Dinner in an Instant: First Attempts with an Instant Pot

With school back in full swing, fast and simple supper ideas are what’s on my mind. Several friends have told me that I didn’t know what I was missing by not owning an Instant Pot, so I gave in and bought one (Thank You hubby!) Luckily for me, Amazon’s Prime Day just rolled around and I managed to snag an Instant Pot Ultra they had marked down.

The next step was to look over recipes and decide what would really fit for my family and also to decipher what could and couldn’t be made in the instant pot. 

You know what I found out? Most things can be cooked in this handy dandy little gadget. I was still at somewhat of a crossroads on what to make. So I went to my friends and asked them. Some of the many responses were:

• Roast
• Baked Potatoes
• Ribs
• Orange Chicken
• Hardboiled Eggs
• Salsa/Mexican Chicken
• Pork Chops

With so many good ideas offered up, I made a list and went grocery shopping. 

Here are the results of my first round of instant pot cooking:

Chicken & Rice

One of the most suggested dishes, when I asked friends for ideas, was Chicken and Rice. And I have to say, this one did not disappoint.  I searched far and wide for a recipe that would sit well with both my husband’s and my own palate. The winner of the search was the creamy dish at Such the Spot. But be forewarned, this recipe is heavy on the mushrooms. 

Corn on the Cob

Being from a county in Kentucky where corn is a major farming crop, I knew I needed to attempt Corn on the Cob in the instant pot. And for the recipe, I knew I didn’t want to look anywhere else than my favorite site for an easy all-in-one meal. I hopped over to Recipes That Crock and found exactly what I was looking for. 

The site even has an awesome little video to watch that will take you through the steps. So get that corn ready and with just 5 minutes of pressure cooking, you have perfectly cooked corn on the cob. 

Whole Chicken

Admittedly this was an idea my husband brought up. After recently cleaning and reorganizing our deep freezer, we had a whole chicken that needed to be cooked as it’s freezer life was coming to an end. So I did some browsing across different sites and found an easy to follow dish at The Typical Mom. One of the things that made this dish stand out above the rest, instead of using the metal trivet that came with the instant pot, it suggested using potatoes to rest the chicken on. So not only did I have a deliciously cooked whole chicken in no time, but I also had some super scrumptious potatoes as a side dish.

Pasta with Marinara Sauce

Something that I have to admit I was intrigued to try was pasta with marinara sauce. I am a carb lover at heart and am always looking for new ways to prepare it. I stumbled across this recipe at The Cent’s Able Shoppin. With just 5 ingredients that most people keep in their pantry, this dish was done in no time. I will definitely be putting this super-simple and easy-to-clean-up meal on the family’s dinner rotation for the school year. 

Other Recipes I Plan To Try

So after just one week with my instant pot, I already have a list of recipes that have worked out phenomenally and an even longer list of recipes that I want to give a try. 

Here are the next few dishes making their appearance in my instant pot: 

Cheeseburger Macaroni from Margin Making Mom

BBQ Pork Ribs by Well Plated

Corned Beef & Cabbage on Family Fresh Meals

Pork Tenderloin found at Savory Tooth

Beef Stew located at The Salty Marshmallow

Baked Apples penned by Simply Happy Foodie

Chocolate Lava Cake by Neena at Paint The Kitchen Red

I am admittedly thankful that I finally took the plunge into pressure cooking. It has helped to put food on the table in a fraction of the time and without making my kitchen feel like there is a five-alarm fire going on. The Instant pot has truly been a win-win for our family. 

I hope you have the opportunity to try some of these recipes out if you have purchased an electric pressure cooker. Are there any recipes that you think I should try? And if you perhaps haven’t purchased one yet, maybe you’ll give it a go at helping to alleviate some of the dinner time woes in your house.