I'm in...in-laws got us one for Christmas. So far I'm sort of impressed?

I'll have to try this.

Do you just throw everything in the pot and pressure cook it?  What is the olive oil for?

For stew, add one teaspoon (5 mL) of xanthan gum for a thicker result. Do not go over this amount, or you will get slime.

I have no smoker yet so I'm trying baby back ribs tonight.  I'll report back with results.

First off, apologies for the messy presentation.  I ate 3/4 of the whole rack before I realized i forgot to take pictures.

Notes:

-  I did high pressure for 32 minutes, natural release, probably a bit too long, should hve done maybe 26-28 minutes, the meat was falling apart tender
-  3lb. rack, generic dry rub, i rinsed the ribs and patted dry before the rub
-  Needed to sauce them a bit more before putting them under the broiler
-  More time in the broiler, I did 6 minutes, could have used 10
-  A bit more liquid smoke, I did 1 TSP
-  I did one half Sweet Baby Ray's and one half this Carolina stuff
-  Other than falling apart, they were delicious and the most tender ribs I've ever had

I'm interested in an Instapot but there seem to be a ton of different options, even within the Instapot brand.  What are the key features to look for, and are the third party products comparable or is it best to stick with the "real" Instapot?

I started with which size would work and what I wanted the Instant pot to do and it was pretty easy to decide the Duo 60 was the best choice for me.

Here is a good comparison chart, if you haven't seen it already.

Great reference thanks!  We're looking at the Ultra 60 as it's currently a little cheaper than the Duo Plus 60.

I have the LUX 60. 6 qt. Works for me.

As for the features and settings.
I'd say 95% of the time I just use regular "Manual" pressure cook setting.

FWIW. I have cooked a 10 pound turkey in my 8qt pot.

Probably could have fit an 11 pounder.

Thanks to this thread, went nuts today and made the two ingredient cheesecake and green bean/potato/sausage mix posted by Lancelot. Cheesecake is good, but over sweet, so will play with that one. The mix is still cooking, but smells great already and should make some decent work lunches.

How can you have "Grandma's Instant Pot Recipe"  anything.  No self-respecting Grandma would ever use an Instant Pot and admit to it.

Pork Loins - Yes.  Tenderloins are probably a cut that doesn't need the pressure to tenderize.

I found that Chobani's "low sugar" yogurt does very well in this recipe since the sweetened condensed milk has plenty of sugar.  The raspberry and strawberry flavors are quite good in this recipe.  Alternatively you could use plain or unsweetened vanilla yogurt.

With a tenderloin?  wrong kind of cut.  Unless you only want to make two sandwiches.  Tenderloins are pretty small.  You want to use a shoulder or Boston Butt.

Ma Danby took exception to my Grandma comment.  Told her I still don't think of her as the white haired in the kitchen Grandma.  She bought it.

Anything that is too fancy and needs lots of preparation kind of misses the point and loses the big time advantage.

"Pressure Luck" "Jewish Brisket" is great.  Google it.

Pot Roast with a Chuck Roast.  Easy, lots of options.  If you cut the roast into two or three big pieces it cooks faster.  Need to watch that.  The plus being is you aren't as likely to overcook the veggies, especially when they are cut in smaller pieces.    I've yet to not over-cook carrots.  Tried the wrap in a separate aluminum foil packet.  Still got mushy.  I guess I need to find bigger carrots.

I use corn starch slurry to thicken sauces.

Pork loins are pretty easy too.

The first time l tried a put roast l over cooked the vegetables. They tasted fine but were a soft mush.  

Now l brown and  cook the meat and prep the veggies while the pressure naturally releases.  When done with then l instant release then add the veggies.  Cook for another 15 minutes or so.  Everything turns out much better now.

@corwin1968 Yeah just throw it all in. If I feel like I I'll dice a half a sweet onion as well. I put the olive oil in to hopefully coat the inside so it doesn't stick as much. Not sure if it actually helps but so far it's been super easy to clean out afterward.

I've got an InstaPot and in general I'm not impressed yet, maybe it will get better as I get more experience.

One thing I an excited about is using it in the summer.  An 80% meal is still far, far better than firing up the oven for an equivalent meal.  We generally don't even use the oven from May to September so this thing might get a workout.

I have used pressure cookers since I was a kid , don’t need to switch now.

I dunno. Grandmas have used crock pots and pressure cookers since both were invented.

Stoners gonna stone.

Oh, INSTANT pot... Nevermind.

Anybody done whole, russet potatoes in the IP?  Tons of recipes and everybody says they're so easy but I didn't have great luck last night.

2 large potatoes.  Not ginormous, but good sized, steak house looking potatoes.

1 cup water, 18 minutes, natural release.  The were no where near done in the middle but the skin was already wet and falling apart.  I did forget to poke holes in them which all recipes called for.  Just plain forgot.

You have to poke holes in them in order for the middle to cook.
I made the same mistake.

Thanks.  How many at a time?  Other recipes I read also were saying to do at least 4 at a time.

The least I've done is two large ones.
They turned out fine.
Might want to do 3 or 4 if they're smaller.

I use one cup of water.
poke several holes through the potatoes with a skewer.
Put the potatoes on a trivet or in a steamer.
Then 12-18 mins on manual depending on potato size.
Natural pressure release for 10 minutes.

For a crispy skin, coat the potatoes in olive oil after pressure cooking and put them under a broiler for a couple minutes on each side.
I've coated them in olive oil, garlic, salt, pepper, and rosemary before broiling, they're awesome like that.

Bacon Potato Salad
Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds russet potatoes (peeled and cubed)
2-3 large eggs
5 slices bacon (cut into chunks - reserve 2 Tablespoons grease)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
3 green onions (chopped)
1 Dill pickle (diced)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Salt to taste

Instructions
Pour one cup of water into the liner of your Instant Pot. Place a steamer basket in the liner, making sure it is taller than the water.
Place the cubed potatoes in the steamer basket, then lay the eggs on top.
Place the lid on the pressure cooker, twist to lock, and check to make sure the pressure valve is in the Sealing position.
Select Manual for 5 minutes.
Cook the bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat until crispy. Move to a paper towel lined plate and set aside.
Remove the skillet from heat, and drain all but 2 Tablespoons of fat. It doesn't have to be exact, but you don't want too much left over.
Add the bacon grease, mayonnaise, and mustard to a mixing bowl. Stir to thoroughly combine.
When the pressure cooker beeps, push the Cancel/Warm button and release the pressure.
Place the potatoes in a large mixing bowl to cool, and place the eggs into cold water. When the eggs are cool, dice them and add to the bowl along with onions, pickle, salt, and pepper.
Pour the mayonnaise mixture over the potatoes, add the bacon, and gently stir to combine.
Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve, at least one hour.

Holds 14 eggs.  There is also one that holds 18 eggs.

Hard boiled eggs.

I have an 8qt Instant Pot.

1 cup water
14 extra large eggs
Push egg button.  Make sure the steam vent is closed.

Come back in 16 minutes.  17 minutes for jumbo eggs.
Vent the steam.

Put the eggs in cold water for two or three minutes.  Ice in the water helps.

Start peeling at the big end because my mother told me that's how it should be done.

These are the easiest peeling eggs you will ever have.  Perfect for pickeling

I have that exact one. It's awesome.

Made this tonight.  I threw in some Italian spice blend.  It's going in the rotation.

my $0.02
Skip the instant pot brand. Get the new crock pot XL. Built better and easier to use. Teflon non stick pot. All instant pot recipes work as well without modification.

We just got a Ninja Foodi today.  Gonna have to try this pressure cooking/air frying stuff out!  Keep the recipes coming.

Anyone have a good recipe for any Asian food?

Your best bet is to look at recipes on youtube and use the common denominator to
get a basis for a recipe. Make it and eat it. Afterward jot down what you would change
and use that the next time.

Just made this and it was delicious.
Tasted exactly like take-out Moo Shu pork.

Found the recipe on-line, but tweaked it, a lot better than the original recipe.

Instant Pot Moo Shu Pork

Ingredients
1-2 pounds of pork tenderloin- cut into strips
1 tablespoon cornstarch
3 tablespoons of soy sauce
3 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar
1 tbsp Aji Mirin
1 teaspoon of brown sugar
1 cup of hoisin sauce
3 tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup sliced water chestnuts.
1 cup of bamboo shoots
2 cups of sliced portabello mushrooms
1 bag of broccoli slaw
1/4 cup beef broth
rice pancakes or flour tortillas
steamed white rice

Instructions
In a mixing bowl, add pork.  
Add cornstarch and stir until coated.  
Then add soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar,  hoisin sauce, and garlic.  Stir.  
Cover and put in the fridge for an hour to marinate.  
Set your instant pot to saute' (more).
Add sesame and veg oil to the bottom of the pot.
Add marinated pork and all the sauce.
Saute' until lightly browned.  (Pork can also be sauteed in frying pan and transferred to pot.)
Add in this order: water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, broccoli slaw, and mushrooms.  Then pour in beef broth.
Close the Instant Pot and cook on manual for 5 minutes.  
Vent instant pot, stir gently to mix.
Serve with steamed rice and warm tortillas on the side.
Add rice and moo shu mixture to tortilla and wrap up.
Hoisin sauce, plum sauce, duck sauce, green onions, sweet chili sauce, sriracha can be used in wraps according to tastes.

Made this for dessert. Pretty good.

Apple Crumble

INGREDIENTS
5 medium sized apples, peeled and sliced (Granny Smith apples work best)
3 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup water or apple juice
2 tbsp maple syrup
4 tbsp butter
3/4 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS
Place apples on the bottom of your Instant Pot. Sprinkle with 2 tsp cinnamon.
Top with water (or apple juice) and maple syrup.
Melt the butter. In a small bowl, mix together melted butter, oats, 1 tsp cinnamon, flour, brown sugar and salt. Drop by the spoonful on top of the apples. (For a crispy topping, save some of this mixture and put it in the oven to crisp then sprinkle on top after cooking.)
Use the manual setting, and cook for 5 minutes.
Use a natural release and remove lid.
Let sit for a few minutes, the sauce will thicken.
Serve warm and top with vanilla ice cream.

I use the pork loin roasts from Costco. It makes the best pulled pork.

I use Boston Butt in the real smoker. :)

We love ours...my wife is in charge of the recipes.

Just remember that the pressure cooker does something totally different to a marbled or fatty slab of meat than a crockpot or smoker does.  Not necessarily bad, just different.

Got some pork chops that we cut from a Costco loin a while back and forgot about in the freezer cooking in the instant pot right now.

Tossed the chops in, added a bit of water, some apple cider vinegar, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, smoked paprika and some brown sugar.

Gonna shred it, Brown it in the oven for a minute and toss it in some Sweet Baby Ray's

I've been using mine for a few different things.

The one thing I don't like is that the saute function is not adequate for properly searing meats.

I've been searing in a pan on stovetop and then transferring to Instapot... kinda defeats the one-pot benefit.

Ethiopian Chicken Stew
Very spicy chicken stew with a really beautiful deep red color from the berbere spice and oil.

2 white onions diced
2 tbsp coconut oil
1 tbsp crushed ginger
5 cloves crushed garlic
2 15 oz cans diced tomatoes
2 cups chicken broth
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs cut up into bite-sized pieces
1/4 cup berbere spice (basically chili powder with other stuff)

mix tomatoes and berbere spice together in a separate bowl

Sautee onions for 8-10 minutes until soft in the coconut oil
add garlic and ginger sautee for 30 seconds to a minute
add broth, don't stir
add tomatoes and berbere spice previously mixed together in a bowl, don't stir
add chicken on top, don't stir
cover, pressure cook 10 minutes

You layer the liquids on the bottom and don't stir to prevent getting a "burn" warning on the cooker that stops the cooking process. I hate that about Instant Pots. Layering thin liquids on the bottom seems to prevent it.

Home made Manischewitz

That might be better with apple, white grape, or pear juice rather than concord grape juice.

My 8 quart Duo Plus has 3 settings for saute.  You just keep pressing the button to step through them.  Check if yours is the same?

Anybody have any good recipes for pork shoulder roast?

Just rub with spices, sear and cook?  What about liquid, gravy, etc.

This turned out well for me.

Instant Pot Pork Roast with vegetables

1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 tbsp. olive oil, divided
1- 2 lb. pork shoulder
2 cups unsalted chicken broth or water
2 Russet potatoes cut into chunks
2 carrots cut into chunks
1 onion cut into quarters
3 cloves garlic

In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper, and garlic powder and stir to combine.
Rub pork roast with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with the salt mixture on all sides.
Select the Saute' (More setting) button to heat the Instant Pot. When "Hot" is displayed, add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil.
Add the seasoned pork roast and sear on all sides, approximately 4 minutes per side.
When roast has been seared on all sides, press Cancel and remove roast from the Instant Pot. Place on a plate and set aside.
Add the broth or water to the Instant Pot, scraping any bits from the bottom with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula.
Place the trivet in the bottom or the Instant pot. Lay the roast on top of the trivet and arrange the potatoes,carrots, onions, and garlic around it.
Cover pot, lock on the lid, and set the steam release valve to Sealing
Select the Meat/Stew or Manual button and set the cook time to 30 minutes.
When the cooking cycle has finished, allow the pot to sit for 10 minutes, and then release by moving the valve to Venting.
Optional Step: To crisp the crust, preheat oven to 425 F while the roast is resting.
Remove the pork to a sheet pan or roasting pan if using crisping method. Place in preheated oven and cook for 10 minutes.
If not using the crisping method: Remove the pork to a cutting board.
Carve the roast into 1/2" slices
To make gravy, remove roast and all vegetables from broth in pot. Make a slurry with 2 tbsp of corn starch and 3 tbsp of water.
Set pot to Saute' and bring to boil, pour in slurry while stirring, turn pot off and continue to stir until boiling stops. Gravy will thicken as it cools.
Alternatively, pre-packaged pork gravy powder can be used in the broth.

Ohhhhhhhh. THAT kind of pot.....

Nevermind.

Made this today. Came out perfect. Really damn good.

Attached File


Instant Pot Mexican Lasagna

Ingredients
1 lb Lean Ground Beef  (93% lean is ideal)
1- 1 oz Taco Seasoning Packet
Refried beans
1/3 cup Salsa
(4) 6 inch Flour Tortillas (can use corn, but they are more fragile)
1/4 cup Enchilada or Taco Sauce
2 1/2 cups Shredded Cheese or more if desired. (Cheddar, Pepper Jack, Taco Blend....etc)
Diced Jalapeno peppers (Optional)
Sliced black olives (Optional)

Instructions
Use the Saute setting on your pressure cooker (or use a frying pan) to brown the meat, stirring in the taco seasoning in about halfway through. Cook meat until done. Set aside. Cancel the saute setting.
Wash/Rinse out the pot and put 1 1/2 cups of water in it.
Mix salsa and enchilada/taco sauce
Spray a 6" springform pan with cooking spray.
Place 1 of the tortillas in the bottom of the pan and spread with refried beans.
Sprinkle on some of the meat evenly, (Jalapeno and olives if using), then some of the sauce mix,  then some of the cheese.
Repeat until topped off with last tortilla.
Place the final tortilla on and gently press in place.
Cover the pan with foil and place on the trivet/rack, and use the handles to place them in the pot. You can also use a sling, and set the pan on the trivet that you will put in the pot first.
Place the lid on the pot and lock in place. Turn the steam release knob to the Sealing position.
Cook on Manual for 10 minutes.
When the cooking  has ended, let the pot sit undisturbed for 10 minutes (10 minute Natural Release). Then turn the steam release knob to the Venting position to release the remainder of the steam/pressure.
Carefully lift out the pan to a cooling rack.
Set oven to broil. Remove the foil from the pan and sprinkle on the remaining cheese (or more, up to 1 cup) on top.
Place the pan on the middle oven rack and let the cheese brown to your desired amount. Don't leave it unattended as it could burn if you don't watch it.
Remove from oven to a plate and let it sit for several minutes to set up and cool a bit.
Run a butter knife around the edge to loosen it. Carefully unlock the springform pan and lift the ring off. Use a spatula to slide pie off of the pan bottom, or just leave it and serve from it. Use caution as it will be hot.
Cut pie into desired serving sizes and garnish with your choice of sour cream, salsa, hot sauce, lime wedges, chopped cilantro, etc.