Considering buying an "Insta-Pot", are they any good?

[thomasortega]

Ok, I'm sold...

The Two electric PCs I have are NOT instant pot... one is Aroma, the other is whatever Brand I don't remember. Darryl bought it and had it forgotten for years in his garage until a day that I freaked out because the PC was too small and DEMANDED he brought that PC "right now".

They're great, but the brain sucks for both of them. I simply end up setting it to maximum time, maximum pressure, whatever, and using a kitchen timer.

A Wifi one sound VERY interesting to me (specially if it's Alexa enabled) Who cares. I want it now (but not before I buy a second robot vacuum cleaner)

 

[cuffs054]

QVC has a sale going on the 6 qt. latest model.

 

[vacerator]

I bought one,

a few years back. It took way longer than the recipe book guide said it should to cook, so I called the Nu Wave 800 number help line. Bahvdeep told me I had to wait ten full minutes for pressure to build up. Di-di-dah, followed by Twighlight Zone music. When I washed it up, the tiny nylon gasket that fixes to the underside of the lid came off, and got ground up in the disposer. The next time I tried using it, no pressure. Book said not to return to store. I did. Waste of time, and moula.

 

[dometicsavant]

Pressure cooker-

I personally own and recommend the Mealthy multipot which is a 6 or 8 qt electric pressure cooker. They have AMAZING customer service (often emails are answered within 15 minutes). Not only that but their 6qt model is less than $95 and comes with comparable features as the $130+ instantpots. They actually JUST came out with this amazing lid that allows you to broil, bake and airfry right in your electric pressure cooker. Think about chickens, meatloafs, potatoes and pressure cooked lasagnas- instead of having to move it to your oven to brown up you can do it all in one pot! Less mess and energy use. I actually bought my 6qt Mealthy multipot pot on eBay and paid less than $50 because there was a slight dent in the side. Never affected functionality. You can join their Facebook group even if you have another brand pressure cooker- great community to share tips, tricks and recipes.

 

[sudsmaster]

I'm a little confused here. Insta Pots are not, AFAIKF, sold by NuWave. Also, the lid gasket on mine is fairly large and it would never fit into the disposer without a lot of pushing an shoving.

But yeah, allow about 10 min for warm up until pressure cooking starts. This is why I don't use a PC for cooking vegetables that can more easily be steamed or stir fried (or both) on a range top.

 

[chachp]

Waiting ten minutes.....

 

<span style="font-family: verdana, geneva;">This is the main reason I don't use mine more.  Seems some things can be cooked on the stove in the time it takes for them to come up to pressure and then cook in the PC.  For me, I think the other thing is we never had one growing up.  I don't know why my Mom didn't use one as I never asked her.  I suspect her Mom never used one either and she probably learned to cook not using one as I did.</span>

 

[iheartmaytag]

I bought mine on QVC after Christmas blow out

I got the 8qt model and the optional stainless Steel insert. 

 

Mine doesn't start counting down the cooking time until it reaches pressure.  So if I set it for 30 minutes cooking, it cooks for 30 minutes under pressure.  Then you make the decision based on the item inside if you let it naturally come back down, or vent the pressure. 

 

Neither of these aspects bother me that much when I am using the "set and forget" delay and keep warm function.   The pot is programmed to start the cycle a few minutes early so that it actually starts cooking at the programmed time, and the keep warm function allows for natural release of pressure, hence it is ready to open and serve when I need it.

 

Large items, like  roast, usually benefits from the natural release, whereas items like vegetables will benefit from a quick release, venting.

 

My seal is inside a wire spider that snaps to the lid.  It's approximately 3/4 of an inch thick silicon, and holds it's shape very well in the sink, even removed from the spider while washing.  It would never go down the disposal unless forced through the hole.

 

 

 

[vacerator]

Rich,

I meant the tiny gasket below the pressure relief valve on the lid, not the main lid gasket.

 

[sudsmaster]

tiny gasket below the pressure relief valve on the lid

Oh, yeah. You gotta be careful with that. When I took mine apart I plugged the sink drain to prevent it from getting lost.

I would imagine a call to the Instapot folks would scare up a replacement. Maybe even free.

 

[perc-o-prince]

Rich got me one for Christmas 2 years ago. I've used it instead of my slow cooker and so far so good. I PC'd ribs before bbq-ing, and very good as well. Threw a frozen corned beef in it and it cooked fork tender in about an hour. I'll get to using it more and more, but for the corned beef alone it's worth it. I always have several (5 currently) in the freezer so I can make a dinner then a big batch of hash for breakfasts!

Chuck

 

[appnut]

When I got home from the grocery store yesterday morning, I noticed a box on my front porch.  I wasn't expecting anything.  I opened up the box and someone very special  to me (a fellow member) had sent me an Instant Pot 10-in-1 Ultra 60.  I was overwhelmed and called him immediately to thank him for his generosity.  Today I'm going to make some brown rice to go complete my red beans & rice for lunch.  Yesterday I also got a 2 pound boneless chuck shoulder roast I will cook today too.  

 

[thomasortega]

How lovely, Appnut!

Please tell this fellow member that if he or she wants my address, i can post it here.

Wi-fi version for me s'il vous plait.