My Latest Kitchen Gadget Obsession – The Instant Pot

If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you know I’m OBSESSED with the Instant Pot (IP).  Like sometimes it’s all I want to talk about.  The tool itself, great blogs to follow for recipes, recipes I’ve tried, etc.  It’s all about the IP here in the MIS household.  Even Vishnu’s on board and excited!

If you already own an IP, you’re likely obsessed too and totally get why I can’t stop talking about/using this gadget.  If you don’t or have never heard of the IP, I’m hoping you’re like, “TELL ME MORE, PAR!”

Because that’s exactly what I’m about to do…

First and foremost, you can’t beat the price.  Now that I own one, I’m surprised it isn’t more expensive.  The normal price is ~$99, but I’ve found the IP discounted on Amazon a couple of times in the past few months.

Growing up, my mom’s traditional pressure cooker was a staple in our house.  I still remember counting ‘whistles!’  I also remember not feeling safe around that thing.  Almost as if was going to burst open in any minute.  The IP is different.  It’s easier and safe to use.  No more counting whistles or running to turn off the stove and running away as quickly as possible.

So here’s the thing.  The name is a little deceiving.  I really thought my meals would be as close to ‘instant’ as possible.  What I didn’t think about was the ‘come to pressure’ time and the ‘release’ time.  So yes, while the actual cooking time for most foods is short (chicken thighs cook in 8 minutes!), when you add in everything else, it’s not really that instant.  BUT, I do love the fact that I can turn it on and walk away.  No more babysitting a meal while it simmers away on the stovetop.

A couple of other features I love include the saute and slower cooker options.  With the saute function, I can saute my veggies, brown my meats, etc. before pressure cooking…all with the same tool!  There’s no need to use multiple pots and pans.  And with the slow cooker function, you can literally give away/donate your standalone tool and just use the IP.

The thing that Vishnu loves most about the IP is that it locks in flavor, especially when it comes to meat dishes.  For example, he always marvels at how flavorful the chicken thighs are in the chicken curry.  “How can it taste like this when it only cooks for eight minutes.”

One of my favorite things about the IP is that it’s a breeze to clean.  The internal pot is like any other steel pot, and you clean it (along with the other parts) like you would anything else.

Something else I love is that it’s the perfect tool for meal prep Sunday.  I can easily make two dishes for the week along with rice if needed and be good to go!  Most IP meals don’t require much prep, and some are even chop/pour and dump…makes a time consuming task less so!

Finally, with this gadget being relatively new, I was surprised to find so many blogs/cookbooks dedicated to IP meals.  There’s a high likely hood that if you Google “Instant Pot + [insert your favorite meal],” you’ll find something.

With that being said, here are some of my go to blogs for IP recipes along with a few recipes we absolutely love…

Indian meals
My Heart Beets
Piping Pot Curry
Ministry of Curry

Other cuisines
Dad Cooks Dinner
Peas and Crayons

Recipe love
Pressure cooker mac n’ cheese
Vegetarian lentil tortilla soup
Instant Pot creamy tomato soup
Instant Pot Saag
Instant Pot Dal Makhani
Instant Pot Butter Chicken (MofC)
Instant Pot Butter Chicken (MHB)

P.S. When it comes to the Instant Pot, you have a lot of choices with regard to size.  We own the 6 quart one and find that it’s perfect for the meals we make (the 8 would be too large for us!).

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