Equipment Review - Instant Pot, 8 Quart IP-Luxe Model

I would like to preface this piece by repeating something I've said in the past. This blog has no corporate sponsorship. With the exception of a Ko-Fi account (cough, cough, ahem) the cost of this bad boy comes right out my pocket. Among other things, this means I can name brands that I use or don't use. As long as I'm not demonstrably lying or misrepresenting, I can heap praise or slag on anything I want.

So, I'm going to praise a trendy piece of equipment because it actually deserves it.

I give you the Instant Pot.

We picked this up at Walmart. It was a clearance item, and we got it for about $65. It has proven itself to worth every penny and then some.

It came out of the box with some assembly required, but not a whole lot. A small condensation receptacle needs to be put in place. Once you do that, it's a good idea to test its ability to handle pressure by running a short steam cycle in order to bring that pressure up, and then release it. Upon successful completion, you are ready to go.

In the box you'll find a user's manual with recipe book. There is also a guide describing in short details how much water and how much time it takes to cook beans, rice, various grains and some vegetables. Use them, they're full of good information.

The major components of the thing are the locking lid, the body of the Instant pot with grooves the locking lid meshes with in order to, as it were, lock. The third component is the insert, which you might think of as an eight quart stock pot with no handles that you can't put on the stove. Slides right in there.

There is also a rice spoon included, which I have not used once.

Finally, a trivet to place on the bottom of the insert. This is for making hard eggs or meat. You don't want those items directly contacting the bottom of the pot.

Much has been said about the hard boiled eggs that come out of this machine. It's true, they come out beautiful. Slip them into an ice bath when they come out of the heat and those shells will come off like tube socks on a hot day in August.

Likewise, it makes excellent rice. 1:1 ratio of water to rice, a little salt, tap the rice button, come back when the alarm goes off. Easy.

Yeah, I'm that old.

Now, I wouldn't suggest picking one up to make eggs and rice. Casseroles, soups and stews, the most tender roasts ever all can come out of this.

But where I get the most use out of it is stock. The word "unctuous" applies here. This thing makes the best chicken stock I have ever made.

Wanna know how I do it?

Let's revisit an oldie but a goodie, whadya say?

Remember this thing?

This is a chicken foot, and for my money it's the best cut for making stock you can buy. I get mine from an Asian supermarket.

Now, I live in the Twin Cities area, and those kinds of businesses are available to me. If you don't have one available, wings will do quite well, too. If you're operating at a really high level, you can get a whole chicken, break it down, and use the carcass. That will give you a fantastic stock. If you can get the feet, though, get them.

The recipe is quite simple.

One pound of chicken feet

Half a pound of coarsely chopped onion

Quarter pound each of coarsely chopped celery and carrot

Two teaspoons of black peppercorns

15 allspice berries, and yes, I really do count them out. It's a Mexican technique, by the way.

Three bay leaves

Three quarts of water.

The most recent time I made this, I added a couple Parmesan cheese rinds as well. Completely optional, but it does add a lovely umami flavor to your stock.

Well, I mean, one can lead to the other sometimes.

Put them all in the Instant Pot, fasten the lid, tap the stock button, and go find something to do for an hour. When it's done you'll have some of the level best stock you've seen yet.

Now, if you put the cheese rinds in the pot, you'll have some residue floating on top of your stock. Go ahead and skim that off. It's not bad for you, but it adds nothing of value to what you're doing.

You might be tempted to drink it. Go for it!

Pour your stock into six, two cup screw top containers, place them in an ice bath to quickly cool, then freeze. It'll keep for up to six months, but you'll be using it up well before that happens.

Now, there is all kinds of stuff you can do with the Instant Pot. Some models can make yogurt, and even wine. Definitely a versatile piece of technology.

So, to sum up, the 8 quart IP-Luxe model Instant Pot is well worth the price. Is it the end all, be all of  the cooking experience?

No.

Is this an indispensable piece of equipment without which you'll descend into a steady diet of TV dinners and boxes of mac and cheese?

Certainly not.

Can you probably get along without it?

Yes, but your cooking will be so much easier and better with it.

I recommend picking one up, in whatever size you like.

Available here, and I'm not collecting one plugged nickel to tell you that.

So, now that we have this gorgeous stock, what do we do with it?

My wife loves to make minestrone with it, and she makes a mighty good minestrone. You can also make some of the best chicken noodle soup ever with it.

Another of our options is to whip up that cornerstone of Grandma's cooking from time immemorial, gravy.

NO! WRONG! WE MAKE OUR OWN!
Also, see the top of this entry. That's what I'm talking about.

Which we'll make next time. It's definitely the good stuff.

So, let's bring this one to a close.

Is the Instant Pot worth the hype? Yes. Is it the only pressure cooker you should buy? No. There are many on the market with higher user ratings than this. Was it one of the best for-the-money purchases we'd made in the last year? Most definitely. We probably use it twice a week. If you can find one on the clearance rack, I heartily and full-throatedly suggest you snag it.

In the mean time, go in peace, make good food.