Instant pot - what do you use yours for ?

[Newmumburnout]

I have an instant pot as the title suggests. I have just pulled it out from the cupboard and decided I want to use it more !! I was hoping that some MNs would give me their best recipes?

I would love to know either your absolute favourite stews/Currys etc but also if you use it for anything else like yogurt or steam function ?

I am experimenting and currently have 2 litres of yogurt in there until 8 pm tonight so hoping that comes out well

Pulled pork https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/uk/food/recipes/a576942/pressure-cooker-pulled-pork/

Thai chicken curry https://thaidragon.co.uk/recipes/instant-pot-thai-red-curry-chicken/

Is it like a Ninja?

Thanks @Forgottenmyphone they are both up my street. Also I was thinking of making the broth in the instant pot too for the red Thai curry. Think I am going a bit far now 😂

@Doggymummar I am not 100 % sure what the ninja does. However, the instant pot is a slow cooker, pressure cooker, steamer,.yogurt maker and god knows what else. I've had it a while and hardly used it. Just took the yogurt out now to chill overnight. It was very easy !!

Following as I have one and would like to use it more. Often the recipies I find are using American semi prepped ingredients or sauces which I would rather avoid.

I use my instant pot quite a lot - usually for curries, slow cooked meats like pulled pork, and stuff that I would have done in slow cooker before like chillis or stews (so much quicker with the IP). There’s a few books or online graphics to give an idea of conversion times (or look at similar recipes and guesstimate).

Slow Cooker Club is good for recipes, and Good Food and RecipeTin Eats (my absolute favourite!) are both searchable by ‘pressure cooker’ and bring up recipes with pressure cooking timings…

This is one of my favourite recipes: https://pressureluckcooking.com/instant-pot-chicken-tortilla-soup/
I add a small tin of sweetcorn and a tin of black beans too. The mushroom risotto recipe on this site is also good (and some of the pasta ones).

In fact risotto in the IP is also generally v good. And Jambalaya etc.

https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/pressure_cooker_mexican_pulled_pork/ - best one for carnitas I’ve found

https://instantpot.com/blogs/recipes/cherry-clafoutis - another delicious dessert in IP (if you have one with a grill lid you can sprinkle over sugar to caramelise the top after cooking too) 😋

I mostly use one for curries, stock, risotto. I don't love mine though because I get a burn warning around half the time, so just end up using the job anyway.

Following with interest as I have had one for two years and never used it!

I eat a lot of yoghurt so might start with trying that.

And the red curry.

Oh, and dal!

www.indianhealthyrecipes.com/instant-pot-dal/

Oh I love daal.

I use it for :

Risotto
Chilli
Stew
Chinese Style Chicken or Beef
Mac And Cheese

Loads!

I use mine a lot, I actually have two - a 6l and a 3l. I use the 3l for cooking rice if we’re having chilli or a curry, or if I’m just doing a small portion of veg.

I cook meat in them, it’s so tender, and I then just brown it in the air fryer for a few minutes.
Stew is lovely and so quick.

Mac and cheese is lovely made in it, and rice pudding is gorgeous. A few years ago I made cheesecakes in it and they worked well.

I make a lot of soups using the pressure cooking function, especially lentil ( like dhal, it cooks the lentils/ split peas very well)

Also chilli, both beef and veg versions ( slow cook function) and things like stews, bolognese etc.

I have cooked chicken, sausages and a few other things in the Air Fryer setting and it makes excellent roasting and chips.

thanks to pps for links to recipes etc. I appreciate those.

I use it for making yoghurt, and quite often strain it to make labneh. Other than that, stews and the sorts of things you Mike typically make in a slow cooker.

Thanks @EineReiseDurchDieZeit mad cheese is a great idea. If you have a link to the recipe you use can you post it ??

This is the yogurt recipe I used and found it very easy and the yogurt is lovely https://moorlandseater.com/homemade-yogurt-in-an-instant-pot/

@Newmumburnout

I do it ad hoc - I don’t follow a recipe but it’s piss easy. I put the macaroni in chicken stock in the IP with mustard and bacon lardons. 8 mins High Pressure, open up slam the cheese in as much cheese as you need to thicken it up. Done. Chicken stock because using water makes it too watery but you still need liquid

I joined the instant pot FB group. Lots of recipes in the files
My favourites are butter chicken, Mongolian chicken, curry, goulash
I also make yogurt and, at Christmas, clotted cream

I use it for stews and risotto, chicken and gammon and also yoghurt. Great for 'boiling' eggs too; they peel very easily. I do the first prove of the dough in it when making bread. If it died I'd buy another asap.
ETA: I forgot rice and rice pudding!

My favourite thing to use it for is parboiling roast potatoes. They don't get waterlogged because I use the minimum water (so it just comes up under the trivet) and then they crisp up in the oven.

Then daal, lentil soups, stew. Oeufs en cocotte too. Occasionally risotto.

I like to cook a whole small chicken in it and use the cold meat for salads because it isn't dry.

Great !! Thanks going to give this a try

I have an old one but use it several times a week to steam potatoes then mash in the pot, cook rice on the rice setting (always ends up perfect), steam veg for 1-2 mins, bolognaise, stews in winter, soup. I wouldn’t be without it!

@WeAreOnTheRoadToNowhere clotted cream ?? That's a good one . Link please if you have one ! My DH loves a scone with clotted cream

@Knittedfairies2 can you tell me how you boil eggs in it ?

@Callmecordelia ooohh parboiling roasties ? How ?

Sorry for all the questions but these were exactly the things I was after. A little out of the ordinary to be a bit more creative in the kitchen or use the hob / oven less and these a great 👍. Thank you!!

I mainly use mine for pulled pork and cooking frozen chicken breasts. Any number of frozen chicken breasts, 2 cups of water or stock if you fancy, I just add salt and pepper to the water, manual 25 minutes natural release. It means I can have chicken breast for Sunday roast as no one wants the thighs, shred or slice it for sandwiches, add it to pasta or a stir fry. I start it an hour before I need it, comes to temp, cooks and then ready when I need it.

Yoghurt, I started like you did with the whole fresh milk bit. Then went onto UHT milk cold start because you don't need to do the whole cool it down and check with a thermometer. Literally everything into the pot and set to yoghurt. If you or anyone else are interested. Per 1 litre of UHT, 2 tablespoons of starter, 2 tablespoons of milk powder although you don't need the milk powder.

How I do it, 3 litres of UHT, 1 small pot of YeoValley natural yoghurt as the starter. I mix the yoghurt with a small amount of the milk to loosen it. Then all into the pot, onto Yoghurt for 10 hours and let it do its thing overnight. In the morning, I strain the yoghurt over 2 bowls because I make 3 litres at a time, measure off the whey to the consistency we like.

You need Amy and Jacky's recipe blog - I think they are sponsored by instant pot and they have loads of excellent recipes that all work. I really like the Vietnamese bo kho one.