Instant Awesome!

This past Christmas, the Fire Marshall gave my husband and me an Instant Pot. No, not really. Yes, we got an Instant Pot but, no, it was not from the First Marshall. But that’s what I wrote on the gift tag.

Why?

Because I have a bad, bad habit of setting something to simmer or cook on the stove and then walking away. Stupid, stupid, stupid, I know. In 1989 I received deep 2nd and 3rd degree burns on my left arm because of this very act of neglect. You’d think I would have learned my lesson.

Well, I never did again heat oil in a wok and step away to see what David Letterman was laughing about on TV. I no longer have a wok and I no longer have a TV. Baby steps.

We now have an Instant Pot which is an electric pressure cooker. And I love it mostly for the safety features though there are many reasons to enjoy having an Instant Pot in your kitchen. These are the key benefits from the Instant Pot website:

1. Convenient: 12 turn-key function keys for the most common cooking tasks. Planning the meal with delayed cooking up to 24 hours, reducing cooking time by up to 70%.

2. Cooking healthy, nutritious and tasty meals: smart programming for delicious healthy food, consistent every time.

3. Clean & Pleasant: absolutely quiet, no steam, no smell, no spills, no excessive heat in the kitchen. 6-in-1 capability reduces clutter in the kitchen.

4. Energy efficient: saves up to 70% of energy.

5. Absolutely safe and dependable: Instant Pot is UL/ULC certified UL Logo Instant Pot and has 10 fool-proof safety protections.

Right now as I type this blog post, I have brown basmati rice cooking in the Instant Pot. I added water and rice, sealed the lid, set the cook time and walked away. No waiting for the water to boil. No watching the pot to make sure the rice doesn’t boil over. No checking the rice to make sure it doesn’t scorch on the bottom. I love it! When the Instant Pot is finished cooking the rice, it automatically dials down to the warming mode and keeps the rice warm until we’re ready to eat it. I can cook while out exercising. How awesome is that?

We have the Lux60 model and the only reason why I chose that one is because on Amazon that was the lowest priced used Instant Pot that I could find. I decided to give the Instant Pot a try since I heard so many great things about it from friends and nutritionists, but I didn’t want to invest too much money in case I didn’t like it. (I’m wary of anything that might keep me in the kitchen.) So I opted for a used version and we lucked out. Upon opening the box, clearly this Instant Pot had never been used. Maybe it was returned or refurbished, I don’t know, but for $67 it was a steal. I can’t guarantee that this will be your result buying a used model, but it’s worth investigating.

Now that I have an Instant Pot, I would have gladly paid the full price. It’s worth every penny that keeps me out of the kitchen, keeps me and my family safe, and provides well-cooked, nutritious food for us.

The Veggie Queen website offers ample low fat, whole food, plant-based vegan recipes specifically for the Instant Pot which is a wonderful resource!

The Veggie Queen, aka Jill Nussinow, is also the author of Vegan Under Pressure, a new cook book.

Let me know in the comment section below if you have any questions about the Instant Pot, what you love most about yours if you have one, or if you decide to get one. It truly is a revolutionary kitchen appliance!