Review - Instant Pot...DON'T...

...WAIT! (Gotcha HappyTeach!)

If you're on the fence, go ahead and take the plunge. 

Mine came last week, but I waited until yesterday to try it out. The first thing I made was yogurt because the yogurt function is what sold me on the Instant Pot 7 in 1 model. I made the yogurt from start to finish in the IP. I made an entire gallon of NF milk and used 1 cup of 0% Fage as a starter. I set the IP for 9 hours as suggested by OH friend Shel25. FANTASTIC flavor and texture. Not too tart and creeeeeeeamy! I added a bit of vanilla extract and sweetener at the end (after straining for a few hours) and I've got to say I really like it. I will save a bundle on yogurt - enough so that my savings will pay for the IP in about 2 months! 

Tonight I adapted a Coconut Chicken Curry recipe I got from HappyTeacher. Prep time - 10 to 15 minutes; saute time - 7 minutes; Pressure cook time (including pre heat) 13 minutes. I was amazed by how quickly the IP came up to saute heat - FAST! While the IP was doing its thing I cleaned up all the prep and my kitchen was clean before the food was finished cooking. 

 The finished dish - My partner referred to the curry as exquisite. Who can argue with that? Especially since we're a couple of foodies (translate food snobs! lol).

I'm sold and looking forward to cooking a corned beef in the IP come St. Patrick's Day! I hate doing Corned Beef because it takes so damn long to get it tender. The IP is going to be a God send that day! 

Amazon has a few used (returned) IPs at very good prices ($85 - $90). I bought a "Used - Like New" for $90. Absolutely like new. The box was damaged. That's it. Still even had internal wrapping. Here's a link to the warehouse deals: Instant Pot Amazon Warehouse Deals

If you want a brand new one go here: new Instant Pot on Amazon

WAIT! You got me (and made me laugh)!  

I started to experiment using less starter after reading this site.  One gallon of 2% milk only needed 1 tablespoon of starter to get great results.  I was able to take the rest of the Fage starter I had and freeze little blobs in 1 tablespoon measures to have them ready for next time.

I may be a tad obsessed at this point.... I used 2 gallons of milk this weekend to make yogurt :)  We should have enough yogurt for a week and a half!

:)

I don't eat yogurt anymore as I just don't find it filling, but my Fiance does like it so I should bite the bullet and try it.

Last night was an IP dinner. Chicken and Ribs. Steamed green beans in the leftover cooking liquid while the meat went into the oven to finish. and grain/sugarfree cheesecake (prepped the day before) for dessert.

LOVE instant pot!

Ooooooh, I hadn't thought of checking Warehouse Deals! That might just be the final straw, so to speak ;)

  You crack me up Devon. Of course, I totally fell for it AND my Internet speed tonight is snail slow so it took foreeeeeevvvvvveeerr to get the post to open. I am happy to read that you are finding it to be useful. I completely agree with you about the money saved just with the yogurt making feature will pay for it after a short period. 

I just read on the FB group that you can use less starter. I had been using a lot- 1 cup. Yesterday I cut it down to a couple of good sized spoonfuls with terrific results. I can actually eat it without straining (too tired last night to strain) and I am not normally an American style yogurt eater anymore. The more starter and the longer the ferment time the tarter the product. My batch today was for sure milder than what I have been kicking out. 

I was also surprised to see you started with the curry chicken! You are adventurous a bit! Glad your main squeeze enjoyed it too! If you think you like your pot now give it a couple of weeks... you will LOVE it the more you get used to it! Mine doesn't get much of a break on the weekends, as I use it multiple times a day. During the week at least a few nights as well. Hubby made a cutting board that fits on top of my stove so I can put the pot there- I rarely use the stove anymore. 

Have fun!