Instant Pots are fairly complex pieces of equipment, and they have the potential to both cause injury and damage your kitchen - especially if they are not operated or maintained properly.
"There have been a handful of cases where, due to user error or a faulty appliance, pressure cookers have been the cause of unfortunate kitchen accidents. It's a rare occurrence though. With proper caution and care, you will most likely never have your Instant Pot or other pressure cooker blow up during use."
By using the whole chicken, my aunt maximizes the flavor of the broth while also cooking the meat that serves as the dish's protein, rather than the sliced beef, tripe, and meatballs found in aromatic beef phở recipes. Her homemade phở broth is truly a labor of love. It's rich and aromatic, full of flavor, and umami rendered from the whole chicken as it cooks. The bones give the broth depth of flavor, while the fats, cartilage, and meat bring richness.
In under 30 minutes, this one-pot meal hits all the key food groups - protein, veggie, and starch - for a satisfying, wholesome dinner. Baby bok choy and frozen edamame take next-to-no time to prep before they're layered into the Instant Pot with white rice and a few umami boosters, like toasted sesame oil and mirin. If baby bok choy isn't readily available where you are, sliced cabbage, spinach, or really any dark leafy green will work just as well.
If you want a meal that brings huge flavor with hardly any effort, these Instant Pot Beef Brisket Tacos absolutely deliver. As the weather cools and schedules get busier, having a recipe that practically cooks itself feels like a lifesaver. The Instant Pot turns brisket into tender, juicy strands in a fraction of the time it would take in the oven or slow cooker. Even better, the result tastes like it simmered all day.
It can take hours to cook ribs low and slow enough to achieve tenderness that makes the meat just fall off the bone. If you try to hurry the process, you might end up with undercooked ribs. In that scenario, a structural protein in the ribs called collagen would not get hot enough to dissolve, resulting in tough and gristly meat.
The minute cold weather creeps in, you'll find us tending stewpots, mountains of soup recipes on deck each week. But we consider soup an all-seasons food, and the recipes below reflect just that. Whether that soup (or stew) is done in 30 minutes for an easy weeknight dinner or it needs an hours-long simmer, there's nothing like the homey comfort of savoring a hearty bowl.
There are plenty of moments in life when you need a simple meal to put on the table. Sure, we, too, enjoy dishes that are a multi-step process, involving a myriad of ingredients and hours in the kitchen - chopping, stirring, and constant monitoring or else something gets burned or messed up beyond repair. But it's not something that makes sense on a daily basis. That's why we love a convenient meal that doesn't sacrifice taste.
However, you'll be happy to know that most Instant Pot models are designed so the lid stays upright in the side handle. After you release pressure and twist the lid off, just tip it slightly so condensation runs back into the liner, then slide the rim of the lid into the slot/groove on the cooker's side handle. It will sit there vertically, stable, out of the way, and dripping back into the pot instead of across your counter.
The Instant Pot is great for making quick work of tough cuts of meat ( transform steak into a flavorful London broil, perhaps?), soups, or stews that would have otherwise taken hours of slow and steady simmering. However, if you've ever tried to make a creamy sauce or a cheesy soup in an Instant Pot, you may have encountered some textural trouble. Dairy and high-pressure cooking just do not mix well. Without the right touch, the hope of a velvety chowder or a decadent mac and cheese can quickly turn into a pot of split, grainy disappointment.