If you’re wondering how to use an Instant Pot I have some easy Instructions for you! If you’ve never used a pressure cooker and you’re wondering what all those buttons mean I’m here to help plus 101+ easy Instant Pot recipes to try. Show
I am a food blogger and I will admit that when I got my Instant Pot I left it in the box for a few months not knowing how to use an Instant Pot or pressure cooker. My husband wondered why and I kept saying ok I got my Instant Pot, now what do I do with it?? Now 2 years later I have tons of Instant Pot recipes you can try. (originally published 9/17, affiliate links present) How do you use the Instant Pot step by stepI am pretty experimental for the most part but this “fancy” appliance was a little like a space ship to me. Pressurizing, naturally releasing the steam, and how long to cook everything were totally foreign to me. If you are a bit confused I will show you what each button means. I have even added how to use a Ninja foodi that includes an air fryer function since then for your convenience. Let’s start with a few basic tips:
For reference, this is the pressure cooker I have and use for all recipe creations. How to Use an Instant Pot for BeginnersMy mom didn’t have anything even remotely like this when I was a kid so I was at a loss but still determined to give this thing a whirl. It had to be amazing because people who used them raved about how incredible they were. I’M NOW A TOTAL BELIEVER!! Well, I started with the most simplest of ideas and recipes and went from there. These are the two I made at the beginning!
Instant Pot InstructionsI explain briefly where the buttons are and how to adjust the time and heat levels here. I figured these had to be somewhat simple. If they didn’t work I could just add a bit more time and tinker with it until it finally worked. I had made a one pot spaghetti easy pasta dish so I gauged the timing on that. Surprisingly it worked the first time around! It is now the only way I cook spaghetti because it turns out great, in just 10 minutes! Plus there’s only one pot to wash. How to use an Instant Pot videoWhen learning how to use an Instant Pot I would stick with these 3 buttons (saute, manual, pressure)…..I use them 90% of the time. (manual button now only exists on the oldest versions) This is my Instant Pot. I bought the 6 qt. version because I figured it was plenty big for the 5 of us and I was right, if you have an 8 qt. these instructions remain the same.
Saute is great if you want to precook something like the ground beef in my spaghetti recipe above, and manual pressure buttons allow you to adjust from low to high pressure yourself and adjust the time you need. How to Use My Instant PotBasic (first generation) model instructions are:
When you want to set the amount of time you press your finger on the + or – buttons as you see and move the minutes up and down until you get it to the correct amount of minutes you need for that recipe. Then this is how long does Instant Pot take to preheat answered so you can time appropriately. How to use an Instant Pot IP-LUX model
How to use an Instant Pot Ultra model
Press start to begin pressurizing and cooking food. How to use a Instant Pot
Follow the recipe instructions regarding whether it’s high or low pressure. When you push pressure (or manual then pressure on my older version it will go to low, press pressure button again to make it flip to high)
Carefully open your lid when pressure is gone and face lid away from you so steam doesn’t hit you in the face. Instant pot float valve not going downIf the metal piece is still at the top after the steam is all gone just move the lid side to side and it will fall down, it’s jut kinda’ stuck. Here are the Instant Pot accessories that make my life easier:
6″ springform pan – Allows you to bake cakes and other desserts when you do the pot in pot (PIP method) Troubleshooting Instant PotHere are a few things that you might have issues with and how to fix them;
As it’s building pressure the float valve will rise up and eventually reach the top which means the sealing position has been reached the time on the clock on the front will now start to count down. (it takes approximately 5 – 15 minutes to reach pressure) The burn notification comes on – sometimes this means nothing, sometimes something may be burning, and other times you need to deglaze your pot (link below).
The slow cook function doesn’t work – Let me tell you now, never use this as a slow cooker because it doesn’t work well at all for that. Instead just stick to your good old fashioned Crock for those recipes. Last but not lease check your power cord if it doesn’t seem to be turning on. Yes it may be plugged in but the end situated into the back of your machine may not be pushed in hard enough to get it going. Check both ends until your control panel lights up and she’s ready to cook again. How do you use an Instant Pot for BeginnersTips to remember:
Do not be alarmed if you’re cooking a large piece of meat like our Instant Pot frozen roast and it takes upwards of 30 minutes to start the cooking process. Sometimes this happens if there is a lot of food inside. What does Quick Release Mean
Here’s how to clean your Instant Pot which will be helpful if you use it daily like I do. Using these basic Instant Pot cooking times for meat and Instant Pot cooking times for beans you can see how long it will take for the major item(s) in your dish and go from there. This is what I used to make the most amazing no soak Instant Pot baked beans! The basic timing for a purely pasta dish in my opinion is manual, pressure, high for 3 minutes like you do in my Instant Pot macaroni and cheese. It makes it not too al dente and not mushy either. Those three basic cooking time schedules are really all you need to try any type of dish you want. Want to see a few of my favorite things that I am totally obsessed with?? Take a peek and see how many you might already have…twinsies! Looking for more easy family recipes and tips? LIKE The Typical Mom Facebook page? Then sign up for my free newsletter, and follow me on Pinterest! 😉 ***** If you LOVED this recipe give it 5 Stars below and let everyone know what you thought about it. 😉 How do you use an Instant Pot for beginners?SMART PROGRAM PRESSURE COOKING. Start the Instant Pot. ... . Add ingredients and liquids to the inner pot. ... . Secure and lock the lid. ... . Select one of the Smart Program buttons. ... . Preheating & pressurizing stage begins followed by cooking under pressure as per program settings.. How do I set my Instant Pot to Pressure Cook?Instant Pot MANUAL SETTING (Pressure Cook Button). Turn the Instant Pot on. ... . Select Pressure Cook button (Manual on older models). ... . Use the +/- keys to change the cooking time in each mode. ... . Use Pressure Level button to adjust the pressure level; press it to toggle between High and Low.. How do I know if my Instant Pot is coming to pressure?You'll know that the pot is pressurized when the floating valve in the lid pops up. Shortly after that happens, the count-down for your cooking cycle will begin.
How do I start my Instant Pot duo?How do you set an Instant Pot Duo to start? The easiest way is to plug it in and use the manual button to set the time for whatever food you're cooking. There is no start button. Once you set the time for the desired number of minutes, the Instant Pot will start by itself.
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