Search Results for: pressure cooker

Posted on by — 13 Comments

10 Reasons I Love My Electric Pressure Cooker (Instant Pot)

This was originally posted in 2017. I’ve been using my electric pressure cooker a lot lately to have easy, healthy meals. It’s been a while since I’ve shared, so I thought it was a good time to revisit it.

Last Christmas my lovely parents bought us an 8 qt. GoWise Pressure cooker that I have used almost daily ever since. This is the exact one I have:

With all the sales happening, and the Instant Pot craze still going strong, I know lots of people will be getting an electric pressure cooker and then wondering what to do with it. At least that’s what I did. Now that I’ve used mine for a while, I have some favorite uses for it to share with newbies. I have never used an official Instant Pot, so I can’t say how they compare. They should work about the same, though, so if you have an Instant Pot or other similar electric pressure cooker you should be able to enjoy all this awesomeness, too.

10 Reasons I Love My Electric Pressure Cooker (Instant Pot)

Easy Instant Pot Boiled eggs:

Boiled eggs on the stovetop are easy, unless you’re getting ready for work or school or have young children or are otherwise easily distracted. Then you either burn them or undercook them. Peeling them also is hit or miss. Sometimes the shell comes off easily, other times it takes half the egg white with it.

In the electric pressure cooker, I can put a dozen eggs in the steamer basket with a little water, push the button for eggs (mine has 1,3, and 5 minute settings for soft, medium and hard), and forget about it. The end result is perfectly cooked eggs that peel so easily my two year old can do it.

Potatoes:

Even in the microwave, I have a hard time getting potatoes and sweet potatoes to cook properly. It seems like I always have to restart it a few times to finally get them done. With the pressure cooker, I set it for 15-17 minutes depending on how soft I want them, and they are always done. I’m trying to quit using my microwave all together, too, so the pressure cooker is definitely the faster option compares to the oven.

Slow cooker recipes:

Anything you’d make in a crockpot can be cooked in the pressure cooker. You can either use the slow cooker setting, or, if you forgot about cooking dinner until after lunch, you can cook it under pressure and have it done in an hour or less.

Not only that, but, unlike with a slow cooker, you can use the sauté setting to brown meats or anything that needs browning first. That means more flavor with fewer dirty dishes.

Beans:

If I forget to presoak dry beans, I’ll put them in my pressure cooker for five minutes to do a quick presoak, drain, and add back to the pot along with the seasonings and broth or cooking water, then cook using the bean setting. It’s possible to skip the presoak entirely and go straight to cooking, if I’m short on time, but I prefer to presoak when I can.

If I get them cooking early enough in the day, I’ll switch to the slow cooker setting after they’ve cooked with pressure. That gives them the super yummy, second day flavor on day one.

Stews, soups and curries:

Browning meats and onions in the pot add flavor, and you can use the pressure then slow cook trick to further develop the flavor.

Bone broth:

Normally I would simmer bones all day on the stove for broth. With the pressure cooker, I set it to the two hour maximum time and get yummy bone broth. Easy Homemade Chicken Broth in an Electric Pressure Cooker

Stackable foods:

Smaller meats like chicken breasts, vegetables and rice can be put into separate heat-proof containers and steam cooked at the same time. I usually cook too much at once to do that, but when it works out, it is handy and doesn’t heat up the kitchen like using the oven. Easy All in One Electric Pressure Cooker Meal

Rice:

It cooks rice even better than my little rice cooker, and I don’t risk burning it like I do on the stovetop. (There’s lots of distractions here, people.) I don’t use it much for rice, though, since I usually cook curries and things I serve with rice in the pressure cooker. Whenever my rice cooker dies, though, I’m seriously considering a second, smaller pressure cooker as a replacement.

Yogurt:

I haven’t quite perfected yogurt with any method yet, but so far, the best I’ve made is in jars on the trivet in the pressure cooker. It is still a little runny, but it works well for smoothies.

Baking in an Instant Pot:

I’ve only done this once, but thought I’d mention it. You can bake cakes and breads in it by setting the bread or cake pan on the trivet and adding water to the pot for steam. This helps keep the bread or cake moist, which is especially handy for baking with gluten or grain-free flours.

Like this article? To make sure you don’t miss out on future posts, sign up for my newsletter.

Ways to use your Instant Pot or electric pressure cooker.
Posted on by — Leave a comment

Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker Recipe Roundup

My electric pressure cooker is such a lifesaver when it comes to getting fast, healthy meals ready. It’s almost like having someone else do the cooking. With so many working from home with kids right now, those minutes saved in the kitchen are valuable. Here’s five of my favorite electric pressure cooker dinner recipes.

1
honey glazed chicken and peppers
Honey Glazed Chicken for Electric Pressure Cookers like the Instant Pot
This honey glazed chicken is made in an electric pressure cooker with just minutes of prep. Sweet and juicy, it will satisfy even picky eaters.
Check out this recipe
2
Mushroom Brown Rice
Mushroom Brown Rice for Instant Pots or other Electric Pressure Cookers
Rich, earthy mushrooms in nutty brown rice make this work as a side dish or, serve with a salad to make it a meatless main course. Makes 6-8 servings.
Check out this recipe
3
Instant pot whole chicken
Electric Pressure Cooker (Instant Pot) Whole Chicken and Potatoes
This is my method for cooking a flavorful whole chicken and potatoes in an electric pressure cooker. After a little prep work, you can walk away and let the pressure cooker do it's job without having to check on it or worry about overcooking. I'm using an 8 quart electric pressure cooker. If yours is smaller, you may need to adjust the size of the chicken and other ingredients accordingly.
Check out this recipe
4
Sausage Potato Soup
Dairy and gluten free sausage potato soup inspired by Olive Garden's zuppa toscana. I prefer making it in my electric pressure cooker but it could easily be done in a slow cooker or on the stove top.
Check out this recipe
5
Instant Pot Chicken and Vegetable Quinoa
Instant Pot Chicken and Vegetable Quinoa
Instant Pot Chicken and Vegetable Quinoa is a quick, last minute dish that is great hot or cold. Customize it by swapping out the protein or vegetables depending on what you have on hand.
Check out this recipe

Shop update: Freebies and a sale

Knowing that so many are stuck at home right now needing distractions, I’ve decided to make all of my machine embroidery design files free until April 30. That’s the day my area’s shelter in place order expires. If it is extended, I’ll extend the embroidery design freebies, too. If you make something with one of my designs, I would love to see it.

My full shop is still open, and will be as long as everyone in my household is healthy. I’m using extra care with handwashing and using hand sanitizer before coming into contact with products and packaging as well.

All of my handmade soaps are currently on sale for 20% off. You can find them here.

Like this post? To make sure you never miss a future post, please sign up for my newsletter.

Posted on by — 1 Comment

Honey Glazed Chicken for Instant Pots or other Electric Pressure Cookers

If you need a quick and easy meal that is sure to please the whole family, this honey glazed chicken is it. All of the ingredients are things you probably keep on hand, so no hunting for some rare spices. It only takes about five minutes of prep time and fifteen minutes of cooking under high pressure. The end result is a sweet, glazed chicken that even most picky eaters will enjoy. Serve over rice with a side of veggies or a salad for a quick and easy meal.

For the photo, I sauteed onion and mini bell peppers separately and served them along with the honey glazed chicken over basmati rice.Some of my kiddos do not like a lot of spice, so instead of the red pepper flakes originally called for, I substituted a tiny bit of cayenne pepper. 

Gluten and Dairy-free adjustments for honey glazed chicken

If you need to keep it gluten-free, be sure to check your soy sauce. La Choy soy sauce is gluten free, but most others are not. Bragg’s Liquid Aminos are also gluten free and a good substitute. 

This recipe is already dairy free, so no substitutions are needed there. 

honey glazed chicken and peppers
Print Recipe

Honey Glazed Chicken for Electric Pressure Cookers like the Instant Pot

This honey glazed chicken is made in an electric pressure cooker with just minutes of prep. Sweet and juicy, it will satisfy even picky eaters.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Course: Main Course
Keyword: chicken, dairy free, egg free, Electric Pressure Cooker, gluten free, Instant Pot, rice
Servings: 5 people

Equipment

  • Electric pressure cooker, such as an Instant Pot

Ingredients

  • 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs Can use any boneless, skinless chicken, but I prefer the juiciness of dark meat.
  • 1.5 cups onion, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 0.5 cup soy sauce Make sure to use a gluten-free soy sauce, like La Choy if you need it to be gluten-free.
  • 0.25 cup ketchup
  • 1 cup honey
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1/8 tsp black pepper
  • 1/3 tbsp red pepper flakes I used a dash of cayenne pepper instead to reduce the heat for my kiddos.

Instructions

  • Place everything in the pressure cooker and cook on high pressure for 15 minutes.
  • Release the pressure. I usually allow it to do a natural release, but you can do a quick release with this recipe.
  • Remove the chicken and slice. In the meantime, turn on the Saute function and allow the sauce to cook to thicken, stirring frequently for about 2-3 minutes.
  • Add the sliced chicken back to the pot and stir to coat.
  • Serve over rice.

Notes

For the photo, I sauteed onion and mini bell peppers separately and served them along with the honey glazed chicken over basmati rice.
Some of my kiddos do not like a lot of spice, so instead of the red pepper flakes originally called for, I substituted a tiny bit of cayenne pepper. 

While I try to write recipes as clearly as possible, it’s easy to miss a step or make assumptions. If anything is confusing, please don’t hesitate to comment with your questions. If you make this recipe, please let me know what you think.

Soap Sale!

On an unrelated note, all of my handmade soaps are on sale for 20% off their normal price. The sale ends on March 29. Find all of my soaps here.

Like this post? To make sure you never miss a future post, please sign up for my newsletter.

This post contains affiliate links. If you click through any of the Amazon links and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission. There is no added cost to you.

Honey glazed chicken
Posted on by — 2 Comments

Easy Homemade Chicken Broth in an Electric Pressure Cooker

If you have an Instant Pot or other electric pressure cooker, delicious homemade chicken broth takes just a few minutes of prep. This technique can easily be applied to other types of broth as well.

The ingredients

When I make chicken broth, I prefer to use bones from a cooked chicken. It’s easy to cook a whole chicken in an electric pressure cooker, or use an oven-roasted or rotisserie chicken. Save the bones for broth to make a chicken stretch farther meal-wise. You can make the broth immediately after de-boning a cooked chicken. If you’re short on time, store the bones in the freezer until you’re ready.

To flavor the broth, I like to add some combination of carrots, celery, onion, garlic, salt and pepper. I usually use:

  • one onion peeled and cut into chunks
  • one or two carrots
  • two to three celery stalks broken into two or three pieces each
  • two to three cloves of peeled garlic
  • a few peppercorns
  • about 2 teaspoons of salt.

It’s easy to add salt and pepper to taste to the finished broth, so I lean toward adding less at the beginning.

Herbs like sage, bay leaf, parsley, basil and oregano are great additions, too. You could also add jalapeno to give it some spice.

Making the Chicken Broth

To make the chicken broth, put the bones, chosen vegetables and seasonings into the pot of your electric pressure cooker. Add enough water to cover the ingredients by 1-2 inches. Lock the lid and manually set the pressure cooker to cook on high pressure for 2 hours. When it’s done, depressurize naturally.

Once it’s cool enough to handle, I like to pour it through a mesh strainer to get all the small bones and vegetable remnants out. If not using the broth within a few days, it’s best to store it in the freezer.

That’s it. With a just few minutes of prep to assemble the ingredients, an electric pressure cooker makes flavorful chicken broth that tastes like it was simmered on the stove all day long. Unlike on the stovetop, though, there’s no worry about it boiling over, and the time is dramatically reduced.

Like this post? To make sure you never miss a future post, please sign up for my newsletter.

Posted on by — 2 Comments

Whole Chicken and Potatoes for Electric Pressure Cookers

whole chicken recipe for electric pressure cookers

Whole chickens are inexpensive, frugal type of meat. They provide easy leftover meals, and you can use the bones to make homemade broth for soups and to flavor other meals. While you can cook a whole chicken in an Instant Pot or other electric pressure cooker (this is the type I have) just by seasoning it and adding it to the pot with liquid, a few extra steps will add even more flavor to the final result.

Customize your whole chicken

I like to keep the seasonings fairly neutral so that I can get creative with the leftovers. My family often gets bored with multiple meals of chicken and vegetables. If I use some of the chicken for chicken tacos for the next meal and chicken soup with the rest, it makes it less monotonous.

In this recipe, to keep it neutral I use salt, pepper and poultry seasoning to flavor the chicken. It’s easy to adapt the seasonings for a different twist. Cumin, chili pepper and cayenne pepper work well for making chicken chili, tacos or tortilla soup with the leftovers. Garlic, ginger and orange zest work well for making leftover chicken stir-fry. Get creative with the flavors you like.

You can also leave out the potatoes or swap them out for other hardy vegetables. Root vegetables hold up the best with the longer cooking time the chicken requires. Sweet potatoes, carrots and parsnips are some possibilities.

Slow cook

One neat feature on most electric pressure cookers is the ability to use them as a slow cooker. If you’d rather slow cook your whole chicken, follow the steps through step 11. Instead of locking the lid and setting it to cook under high pressure, keep the lid in the venting position and select the slow cook setting. You will want to cook the chicken for about 3-4 hours on “high” slow cook or 6-7 hours on “normal” slow cook, which is the equivalent of “low” on a traditional slow cooker. I do recommend double-checking the instructions for the slow cook setting on your pressure cooker, as there may be some variations.

Instant pot whole chicken
Print Recipe

Electric Pressure Cooker (Instant Pot) Whole Chicken and Potatoes

This is my method for cooking a flavorful whole chicken and potatoes in an electric pressure cooker. After a little prep work, you can walk away and let the pressure cooker do it's job without having to check on it or worry about overcooking. I'm using an 8 quart electric pressure cooker. If yours is smaller, you may need to adjust the size of the chicken and other ingredients accordingly.
Prep Time25 minutes
Cook Time35 minutes
Course: Main Course
Servings: 6 people

Equipment

  • Electric pressure cooker
  • Trivet or rack insert for the electric pressure cooker

Ingredients

  • 5-6 lb whole chicken, giblets removed
  • 1 large onion, cut into wedges
  • 5-6 medium potatoes cut into large chunks Firmer potatoes, like Yukon golds work a little better, but I used Russets because that's what I had on hand.
  • 4 tbsp coconut or other high heat oil
  • 3/4 cup water or chicken broth
  • salt
  • pepper
  • poultry seasoning

Instructions

  • Season both sides of your chicken with your choice of seasonings. I used salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning, but you can adjust this to your family's taste.
  • Select the "Saute" setting on your pressure cooker.
  • Add the coconut oil to the pot and heat until melted and shimmery.
  • Brown the whole chicken on both sides in the coconut oil until lightly browned. I use this time do cut up the onion and potatoes.
  • Remove the chicken and set aside.
  • Add the onion wedges to the pot and cook until translucent and starting to brown.
  • Add about 1/2 cup of water or broth to the pot with the onions to deglaze the pot. Be sure to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pot to mix into the liquid.
  • Turn off the "Saute" function.
  • Place the trivet on top of the onions and liquid in the pot. Add about 1/4 cup more of water or broth to the pot.
  • Place the browned chicken on the trivet.
  • Place the potato chunks around and on top of the chicken.
  • Lock the lid in place and cook on high pressure for 35 minutes.
  • Allow the pressure to release naturally and carefully open the lid.
  • Check the temperature of the chicken to ensure that it has reached at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit. If not done, cook for another 3-5 minutes under high pressure and recheck.
  • Carefully remove the potatoes, chicken and trivet.
  • Optional: Press "Saute" and allow the onions and liquid to simmer for a few minutes to condense the liquid to serve over the chicken and potatoes.
  • Optional: Place the chicken on a broiler-safe pan and place in the oven under the broiler for 3-5 minutes to crisp up the skin.
  • Plate and serve with a side of veggies.

Notes

I like to keep the seasonings fairly neutral so that I can get creative with the leftovers without worrying about seasonings clashing. In addition to potatoes, other root vegetables such as carrots can be used. 
Whole Chicken and Potatoes for Electric Pressure Cookers

Like this post? To make sure you never miss a future post, please sign up for my newsletter.

This post contains affiliate links. If you click through any of the Amazon links and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission. There is no added cost to you.

Posted on by — 3 Comments

Easy All in One Electric Pressure Cooker Meal

For busy weeknights, there’s nothing better than an all in one meal that practically cooks itself. Prepare everything the night before and keep it in the refrigerator until it’s time to cook for even more time in the evening. You could even prep the vegetables and meat and store in the freezer for last minute meals.

The basics

This is more of a how-to than a recipe. You can really use however much of the ingredients based on how much food you need and your pressure cooker’s size. For my family of five with two little appetites, I used about four chicken breasts, three cups of rice and water, one jar of sauce and all the broccoli I could squeeze in and around everything.

You can easily swap out the protein for whatever you prefer. Ideally, it should be cut into small, bite sized pieces prior to cooking. With the chicken breasts, I’ve been able to cook them from frozen first and cut them later, but it’s not ideal.

This time, I used broccoli, but it was a little overdone for my liking. Root vegetables cut into bite sized pieces or frozen peas or green beans are probably better for all in one meals like this.

The sauce

To make it super easy, I started with a jar of Korma simmer sauce from Aldi. You could easily substitute any store bought or homemade sauce. Canned soup, salsa, tomato sauce or even just broth are all options. Tailor it to your family’s tastes.

Assemble the ingredients

I used an old rice cooker pot for the rice. Any heatproof container that is big enough to hold the rice and cooking liquid but small enough to fit in your pressure cooker’s cooking pot would work.

I put the chicken and broccoli under and around the rice pot. Then I filled the rice pot with appropriate amounts of rice, water and salt.

The Korma went on top of the broccoli and chicken, and I added about half a cup of water just to make sure there was plenty of liquid. If you use broth or a thinner, liquid sauce, the water isn’t necessary.

Cooking

Finally, I set the whole thing in my pressure cooker and cooked it with the “Rice” setting. My electric pressure cooker is a GoWISE USA brand. Recipes for the Instant Pot brand usually work as written for mine, so I assume that setting would work for the Instant Pot and other similar pressure cookers.

Here is a terrible picture of the end result. I promise it tasted better than it looks. A homemade sauce would have been healthier, I’m sure. When you are strapped for time or having to make do without a fully functioning kitchen, though, it’s lots better than having to rely on fast food.

Like this recipe? Sign up for my newsletter to never miss future tips, tutorials and recipes.

All in one Electric Pressure Cooker Meal
Posted on by — Leave a comment

Electric Pressure Cooker Update

In the interest of being totally transparent regarding the things I recommend, I think it’s only fair that I post an update to my Why I Love my Electric Pressure Cooker, aka Knockoff Instant Pot post.

GoWise Electric Pressure Cooker, Take One

My first GoWise electric pressure cooker worked beautifully for almost a year and a half. Then, one day while mid-cooking cycle it just died. There was no warning, no error codes, no lights on, nothing. I gave it time to cool off to make sure it hadn’t overheated, but still nothing. Luckily, when my parents bought it for me as a Christmas present, purchased the extended warranty, so I was able to ship the broken pressure cooker back in exchange for an Amazon gift card.

Pardon the messiness. I literally took the photo as soon as I transferred the half cooked bean soup out so I would have it for the warranty process.

Even though my first GoWise electric pressure cooker broke, I chose to repurchase the same model. I also bought the extended warranty. Until it died, I hadn’t had any trouble whatsoever, even with almost daily use, so I thought it was worth giving it another try.

GoWise Electric Pressure Cooker, Take Two

After almost a year, my second GoWise electric pressure died in exactly the same way as my first one. I do use my electric pressure cooker almost daily, so I might be legitimately wearing them out. I did, however, have a friend say her GoWise died in the same manner. Because it’s a common malfunction, this time I planned to pay the little bit more and get an Instant Pot.

Unfortunately, because it lasted less than a year, the manufacturer’s warranty still covered my second GoWise. That means my extended warranty won’t cover it yet. Since the manufacturer’s warranty covers an exact replacement, I’m expecting my third GoWise electric pressure cooker in the mail. I’m sure it will still be awesome for about a year, and maybe the third time is a charm.

Backup for Number Three

In the meantime, I’ve actually been considering getting a second electric pressure cooker so I can have one for the main dish and sides. I like how rice turns out in the pressure cooker compared to other rice cookers, and I frequently burn it on the stove top. Having two would work nicely for when I’m making beans or curry in the pressure cooker and need rice to go along. If I find a good deal on an Instant Pot, I may go ahead and splurge on it as my second. That way, I’ll have a backup in case this GoWise breaks mid-cooking and I can do a real comparison of the two.