What is an Instant Pot? Learn the differences between instant pot vs. slow cooker & pressure cooker and how to cook delicious recipes with it.
If there’s one kitchen gadget that I cannot stop raving about ever since it came into our lives, it would be the Instant Pot (and this is NOT a sponsored post). But, just in case you’re not familiar, today’s post will give you an overview & a roundup of delicious recipes you can cook with this amazing appliance.
What is an Instant Pot?
It is an intelligent, 7-in-1 Multi-Functional Cooker. It does the job of an electric pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, steamer, yogurt maker, sauté/browning pan, and warming pot.
You can purchase the one I use (and the most popular one), Instant Pot DUO60 7-in-1 Multi-Functional Pressure Cooker, 6Qt/1000W on Amazon. They also have newer models DUO Plus 60 9-in-1 (6 Qt) and DUO Ultra 10-in-1 (6 Qt).
Instant Pot vs. Conventional Pressure Cooker
Both offer very similar functionalities. The main difference is the Instant Pot uses programmable electronic control which is missing in the conventional pressure cookers. That is why Instant Pot is also known as the electric pressure cooker, allowing it to produce more consistent cooking results.
Instant pot also comes with an integrated heating unit, making it more energy efficient and safer. A conventional pressure cooker, however, uses a separate heat source (either a gas stove or an electric range).
Instant Pot vs. Slow Cooker
The slow cooker cooks in a low temperature, while an Instant Pot (pressure cooker function) cooks at a higher temperature, which means it cooks food 70% faster. Who doesn’t like that?! If you’re short on time, you can make a meal faster with the Instant Pot. You can come home, spend a few minutes prepping the ingredients, toss them into the pot and dinner is done within 30 minutes or so.
What makes the Instant Pot stand out though is it is both a slow cooker and pressure cooker, so you don’t have to get separate gadgets for different preparations.
Frequently Asked Question – Cooking Rice with Instant Pot?
I often get asked if I’ve used the Instant Pot for cooking rice and how to cook rice with Instant Pot.
My answer is I only use my Instant Pot for cooking main dishes, so I prepare my rice separately in my favorite Zojirushi rice cooker. Also a reader did mention that the rice gets stick to the inner pot of Instant Pot. If you wish to give it a try, I’d love to hear your experience. Do you cook Japanese short grain rice (which is stickier than other white rice)?
3 Main Reasons I Love about the Instant Pot:
1. Huge time saver.
With its multiple built-in cooking modes (including sautéing), I can now brown the meats and ingredients directly inside the pot without using my stove and a separate pot. That means fewer dishes to clean!
2. Delayed Electric Timer.
I can set it, walk out of the door and not worry about it.
3. Easy to Clean.
The cooking bowl is made with stainless steel, so I can just throw the pot and other small parts into the dishwasher and wash the lid by hand.
Now that you’ve learned more about the Instant Pot, I hope you’d have fun cooking up the delicious recipes that I share below.
17 Favorite Instant Pot Recipes
1. Pressure Cooker Potato Salad
If your family loves potato dishes, you want to give this delicious Pressure Cooker Potato Salad a try. With the Instant Pot, there’s no waiting for the potatoes to get boiled since they will be ready in 5 minutes!
2. Pressure Cooker Short Ribs
Boneless short ribs are cooked with daikon and carrots in a savory sauce until moist and tender. A beautiful dinner gets done in 30 mins!
3. Pressure Cooker Spaghetti Bolognese
Just because you don’t have time, you don’t have to give up on homemade bolognese sauce all together. With the instant pot, you can easily whip up this family-favorite while achieving full depth of flavor for the sauce anytime. It’s a sure win!
4. Slow Cooker Sriracha Chili Chicken Wings
With only five ingredients and minimal prep work, these Sriracha Chili Chicken Wings are perfect as party appetizers and easy weeknight meals. After 2 hours of slow cooking in my Instant Pot, the meat is tender and almost falling off the bones. You can serve as it is, or for crispy texture, pop them into the oven for a quick broil.
5. Pressure Cooker Nikujaga
Nikujaga (肉じゃが) is a classic Japanese home cook dish, featuring sliced meat, vegetables & potatoes simmered in dashi soup. Cutting the meat into smaller chunks helps to cook all the ingredients evenly in the electric pressure cooker.
6. Pressure Cooker Japanese Curry
If you love the mild and thick Japanese Curry, then you’ll love this quick and easy electric pressure cooker recipe. It cooks the curry in just 15 min and tastes fabulous.
7. Instant Pot Asian Pulled Pork
Easy and extremely versatile, this Instant Pot Asian Pulled Pork is going to be your hero meal on a busy week. You get irresistibly tender meat that can be stretched out for a week with very minimal work. Enjoy the pulled pork in your sandwich, rice bowl, or tacos!
8. Slow Cooker Chicken Wings
Cooked in a savory soy sauce broth with daikon, these Slow Cooker Chicken Wings give you plenty of hands-off time but surprisingly moist and tender meat.
9. Pressure Cooker Pork Belly (Kakuni 角煮)
A once-a-time-consuming dish like pork belly can now be prepared in a much faster time with an instant pot. The best part is you don’t have to constantly monitor the cooking temperature and liquid to get the pork super tender. Enjoy the Pressure Cooker Pork Belly with a steaming bowl of rice!
10. Pressure Cooker Oxtail Broth
Richly flavored and packed with nutrients, Pressure Cooker Oxtail Broth is a perfect beef stock for many Japanese soup recipes. Use the broth for your Japanese Udon, Japanese Curry, and Japanese Fish Cake Stew (Oden). You can also enjoy the broth as it is for a warm pick-me-up. Did I say it’s high in collagen which is great for the skin?
11. Pressure Cooker Oxtail Soup
Cooking oxtails take a long time, but not anymore! With a pressure cooker, you can make this hearty Oxtail Soup in a much shorter time!
12. Pressure Cooker Japanese Seafood Curry
If you love curry, it’s time to try Japanese Seafood Curry packed with amazing flavors from the shrimp, squid, scallops, spices, and kombu dashi.
13. Pressure Cooker Steamed Pork with Garlic Soy Sauce and Ginger Miso Sauce
Enjoy this tender, juicy Pressure Cooker Steamed Pork by using Instant Pot pressure-steaming method. Once the meat is cooked, slice into thin slices and drizzle with a savory garlic soy sauce or ginger miso sauce. So delicious with rice and a side of vegetables.
14. Instant Pot Beef Tendon Stew (Gyusuji Nikomi)
Pressure cooked in savory Japanese seasonings, this Japanese Beef Tendon Stew (Gyusuji Nikomi) is incredibly flavorful and literally melts in your mouth.
15. Instant Pot Kabocha Flan
Pressure Cooked in Instant Pot, this Kabocha Flan with caramel sauce has a silky smooth texture and rich custard flavor with a hint of sweet kabocha.
16. Oxtail Oden (Fish Cake Stew)
This is a fancier version of Oden – Japanese fish cake stew – with a richer, heartier broth made from a combination of oxtail and dashi. Once you make this very flavorful Oxtail Oden recipe, it’s hard to go back to the simple version anymore!
17. Pressure Cooker Anko (Red Bean Paste)
Anko (red bean paste) is a popular filling in many favorite Japanese sweets & desserts. All you need is azuki beans, sugar, and salt, and use the ‘Bean/ Chili’ function’ to prepare this sweet bean paste in an instant pot.
I hope you have fun using your Instant Pot and enjoy making these pressure cooker & slow-cooker recipes!
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Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on February 12, 2017.
I’ll have to disagree on one thing (And I dearly love my Instant Pot Duo Mini) here.
The IP is only an adequate slow cooker. Not really a very good one. When I go for a slow cooker recipe, I break out the actual slow cooker I have– it just seems to give me better results when I’m deliberately not in a hurry (and that’s kind of the point of one to my mind… put everything in at noon or so, and six-eight hours later, a completed dish with no need to watch over it).
I think it’s because most dedicated slow cookers have a heavy earthenware/ceramic inner pot, rather than the stainless steel pot of the IP. Very even low heat, very long lasting.
I suppose it’s best defined like this– when I’m making a western-style beef stew, I’ll break out the slow cooker, start it at 10 AM, and dine at Six or Seven.. But when I’m up for Japan’s version of the same– Niku-jaga– then it’s the Instant Pot (and your recipe, to be sure!) and eat in less than 30 minutes.
Everything else is spot on, though… the darn thing is a wonder for darn near everything else!
Hi Robert! Except for a few times, I haven’t really used a slow cooker function (simply because I’m not ready to prep earlier in the day… haha.) but you have a good point on the ceramic inner pot in the slow cooker. I don’t own a slow cooker so my only option for now is the IP. It’s good to have a both option, but I mostly end up using a pressure cooker. Thanks so much for your input – it makes sense!
Just found the blog and I love it. Can’t wait to read and watch your work. My wife is Japanese and we eat Japanese almost entirely.
I’m sure I have the only six-year old daughter in metro Detroit that loved natto. I hate it!
I’d love to share some photos of my wife’s cooking. I think I’ll put together a package for you that you mentioned in the contact us section.
Thanks for creating this. It’s awesome.
Hi Clayton! Thank you for visiting my site! Hahaha, my son would be your daughter’s best friend. He’s been eating natto since he was small too (now he’s 12 and still loves it). Look forward to seeing your wife’s work and please send my hello/Konnichiwa to your wife. 🙂
Hi Nami, many of your instant pot recipes involve browning the meats in Saute mode. Do you experience that the meat sticks to the pot when browning? I had oiled the pot before adding the meat, and left it to brown (almost burning), so had to tear the meat to remove it before it was too late. Any experience or tips you can share?
Hi Wing! I feel like I have responded to this question, but maybe it was email.. anyway, for those who also have the same question, I’d like to suggest the following tips.
1) If the pot is stainless steel, you really need to grease the bottom of the pot with oil. Heat the pot first, and add oil, so oil is easily spread all around.
2) Once you put the protein, meat or seafood, do not touch for a while. The skin/flesh usually releases it on its own once the surface has nice brown “crust”. Until then, no touching. After some time try to lift up and see it has nice crust. Then try to detach. Most of time it should work.
3) Make sure the pan is super hot when you sear the meat. If the pan is still cold AND your meat is cold, it takes forever to heat up/sear.
Hope that helps!
I picked up an Instant Pot back in October, and it’s basically all I use to cook now. That includes rice; I use Niko Niko and have no issues with equal parts thoroughly washed rice and water. Be sure to move the switch on the top to “sealed.” I accidentally left it venting while steaming rice once, and it seemed a little less done than I’d like. Also, your friend is definitely right about the rice sticking to the pot. You’re going to have a layer of rice on the inside, but it’s nothing hot water, soap and a little elbow grease can’t fix in five minutes. I’ve also cooked a few different pastas in the Instant Pot when adding them to dishes in progress, with mixed results.
I’m curious about the claim of “70% faster cooking” with the slow cooker function. Is that the Instant Pot on high vs. a slow cooker on low? I normally just follow the recipe for a normal slow cooker, using the low setting because it makes meat more tender. Is there something I should be doing differently? Being able to slow cook a dish in 30 minutes flat would be incredible!
Whoops! Somehow I completely missed the “pressure cooker function” in parentheses when comparing slow cookers and IP. That makes a lot more sense, but I sure feel silly now.
Hi DK! Thanks for writing! Thanks for confirming about rice being stuck in the pot. Japanese rice I buy is pretty expensive so I’ve been always discouraged to cook rice in IP. I don’t want any rice to go waste! Probably depending on the rice type, it may not stick? I’m not sure… but I like to cook rice in my rice cooker while cooking main dish in IP. 😀
So I make my rice in instant pot but I use the pot in pot method and I use the pot from my regular non stick rice pot and still use the rice button and comes out perfect every time and since my pot is non stick so rice will never stick! Give it a try!
Hi Ivy! Brilliant!!! Thanks for your tip! The only problem is if I make rice in my IP, I can’t make main dish in IP…. LOL.
Lol!!! True!!!!
Thanks for sharing your experiences and review about this Instant Pot. I can’t wait for mine which is coming in today from Amazon. And Love your recipes as well, they are all yummy ???? ????
Thanks again for everything girl!
Hi JoYcie! Yay! Congrats on your new IP! I hope you enjoy using your IP to cook delicious food! 🙂
After your review of the Instant Pot, I tried to order one and they were all sold out. (Everywhere!) Finally arrived today. Can’t wait until I try some of your recipes. Thank you. Love your site!
Hi Ellen! I’m so happy you got one! Hope you enjoy it as much as we do. I need to make more IP recipes. 🙂