[STech]

Well this thread made me hungry, so I went out and bought an Instant Pot. The 8 quart big boy. I woke up planning on buying more VCN shares, but didn't like the price, so instead I ended up with a pressure cooker on sale :biggrin:

I dunno if it's gonna save any money, but I care more about healthier meals, and trying to cut eating out.

 

[STech]

I finally had time to unpack my shiny new gadget. I looked at the included recipe book, and felt like roast beef today.

It took a few minutes to learn the functions, and took a bit to prep everything. I had no idea what to expect, especially since I'm not exactly known for my cooking skills. After an hour of cooking, I was pleasantly surprised I had made a meal worth talking about. The carrots and potatoes came out perfect, I wouldn't change anything about them. The roast beef was very good too, but next time I'll let it cook for another 2 minutes. I'll have to tweak the recipe to my liking, but I'd consider this a success. Overall I'm happy with the purchase, and it seems like a quality appliance that should last a while. I'm happy I went with the bigger 8 quart. I think the 6 would be usable as well, but the mini must be hard to work with, and limiting.

 

[STech]

Here's a question for you IP owners. I'm cooking another stew tonight. When you have a large soup or stew, do you tend to keep it in the IP's inner pot, and put the whole big steel pot into the fridge? Or do you usually empty it out into smaller containers and clean the IP immediately?

If you are keeping it in the IP's steel pot, is there a setting that works well to reheat this without causing excessive extra cooking each time?

I'd think the Keep Warm function would work best. I don't keep anything in pots or pans. I use glass containers and put in the fridge or freezer as soon as they cool down.

 

[STech]

I'm getting a bit tired of cooking elaborate recipes, which I enjoy, but sometimes it's too much work and time for a bit more flavor that I don't really need at every meal.

Same here. I'm hoping to do more of the prep and toss a few things together and have decent meal in an hour. I definitely enjoy the more elaborate stuff once in a while, but I'm hoping to hone my cooking skills for more cook and run type of deals.


So far, I've had pretty good success with pressure cooking chicken breasts in chicken broth for 11 minutes, then throwing in potatoes and carrots and pressure cooking again on high for 3 minutes. I do this while making rice in a stove top pot at the same time. Tasty and healthy, but I'm still trying to figure out some seasonings for more flavour. If anyone knows of a package of something to throw in, please post up.

 

[STech]

Also, for me, cooking has always been an excuse to not do the work I need to be doing... I gotta cook... for health, taste, culture, the soul, etc. So I'm trying to break that mindset. Sometimes you just gotta eat something, and hopefully it doesn't taste too terrible.

I'm new to full-bore cooking. I've always done easy and quick stuff, or ate out. Now with more time on my hands, I'm focusing on healthy, tasty, and proper cooking. I have developed a sense of accomplishment and enjoyment from cooking more involved meals. Last weekend I spent 7 hours prepping and making 2 chicken dishes, rice, pasta, and 1 soup. It helps that my audience was impressed.

During the week, hopefully I can come up with a magic potion to throw in with the chicken or beef, and 15 minutes later have a somewhat tasty dish. I'll definately try the poultry seasoning, thanks.


BTW, the Instant Pot app has a bunch of yummy recipes and a fairly large community. Download it and sign up.

 

[STech]

wow, all this just for some carrots & baby potatoes?

Potatoes and carrots are super simple and quick in the IP actually. All you have to do is wash and cut up some baby potatoes, throw into the IP. Then throw in a bag of baby carrots along with some water (I use chicken broth). Set the IP for 4 minutes and done.

It takes less than 5 minutes for pressure to build up, and another minute to quick vent, so let's say roughly 10 minutes total, and they come out just right. It's a very simple recipe and process, no need to over think it.

 

[STech]

Did I do something wrong? I do have the 8 qt. I had about 2lbs of cold potatoes and 1-2 cups of cold water in there, and it took a full 15 minutes for it to come up to pressure and the timer to start... It was as long as bringing a large pot of water to boil... That's why next time I was planning on soaking the potatoes and IP liner in hot tap water for a few minutes first, while I'm getting the carrots ready, to hopefully jump start the heating up process.

I have the 8 quart as well. Make sure you have it set to high pressure and not low, and remember the manual says on the 8 qt model, you need a minimum of 2 cups of liquid. Make sure the vent cap is clean and seated properly. I don't know how much soaking the potatoes in hot water will help, but I'm not a fan of using hot water from my water heater for cooking. I buy those 5 lb bags of baby potatoes, and use about half every time. Then add a bag of ready to eat baby carrots. I think they're 1 lb bags. I used to take the time and peel the potatoes, but now I just cut the potatoes and cook with the skin on. They taste better, not mushy, and cuts down on prep time.

This past Sunday, I put in 3 lbs of boneless skinless chicken breast (not frozen).
Cooked that for 14 minutes along with 2.5 cups of chicken broth sprinkled with poultry seasoning. Quick release.
Put in 2.5 lbs of cut up baby potatoes and 1 lb of baby carrots straight from the bag.
Cooked on high pressure again for another 4 minutes. Quick release and done.

In the meantime, I had 6 cups of brown rice made in a pot on the stove. Total time was about an hour, and now I have yummy and healthy meals for a few days to take to work.


For something with more taste, but still easy, I think I'm gonna attempt one of the following 3 recipes from the video below. They look tasty.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBLt0nC8msY&t=6s&list=WL&index=15

 

[STech]

4 minutes for potatoes? Obviously I didn't time things right at all on my first try...

Yup. I just double checked the Cooking Time Tables sheet that comes with the instant pot. It says 12-15 minutes for large whole potatoes. 8-10 minutes for small whole potatoes, and 3-4 minutes for cubed potatoes. This is on high pressure.