{"id":4461,"date":"2016-07-31T10:10:37","date_gmt":"2016-07-31T14:10:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thatorganicmom.com\/?p=4461"},"modified":"2022-09-12T14:13:27","modified_gmt":"2022-09-12T18:13:27","slug":"first-impressions-instant-pot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thatorganicmom.com\/first-impressions-instant-pot\/","title":{"rendered":"First Impressions: Instant Pot Review"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Update 2022: I added a 3 quart Ultra Mini<\/a> with 13 one touch cooking presets. It's so cute and little<\/em>! This size is perfect for us now that only two of my six children are left at home. Like before I purchased it on Amazon Prime Day. It's smaller so much easier to get out and put back when I'm done using it. On holidays I have an extra pot for making side dishes.<\/em> I've been using my instant pot to make cheese too. It's so easy! I first learned to make cream cheese on the stove top, but using the instant pot is much easier.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My First Electric Pressure Cooker: The Instant Pot<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I've been playing around with the Instant Pot<\/a> that I ordered on Amazon Prime Day. My first impression is favorable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the past, I was terrified of pressure cooking. My mom had always warned me to stay clear of her pressure cooker when I was a kid. It looked and sounded terrifying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A stovetop pressure cooker is different in that you have to manually release pressure. However, it isn't that much different from an instant pot in the way it cooks food. The pressure release on the manual type is the scary part for many people. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pressure-cooking function on the electric model allows natural release and the lid stays locked until the pressure goes down. For this reason, it's not as intimidating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warning<\/strong>: Venting can cause steam burns! Don't let your hand get in front of the steam release valve or let your children do so. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This instant pot has opened up a world of options for me as a cook. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you don't have time to “slow cook” you'll be thrilled to find you can get tender juicy pot roast and other dishes in much less time using an electric pressure cooker. If you're a busy mom, make sure to check out the Busy Mom's Chicken Recipe below! It's a time saver and game changer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is the instant pot worth it?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Do You Need More Kitchen Appliances? My husband always says “buy whatever you like for the kitchen, that means I get more food!” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Still, is it worth the space it takes up, do you really want more kitchen gadgets? The answer is yes, yes you do!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you're like me, perhaps you don't want to use up any more countertop space for appliances. That's why I initially postponed getting an instant pot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Friends were tempting me to buy one. I'd been avoiding it because I already had two crock pots as well as a Zojirushi rice cooker<\/a>.  I felt like adding an Instant Pot would mean one more appliance to store in my kitchen. Really, I had no idea what I was missing!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seeing the pictures of the foods everyone prepared and hearing how easy it was to use, who wouldn't want one? Many of the foodie type Facebook groups I was in were constantly bombarding me with images of delicious foods. I'd never dreamed you could make this much in a pressure cooker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you like batch cooking or meal prep, you'll be saving time to use it for cooking chicken breasts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here's some inspiration for instant pot recipes to get started with your new instant pot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

What Size Instant Pot Do You Need<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Wondering which is the best instant pot for your needs? There are multiple sizes 3, 6, 8 quarts are standard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A couple of months ago one of my crockpots b<\/span>roke so I had some space available. Amazon Prime Day w<\/span>as shortly after I had added an Instant Pot<\/a> to my \u201cWish List\u201d so I got the 6 quart on sale at a huge discount.<\/span> Seems the 6 quart size is the most commonly purchased.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I probably could have used the 8 quart, but it was not on sale. This one fits an entire chicken, so far it has been sufficient. <\/span>However, if you have a large family, an 8 quart is ideal.<\/p>\n\n\n

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When my Instant Pot arrived, I had recently bought a two pack of whole chicken at Costco<\/a>; I thought it would be fun to prepare the same recipe but cook one in the instant pot and one in the oven to see how they compared.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

U<\/span>sing my Moroccan Chicken Recipe<\/a><\/span>, I planned to prepare chicken to make sure my husband had plenty to eat while my mom and I took the kids on a One Tank Road Trip!<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting Started With an Instant Pot<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The first thing I did was read the instruction manual<\/strong> because this thing has so many buttons.  <\/span>The instant pot duo has multiple cooking functions. Such as: Pressure Cooker, Slow Cooker, Rice Cooker, Steamer, Saut\u00e9, Yogurt Maker, Cake\/Egg Maker, Sterilize, Warmer, Custom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First I had to turn it on saute so that I could brown the outside of the chicken. I browned it on all sides just a bit using the saute function.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it finished, I used my kitchen thermometer<\/a> to check the internal temperature to be on the safe side. After that I let it rest for 10 minutes before I cut it. It was as simple as that.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

After I removed the chicken, I strained the broth left in the pot and added rice and reset it to cook on the rice setting.<\/span> Hey, since it was already hot and no reason to wash in between. The rice was delicious. <\/span>This was a surprising turn of events! I wasn't expecting it to have such good results cooking rice, which we do often!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I prefer using my <\/span>Zojirushi Rice Cooker<\/span><\/a> for making rice, but that\u2019s a story for a different post. If you try my Moroccan Chicken Recipe<\/a> you could pair it with this Moroccan Sweet Potato Stew<\/a> for a great side dish.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The clean up isn't too bad either. The pot and seal are both dishwasher safe. Eventually, you may want to get a few silicone sealing rings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Faster and Easier than Other Cooking Methods<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Comparing the chicken from the Instant Pot and the cooking, cleaning etc. to the chicken that I roasted in the pan I can say hands down that the Instant Pot saved me time<\/strong> and rendered a more tender and juicy chicken. In addition, it was easier to carve. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One note: It\u2019s not \u201c30 minutes\u201d unless you DO NOT count the time it takes to warm up and the time it takes to naturally release the pressure. However, I still feel that it saved me time overall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n