Welcome to Instant Pot week here on A Solitary Feast. This week is dedicated to everyone who got an Instant Pot for Christmas and aren’t sure what to do with it or, maybe, even a little afraid to use it. My mom was convinced I was going to blow up my apartment when I got mine 5 years ago. The good news is I have made 100’s of meals in my pot and I have never blown up anything.
This week is going to be all about recipes and resources I love and use when I cook with my instant Pot. First up, is the hands down, best pressure cooking resource for beginners or experienced people using the pressure cooker. The blog is called Hip Pressure Cooking. It has reviews for different brands of pressure cookers, lessons on how to cook with pressure cookers, community forums and tons of recipes. But the best, most useful thing on the site full of useful things is the detailed cooking time charts for just about every food imaginable. If you ever wonder how long to cook something, if you should cook on low or high pressure, or what kind of pressure release you should use these charts will give you the answer to those questions and more. I printed these charts out and keep them in a binder on my cookbook shelves because they are so useful.
One of the most common complaints I hear about pressure cooking is that by the time you bring the pot to pressure, actually cook the food and release the pressure you haven’t really saved anytime and might as well cook it on the stove. In some cases that is true, the recipe would get done faster on the stove. In these instances, the way the pressure cooker shines is in its ability to be totally hands off once the food is in the pot. I don’t have to watch it at all. I can go get ready for work, watch tv, do laundry or whatever. When the food is done cooking it will flip to the keep warm setting and be hot and ready to eat when I am ready to eat. I love tossing my oat meal in the pressure cooker, getting ready of my day and then sitting down to my hot breakfast with no effort on my part.
1 1/2 TBS butter
1/2 cup steel cut oats
1 cup plus 2 TBS water
1/8 tsp salt
Preheat heat the pot on the saute function. When hot, melt the butter. Add the oats and stir until toasted, about 3 minutes. Add the water and salt. Lock the lid and set the timer for 4 minutes. When the oats are done cooking, turn off the instant pot and let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes. Quick release any remaining pressure. Serve with whatever toppings you like. I personally like milk, brown sugar and 1/2 tsp apple spice.
A Cuppa And Conversation 