Do I want an instant pot?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We got one as a gift two years ago. Used it once to cook beans, which ended up taking longer than it would have to just cook them on the stove, and they didn't taste good. Put it back in the box and haven't tried again.

I'm sure if we tinkered we'd get it to work for us, but it just doesn't seem like it's worth the effort to learn another new appliance.

Same. Plus I got frustrated with the “15 min cooking time” which actually means 20 min to get up to pressure, 15 min to cook, 20 min for natural release, etc. it’s easier to just put the beans on the stove.

[Anonymous]

I cook a lot but rarely use it. Really only for dried beans using the pressure cooker function, but then i use the beans in another recipe in another pot, eg chili, dal etc

I might use it more post covid, I guess i could put things on for the kids to eat when they get home.

[Anonymous]

You can get an Instant Pot for $50. It's really not a big deal if you try it and decide you don't like it. Especially since this is essentially a gift for you. The internet is really divided between IP lovers and IP haters, and likely a silent majority of agnostics. I personally don't mind having mine, but I use it maybe once a month and wouldn't replace it if it broke. The things I cook are just easier to do on the stove. Plenty of helpful posts here telling you what the Instant Pot does do well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is a direct correlation between people who don't particularly like to cook and people who like the Instant Pot. It's great to have if your alternative for tasty meals involves a takeout menu. People who are already comfortable in the kitchen find it to be an unnecessary appliance. But people like this tend to already have (or determined they have no need for) a stovetop pressure cooker, a rice cooker, and a slow cooker. That's all the Instant Pot is. Nothing magical. If you don't think you would use the three aforementioned items, you're unlikely to get much value out of an IP.

Hmm, I don’t agree. I love to cook and bake and am quite a competent home chef. I got an IP as a gift and thought I’d never use it because of the reasons you mentioned - I always had all of those other things and didn’t want another appliance clogging up the kitchen. Turns out I LOVE it and use it all the time. Even though I love to cook, not every meal needs to be “gourmet” and I actually find that it makes stews, curries, and shredded meats taste way better than on the stove or in a slow cooker.

I love to make carnitas, homemade chicken/beef/fish stock to use in anything else, beef stew, butter chicken, beans, lentils, meat sauce, really all kinds of things in it. I actually can’t imagine not having it now because I am such a convert, and I still cook plenty the old-fashioned way. It’s just another thing in my arsenal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We got one as a gift two years ago. Used it once to cook beans, which ended up taking longer than it would have to just cook them on the stove, and they didn't taste good. Put it back in the box and haven't tried again.

I'm sure if we tinkered we'd get it to work for us, but it just doesn't seem like it's worth the effort to learn another new appliance.

Same. Plus I got frustrated with the “15 min cooking time” which actually means 20 min to get up to pressure, 15 min to cook, 20 min for natural release, etc. it’s easier to just put the beans on the stove.

I rarely natural release anything...always just release it as soon as its done. I agree it’s not that much faster for some things, but for something like meats where it would take a very long time on the stove or in the oven for the connective tissue to break down it’s awesome and a time saver. Plus I don’t have to babysit it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is a direct correlation between people who don't particularly like to cook and people who like the Instant Pot. It's great to have if your alternative for tasty meals involves a takeout menu. People who are already comfortable in the kitchen find it to be an unnecessary appliance. But people like this tend to already have (or determined they have no need for) a stovetop pressure cooker, a rice cooker, and a slow cooker. That's all the Instant Pot is. Nothing magical. If you don't think you would use the three aforementioned items, you're unlikely to get much value out of an IP.

I’m a trained chef and I love my instant pot. I’m selective in what I use it for, but it is a great tool to have with a busy life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mine is mostly a waste of counter space, but I am vegetarian. I think Instant Pots are most useful for cooking meat and meat-based stews. Most veggie dishes are better (and more quickly) done on the stove or in the oven. I hate not being able to taste and adjust as I cook, or know when something is done before it turns into a soggy mess. I pretty much only use my Instant Pot for chickpeas (for hummus) and boiling eggs.

OP of the quoted post. After reading three pages of responses, I stand by my initial review. Instant Pot is a decent tool for cooking meat and of questionable value to vegetarians beyond prepping beans and legumes (like my chickpeas example).

[Anonymous]

I'm a vegetarian who regularly cooks Indian food and owns both a stovetop pressure cooker and an Instant Pot. I use the Instant Pot mainly to make components of meals (like cooking dry beans), soups, and oatmeal. I do like the convenience of putting things in and not having to be in the kitchen, especially while working from home during this pandemic. I can throw things in for a soup, get on a zoom meeting, and then end the meeting and soup will be ready.

On balance though, I much prefer my stovetop pressure cooker. It's easier to control the heat when sautéing (because I have a gas stove), and cooking in the stovetop pressure cooker is MUCH faster than the Instant Pot. Stove top pressure cookers cook at higher pressure, plus the time to come up to pressure and to depressurize is much, much less.

All in all, an Instant Pot is nice to have, but if I had to buy just one pressure cooker, I'd much rather have a stovetop pressure cooker.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m a vegetarian and I love mine, but we’re Indian so I cook dal in it almost every other day. I’ve also made rice but I just do that on the stove. I cook vegetables in it and just cook them for a very short time so they don’t get mushy. It’s so good for multi tasking and it’s one less burner being used.

I like the steamer function for idli.

[Anonymous]

Its also good if you are trying to get away from processed foods. Used mine today to make mac and cheese with some good gouda I shredded. Took ten minutes and better than from a box. We make yogurt, made cheesecake, rice pudding, beef stroganoff and fish stock, chicken stock. Bone broth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Mine is mostly a waste of counter space, but I am vegetarian. I think Instant Pots are most useful for cooking meat and meat-based stews. Most veggie dishes are better (and more quickly) done on the stove or in the oven. I hate not being able to taste and adjust as I cook, or know when something is done before it turns into a soggy mess. I pretty much only use my Instant Pot for chickpeas (for hummus) and boiling eggs.

Beans! Rolls! Yogurt!

[Anonymous]

I’ve particularly appreciated it since learning how bad gas stoves are for indoor air quality and the environment. Like PPs, I use it as a burner on top of most of its other functions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There is a direct correlation between people who don't particularly like to cook and people who like the Instant Pot. It's great to have if your alternative for tasty meals involves a takeout menu. People who are already comfortable in the kitchen find it to be an unnecessary appliance. But people like this tend to already have (or determined they have no need for) a stovetop pressure cooker, a rice cooker, and a slow cooker. That's all the Instant Pot is. Nothing magical. If you don't think you would use the three aforementioned items, you're unlikely to get much value out of an IP.

I am a good cook but have a small kitchen. I appreciate the multi-functionality of the Instant Pot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We got one as a gift two years ago. Used it once to cook beans, which ended up taking longer than it would have to just cook them on the stove, and they didn't taste good. Put it back in the box and haven't tried again.

I'm sure if we tinkered we'd get it to work for us, but it just doesn't seem like it's worth the effort to learn another new appliance.

Same. Plus I got frustrated with the “15 min cooking time” which actually means 20 min to get up to pressure, 15 min to cook, 20 min for natural release, etc. it’s easier to just put the beans on the stove.

Do you also get frustrated when the box of pasta says it takes 9-11 minutes to cook but the pot of water takes 10 minutes to boil before hand? Do you also hate when you have a muffin recipe that says it takes 25 minutes to bake but they didn’t account for the time preheating the oven? I never understood why this makes people so angry about the instant pot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We got one as a gift two years ago. Used it once to cook beans, which ended up taking longer than it would have to just cook them on the stove, and they didn't taste good. Put it back in the box and haven't tried again.

I'm sure if we tinkered we'd get it to work for us, but it just doesn't seem like it's worth the effort to learn another new appliance.

Same. Plus I got frustrated with the “15 min cooking time” which actually means 20 min to get up to pressure, 15 min to cook, 20 min for natural release, etc. it’s easier to just put the beans on the stove.

Do you also get frustrated when the box of pasta says it takes 9-11 minutes to cook but the pot of water takes 10 minutes to boil before hand? Do you also hate when you have a muffin recipe that says it takes 25 minutes to bake but they didn’t account for the time preheating the oven? I never understood why this makes people so angry about the instant pot.

Because of the marketing/hype about how fast it is. It isn't unless you're talking a dish that would take hours to cook otherwise. Plus, all the recipes don't count the time it takes to come up to pressure, nor do they estimate how long that might be. So if you're new to pressure cooking and thought you'd have dinner on the table in 30 minutes, you will be surprised and hungry when it takes twice that!