Instant Pot - Worth the Hype?

ChrysalisCove
ChrysalisCove Posts: 975 Member
edited December 2024 in Food and Nutrition
Is an Instant Pot worth the counter space / price tag? Do you really use it regularly? Does the food come out as well as being cooked in the oven / in the stovetop?

We already own a Crock Pot & a rice cooker.
I found the IP on sale for half off.
«1

Replies

  • SunflowerQueen36
    SunflowerQueen36 Posts: 1,272 Member
    I like my instapot, but honestly don't use it as much as I thought I would. We just got it last Christmas and I feel like with Fall and Winter coming we may use more often for stews and soups.

    I'm really more of an air fryer kinda gal.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,432 MFP Moderator
    I love mine. I use it much more often than a Crock-Pot. But i still don't use it as much as the grill or pan.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I love mine...though we use it primarily in the winter. I'm on the grill most of the spring, summer, and fall. My wife makes these freezer stew meals in winter where she'll prep 5 or 6 different ones...everything is just prepped raw and then frozen...then we just throw the frozen thing in the IP and dinner is ready pretty quick.

    She's also made a few chicken and pork meals that were pretty good...but we mostly use it for the above. I also boil eggs in it and use it to make beans from dried. We've also done yogurt a few times and we use it also as a slow cooker.

    Basically, it took the place of those other kitchen gadgets for us...it is a pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, yogurt maker all in one.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,432 MFP Moderator
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    I love mine...though we use it primarily in the winter. I'm on the grill most of the spring, summer, and fall. My wife makes these freezer stew meals in winter where she'll prep 5 or 6 different ones...everything is just prepped raw and then frozen...then we just throw the frozen thing in the IP and dinner is ready pretty quick.

    She's also made a few chicken and pork meals that were pretty good...but we mostly use it for the above. I also boil eggs in it and use it to make beans from dried. We've also done yogurt a few times and we use it also as a slow cooker.

    Basically, it took the place of those other kitchen gadgets for us...it is a pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, yogurt maker all in one.

    It also makes great oatmeal, albeit it does take longer to cook.
  • ChrysalisCove
    ChrysalisCove Posts: 975 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    I love mine...though we use it primarily in the winter. I'm on the grill most of the spring, summer, and fall. My wife makes these freezer stew meals in winter where she'll prep 5 or 6 different ones...everything is just prepped raw and then frozen...then we just throw the frozen thing in the IP and dinner is ready pretty quick.

    She's also made a few chicken and pork meals that were pretty good...but we mostly use it for the above. I also boil eggs in it and use it to make beans from dried. We've also done yogurt a few times and we use it also as a slow cooker.

    Basically, it took the place of those other kitchen gadgets for us...it is a pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, yogurt maker all in one.

    How long does it take to make beans from dried? Are they fully tender afterwards, no issues with the texture being gritty at all?

    My spouse is... culinarily challenged (though he’s come a long way!) so the idea of him being able to just dump something I’ve prepped & frozen directly into the pot is admittedly pretty intriguing.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    ChrysalisCove wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    I love mine...though we use it primarily in the winter. I'm on the grill most of the spring, summer, and fall. My wife makes these freezer stew meals in winter where she'll prep 5 or 6 different ones...everything is just prepped raw and then frozen...then we just throw the frozen thing in the IP and dinner is ready pretty quick.

    She's also made a few chicken and pork meals that were pretty good...but we mostly use it for the above. I also boil eggs in it and use it to make beans from dried. We've also done yogurt a few times and we use it also as a slow cooker.

    Basically, it took the place of those other kitchen gadgets for us...it is a pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, yogurt maker all in one.

    How long does it take to make beans from dried? Are they fully tender afterwards, no issues with the texture being gritty at all?

    My spouse is... culinarily challenged (though he’s come a long way!) so the idea of him being able to just dump something I’ve prepped & frozen directly into the pot is admittedly pretty intriguing.

    You can pre-soak or go straight from dried. When I pre-soak black beans, it takes about 4 minutes (includes a couple of minutes for the pot to come up to the sealing level). If I'm cooking from dried, it's more like 18. I have a cookbook that has a chart for various types of grains and beans -- it has led me to success so far. They are fully tender, no grit at all. Once or twice, I tested a bean and it was a little firmer than I would like and I just resealed the pot and gave it another 2 minutes or so and it solved the problem.
  • ChrysalisCove
    ChrysalisCove Posts: 975 Member
    springlering62 wrote: »
    I got an instantpot and loved it, but then got a Ninja Foodi at the beginning of quarantine and it is a life changer.

    That sounds great & I’m glad you love it. That said, the IP was a bit rich for my blood as it was... I’m definitely not interested in shelling out double that for a Ninja. 😬
  • azkunk
    azkunk Posts: 956 Member
    Try hard boiled eggs. They slide right out of the shell. I also make chicken tortilla soup often ... so easy.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,993 Member
    With less than 1m of worktop space I could not have such an appliance in my kitchen. The only electronics I have are actually my kettle (I drink masses of tea) and a tiny rice cooker. To be honest, my home insurance doesn't allow for appliance to run unsupervised, thus preparing food on a timer and keeping it warm is a no anyway. I use pots and pans, and might cook more complex things during the weekend.
  • Geneveremfp
    Geneveremfp Posts: 504 Member
    springlering62 wrote: »
    I got an instantpot and loved it, but then got a Ninja Foodi at the beginning of quarantine and it is a life changer.

    The Foodi is an instant pot/air fryer/crockpot/yogurt maker/dehydrator all in one and is about the same size as an Instant Pot.

    I find we use the crisping function more than the pressure cooker, because, while a nice soft roast or good chicken and dumplings are great, nothing beats grilled, crispy food.

    I can throw a couple of eight ounce steaks in and have a delicious grilled steak in under twenty minutes. We cut pork tenderloin into medallions and baste with teriyaki or peanut sauce and they are moist and grill up delicious.

    Air crisp fries, air crisper battered shrimp and fish cakes are fantastic. I’ve only done salmon once but it turned out well, too.

    In fact, if I remodel my kitchen, or ever go all “tiny house”, I would seriously consider eliminating the stove top and oven and replacing with a Foodi and a couple of plug-in European style induction hobs that slip in a drawer after use. I so seldom use more than one stovetop burner, I’d rather have the counter space.

    Interesting... I love my ninja bullet blender. I never used to bother with blending things and with smoothies in my old blender but the ninja is so convenient.

    I also like the multi functional aspect.
  • Athijade
    Athijade Posts: 3,300 Member
    I enjoy mine but atm it is pretty much a rice and hardboiled egg cooker lol. I really need to branch out with it some more, especially this fall and winter when I want stuff like soup all the time.
  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
    I am not sure I would use it. I hate the crockpot aside from cooking beans. I seldom eat rice. Most of my soup recipes are more hands on because I want to develop more flavor in my broth.
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
    ChrysalisCove wrote: »
    Is an Instant Pot worth the counter space / price tag? Do you really use it regularly? Does the food come out as well as being cooked in the oven / in the stovetop?

    We already own a Crock Pot & a rice cooker.
    I found the IP on sale for half off.

    If you cook with beans a lot, or bulk cook things like soup, stew, chili; a pot roast/entire package of chicken breast/pulled pork; lightly mashed potatoes in bulk to just microwave later; hard boiled eggs;..

    I use mine a lot, but.. I batch cook, and don't mind repetition for a few days.
    You'll have to decide based on whether foods and quantities that work well for an instapot are things you like.
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
    springlering62 wrote: »
    I got an instantpot and loved it, but then got a Ninja Foodi at the beginning of quarantine and it is a life changer.

    The Foodi is an instant pot/air fryer/crockpot/yogurt maker/dehydrator all in one and is about the same size as an Instant Pot.

    I find we use the crisping function more than the pressure cooker, because, while a nice soft roast or good chicken and dumplings are great, nothing beats grilled, crispy food.

    I can throw a couple of eight ounce steaks in and have a delicious grilled steak in under twenty minutes. We cut pork tenderloin into medallions and baste with teriyaki or peanut sauce and they are moist and grill up delicious.

    Air crisp fries, air crisper battered shrimp and fish cakes are fantastic. I’ve only done salmon once but it turned out well, too.

    In fact, if I remodel my kitchen, or ever go all “tiny house”, I would seriously consider eliminating the stove top and oven and replacing with a Foodi and a couple of plug-in European style induction hobs that slip in a drawer after use. I so seldom use more than one stovetop burner, I’d rather have the counter space.

    Now I want one of these magical appliances.
  • moonangel12
    moonangel12 Posts: 971 Member
    I use mine so often my husband had his mom get me a second for Christmas! Sometimes I cook 3 or more elements of dinner in then (beans and rice, meat, veggie, and starchy side, etc). Rice and hard boiled eggs are fantastic. I do beans a lot (I quick soak for an hour in hot water, then cook for 30 minutes, but they are more for refried beans so mushy is what we are looking for). I haven’t touched my crock pot in years. I have a mental block to think about dinner at breakfast, no matter how hard I try, so having a quick cook option is perfect for me! There are some recipes I still prefer in the oven (cilantro lime chicken, baked potatoes, a couple others), mainly because of texture differences (crispy skins on both chicken and potatoes).
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
    ChrysalisCove wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    I love mine...though we use it primarily in the winter. I'm on the grill most of the spring, summer, and fall. My wife makes these freezer stew meals in winter where she'll prep 5 or 6 different ones...everything is just prepped raw and then frozen...then we just throw the frozen thing in the IP and dinner is ready pretty quick.

    She's also made a few chicken and pork meals that were pretty good...but we mostly use it for the above. I also boil eggs in it and use it to make beans from dried. We've also done yogurt a few times and we use it also as a slow cooker.

    Basically, it took the place of those other kitchen gadgets for us...it is a pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, yogurt maker all in one.

    How long does it take to make beans from dried? Are they fully tender afterwards, no issues with the texture being gritty at all?

    My spouse is... culinarily challenged (though he’s come a long way!) so the idea of him being able to just dump something I’ve prepped & frozen directly into the pot is admittedly pretty intriguing.

    I'll frequently throw the dried beans, as is, right in with the rest of the soup ingredients. So far, the giant dried corn is the only one that seems to need more cooking (the beans have always been fine).
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
    I still use my rice cooker if making rice. Mostly because the interior markings are convenient and I'm almost always using the instapot at the same time. Caramelizing sweet onions is probably about the only thing I still use the slow cooker for.
  • MaggieGirl135
    MaggieGirl135 Posts: 1,033 Member
    I use mine all the time, at least every other day, more commonly, everyday. And many times, I use it for more than one item in a day (I frequently cook ahead). Soups, rice, searing and then slow cooking roasts, winter squashes, white and sweet potatoes.,. Not counting the coffee maker, it is the most used small appliance in my kitchen.
  • whoami67
    whoami67 Posts: 297 Member
    I bought one on a Black Friday deal last year. I'm trying really hard to start using it, but really it was a waste of money for me. I don't like the texture of chicken cooked in it. I spent an hour cooking a spaghetti squash in it yesterday (I had to cook it twice as the first time it didn't get done at all). It would have been much faster in the oven and it tastes better made in the oven. I have enjoyed it for making bone broth and yogurt, and the sweet potatoes I "baked" came out perfectly.
  • sgt1372
    sgt1372 Posts: 3,997 Member
    ChrysalisCove wrote: »
    Is an Instant Pot worth the counter space / price tag?

    Not IMO.

    I own a rice cooker, crockpot, pressure cooker and a stove/oven.

    NEVER use the crockpot or pressure cooker but ALWAYS use the rice cooker and the stove/oven.

    So, I'd never use an IP any more than a crockpot or pressure cooker, which is NEVER.

  • Katmary71
    Katmary71 Posts: 7,178 Member
    It's great for beans, hard-boiled eggs, and soups and chili. I use it more in winter for sure. I do make an herbal tea with cinnamon sticks and ginger every couple of days and drink iced tea all the time now.
  • moonangel12
    moonangel12 Posts: 971 Member
    edited August 2020
    whoami67 wrote: »
    I bought one on a Black Friday deal last year. I'm trying really hard to start using it, but really it was a waste of money for me. I don't like the texture of chicken cooked in it. I spent an hour cooking a spaghetti squash in it yesterday (I had to cook it twice as the first time it didn't get done at all). It would have been much faster in the oven and it tastes better made in the oven. I have enjoyed it for making bone broth and yogurt, and the sweet potatoes I "baked" came out perfectly.

    I wonder if it was the squash?? I have cooked spaghetti squash in 8 minutes in mine, which, in the summer beats heating up the house for an hour with the oven (we have one room AC unit and it can’t keep up).

    The lack of oven use is a big part of why I use it so often in the summer... saves a lot of heat in the house!
  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 8,016 Member
    ritzvin wrote: »
    I still use my rice cooker if making rice. Mostly because the interior markings are convenient and I'm almost always using the instapot at the same time. Caramelizing sweet onions is probably about the only thing I still use the slow cooker for.

    How do you caramelize your onions?
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
    acpgee wrote: »
    ritzvin wrote: »
    I still use my rice cooker if making rice. Mostly because the interior markings are convenient and I'm almost always using the instapot at the same time. Caramelizing sweet onions is probably about the only thing I still use the slow cooker for.

    How do you caramelize your onions?

    Many hours in slow cooker.. Usually for onion soup. Fairly half-arsed version, but gets the job done without taking valuable time from me.
  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
    Katmary71 wrote: »
    It's great for beans, hard-boiled eggs, and soups and chili. I use it more in winter for sure. I do make an herbal tea with cinnamon sticks and ginger every couple of days and drink iced tea all the time now.

    Would you mind sharing your ginger tea recipe?
  • asthesoapturns
    asthesoapturns Posts: 313 Member
    I use mine several times a week. 25mins under pressure makes fall of the bone ribs. I can do a pulled pork in 30 under pressure. Stews take no time at all. And I use it for rice because I have zero space for a rice cooker.
  • age_is_just_a_number
    age_is_just_a_number Posts: 631 Member
    We use ours at least weekly.
    We use it for a variety of dishes, but it mainly gets used for cooking rice, which is does incredibly well.
This discussion has been closed.

Categories