Instapot? Is it the kitchen saviour it proclaims to be? ve?

[cantthinkofathing]

AIbu to think everyone has one? Should I buy one? It there anything better? Is it as amazing as everyone says???

No-one's mentioned making yoghurt yet! You do need the Duo for that though, not the Lux

I've got a Pressure King Pro. It's amazing.

Had mine for 6 months now and love it. Researched it for 6 months prior to that too. There are a few FB groups that are amazing.

Use ours at least three times a week, does great risotto, bolognese, soups.

Used it on Xmas day to ‘par boil’ the spuds and then to cook the veg in. Much less mess in the kitchen, no steamy pots.

Used the slow cooker function to make a chunky chilli, which was great, you just need to use the high setting.

Ahhh @acertainratio the Pressure King Pro is great! No mere knock off.

I've abandoned all hope of an IP in favour of a PKP.

I was looking for an instapot but don't think such a thing actually exists!

So it's actually called an instant pot or the king pro - is there a preferred brand? I had the Heston one on my wish list for ages & thinking of making an impulse purchase today.....

If anyone wants an instapot you can have mine! Used twice and now in a cupboard!

buckeejit they do exist but the brand name is Instant Pot and the company aren't expecting any more to arrive in the UK until February.

We've had ours for a couple of years.

1. if you preheat stuff (hot liquids for instance or use "saute" to brown the meat as you chop the onions) it comes to pressure MUCH quicker

2. it is convenience rather than speed that we like. No more standing at the stove stirring and paying attention. Throw it in, turn it on, walk away and eat when you like. The IP will keep it warm until you are ready.

3. stainless steel pot. So much better than teflon.

4. callhimyeschef.com/2013/02/19/carnitas-under-pressure/

5. being able to throw frozen meat in such as chicken thighs. Yes it takes longer but so much less effort.

Some things take longer than they would on the stovetop. I still prefer it as I don't have to pay any attention to it.

Super thanks-my baby, you should probably start a bidding war on this thread-I'm NI so would be £££ to post. Will check gumtree just in case there's one near me!! They're not too speedy though. Sounds tempting 😬

Pop it on eBay, Mybaby I'm sure it will sell in a flash.

makes great cheesecake too, did anyone mention that?

buttfaced I did! We're shortly going to be finishing off the custard cream cheesecake that I am made in mine yesterday.

I got a Pressure King Pro for Xmas (asked for it!) and it’s amazing. Did a ragu earlier for a lasagne and it’s top notch. Was done in half an hour and you’d swear it’d been simmering for hours.

I make a lovely soup in mine. I chop up any veg that I have, throw in some frozen peas and frozen precooked chicken, some broken up spaghetti, mixed herbs, pepper and stock. Set it to cook for 4 minutes. Let it come to pressure, cook and then release pressure naturally for 10 minutes before manual pressure release and it's gorgeous!! It's become a real favourite with all of us.

I also have a PKP, but I bought the Instantpot trivets because the one that comes with the PKP isn't brilliant.
I do rather love it. Thought it might be a bit of a gimmick at first but it is so easy to use and so different from the pressure cookers of my childhood.

I also have the Pressure King Pro 12 in 1. I love it!
The Instant Pot wasn’t available until Feb, so being the impatient person that I am, I bought the PKP.
Re: getting the pressure up. Use very hot water, then it takes less time.
I love the browning function, so I can brown the chicken before cooking it (whole fresh chicken 30 mins 40 mins if you brown it first).

PKP is reasonably priced-what size is best?

If doing soups I usually do a massive stock pot & freeze but not sure if I'd use this for meals for the 4 of us or just spuds etc

Any size advice welcomed!

@Buckee Mine is a 5 litre, but beware, the inner pot is not 5 litre, so if you have a large family, you might need the 6 litre.
The 5 litre is plenty for just the 2 of us.
There is a 3 litre, 5 litre and 6 litre

There is a recipe book that comes with it, writing so small I have to shine a torch on it. That’ll give you an idea what you can cook.
Try the PKP website high street tv, and it’ll give you ideas.
I’ve yet to do a chilli.

I don't use it so much since I've seperated as i don't need to please a man with a full meal every evening

However as pp said, you can reduce the time by taking the inner out and using on a hob to caramelise meat, onions etc. Then boil a kettle so you can add hot stock etc, and then it will come to pressure quickly - say 10 minutes and you walk away & leave it

Back in the day, I could prep risotto in less than 10 minutes, cook for 15.
Take a solid chicken from the chest freezer, cook it to falling of the bone in then blast in a hot oven to crisp up (oven has time to heat up at the same time.)
Beef bourginon, chicken chasseur or curry, bolognaise in about half an hour and the flavours are really pushed into the meat. That is the really difference compared to comparable stove top cooking.

i think you need to use it in combination with another method; in my case stove top cooking is the most frequent to get the best results.

The real advantages are improved flavour & tenderness, no need to plan and start a slow cooker in the morning. You can walk in at 5 /6 pm and have dinner on the table within the house whilst you get on with other things

Instant pot has a saute function so you don't have to use brown on the hob f irst, but I also turn it on saute while I prep the rest to start bringing it up to temperature as another cheat of getting it to pressure faster.

Yeah like octonaught says, at some point in the afternoon/evening I can throw some things in and start it going. With the slow cooker I'd forget in the morning and then be screwed, or I'd forget to defrost my meat. Neither of those are a problem now.

It isn't quote as quick as they claim because as others say, you have to wait for it to heat up.. like pre-heating an oven. It is quick though and very little effort or supervising. The first thing I made was chili with dry beans DH bought from the store that evening. He was gobsmacked... "I just bought those beans!" ... and instantly sold.

The reason I bought the IP instead of the many other similar machines was the stainless pot. All the others have teflon and that just doesn't last in our house.

We eat a lot of soups and stews so it is good for us.

Agree that the stainless steel pot is a game changer - mine looks as good as new even though it's over a year old and has had weekly use at least.

I use mine to make rice too, but mostly because it makes very good rice and I dont need to watch it rather than it saving loads fo time.

Also, because I dont need to watch it I use it way more than my hob-pressure cooker which is languishing in the cupboard now.

That's the other thing I love! I can sauté in the pot before using the pressure setting to complete the dish! And a WHOLE chicken in 25 minutes?! You can't beat that!