I'm really not into kitchen gadgetry - especially when simple is often best. But, my Crock Pot recently went to slow cooker heaven - and I'm tempted by these new electric pressure cookers - they're quite the rage right now. The Instant Pot is the most popular brand. It's a slow cooker, a pressure cooker and a few other things - all in one space-saving device.  Hmmm...!

Just wondering if any of you chefs out there have tested one out - and what you thought of it. Thanks!

Review by Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/ospublishing/story/a9ab0443-5492-4fe0-9183-44e4aacace24?ref=sr_1_3_acs_twc_TWC11893_lp&qid=1517185974&sr=1-3-acs&tag=ospsearch-20&ascsubtag=TWC11893

Recipes: https://www.msn.com/en-us/foodanddrink/quickandeasy/52-things-you-can-cook-in-an-instant-pot/ss-AAuUqfp?li=BBnb7Kz

 

Following with interest - keep seeing people buying these and saying they love them, but haven't seen an explanation *why*...

Following this, too. I love my Crock-Pot, but it is slow (guess that's why it's called a slow cooker). I'm fascinated by the InstantPot and "everyone" seems to have one...except for anyone I know!

We have an air fryer... hope that helps

lol, thing is badass jus sayen. Can’t cook rice tough 

We recently got the Instant Pot DUO60 6 quart, scored a one day deal on Amazon for $69.99.  Only cooked with it a handful of times but its pretty easy to use, cooks everything quick and cleans up quick.  One of the great things about are facebook groups and endless Youtube videos dedicated to the IP and all the different recipes.

Purchased one from Costco as Christmas gift for wife.  We've used it 3-4 times.  You can Brown meet or sear right in it and then add other ingredients to make your entree.

When using pressure cooker you can cook MUCH faster.  Also has slow cooker option.

Have enjoyed every meal we've prepared so far.

Instant pot is amazing.  You can make food in a fraction of the time it takes to make it in the oven or slow cooker.

I've made soups, macaroni and cheese, cakes, hard boiled eggs, pot roasts, whole turkey breasts, whole chickens, the list goes on.

Bone broth.  I save the chicken bones from meals and freeze them.  Then I use the instant pot to make bone broth in 3 hours rather than the 24 hours I used to make it in the slow cooker.

The food remains very moist and the cleanup is simple.  Greatest kitchen gadget I've ever bought.  

http://www.forkly.com/food/the-25-absolute-best-recipes-to-try-in-an-instant-pot/

http://www.delish.com/cooking/g3951/instant-pot-recipes/?slide=7

I think the main thing people like about them is that they view the pressure cooker portion of them as less scary than actual pressure cookers. The other thing is that it takes two large items and combines them into one. At least historically, they are well packaged to let you take advantage of everything pressure cooker-y. 

 

 

I'll have to look into the Macaroni and cheese recipes.  My kids love that stuff!  Okay, "maybe" I like it as well. 

The last kitchen thing I bought that I actually used til it broke was my George Foreman grill. This seems to be something really useful, I think I will get it for Father's day

Cooks Illustrated reviewed them in November https://www.cooksillustrated.com/equipment_reviews/1854-multicookers-electric-pressure-cookers?incode=MCSCD00L0&ref=new_search_experience_13

The winner was the Fagor Lux LCD Multicooker and just plain Fagor Lux Multicooker http://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XCR2BNT/?tag=cioequippilot-20

"Best Buy" was the GoWISE USA 8-Quart 10-in-1 http://www.amazon.com/dp/B013TBYQ5Q/?tag=cioequippilot-20

Instant Pot was only recommended with reservations:

"This machine did a good job pressure cooking, making rice, and searing, but its slow cooking function takes so long that it makes some recipes not even worth attempting. Small-volume recipes, thinner soups, or more delicate cuts of meat are fine, but thick, large-volume recipes like stews and roasts take an insane amount of time: After 11 hours of cooking beef stew on high, the meat was still chewy, the carrots crunchy, and the potatoes raw. Cooking was unevenly concentrated in the bottom of the pot, where the heating element is. Even when we tried using the “high” setting for any slow-cooker recipes calling for low heat, they still took a very, very long time. This model also runs a little hotter under pressure, but this was easy to fix; we simply subtracted a few minutes from the cook time. Lastly, its operating instructions were a bit confusing and it had metal on its lid that got really hot."

On 1/28/2018 at 8:47 PM, Zeke said:

We have an air fryer... hope that helps

lol, thing is badass jus sayen. Can’t cook rice tough 

Zeke is correct (this can happen with a full moon). We also have an air fryer. Besides being a very health way to cook it’s fast and cleaner. Definitely worth a look see.