Happy Holidays And Welcome To Pressure Cooking Today
Here at Pressure Cooking Today, we post easy and delicious recipes and training guides for the Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi, or any other brand of electric pressure cooker!
Interested in having us teach you how to start cooking in your Instant Pot?Our Instant Pot 30-Day Jumpstart beginners course is OPEN for new students until January 14th!
If youre just getting started with your electric pressure cooker or Instant Potwhether its new or or even if youve had it for a whileyou may have lots of questions!
Here are some quick answers to some of the most common:
Keep reading for a breakdown of the different pressure cooker parts and the nitty-gritty of making your first meal in the pressure cooker!
Choose Foods With Similar Cook Times
Choose recipes with similar cook timesfor instance chicken breasts diced into large bite-size pieces cook in 3 or 4 minutes with a 10-minute natural pressure release, which is an excellent match for the cook time of white rice! For example, you can make my Indian Butter Chicken and rice at the same time! Simply cut the chicken thighs into large bite-size pieces so they cook more quickly. Then add a trivet and rice as directed in the white rice recipe below and reduce the High Pressure cook time to 4 minutes with a 10-minute natural release.
Chicken is also an excellent match for pastas. To figure out a cook time for pasta, simply take the time listed on the box, divide in half and then subtract a minute.
I love to serve my Chicken Lazone over pasta, so when I want to use the pot-in-pot method, I saute the chicken in the cooking pot, then transfer the sauteed chicken to my cake pan. Ill wipe out the pot, then cook my spaghetti in the bottom of the cooking pot with just enough water to cover the noodles. Ill rest the cake pan on a tall trivet in the cooker and cook for 3 minutes with a quick pressure release.
Functions Of Each Of The Instant Pot Buttons
Still, there may be times you prefer to use the preset options or you might just be curious to know how they work. There is a bit of variety among each of the different models however, all of the Instant Pot buttons cook the same.
For your convenience, Ive created a printable Button Summary Sheet with detailed explanations of the different settings for each of the major Instant Pot modelsjust click the link on your model below:
Instant Pot Duo
Also Check: Instant Pot Duo Plus Hard Boiled Eggs
Dont Be Afraid To Add Time
Since the trivet lifts foods up and away from the heating element on the bottom of the cooking pan, foods occasionally need an additional minute or two at high pressure. When first adjusting a recipe, I recommend starting with the original time listed in the different recipes and testing for doneness. For example, if I use a tall trivet when just cooking rice pot-in-pot, I will use a 4-minute cook time to make sure the rice cooks through.
OK, thats it! Do you have any questions about cooking pot-in-pot? Leave me your questions in the comments!
How Are Instant Pots And Pressure Cookers The Same
Instant Pots and pressure cookers both function to cook food quickly with steam under pressure.
Instant Pots and pressure cookers offer convenience after a busy day just like I mentioned as one of the benefits of using crockpots.
These two appliances offer fast cooking so your home-cooked meal is ready in a jiffy once youve prepared it, after that busy day.
You could say that Instant Pots and pressure cookers are the same in these ways:
- Offer convenience of fast meal preparation
- Use pressure cooking
- Stainless-steel/metal construction
- Avail cooking of one-pot meals
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Getting Started Guide: How To Use A Pressure Cooker / Instant Pot
Electric pressure cookers like the Instant Pot Duo Nova or the Ninja Foodi make cooking faster and easier than ever before, so I know youre going to love it!
As with any new tool, there are a few things youll need to know before you get cooking!
For your convenience, Ive created a five-part getting started guide that will walk you through getting your pressure cooker out of the box and into your daily routine!
5. Easy Recipes to Make in Your New Instant Pot / Electric Pressure CookerIve compiled a list of easy-to-make pressure cooker recipes for you to start off with and build your confidence using your Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi, Crockpot Express, or other brand of electric pressure cooker.
How To Start The Instant Pot
Step 1. Place the Instant Pot on a sturdy countertop or a table close to a power socket. Make sure there is plenty of open space above the pot as you will have steam eject from the lid up in the air if you quick release the pressure.
Step 2. Make sure the inner pot is inside the cooker base and is clean. Plug the power cord in. Instant Pot will switch on and the OFF status symbol will appear on the control panel. This is called a standby mode.
Step 3. Decide on which cooking method you want to use from the below scenarios. This will depend on what you want to cook. Usually, recipe instructions will guide you along here.
In general, your choices will come down to whether you want to Sauté food first and then whether you want to use a manual setting or one of the smart programs.
Also Check: Can You Cook Steak In An Instant Pot
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Are Electric Multicookers Safe
For the most part, today’s electric pressure cookers are safe. However, you still need to be careful.
Many people are afraid to use electric pressure cookers because they have heard stories of them exploding on the stove. That was a problem with the old stovetop models, but there are several safety mechanisms that minimize the chance of this happening with modern electric cookers.
“I was never concerned about a multicooker exploding on the countertops,” said chef and chocolatier Anne Wolf.
Jeffrey Eisner, author of The Step-by-Step Instant Pot Cookbook agreed. “If you’re going to compare pressure cookers from back in the day when they were on stovetops to today’s that are electric and have locking, a big difference is today’s lids will stay securely on top,” said Eisner. “I feel comfortable using them, and I’ve never been afraid. I’ve never had any issues personally.”
However, today’s electric pressure cookers are not without their risks. “I did find that it’s easy to burn yourself on the steam when you’re doing a quick release,” said Wolf. “So, there’s some burn risk.”
The best way to minimize the burn risk when releasing the pressure is to use a wood spoon or other long utensil to engage the lever that opens the vent. The steam always comes from the top so make sure you are not standing over the cooker when releasing the steam.
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Instant Pot Porridge Setting
The porridge setting on the Instant Pot can be used to cook oatmeal using old-fashioned oats and steel-cut oats, rice porridge and congee or porridge-like dishes that use a mixture of grains that expand in liquid. Ideally, you should use natural release when cooking high-starch foods that expand or a combination of 5-10 minutes natural release and quick release to follow. Below is how to use the Porridge setting on Instant Pot.
- Turn the Instant Pot on, it will say OFF to indicate the Stand-By mode. Add the grains, liquid and spices or fat if you wish. Secure and lock the lid. Press the Porridge button. The default setting is pre-programmed to set the pot to cook at High pressure for 20 minutes. If you press the Porridge button again, you can adjust the mode from Normal to Less or More.
- Less mode 5 minutes at High pressure this is suitable for cooking rolled oats and risotto-like porridge or rice porridge with slightly firmer to bite texture.
- Normal mode 20 minutes at High pressure use for steel-cut oat porridge or rice porridge with a slightly softer texture and for making congee.
- More mode 30 minutes at High pressure use for a porridge/congee that contains a mixture of beans or tougher grains.
If desired, use the / + buttons to further customize the time. The cooking time may be adjusted at any time during pressure cooking.
Here are some suggested water to rice/oats ratios for porridge and oatmeal dishes:
Can You Reheat Food In The Instant Pot Pressure Cooker
As Ive been learning just how versatile my Instant Pot pressure cooker is, I decided to do some research to figure out if I could use it to easily reheat food.
And I found out that YES, you CAN reheat food in the Instant Pot! Not only does the Instant Pot help me make easy pressure cooker recipes, but it also reheats my leftovers!
In my case, this was a huge discovery in terms of kitchen convenience. I know there are other people who avoid using microwaves due to health concerns. The Instant Pot is a viable option for reheating food for anybody who doesnt have access to or desires not to use a microwave!
Keep reading to find out how to reheat food in the Instant Pot!
Related:
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The Best Cannabutter Is Made With High
Its true, you can use any old strain to make Instant Pot cannabutter, but low-quality bud is going to produce a low-quality final product.
And that will affect every other step in the edibles process from the taste of the pie you bake to the psychoactive and physical effects you experience.
So now that you know how to make cannabutter in your Instant Pot, use the best bud you can get your hands on the strain doesnt matter so that the end result doesnt leave you disappointed.
Plus, with a high-quality, organic strain like those grown at Honest Marijuana, youll need even less cannabutter to experience the same effects. A little will go a long way.
Talk to the budtenders at your local dispensary to find out what strains they recommend. If you live in Colorado, find some Honest Marijuana and discover what the purest marijuana experience on the planet feels like.
You wont be sorry.
For more information on all things cannabis and to check out our 100-percent all-natural marijuana products, visit HonestMarijuana.com today.
Using Saute Function After Cooking
The Sauté function is also useful for finishing the dish after pressure cooking is done. Once the pressure has been completely released, open the lid and then press Sauté button again. Press the button again to cycle through Less or More for lower or higher temperature.
Use it for:
- Simmering the sauce or broth in the dish that needs to evaporate and reduce or thicken.
- Adding more fragile or no-cooking-required ingredients like baby spinach, fresh tomatoes, fruit, cheese, milk or cream.
- Thickening sauce with butter, cream or flour.
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Using The Instant Pot Buttons May Seem A Little Intimidating At First Because There Are So Many But Really Its Easy
Before you know it youll be whipping up fabulous meals and desserts that will impress your friends and family. Have fun!
For step by step instructions, watch my how to use an Instant Pot multicooker video.
For more information on using your new Instant Pot, come join my Facebook community at .
***Many thanks to my friend Sigrid for alerting me to the updated information about the latest versions of the Instant Pot buttons.***
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First Things First What Is An Instant Pot
Links in this post are Amazon affiliate links to products we love.
The Instant Pot is an electric pressure cooker but also a slow cooker, yogurt maker, rice cooker, big sauté pot, steamer, and more. We have the 6-Quart Instant Pot Duo which is what we use for all our Instant Pot recipes. They also make a 3-Quart Instant Pot Mini and a hefty 8-quart Instant Pot.
The Instant Pot is an absolute game-changer, especially on busy nights. Most recipes are dump and cook, and all you have to do is set it all up and then WALK AWAY to do other fun stuff like watch TV, walk your dog, clean your house, have a dance party, etc.
BONUS: it also cooks food way faster than other ways to cook and its all done in one pot. Do you get why we love this thing yet?
If youre still not convinced, the Instant Pot is PRIME for meal prepping and freezer meals no thawing required. You can check out all our freezer meal Instant Pot recipes here if youre into that kind of stuff .
Well also just drop the obvious: its also a pretty excellent gift for a certain holiday coming around the corner.
Alright, lets get on with it. Here are some of our favorite ways to use this little gem.
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What We Don’t Recommend And Why:
GoWise USA 14-Quart : We were interested in this model because it’s larger than anything else we tested. We wondered if it could still perform well. It didn’t. The controls are confusing, it takes longer to build pressure, it didn’t sear well, and the included recipes were designed for GoWise USA’s smaller multicookers. Still, it did well pressure cooking pork and rice.
Crock-Pot Express Oval Max : This was the only multicooker we tested that had an oval inner pot. We only found this useful for fitting longer cuts of meat and keeping the pot from spinning when stirring. However, it was slow to build pressure, didn’t sear well, and the included recipes weren’t accurate.
Instant Pot Ultra : The only positive we could find with the IP Ultra is it was easy to set up and use. Other than that, the performance was subpar. It was among the slowest to build pressure in every test. It did an okay job searing, but the chicken from the included recipe was dry and flavorless. If you want an Instant Pot, you’ll be happier with any of the other models we tested.
If You’re Looking For A Basic Affordable Multicooker From The Top Name In The Industry The Instant Pot Duo Multi
- Capacity: 6 quarts
- Inner pot material: Nonstick
- Settings: pressure cook, sear/saute, steam, slow cook, sterilize, keep warm, ferment plus 300+ preset programs in its menu
- Number of included recipes: 1000+ in the Chef iQ App
- Extras: Extra sealing gasket, steam rack, steam basket, heat-resistant pad for lid
Pros: Produced tender and juicy slow cooked pork, builds pressure quickly, good browning, dishwasher-safe and metal utensil-safe stainless steel inner pot, Instant Pot app features 100s of recipes
Cons: Takes experimentation to get cooking times right, controls take some getting used to
With , the Instant Pot Duo Multi-Use Programmable Pressure Cooker is the most popular electric multicooker on the market. It comes in three, six, and eight-quart sizes and features a stainless steel inner pot, which is found in most Instant Pots. Though overcooked food can get stuck to the pot making it hard to clean, we like that it’s dishwasher-safe and metal utensil-safe.
The Duo did okay in each of our tests, but excelled in our slow cooker test. The slow cooker pulled pork shredded effortlessly and had excellent, juicy flavor. The pressure build was quick for the pressure-cooked pulled pork, but the resulting pork was tougher and harder to shred than we would have liked. It seemed like it could have used 10 more minutes of pressure cooking.
Again, the pressure built quickly for the rice and beans, but the rice was a little too chewy and the beans were slightly overcooked .
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What Can You Cook In An Instant Pot
You’d be amazed at what you can cook in an Instant Pot with a little creativity. Most people will use the Instant Pot to make chili or stew. That’s just the beginning. Instant Pot cooking can be healthier since you don’t use much oil. You can steam rice, cook a whole chicken, boil eggs, sauté vegetables, make spaghetti and cook nearly anything you can think of. The best part is that cooking in an Instant Pot means faster cooking times and far less mess. Most recipes are ready in 30 minutes or less and make cleanup easier.
Is A Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker The Same As An Instant Pot
A cuisinart electric pressure cooker isnt entirely the same as an instant pot.This type of pressure cooker is designed like a stove cooking pressure cooker. It doesnt have any extra functions like an instant pot. So you can only pressure cook food.
On the other hand, you can do slow cooking, pressure cooking, and even use other functions in an instant pot. So definitely a cuisinart electric pressure cooker isnt the same as an instant pot.
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