Our favorite Instant Pot Recipes, An Instant Pot Review, and everything you need to know to get started cooking with your Instant Pot! (This post contains affiliate links - read more here.)
My Instant Pot Review
So last year just before Christmas I started hearing A LOT about cooking with the Instant Pot. Santa gave me an Instant Pot Duo Plus 6 Quart, and I've been cooking with it for about 13 months now. After lots of recipe development and experimentation, here's what I think of it:
What I love about Cooking With the Instant Pot:
- Instant Pots are great for time savings. Yes, you can cook frozen chicken instant pot style and it actually works. A life-saver for those busy weeknights when you didn't plan ahead... because life happens.
- Instant Pots are very easy to use. Generally you add ingredients, with some form of liquid, lock it down, and set the cook time.
- Instant Pots are actually multi-functional: you can pressure cook with them, but other functions work quite well to saute veggies, boil a soup, or thicken a sauce.
- Don't fret the burn notice! 🙂 There's much internet swirl about the dreaded "Instant Pot Burn Notice" but you don't need to worry as long as you always pressure cook with enough liquid, and sufficiently de-glaze the bottom of the IP. Honestly, I haven't encountered this once and I've probably tested recipes over 50 times this year.
The downsides of Instant Pot cooking:
- It's not for every recipe. Some things just don't make sense in the IP, because they take more time to cook in the IP. Because it can take 5-10 minutes to reach cooking pressure, it's just not efficient to cook minute rice, instant polenta, or quick oats in the IP.
- Pressure cooking can take away some flavor. I'm not going to try to act like a food scientist and explain why, but I've noticed that some recipes cooked in the Instant Pot can lack some of the flavor v. traditional cooking. Easy solution: compensate with more seasoning before or after the food is cooked.
- It takes a few extra minutes to clean the IP. Honestly I think the tradeoff is worth it, since most Instant Pot recipes I use eliminate the need for any other cooking equipment. And I happen to have an amazing taste-tester plus dishwasher as my partner in crime. 🙂
Bottom line: I'm a big fan of the Instant Pot! I've focused on offering readers some recipes that take advantage of all that it has to offer. But don't just take my word for it...
The best third party Instant Pot Reviews I've found:
Cook's Illustrated Instant Pot Review
Consumer Reports Instant Pot Review
What Is An Instant Pot?
The Instant Pot of today is a combination pressure cooker, slow-cooker, rice cooker, and yogurt maker. They can range in price from under $50 to over $150.
Which Instant Pot To Buy?
If you need one today, then most department stores carry them, and of course Bed, Bath, and Beyond or your favorite discount volume retailer (like Costco or Sam's).
But if you can wait a few days, then the greatest variety and easiest option by far is Amazon. A few of the most popular Instant Pots are:
Duo Plus 3-Quart Instant Pot (<- Good for single batch or small side dishes)
Duo Plus 8-Quart Instant Pot (<- For meals that feed a family of 4+)
Duo Plus 6-Quart Instant Pot (<- My fave! Perfect for just the two of us)
Pioneer Woman Vintage Floral Instant Pot (<- Kitchen bling!)
How To Use An Instant Pot?
There are actually relatively few moving parts on this device. The lid has a sealing ring, then there's a pressure valve and steam release valve. I found the out-of-the-box instructions to be very easy to follow regarding assembly, placement, and cleaning.
When it comes to cooking, I tend to use my IP mostly for pressure-cooking since I find that's the big time-savings... speaking of which...
Our Top Instant Pot Recipes!
Instant Pot Jalapeño Popper Chicken
Instant Pot Whole Chicken Recipe
Instant Pot Beef Thai Red Curry
Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash Buffalo Chicken (Low Carb)
Instant Pot Baby Back Ribs
Our Most Recent IP Recipes...
Instant Pot Zuppa Toscana (Gluten Free)
A hearty, creamy, and delicious soup… ready in less than 30 minutes. Loaded with tasty ingredients like Italian turkey sausage, kale, Parmesan cheese, and potatoes.
Continue...Instant Pot Smoky Chicken Chili
Full of Mexican spices, hearty ingredients and the most delicious smoky chili flavor!
Continue...Homemade Pumpkin Puree (Instant Pot and Slow Cooker)
Pumpkin puree in the Instant Pot OR in the Slow Cooker! A simple, easy alternative to store-bought pumpkin.
Continue...Instant Pot Chicken Salsa Verde Soup
The most flavorful, delicious, tangy and creamy chicken soup ever!
Continue...Instant Pot Buffalo Wings with Avocado Ranch
So easy and so delicious! Tender on the inside, crispy and golden on the outside, and there’s no frying involved!
Continue...Instant Pot Lemon Cheesecake
Creamy and lush, sweet and tart, and absolutely delicious! With a buttery graham cracker crust, a smooth and silky lemon cheesecake center, and a tangy homemade lemon curd topping. The perfect dessert for any occasion!
Continue...Creamy Instant Pot Chicken Florentine Pasta
A delicious one-pot meal! With chicken breast, bow tie pasta, fresh spinach, and a white wine cheese sauce.
Continue...Instant Pot Philly Cheesesteak Pasta
A hearty & comforting, savory & cheesy 30-minute meal! With lean ground beef, onions, peppers, Italian seasoning, beef stock, elbow pasta and Provolone cheese.
Continue...Instant Pot Refried Beans
Creamy and cheesy and sooo good! Made from dried beans and there’s no need to soak them – just dump in the Instant Pot and Voila! The most delicious refried beans you’ve ever tasted!
Continue...Easy Instant Pot Spinach Artichoke Dip
A creamy cheesy appetizer that couldn’t be any easier to make or any more delicious!!
Continue...Instant Pot Pork Ragu
Creamy and cheesy and hearty and rich! With rigatoni pasta, tender pulled pork, porcini and shiitake mushrooms, white wine, chicken stock, onion, garlic, Parmesan cheese and lots of fresh herbs.
Continue...The Best Instant Pot Marbled Pumpkin Cheesecake Recipe!
This time-saving mini-cheesecake has all the decadence of the traditional recipe in a fraction of the time! Swirled with the yummy fall flavors of cinnamon and pumpkin on a graham cracker crust.
Continue...Easy Homemade Instant Pot Cinnamon Applesauce
With no refined sugar, and ready in 30 minutes start to finish! It’s so delicious you’ll never want store-bought again.
Continue...Instant Pot Pork Carnitas (Low Carb)
The fastest, easiest, most delicious and tender pulled pork carnitas you’ve ever tasted!
Continue...How To Cook Instant Pot Corn On The Cob
So easy and turns out perfectly every time! No water to boil, no heating up the kitchen… just dump it all in and ta da – delicious sweet corn on the cob!
Continue...German Potato Salad (Instant Pot and Stovetop)
This Potato Salad is warm and tangy, savory and slightly sweet… it’s the perfect side for all your cookouts, BBQ’s and family dinners!
Continue...Instant Pot Beef Barbacoa
Hearty and rich, smoky and saucy, and all kinds of delicious in just a fraction of the usual time!
Continue...Instant Pot Potato Salad
Creamy and tangy and hearty and rich potato salad… in the Instant Pot!!! This is no ordinary side dish – it’s potato salad perfection my friend!!
Continue...Easy Instant Pot Chicken and Rice
Tender chicken, perfectly cooked rice and the most delicious flavor! A comforting and hearty Instant Pot Chicken dinner ready in 40 minutes!
Continue...Instant Pot Garlic Parmesan Chicken Wings
Crispy and golden, with no frying! Plus the cheesy garlic flavor is a delicious, kid-friendly combination.
Continue...Instant Pot Whole Chicken Recipe
Tender, juicy and absolutely delicious! It’s so easy and quick to make and cooks in a fraction of the time compared to the oven roasting alternative.
Continue...Instant Pot Spaghetti and Turkey Meatballs
A “pot-to-table” meal ready in 30 minutes. It’s an easy and delicious pressure cooker recipe your whole family will love!
Continue...Instant Pot Pot Roast with Veggies and Gravy
Everything that a tender, hearty, pot roast should be… this is sure to be your new go-to Pot Roast Recipe!
Continue...Instant Pot Chicken Thighs With Risotto
A ridiculously delicious one-pot meal ready in 30 minutes!
Continue...Instant Pot Jalapeño Popper Chicken
Your new go-to party appetizer! Loaded with rich cream cheese, spicy jalapeños, sharp cheddar, & tender chicken.
Continue...Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup
The most luscious and satisfying chicken soup ever! So scrumptious and slurpilicious you won’t be able to stop with just one bowl!
Continue...Instant Pot Mexican Quinoa and Chicken
This one-pot, gluten-free zesty meal is on the table in less than 30 minutes! It’s the perfect recipe to meal prep for the week or for any busy weeknight dinner.
Continue...Instant Pot Beef Thai Red Curry
So flavorful, creamy, hearty, and absolutely delicious! Full of hearty tender beef, plenty of veggies and aromatics like onions, garlic, ginger, sweet peppers and snap peas, and of course yummy curry and coconut milk flavors!
Continue...Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash Buffalo Chicken (Low Carb)
A lightened up, mouthwatering recipe you need to experience immediately! Low-calorie, low-carb, full of nutrition, loaded with lean protein and insanely delicious! Get ready for one of the best spaghetti squash recipes, ever. Drop. The. Squash.
Continue...Instant Pot Baby Back Ribs
These Instant Pot Baby Back Ribs are a definitely a game-changer… tender, juicy flavorful ribs no matter the weather – in less than an hour!
Continue...Shredded Mexican Chicken (Instant Pot + Slow Cooker)
This chicken is super-tender and tossed in the most flavorful and mouth-watering sauce! Perfect for tacos, burritos, enchiladas, taco salad or served with beans and rice… Just so many options to serve your family this tasty dish!
Continue...More Instant Pot Recipes On Pinterest!
If you're looking for more Instant Pot Inspiration, check out my Instant Pot Recipes Board on Pinterest!