{"id":6970,"date":"2017-07-15T19:38:36","date_gmt":"2017-07-16T01:38:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/janetheactuary\/?p=6970"},"modified":"2017-07-15T19:47:07","modified_gmt":"2017-07-16T01:47:07","slug":"i-own-an-instant-pot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/janetheactuary\/2017\/07\/i-own-an-instant-pot.html","title":{"rendered":"I own an Instant Pot!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"IMG_2274\"<\/p>\n

I\u2019d deliberated about an Instant Pot for a while now, and, in fact, a couple years ago bought an electric pressure cooker from Aldi. \u00a0I read through the instructions and concluded that the time savings wasn\u2019t really that impressive, considering that the cooking time may be minimal but the time required to pre-heat and to de-pressurize afterwards can be substantial. \u00a0\u201cFor as long as it takes, I might as well just keep using my crockpot,\u201d I said, and returned it.<\/p>\n

But in the meantime, I\u2019ve had a number of instances where I have a crock pot-using recipe in mind, but then don\u2019t get around to actually putting it in the pot in time. \u00a0So this, plus the appeal of being able to use the same device as a rice cooker and a slow cooker, and the fact that I learned they\u2019re now being sold at Target rather than just on Amazon, meant that I decided to go ahead.<\/p>\n

Here it is:<\/p>\n

\"IMG_2276\"<\/p>\n

Yes, it\u2019s a 6 qt. version, and a 7-in-1 model \u2014 apparently there\u2019s a 9-in-1 that makes cakes as well, but that wasn\u2019t on the shelves at Target. \u00a0 (And, of the seven functions, several are not so impressive \u2014 \u201cwarmer\u201d? \u00a0\u201csteamer\u201d? \u00a0And I\u2019m unlikely to take it out for a spin as a yogurt-maker.)<\/p>\n

I had my first trial run tonight: \u00a0chicken thighs with spaghetti (marinara) sauce, a recipe that I \u00a0usually make in the crockpot. \u00a0It\u2019s as simple as dumping spaghetti sauce and chicken thighs together \u2014 though it requires a final step, that of cooking down the resulting fairly runny sauce. \u00a0(Maybe if I made my own sauce with tomato paste and seasonings it wouldn\u2019t be necessary but I never have.) \u00a0The green bits are spinach that I cooked separately (I just used the same serving spoon).<\/p>\n

Was it lightning fast? \u00a0No, not really \u2014 it took 40 minutes to go through all three parts of preheat, cook, and natural release. \u00a0I could have tried a quick release but it wasn\u2019t clear enough to me exactly how much liquid is \u201ctoo much\u201d to do a quick release. \u00a0But I\u2019m not rushing to cook dinner quickly as often as I used to be \u2014 yet at the same time, often have days where I have to dash out and pick up a kid from somewhere just before dinner, so that this duration wouldn\u2019t necessarily be an issue, if it\u2019s a matter of getting it started and then doing the pick-up and coming back to dinner that\u2019s nearly ready, especially since it has a \u201ckeep warm\u201d program that automatically kicks in after the cooking is finished.<\/p>\n

Will it replace the rice cooker? \u00a0I\u2019d probably still want to have it handy for those sorts of meals where rice is the side dish to whatever is crock-potted\/pressure-cooked. \u00a0It would probably replace the crock pot, though. \u00a0And I like the saute feature, since presumably it should give a flavor boost to those recipes where I skip the meat browning because it\u2019s too much work to do so in a separate pan.<\/p>\n

But here\u2019s one thing I haven\u2019t figured out: \u00a0the crock pot and the rice cooker are both small enough to be tucked away in a kitchen cabinet when not in use. \u00a0The Instant Pot? \u00a0Not so much. \u00a0Which means that I\u2019d have the breadmaker, the Instant Pot, and the stand\u00a0mixer permanently on the counter. \u00a0Maybe it\u2019s time for that kitchen remodel . . .<\/p>\n

And the other thing that\u2019s odd is that there seems to be a significant Chinese customer base, judging from the fact that the instruction book included Chinese as a language, and small included recipe book was English and Chinese. \u00a0This NPR article<\/a> on the rise of the Canadian-invented Instant Pot doesn\u2019t mention any Chinese connection \u2014 is it a favorite among the Chinese? \u00a0Among the Chinese-Canadian immigrant community?<\/p>\n

Anyway, readers, please share your Instant Pot experiences (and resist the temptation to make jokes about the other<\/em> sort of pot).<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019d deliberated about an Instant Pot for a while now, and, in fact, a couple years ago bought an electric pressure cooker from Aldi. \u00a0I read through the instructions and concluded that the time savings wasn\u2019t really that impressive, considering that the cooking time may be minimal but the time required to pre-heat and to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2209,"featured_media":6971,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[68,684],"class_list":["post-6970","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-cookingbaking","tag-instant-pot"],"yoast_head":"\nI own an Instant Pot!<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I'd deliberated about an Instant Pot for a while now, and, in fact, a couple years ago bought an electric pressure cooker from Aldi. \u00a0I read through the\" \/>\n<meta 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