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instant pot tutorial pin

Are you lot a new Instant Pot owner? Or mayhap yous bought one a while ago, only oasis't been brave enough to open the box? I used to be intimidated by the Instant Pot myself, so today I want to share with you 10 things you must know nigh using your electric pressure cooker. I'm hoping it will aid you experience confident enough to accept full-advantage of it in no time!

Instant pot in use

10 Things You Should Know Before Using Your Instant Pot

If you're a visual learner, hither'southward a quick 3-infinitesimal video sharing everything you demand to know. I hope it'due south helpful to see these tips in action!

1. Always Check the Sealing Ring

The lid of your Instant Pot has a silicone sealing ring inside, and this is responsible for sealing the lid and locking-in the steam force per unit area. This silicone band should exist properly seated along the metallic ring that is in the lid, but because it's exposed to heat during the cooking wheel it can sometimes motility out of place or get stuck.

checking sealing ring in Instant Pot lid

Information technology's important to bank check the silicone band every time you employ your Instant Pot, to make sure it's properly placed and has a little wiggle room to aggrandize. I normally grab it with my fingers and wiggle it all around the hat to brand sure it's not stuck anywhere.

2. How to Cook on Manual

When you use a transmission setting, you lot are in charge of selecting the cook fourth dimension, and the pressure level in some models, rather than relying on one of the preset buttons similar "rice" or "stew." Older models of Instant Pot take a Transmission push and newer models have a Force per unit area Melt button, but both buttons practise the exact aforementioned thing.

To melt on manual, all you lot have to practice is press the Manual or Pressure Cook push (depending on the model yous have) and so use the + or – buttons to set the cook time. The Instant Pot automatically cooks on high pressure, but some models accept a split Pressure button that allows you lot to melt at low pressure level if you'd like to. (I personally never utilise annihilation other than the default high pressure level setting.)

Brand sure you lot secure the hat and move the steam release valve to Sealing, to ensure the pot volition come up to pressure level. It'southward likewise important that you lot follow a trusted Instant Pot recipe, so that you accept sufficient liquid in the pot and that your ingredients are layered properly.

steam release valve and floating valve in the Instant Pot lid

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3. How to Know the Instant Pot is Pressurized

When you first a pressure cooking cycle, the Instant Pot volition not kickoff counting down right away. First, the pot needs to pressurize, which tin can take 10 minutes or more, depending on how much food is inside. The more than total the pot, the longer it will have to come to force per unit area. And so, don't be alarmed if your Instant Pot screen simply says "On" for a while.

You'll know that the pot is pressurized when the floating valve in the chapeau pops upwards. Before long after that happens, the count-downwardly for your cooking cycle will begin.

4. How to Apace Release the Pressure

If a recipe calls for a "quick release," that means you'll demand to move the steam release valve from the Sealing position to the Venting position equally soon equally the Instant Pot beeps, signaling that the cooking bike is consummate. (The screen volition read LO:OO when the cooking wheel is over.)

steam release valve venting steam from the top

Make sure that you don't identify your mitt directly over the vent, as steam will shoot out the top of the steam release valve. Instead, proceed your hand to the side of the valve or use a spoon to turn the vent, if you're on the extra-cautious side. I e'er employ my hand and have never had an issue. (Go along in mind that I wrote a book on the field of study, so I've literally used my Instant Pot thousands of times!)

5. How to Naturally Release the Pressure

If a recipe calls for a natural release, you'll do nothing when the cooking cycle is consummate. For about recipes, information technology volition take 10-15 minutes for the pressure to naturally leave the pot.

I similar it when recipes tell you exactly how long to expect for the natural release. In all of my recipes in The Fresh & Good for you Instant Pot Cookbook, I tell yous exactly how long to wait and when that time has passed you tin move the steam release valve from Sealing to Venting to release whatsoever remaining pressure. That way you're not waiting around for an actress 30 minutes or more to eat your dinner!

vi. How to Safely Remove the Lid

Are you lot worried virtually your Instant Pot exploding? That was my biggest fear when I got started, too. Luckily, the Instant Pot is loaded with safety features to aid preclude that from happening, just the all-time thing you tin practise is learn how to employ it properly to avoid whatever user errors.

It's Not safe to remove the hat from your Instant Pot until all of the pressure has been released from the pot. You'll know information technology's rubber to remove the lid when the floating valve in the lid drops.  This means all of the pressure level is gone, and the Instant Pot lid will easily twist off.

instant pot steam release valve

Never ever effort to forcefulness the lid off the pot if it doesn't twist easily. As a safety precaution, the Instant Pot locks the lid while the pot is still pressurized, and so don't try to fight it.

vii. Always Deglaze the Pot (to avoid a Burn error)

If utilise the Sauté office on your Instant Pot before force per unit area cooking something, it's essential that you deglaze the bottom of the pot. This merely ways that you add a splash of water to the pot and use a wooden spoon to scrape off anything that might be stuck to the bottom. Onions, dried spices, and footing meat are mutual ingredients that will stick to the bottom of your pan, so it's important that yous get every niggling fleck un-stuck to avert getting the dreaded "burn" error during your pressure cooking bike.

Once y'all become familiar with your Instant Pot, making dinner can be as easy as adding your ingredients to the pot, pressing a button, and walking abroad. I love how the process is totally hands-off! Check out my before mail service, 6 means I use my Instant Pot, to encounter how I employ it on a real-life, regular basis.

8. How to Cook for Zippo Minutes

Yes, at that place really is a zero minute cooking bicycle on the Instant Pot. This short cycle is about commonly used to cook non-starchy vegetables, like broccoli, cauliflower and zucchini. If you cook them for even i full minute, so turn to mush!

zero minute Instant Pot cooking cycle

Cooking for 0 minutes is the same as cooking anything else on Transmission. Press the Manual or Pressure Cook button, then use the – push button to lower the cooking fourth dimension to zero minutes. The Instant Pot will nonetheless take several minutes to come up to force per unit area (up to ten minutes), and then as presently as the cooking cycle beeps to signal that it's complete, yous'll quickly release the pressure right away then that the vegetables don't over-melt. Information technology will have 2 to iii minutes for the pressure to release, so the food will be in your Instant Pot for at least 12 to xv minutes in full, giving it plenty of time to melt.

nine. How to Melt Pot-in-Pot

Ane of my favorite perks of the Instant Pot is that yous tin melt 2 dishes at the aforementioned time! Information technology's called pot-in-pot cooking, where ane dish cooks on the bottom of the pot, and then a separate basin of nutrient tin can melt on top of that. You can run into an case of this with my Chipotle Burrito Bowls. In this case, the spiced black beans cook on the bottom while a bowl of brownish rice cooks on top, both from scratch in a 30-minute cooking cycle.

pot in pot rice for the Instant Pot

I've defended an entire blog mail to pot-in-pot cooking, so y'all can get a improve idea of which ingredients tin exist cooked together at the aforementioned time. There are also several recipes in my cookbook that teach you how to cook rice, cauliflower "rice," and cauliflower mashed "potatoes" at the aforementioned time as your main entree.

x. Your Nutrient Won't Always Be Ready in an "Instant"

I remember the most deceiving thing virtually the Instant Pot is the name. Merely because you employ your Instant Pot to cook a meal, doesn't mean it will be ready significantly faster than information technology would if you lot were to melt it on the stove. For example, Instant Pot steel cut oats cook in just a 4 minute cooking cycle, simply you withal have to await near 8 to 10 minutes for the pot to come to force per unit area, and some other fifteen to 20 minutes for the pressure to release. That ways it takes closer to xxx minutes for your oatmeal to be washed.

The real advantage to cooking with your Instant Pot is that the process is almost completely hands-off, so information technology feels like yous take more fourth dimension on your hands. Instead of standing past the stove, watching to brand sure nothing burns or boils over, you have your easily free to end other tasks around your house. It makes you the ultimate multi-tasker, which is why so many people have fallen in love with it.

As an added bonus, cooking with your Instant Pot preserves more nutrients when compared to other methods of cooking! This is possibly due to the fact that information technology rarely reaches a temperature higher than 250ºF within the pot, or that information technology cooks food faster, giving information technology less of an opportunity to lose nutrients.

How to Use Your Instant Pot (ten Things Y'all Should Know!)

Hither's a pace-by-step tutorial and so you'll know exactly how to utilize your Instant Pot.

  • I'd recommend starting with a adept Instant Pot recipe that gives y'all articulate instructions. In the case of a "dump recipe," you'll add all of the ingredients to the bottom of your stainless steel liner in Instant Pot, without turning it on first.

  • One time your ingredients are in the pot, check the clear silicone sealing band in the chapeau to brand sure that it's properly seated. I like to wiggle it with my fingers to make sure it's correctly around the metal ring in the lid, and that it has wiggle room so that information technology will aggrandize and seal the pot.

  • Secure the lid and movement the steam release valve to Sealing. It's normal for the steam release valve to feel loose-- information technology's non a big movement between the Venting and Sealing positions.

  • Select the "Transmission" or "Pressure Cook" push (the proper noun will vary depending on the model of your car, only they do the same thing) then use the + or - buttons to set the cooking fourth dimension. The Instant Pot automatically cooks on loftier pressure unless you manually modify it or use one of the preset buttons.

  • Later you set the time, it will take about 10 seconds for the screen to read "On." The screen volition remain that way as the pot heats up, edifice steam pressure. Y'all'll know the pot is pressurized when the floating valve in the lid pops upward. The countdown for your cooking cycle should outset soon subsequently that.

  • When the cooking bike is consummate, allow the pressure naturally release (i.e. do nil for at to the lowest degree 10 more than minutes) or perform a "quick release" past moving the steam release valve to venting right away. A good recipe will allow you know which method you lot need to do. Be sure to keep your hand to the side of the vent, rather than over the top, and so y'all won't be burned by the hot steam coming out.

  • When the floating valve in the hat drops, information technology'due south rubber to open up the lid, because that means all of the pressure level has been released from the pot. The lid should exist easy to twist off, so never force the pot open up.

  • Enjoy your piece of cake, easily-off meal!

Easy Instant Pot Recipes for Beginners

To get yourself comfortable with using the Instant Pot, I recommend starting with something very simple. Here are a few good "beginner" recipes to try:

  • Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs
  • Instant Pot Chocolate-brown Rice
  • Instant Pot Quinoa (one-minute method)
  • Instant Pot Spaghetti Squash (the biggest time saver!)
  • Instant Pot Applesauce
  • Instant Pot Chicken Breasts

For more recipes with pace-by-step instructions, and a photo for every recipe, be sure to check out The Fresh & Salubrious Instant Pot Cookbook. All of the recipes have a tested gluten-costless option, besides as a vegan option, and they are refined carbohydrate-gratuitous equally well!

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Reader Feedback: Do you have any other questions well-nigh the Instant Pot? I'k happy to answer them in the comments below!