure naturally.;
Instant Pot Bean/chili Setting
The Bean/Chili setting button can be used to cook larger dry legumes such as beans and chickpeas in liquid or to cook chili or another type of stew that uses dry beans. The program settings use High pressure and result in different doneness of beans. When cooking beans, always use NR to release pressure after cooking is done. Below is how to use the Bean/Chili setting on Instant Pot.
- Turn the Instant Pot on, it will say OFF to indicate the Stand-By mode. Add dry beans, liquid and salt to the pot. Secure and lock the lid. Select the Bean/Chili button. The default setting is pre-programmed to set the pot to cook at High pressure for 30 minutes. If you press the button again, you can adjust the mode from Normal to Less or More .;
- Less mode 25 minutes at High pressure for a firmer bean texture or to cook black beans, dry lima beans, Navy beans,; black-eyed peas, Adzuki, anasazi, dry peas.
- Normal mode 30 minutes at High pressure for a softer bean texture or to cook red kidney beans, white kidney beans , Pinto beans, black-eyed peas .;
- More mode 40 minutes at High pressure for a very soft bean texture or to cook harder legumes like chickpeas and soybeans .
COOKING TIPS
Ensure dry beans are completely submerged in water. Dried beans double in volume and weight after soaking or cooking. To avoid overflow, please do not fill the inner pot more than to the ½ mark to allow for expansion.
Note: You can also use the Multigrain setting to cook most beans.
Read Also: What To Do If Your Instant Pot Says Burn
Use Quick Release For Foamy Food Or When It Is Overfilled
Have you seen pictures of applesauce splattered all over the Instant Pot through the Venting Knob?
Mistake:; Many new users are unsure;when to use Quick Pressure Release and Natural Pressure Release. Theres a chance of splattering if users use Quick Release when cooking foamy food, such as grains or beans.
Solution #1: Use Natural Release for foamy food or when the pot is overfilled.
But waitmost pasta recipes call for Quick Release, what should we do?
Solution #2: Release the pressure gradually.
You dont have to turn the Venting Knob all the way to Venting Position to release pressure.
The initial release;is usually the strongest. So, release the pressure gradually by turning the venting knob just a little;with your hand or wooden spoon until you hear a hissing sound. Hold it at that position to release the pressure gradually.
Read More: Instant Pot Quick Release vs Instant Pot Natural Release
How To Cook Black Rice In The Instant Pot
Have you heard of black rice? Its healthier than all other rice because rather than being a grain, its actually a seed. Plus, its packed with antioxidants, just like blueberries.
It looks pretty crazy, but it tastes delicious.
We default to black rice most of the time unless we have guests who might be scared away. Most of my brands of black rice call for a 2 to 1 ratio of water.
We started cooking black rice in the Instant Pot with 2 cups water, 1 cup rice, and 20 minutes under low pressure. Weve had success with that method, but have been working our water level down.
I feel pretty confident that you could use 1 1/2 cups water and 1 cup rice and 20 to 25 minutes under low pressure and have it come out just great.
- Total Time:25 – 45 minutes
- Yield:varies
Butter, Ghee, Avocado Oil, Olive Oil , or Coconut Oil
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How To Release Pressure
Once the cooking time is done in your Instant Pot, you hear a beep. You can do 2 things after this either release the pressure manually or let the instant pot release the pressure naturally.
Natural Pressure Release : a lot of recipes call for NPR. This means that you allow the pot to release the pressure on its own.
Once the food is cooked, you dont do anything and let the pot take its own time. The time may vary depending on how much liquid the pot has.
More liquid means it would take more time to release pressure. You would know the pressure is released when the floating silver pin comes down.
Quick Release :when a recipe calls for QR, it means you release the pressure manually once the cooking time is up.
You do this by carefully moving the pressure valve from sealing to venting position. Always use a pair of silicone gloves while doing this just to be extra-careful.
Few minutes NPR and then QR: some recipes will call for 2 minutes NPR and then QR or 10 minutes NPR and then QR.
This means that you first let the pressure release naturally for a particular amount of time and then release the remaining pressure manually by moving the pressure valve from sealing to venting position.
Causes Why Food Burn Happens
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How To Reduce Pasta Foam
I’ve learned some great tips and tricks from all of you in the comments below, here is a summary of the knowledge I’ve gathered over time:
- Add Fat
- Oil or butter will reduce foaming.; I add about 1 tablespoon per 8 ounces of pasta
Prepare Frozen Food Items

Theres no need to wait for meats to defrost before tossing them in your Instant Pot. With items like chicken, fish, and other meats, the only thing youll have to do to compensate for the freeze is to add a few minutes of prep time to the initial pressurizing. Just pop your poultry in, and your Instant Pot will cook through as if the meat were already defrosted.
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What Does It Mean When I Get A Burn Message
Step one: Dont worry. This is actually a common problem and theres a simple solution. This message is an indicator that your dish is burning, and occurs because theres not enough liquid in the pot. Heres what to do: After pressing the cancel button and moving the pressure release knob to venting, youll want to scrape the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to remove any burnt food, then stir in additional liquid and be sure it reaches the bottom of the pot.
Learn more:What It Means When Your Instant Pot Says Burn on the Front
How Can You Boil Water In An Instant Pot
If the goal is to boil water to make pasta or use it for other temperature-sensitive recipes, leave the pressure cooker lid off.
You dont want to use high pressure when boiling water at the conventional boiling point to make pasta. This means the process starts by adding water to the inner pot, then set the instant pot to saute without putting a lid on. Let the water heat up until it is boiling.
There are conflicting opinions on whether you can cook the pasta in the boiling water in the instant pot or if youll want to put the water in a pot and boil it that way.
If youre making ramen noodles, then the boiling water from the instant pot is enough to make an edible noodle meal. If youre making spaghetti or macaroni, youll want the water to remain hot and boiling for several minutes. However, if you have a pot and a working stove, use that to boil the water instead of the instant pot
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How To Make Coconut Rice In An Instant Pot:
For the coconut rice, I simply toast some unsweetened shredded coconut rice in the pot onSauté mode for about a minute, add the rice and bit of ghee or butter, replace some of the water with light coconut milk and apply the same settings. Thats it!
If that sounds too good to be true to you, I promise its not.
In fact, thats what I feel after every recipe I make in my Instant Pot. How on earth didsomething so delicious come out of this little machine with so little effort?!
I cant wait to hear about your Instant Pot Coconut Rice adventures in the comments below!
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Overfill The Instant Pot
Mistake: Many new users fill their Instant Pot with food & liquid up to the Max Line . This may risk clogging the Venting Knob.
Solution:;Be mindful that the Max Line printed on Instant Pots Inner Pot is not;intended for Pressure Cooking.
- For Pressure Cooking: maximum;2/3 full
- For;Pressure Cooking Food that Expands During Cooking : maximum;1/2 full
If you accidentally overfilled the pot, dont panic. Just make sure to use Natural Pressure Release to stay safe and clean.
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How Do I Get The Smell Out Of The Sealing Ring
By now you might have noticed that the silicone sealing ring holds on to the smell of just about everything you cook in your Instant Pot. Sure, you can buy a new sealing ring, but its also pretty easy to clean it and get the smell out.
The quickest, easiest, and most foolproof way to get the smell out of the sealing ring is to add white vinegar or water and lemon rind to the Instant Pot, then run it for a few minutes on the steam setting. Running it through the dishwasher is another option, although if its been a while since you last cleaned it, it might not work as well to get the odor out.
Learn how:The Best Way to Get the Funky Smell Out of Your Instant Pot Sealing Ring