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Instant Pot

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"Instant Pot" - It has become a household name and per survey, 1 in 3 houses in North America have an Instant Pot in their kitchens.

Robert Wang along with his colleagues from Nortel, Canada designed Instant Pot in 2009. Since it was introduced in the market, varied models have been released and it combines multiple functions of pressure cooker, slow cooker, yogurt maker, steamer, food warmer, saute pan into one appliance, making it versatile. Few models include options for baking, air frying, sous vide. 

Though I came across this appliance when I was in the US, I didn't really find the necessity to buy one. I use pressure cookers and rice cooker for my cooking needs. Recently, I wanted to upgrade to a 5litres pressure cooker and then thought why not give Instant Pot a try, to check if it is worth all the hype.

During last week's black friday sale, I found Instant Pot Duo Gourmet (6 quart) at Costco for a special price of $79.99 (Canadian Dollars) + tax. It seemed to be a good deal since it is a Costco exclusive model - so, I can be rest assured of its quality. This model has a detachable power cord (which isn't the case with other models). I can put the cord inside when not it use. 

Few models I checked comes with one or 2 of the below accessories, but Duo Gourmet has all of them.

  • Additional silicone ring
  • Rice paddle
  • Soup spoon
  • Mini mitts
  • Measuring cup
  • Steam rack
It has the following functions available. 

  • Pressure Cooking:
    • Pressure Cook
    • Soup/Broth
    • Meat
    • Stew
    • Sterilize
    • Rice
    • Brown Rice
    • Oatmeal
    • Bean
    • Chili
  • Non-Pressure Cooking:
    • Slow Cook
    • Sauté
    • Yogurt
    • Sous Vide
    • Keep Warm
 




It's been couple of days since I started using the appliance and have tried sauté, pressure cook, brown rice options to prepare dalia sweet pongal and brown rice, so far. 

Cooking process isn't instant as the name sounds. When compared to cooking in pressure cooker and rice cooker, the cooking time is reduced by half. But we have to consider the time taken for pressure build up and pressure release before and after cooking, respectively. Also, I had to try different rice-water ratio, cooking modes and time to cook, to achieve the desired texture of brown rice. But cooking with instant pot is hassle free. Otherwise I had to keep count of whistles, clean spills on the kitchen counter. Not to mention, sweet pongal turned out to be delicious, sealing in the aroma intact 😊

I am definitely not going to return my instant pot and shall publish my review after trying different dishes in it. Until then happy cooking everyone of you!!!

You are welcome to share your experiences with Instant Pot, in comments section or over an email.

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Comments

  1. suryaDecember 2, 2021 at 9:56 AM

    Great, sounds cool, it must be handy as we can prepare various dishes using it, heard air frying feature is top-notch in these appliances with that, can fry food with much less oil, must be healthier option 👍😀

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ManuDecember 2, 2021 at 10:42 AM

      Yeah.... U can enjoy fried items guilt free 😁

      Delete

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