To ask, if I by an instant pot, will it become a dust gatherer?

[MayThe4th]

I’m due to start a new job soon and have considered an instant pot to make cooking life easier.

The one I’m considering is the duo crisp as this has an air friar as well as slow cooker/pressure cooker/steamer etc.

But although people do seem to rave about them, I can’t help wondering if this is going to be a gadget which will end up on top of a cupboard, given I do have a slow cooker, and a perfectly adequate oven.

So give it to me straight. Should I save the money or is it worth buying?

I never use mine but ymmv.

I went through a phase of using mine when it was kept out on the side, but after we made some cupboard room to get some work surface space back it barely sees the light of day! It’s much less effort to just put the oven on or use the hob.

Having said that, I like the results and it will likely get a revival when the weather turns and I start batch cooking stews and soups etc. The air fryer is a nice touch but it’s basically an oven (just cheaper to run and quicker to heat up).

ah, so that’s 100% no so far.

Have to say I am usually fairly sceptical when it comes to these kinds of gadgets, I know an air friar alone is just a glorified chicken nugget cooker, but thought that in combination with a pressure/slow cooker it might be a good thing.

But think I’ll save the cash.

I use mine daily!

This morning I did sausages - 8 minuets
Did a roast chicken yesterday 40 mins
DS cooked bacon
made a stew pressured cooked 20 mins
Jacket potatoes
I also do great roast potatoes in it really crispy!

I was particularly great over the heat, as it doesn’t heat the kitchen.

Thing is, you couldn’t cook a whole meal in it could you? So if you do a roast chicken you can’t do the roast potatoes as well so would still be using the oven for instance?

I love my instant pot.

Rarely use it in summer because it’s too hot here from May to early October but from then on it gets used multiple times a week.

I love that you can start a ragu by sautéing the soffritto then adding the meat and then the tomatoes before pressure cooking it. No other pots and pans needed unlike a traditional slow cooker. One pot wonders are a staple in our house!!

I've got a ninja foodi, I use the airfryer everyday for softboiled eggs.

I don't really use mine apart from cooking my home grown golden beetroot each year, I must look into using it more as it is probably cheaper than running the oven, mine hasn't got the air fryer.

I have the IP with the crisp lid. I use it at least once a day.

In the pot: porridge every morning; soup/stock; stew/curry; poached chicken; pot roast meat; chick peas or other beans; steam all my veg particularly potatoes/squash/corn; proof bread.

In the air fryer: sausages or chicken thighs or any freezer tapas or sweet potato wedges. This bit is new to us so still working it out.

I cook a lot and I cook for a lot of people so possibly I use it more than most folk. If you get one it's a good plan to join a Facebook group (or whatever) for inspiration because I think it's a bit intimidating otherwise. For us it's 100 times better than a slow cooker because it's faster and tastier.

I use mine every week. The main thing I use it for is cooking frozen chicken breasts to juicy loveliness in just under an hour. It only takes around 12 minutes "cooking" time but it takes a while to get to pressure and then needs the natural release to continue cooking the chicken. I just put it on at 5pm and leave it until I need it.

We also use it for pulled pork, 2.6kg joint takes 80 minutes, but again you have to wait for the before and after bits.

There are lots of meals you can cook in it and many YouTube videos plus a Facebook of IP lovers. Lots of stuff you can instant release and you just get used to how long something takes to come to pressure. Risotto is a breeze in it especially as you can saute in the pot.

I think batch cooking would be a better option for you for to start with. The Batch Lady on YouTube is a good one to watch.

I have the Sage Fast Slo Pro cooker and I think it is the best thing I have ever bought for my kitchen! I use it almost every day and barely use my hob now. It's fantastic for soups, casseroles, curries, risotto and bolognaise etc. I'd definitely go for one with the pressure cooker option. The food has much more flavour than hob cooked and everything is way less effort. It makes much less mess than conventional cooking and the pot insert can just go straight into the dishwasher so saves time on cleaning up after cooking too. I absolutely love mine and highly recommend it.

I have a standard IP and use it a fair bit for spag bol (all in the one pot, pasta and all), chilli, and particularly in winter for stews and soups. It's great. I think one with the air fry lid would be even more useful. It's great for speed and my kids prefer IP spag bol to proper.

The group I'm in on Facebook is worth joining just to see how bonkers some of the members are. They are IP obsessed- some of them own like 6 pots and use multiples at once to make meals. I have no clue why they don't just use the oven/hob at that point 🤷🏻‍♀️ but on the plus side lots of great recipes get posted. I never knew you could do cheesecake in it for example, or yoghurt.

Yes.