Ivy Manning - Instant Pot Family Meals 60+ Fast, Flavorful Meals for the Dinner Table.

K id-O's Pasta & Tu rkey Me atballs (pa ge 41)

ALEXIS MERSEL

F

AMIL Y MEALS

INSTA NT P OT

PHOTOGRAPHY BY

ERIN SCOTT

C ONTENTS

introduction

Cooking with the Instant Pot Tips f or Instant Pot Suc cess

Poultry

Beef Pork Seafood Veg etarian

Basics

index

T urkey Le ttuce Wr aps with Hoisin- Peanut Sauce (page 22)

V eggie F ried Rice with Ca shews (page 1 14)

A boon for busy f amilies, the Instant Po t burst onto the c ooking scene i n 2009, and theres eve ry indication it has serious stay ing pow er . The multifac eted co untertop kitchen appliance is lov ed b y hundr eds of thousands of f amilies who use it to transfo rm economical cuts of meat into melt-in-yo ur-mouth perfection; cre ate one-pot pasta dishes on busy we eknights; cook nourishing soups; and pre pare healthy staples like homemade stocks, c ooked b eans, and tender whole gra ins to hav e on hand f or future meals. And the Instant Pot s fle xible f unctionality means yo u can retir e yo ur pressur e cooker , slow co oker , rice cook er , and yogur t makerfr eeing up a lot of c ounterto p real estate, and streamlini ng your cooking, in the pro cess.

The Instant Pot can sear , saut, st eam, and pre ssure c ook all in one pot, and in hours less than it wo uld take t o cook on th e stov e top or in the ov en, so its a huge as set for frazzled par ents challenged t o get dinner on the table. Cr owd-p leasing recipes lik e tender beef tips and whipped potato es (page 53) cook in just 10 minutes, com forting chicken potpie (page 21) in 10 minut es, and cre amy risotto ( pages 91 and 115) in just 8 minuteswithout c onstant stir ring.

Arguably best in the Instant Pot are large chunks of meat lik e pork shoulder and beef chuck roast , which cook up ev ery bit as deliciously as in a slow c ooker but hours and hours faste r. There are also loads of sleeper hits tha t utilize the pot s special a ttributes to cook perf ectlythink juicy , Cheddar-stuffed turk ey bu rgers (page 27 ), spaghetti carbonara (page 7 5), and br occoli -Cheddar bagel stra ta (page 109), to name a fe w.

Soups, such as chicken tac o (page 39) and scallop cho wder (page 95), become intensely delicious when co oked under pr essure . And quicke r than yo ur kids can ask Whats f or dinner? the Instant Pot can c ook a complet e mealpro tein, ve getable, and starcha ll at once, using the laye ring method (aka pot-in-pot cooking, see page 17). Did we mention tha t the Instant Pot can k eep food safely warm, so ev eryo ne in the clan can enjoy a healthy , hot meal, no matter when the y get home ? Y e s, the Instant Pot really is indispensable!

With the follo wing r ecipes and some kno wledge of the applianc es ba sic functions, Instant Pot-ing will beco me your favor ite kitchen t echnique. So let s get c ooking!

INTRODUCTION

COOKING WITH THE INST ANT PO T

The reci pes in this book wer e dev eloped wi th the 6-quart (6-L) Instant Pot models in mind and use the Saut and Manual/Pre ssure Coo k functions most often, but the other functions ar e helpful fo r a wide range of kit chen tasks. Here s ho w they work.

Saut: This function allo ws yo u to sear meats, simmer liquids, and reduc e sauces in the same way yo u would in a saut pan on the st ove t op. It has three modes: Lo w (Less on some models) is ideal for gently simmering, Medium (Normal on some models) is best for simmering and sauting, and High (More on some models ) can be used for searing and bro wning. T he timer on this function is automatically set fo r 30 minutes, but in the r are case when yo u might need it on for longer , just press the S aut button again after it shuts off and continue cookin g. Nev er put t he locking lid on the appliance while using this function.

Pressure Cook: There are tw o lev els f or press ure cookingHigh and Lo w. Most recipes call for the High setting, but pay att ention to whe n a recipe indicates using the Lo w setting (usually f or more delicate foods lik e pasta or veg etables). Pr ess the Pressur e Lev el k ey or Adjust k ey (d epending on your model) to adjust the pr essure leve ls, and the +/- buttons to change the cooking time. (The Lux 6-in- 1 V3 mode l does not hav e a low-pre ssure sett ing.)

Pressure Release V al ve: Recipes in this book specify either a natura l release or quick -rele ase of steam. Natur al re lease means that after the cooking cyc le is done, yo u leave the pressu re va lve turned to Sealing and the pre ssure slo wly re leases on its own. T his helps ke ep beans intact and slowly r elaxe s meat fibers in ro asts, allow ing juices to redi stribute. Its also use d with soup recipes and other dishes containing a lot of liquid, fa t, or foam where there will be lots of s team re leasing and more pot ential for hot liquid sputt ering out of the valv e. Natu ral re lease can take an ywhere from a few min utes to half an hour , depending on the quantity of food and liquid in the pot.

Quick-re lease is best for quick -cooking cuts of meat and vegeta bles. T o quick-re lease the steam, use a long-handled spoon to care fully mov e the Pr essure Release handle on the lid to V en ting (or press the valve button dow n on Ultra models ). Be care ful, as the steam will be v ery hot, and steam burns r eally hurt! Once the st eam has sto pped and the silve r pin in the lid (the float va lve) has dropped, unlock and lift the lid aw ay fr om yo u to pre vent the steam or condensation fro m injuring yo u.

In some recipes, both r elease methods ar e used b y letting the steam r elease natur ally fo r 10 minutes or so, follo wed by a quick -rele ase. This is f actore d into the cook ing time, so be sure to follo w the instructions acc ordingl y.

COOKING W ITH THE INST ANT POT

The Instant Po t is av ailable in dif fere nt models a nd size s, with slightly var ying attribute s, but all accomplish th e same basic function s. Once you are ac custome d to cooking with it, the specialize d functi ons will beco me intuitiv e. As with most new applia nces, th e best way to mast er the In stant Pot is simply to use it.

Pork Ve rde & P into Bea n To stadas (page 6 7)