
How the Instant Pot cooker developed a cult following - scriptstar
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-39058736
======
shostack
Have had one since Black Friday.

I feel generally competent in the kitchen to the point where assembling a nice
meal (dare I say gourmet?) from scratch without a recipe is relatively easy
for me.

That said, I've found the Instant Pot to have a steep learning curve.

For starters, you can't easily check on the food while it cooks, so if you are
experimenting with large batch sizes and timing you are kind of gambling and
have to wait till it is done (sometimes an hour) to see if you ruined
something.

It is hard to find consistent info on how long to cook certain things, and it
is easy to overcook things into mush.

And for anyone citing cooking time of a couple minutes... That's just
misleading. Most recipes quote how many minutes to set it for. They do not
tell you it takes upwards of 15 minutes to come up to pressure in some cases,
and depending on the release instructions, some things can take another 20-30
minutes to release pressure if it is a large volume of liquid.

That said, it makes amazing steel cut oatmeal and we've had a couple other
successes.

I'd love more recipes that were purely easy quick prep, toss it all in, no
extra cooking steps (like finishing in the oven), and good for making easily
freezable and quick to reheat one pot meals. Many recipes I've found are
overly involved to the point where the IP seems unnecessary.

I desperately want to use it more, but so many recipes fail to meet the above
criteria. Hopefully that improves. Maybe my expectations are just too high?

~~~
chrissnell
The secret to the Instant Pot, I've found, is using it for things it does
well. Beans and bean-based dishes are a home run every time. Chicken broth and
beef bone broth are great, too. Slow cooker favorites like pot roast and
pulled pork? Not so much, in my opinion. These dishes need more time to break
down the collagen slowly without destroying the meat and veggies. I much
prefer them in the slow cooker. Oatmeal is great but I can make it faster and
better on the stovetop.

I've been working on adapting family favorite recipes to the IP. My favorites
so far:

My Cajun mother-in-law's real deal red beans and rice recipe:
[https://gist.github.com/chrissnell/2ee0a820b7ba7c25a12d1b253...](https://gist.github.com/chrissnell/2ee0a820b7ba7c25a12d1b253d1aaf48)

My grandmother's refried beans from her regionally famous 1960s-era Tex-Mex
cookbook:
[https://gist.github.com/chrissnell/c87a98b7ee3239065737eaf14...](https://gist.github.com/chrissnell/c87a98b7ee3239065737eaf14657db71)

~~~
bryanlarsen
According to seriouseats, the only thing a slow cooker is best at is keeping
food warm, carmelized onions and bread pudding.
[http://www.seriouseats.com/2016/10/why-pressure-cookers-
are-...](http://www.seriouseats.com/2016/10/why-pressure-cookers-are-better-
than-slow-cookers.html)

I certainly getter results doing pot roast & pulled pork in a pressure cooker
than a slow cooker.

~~~
kpil
The main problem with slow cookers are that the liquid is not reduced properly
which have to be done as a separate step using an ordinary sauce pan.

If you do a 7-hour lamb in a pot in an oven, you have the opposite problem, as
it's a bit warmer, and might have to glue together the lid with dough. I think
the taste will be better though, as I think there is more caramelisation going
on at higher temperatures.

------
AlexB138
This is pretty funny for me to read. As the article mentions many people
apparently did, I picked up an Instant Pot on Prime Day last year. I had no
idea there was such a following around it until reading this, I just wanted a
pressure cooker.

I received it, and stuck it in my closet expecting to pull it out when I
needed to pressure cook something. My wife discovered it pretty soon after and
began using it for several tasks I didn't even realize it was capable of. She
absolutely loves the thing, to the point I was joking with her about it. It's
funny to me to see that our experience is far from unique.

~~~
koolba
What's an example of a task you didn't think it was capable of?

~~~
pbnjay
Hard boiled eggs are a lot easier - you barely even have to think about it.

~~~
miguelrochefort
And the pressure makes them very easy to peel.

~~~
finnh
Really? Now I'm wishing I hadn't given away our unused pressure cooker in our
most recent housing move.

------
rnernento
It's great to see the Instant Pot on Hacker News.

A couple of key takeaways:

\- There's no marketing magic here, this is just a great product.

\- It's ugly, and the interface is weird. Doesn't matter, it gets the job
done.

\- Pressure cookers have been around for a long time, they're a really great
cooking technology marred by some serious safety and inconvenience issues.
There are a bunch of companies competing in Sous Vide right now (the hot new
cooking trend) but the Instant Pot guys just took old technology and made it
slightly better.

edit: formatting

~~~
alphakappa
Use the Breville version, and you will not complain about the user interface.
The whole thing is gorgeous.

~~~
M_Grey
Do you have a model number, or a link?

~~~
kartD
I think it's this one [https://www.amazon.com/Breville-Fast-Slow-Pro-
Silver/dp/B013...](https://www.amazon.com/Breville-Fast-Slow-Pro-
Silver/dp/B013I40R8E/?tag=se-equipment-20)

~~~
M_Grey
Thanks very much!

------
mynegation
I am part of the cult. We bought after the recommendation of a friend. What I
liked: nice set of presets, comes with a cookbook with quite a few recipes,
very easy to operate.

Some time ago, when Apple bailed out of self-driving car business, my friend
and I discussed what would be the good category for Apple to try next and I
suggested advanced kitchen devices. Seriously though: instant pot with
Nespresso machine are close to best damn money I spent. Currently I am
investigating Anova devices and dreaming about something that would cut down
(hehe) my peeling and chopping time.

~~~
imglorp
I find some basic knife skills to be a huge labor saver. I've had the same
decent (ie, not serrated) $25 chef's knife for decades and can plow through
basic veg prep in a few minutes. I don't like all the extra gadgets except a
peeler. When I factor in setting up and washing some chopping or slicing
machine, I'm way faster with just a knife and board. Two things to wash. And
the board is also used to hold stuff on its way to the pot, so that cuts down
on temp bowls too.

Watch one good video on how to dice an onion an you're 90pct there.

~~~
ska
Food processors (proper ones, not hand "choppers" and the like - those are
nearly pointless) are a terrible replacement for basic knife skills.

What they are mostly great at is a few things that are so labor intensive
(ever made hummus by hand?) you otherwise might not bother. Also a good time
saver for things like pasta dough.

~~~
nikdaheratik
Good for making mayo and the like by hand and for thin slicing potatoes and
carrots. The biggest issue for me is setup + cleanup >> use time for most
cases.

------
clarkevans
When you've got a great product, your users become your extended sales force:
I've bought this for my relatives for the holiday season and have recommended
it to my friends. I think Amazon recommendation system opens new product
avenues like this that didn't exist before.

It is easy to praise this product -- it combines a rice cooker with a pressure
cooker and stew simmer (and, I guess, a yogurt maker) all in one device that
saves kitchen storage and counter top space. They've thought of lots of stuff:
making the seal easily replaceable, and allowing you to buy extra tin cans
with lids (from cooking right to refrigerator). The cans are perfect size for
the dish washer, etc. It's well designed, solves an urgent need, solidly built
and just works.

------
bryanlarsen
The Instant Pot came on the market with perfect timing, just as the pressure
cooker started to go from "geek" to "mainstream" in its adoption curve. The
fawning press articles claim that it was Instant Pot that took pressure
cooking from niche to mainstream, but I don't buy that -- I think it would
have happened anyways.

It's a good pressure cooker. A good stovetop one will be faster, but it's only
significant if you've got a gas or induction range. And of course the stovetop
models don't have any automation.

And it's half the price of a good stovetop model.

~~~
masklinn
> just as the pressure cooker started to go from "geek" to "mainstream" in its
> adoption curve.

It's really really weird to read that, in europe pressure cookers have been
mainstays of most every kitchen for decades, especially after SEB's "super
cocotte" (released in '53, they'd sold 10 million by '69).

~~~
literallycancer
Exactly.

 _" Most people have some concept of urban legends of exploding pressure
cookers in their grandmother's kitchens," says Mr Qin._

Am in Europe, literally everyone has a pressure cooker, never heard about them
actually exploding.

~~~
JoeAltmaier
Water heaters have many times the risk of exploding, and nobody blinks. Its
strange how cookers got that reputation.

~~~
jml7c5
Presumably it's because people typically don't stand near water heaters, so
there's less risk of injury in the event of an explosion.

~~~
JoeAltmaier
[http://citywideplumbingpros.com/wp-
content/uploads/2016/02/w...](http://citywideplumbingpros.com/wp-
content/uploads/2016/02/water-heater-explosion.jpg)

------
alexose
There's a "smart" version of the Instant Pot that has its own scripting
language!

[http://instantpot.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/How-to-
writ...](http://instantpot.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/How-to-write-recipe-
script-for-Instant-Pot-Smart-v1.0.pdf)

~~~
abledon
What a great tool to get my non-techie instant-pot-using-relatives to
understand what I do at my day job... but on a larger scale.

------
lenkite
It appears that Americans have simply re-discovered what the much of the world
(Europe+Asia) have known for a long time - pressure cookers are safe and make
cooking simpler.

~~~
manmal
My family has been using those for 30+ years, and of course I bought one when
I moved out. Apart from the occasional failing sealing ring (every 4 years or
so), they are low maintenance and consistently produce good meals. You have to
watch that you don't burn the bottom though when you are cooking for 2+ hours
- just don't turn up the heat too much.

------
technological
Indian here living in US. We used always get pressure cookers from india since
they used to last longer and it's hard to find good ones here. But last prime
day I brought one and I feel this is better than one which we use in India .
Better - Cleaning this is a easy , ease of use and safety

~~~
calvinbhai
Indian here. Glad to see your comment. I bought one during prime day (because
I was curious about electric pressure cooker and needed a replacement for the
desi cooker soon). And it is still in the sealed box :)

Now I want to use it asap! Never realized it had a cult following (article
looks like a PR material though)

~~~
technological
Ya you should. I think many of us think it is similar to regular electric
cooker but forgot to note it is "electric PRESSURE" cooker.

~~~
0xcafecafe
How does it work for different variety of pulses used in Indian cooking? For
instance, I use x whistles in a conventional pressure cooker for one kind of
daal vs y whistles for another kind. How well does the whistle semantic
translate here?

~~~
technological
Because here you have two settings/ways

1) Steam is contained inside and not released

2) Steam is released

So rather than x whistles it based on the time.

For example for one cup of Toor dal (Yellow peas / pigeon peas spilt ) we put
it for 16minutes with steam valve closed.

~~~
calvinbhai
so, its a trial and error way to figure out the time equivalent of whistles?

~~~
technological
Already many people tried and have a pretty good documented time. So it will
work.

------
smanatstpete
Three things Instant Pot does that my older non-electric pressure cookers
could not do:

1\. Preserve the shape of the food being cooked. The older non-electric cooker
would mush all the garbanzo beans or vegetables into a mash. When I cooked
with the instant pot for the first time, I thought nothing was cooked fully
because every vegetable and bean still were mostly in its original shape.

2\. No noise. Non-electric cookers have the steam whistle to vent out excess
steam which is noisy and annoying. Instant pot does not have that.

3\. It has two pressure settings - lo and high pressure. When I bought it,
very few of them offered this option.

Most electric pressure cookers come with a coated aluminum pot. Instant Pot
was one of the first ones to offer a stainless steel container. This was the
original reason I bought an Instant Pot.

~~~
ajmurmann
I'm not sure if you are using your regular pressure cooker correctly. Your
vegetables should come out similar as if you steamed them. You are probably
cooking them too long. The pressure cooker also shouldn't have to vent all the
time. At least with my Kuhn Rikkon you have to carefully adjust the
temperature to ensure the food is at the right temperature and then very
little venting should happen. Of course that also requires constant monitoring
and adjusting. But most things only need pressure cooking for 5-10 minutes
anyways.

~~~
smanatstpete
Maybe I was cooking them too long. I used to have a $90 cooker (I think it was
T-Fal), but I could never get it to cook correctly. With Instant pot, the
cooking time does not seem to matter. Same thing with venting. I could never
get it to vent without much noise.

------
mrob
I bought an Instant Pot after reading a recommendation on obesity researcher
Stephan Guyenet's blog:
[http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/instant-
pot-...](http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/instant-pot-
electronic-pressure-cooker.html)

I've been using it regularly since then and I highly recommend it. I had a
manual pressure cooker many years ago but I rarely used it because it was too
much hassle. The automation and easy cleaning of the Instant Pot makes a big
difference. I rate it second only to the microwave oven as most useful cooking
technology.

~~~
neonnoodle
Same here! I'd never considered buying one until I saw Guyenet's endorsement.
He's loath to recommend specific products so I knew it was a genuine
endorsement.

------
zhte415
This is amazing. I am serious.

An electric pressure cooker brand (I've never heard of, but I don't like in
Canada/US which seems to be the prime market) took over the electric pressure
cooker market by adding buttons instead of a twist-dial timer where you
manually set the desired time (my electric pressure cooker, which came free
with by fridge years ago, and may be part of the reference to scaring people
about exploding... they don't... they have cut-off devices if the wrong time
is dialed) and a bunch of links and given some Googling what appears to be
discount codes to incentivise bloggers.

Quite an amazing success. Smart targeting of an old-tech.

~~~
mrob
The Instant Pot does not run for a fixed time. It has a pressure sensor and
only starts the timer when it has reached sufficient pressure. This means you
can do things like cook frozen vegetables perfectly without weighing them,
because they will condense the steam and keep the pressure below the starting
threshold until they are defrosted.

I'm not aware of any previous pressure cooker that had Instant Pot level
automation.

~~~
zhte415
> The Instant Pot does not run for a fixed time. It has a pressure sensor and
> only starts the timer when it has reached sufficient pressure.

Yes, this is exactly what my pressure cooker does. There's a dial, which has
indicative minutes, and a picture of what's cooked under certain minutes
around the dial, for example a small icon of a bunch of beans appears under
the 40 minute dial, similar for other items. But total cooking time rarely
ends up at 40 minutes (for beans, indicated at 40 minutes for example when
starting from cold water and unsoaked beans) because it pre-heats to starting
temperature and then kicks-off. The heating plate heats pretty quickly, which
also makes sense when seeing recipe examples for browning meat before starting
the pressure cooking.

Seems identical, just analogue control. Just a standard modern pressure cooker
without a bit of marketing a dial in-place of buttons.

I also have a pressure cooker for the gas stove, significantly larger, and
while that takes manual timing it has a release valve if steam pressure gets
too high.

------
rajadigopula
I have been using one for more than a year. It makes cooking so easy and quick
and the flavor stays inside and food turns out really delicious. Best part is
it doesn't even make slightest of the sound or smoke.One of my best buys.

~~~
iambateman
I'm having dinner tonight from an instant pot but it hasn't lived up to the
hype for me.

What do you cook in there that you've really enjoyed?

~~~
rajadigopula
I make indian dishes mostly, Dal comes out perfect. I cook veg, like green
beans - only takes 3 min (5 if you add warm-up time) which otherwise will take
20-30 min. I also cook pasta - low pressure for 6 min gives perfect la dante!

~~~
ashark
> I also cook pasta - low pressure for 6 min gives perfect la dante!

That's... about the same amount of time it takes on the stovetop, no?

------
AdmiralAsshat
It's strange. I was in the market for a pressure cooker that could double as a
slow cooker, and saw the recommendation for Instant Pot over and over.

I eventually went with a Power brand pressure cooker (it was pretty much the
same price at Costco, and I've had much better luck with Costco's warranties
than Amazon's), which as best I can figure looks nearly identical, has the
exact same functionality sans maybe a yogurt option, and should in theory be
able to cook the same stuff in the same time. But whenever I ask for recipes,
all I get is, "No man, you've _gotta_ have an Instant Pot for this."

~~~
fr0sty
Biggest difference between the two is the cooking vessel (Teflon-coated vs.
Stainless).

Also, the fact that the Power Pressure Cooker XL is "As Seen on TV!" turns me
off personally, but I that may not be a universal reaction.

~~~
anthony_romeo
I have the same aversion to such products, but sometimes those "As Seen On TV"
things aren't so bad. My parents' Ronco Rotisserie Oven is still kicking after
well over a decade and makes some boss kabobs and roasts.

------
jasonellis
I bought an Instant Pot about 5 years ago because I saw some good recipes and
a suggestion on a Paleo blog. The price on Amazon seemed reasonable at the
time, so I figured "why not." It turned out to be an incredible purchase. I've
grown to hate single use devices that take up space in my kitchen (ugh,
blenders, crock pots), but the Instant Pot is so versatile that it earns its
keep.

I've long since abandoned that whole Paleo thing, but the Instant Pot still
makes great meals. I don't need a crock pot in addition to this. It makes
amazing pulled pork and carnitas. I can throw a whole chicken in there and
have it falling off of the bone in less than an hour. I can brown beef in it
before adding other ingredients for a good stew or chili. It makes really good
hard-boiled eggs (though I've recently discovered eggs in my sous-vide and
will never cook them another way). I don't know how the Instant Pot brand
compares to other electric pressure cookers, but I'm 100% satisfied with mine.

I liked it so much that I bought my parents one for Christmas two years ago
and upgraded mine from the previous model to the newer model on last year's
Prime Day mentioned in the article. The newer model solved my one gripe with
the previous model (setting the lid on the counter was awkward when taking it
off).

I recommend these things to everybody. Whether you enjoy cooking or not, the
Instant Pot makes cooking meals easier.

~~~
canes123456
Ahh blenders are not single use. I make mayo, soups, sauces, ice, hummus

~~~
giarc
You make ice with a blender? :)

------
mafro
I must be the only person unconvinced by the Instant Pot!

I don't like having to braise/sear meat and caramelise onions directing in the
IP on "Saute" mode - it's always either too hot or too cool. This process is
much easier on the hob with a frying pan.. Which is fine, but then I have two
things to clean.

If I want the benefits of a pressure cooker, I'll just buy one of those.

Oh and the UX on the IP is horrific! I needed the manual every time I used it
(about five times).

~~~
droopyEyelids
My tip for the UX is to ignore all the special buttons, and just use high and
low pressure for a specific amount of time.

The cheaper pots don't even bother with all the magic setting buttons.

~~~
mafro
That sounds like you're suggesting I just use a normal pressure cooker :p

~~~
hx87
Except you don't have to watch the fire.

~~~
mafro
Pfft you don't have to sit and stare at hobs because there's fire.

------
deftnerd
Does anyone know what the energy usage of the Instant Pot is overall compared
to other methods of cooking?

I've explored various off-grid methods of living and the energy requirements
involving food (both storage and preparation) can be surprisingly high. I'm
curious to see if the efficiency gained by using a pressure vessel results in
substantial energy savings.

------
erikb
What's the difference to the decades old Rice cooker you can find in any
Chinese home at least once?

Really weird that this doesn't seem to get mentioned anywhere in the comments
or article. It Looks so much more like a Rice cooker than a pressure cooker.

~~~
LeifCarrotson
It has multiple power settings, rather than just heat-to-boil until the water
has steamed off and the temperature jumps like in a rice cooker (which,
admittedly, is a simple enough profile to be useful when cooking a lot more
than rice - I lived on my rice cooker through college). These power settings
can be controlled electronically by a timer.

And, regardless of what it looks like, it can be set up as a pressure cooker.
This makes it an all-in-one rice cooker, pressure cooker, and crock pot/slow
cooker.

------
paulrpotts
I just got one of these a week ago and I've used it for brown rice, steel cut
oats, rolled oats, and black beans. It did a great job on all these. It is
especially nice on making a really quick oatmeal with dates and nuts thrown
in. It does brown rice really well without burning it. You throw it in and
start if. If you forget to come back to it, it just keeps the food warm
without noticeably overcooking it.

I like the fact that the innards in contact with food are stainless steel and
silicone instead of some non-stick or aluminum surface. I like the build
quality. It is enameled steel inside, with a big heat sink that presumably
smooths out the temperature changes as the heater cycles. It feels like it
actually cost something to build as opposed to the flimsy feel of other rice
cookers.

I have not tried anything too challenging yet... am curious about odder things
to cook in a pressure cooker (cheesecake, really?)

My only complaint so far is that the user interface is a little bit opaque.
Why does it play a jaunty little tune when you seal it up, but not when it is
done cooking? Why does it just say "ON" while pre-heating? I'd like it more if
it would more clearly differentiate between the various modes and states. It
seems like the UX could be a little better. But I do like the fact that if you
do the same thing over and over, it would be extremely quick to do that, just
push one button, it recalls the last cooking time, and starts automatically.

------
miguelrochefort
I got one for Christmas. I've been cooking more than half of my meals with it.
It's great.

Here's a few things I tried:

\- Mississippi pot roast

\- Carnitas

\- Pulled pork

\- Cilantro lime basmati rice

\- Butter chicken

\- Chili

\- Chicken breast

\- Crack slaw

\- Pulled chicken

\- Chinese hot pot

\- Hard boiled eggs

\- Soft boiled eggs

\- Steamed broccoli

\- Steamed cauliflower

\- Kale and bacon

\- Mussels

\- Cheese cake

\- Meatloaf

\- Italian sausages

\- Beef curry

\- Poached salmon

\- Pork ribs

\- Swedish meatballs

\- Taco meat

\- Chicken fajitas

\- Black beans

~~~
wyldfire
My wife has prepared a lot of these dishes in the past, but without a pressure
cooker. So, what's different with the pressure cooker is that the cooking time
for these dishes is much lower?

~~~
smanatstpete
I would not even categorize the cooking time to be lower for many dishes
(Because you will need the pressure to vent slowly for 20 mins unless you
manually vent it). It is more of once things are inside the pot, you do not
have to tend to it till it is done. The cooking time certainly helps for
dishes like pot roast and it tenderizes tough cuts of meat much better without
dehydrating them. Having said that, the above holds true for any well built
electric pressure cooker. Instant pot is just a well built electric pressure
cooker.

------
jeromenerf
I bought one to replace a rice cooker which had (aging) teflon coating.

The instantpot is a bit slower but it has a stainless steel pot and can do a
lot more than just cooking rice and steam vegetables. Moreover, it's actually
cheaper and sturdier than the alternatives I considered.

Good product, would recommend. I try to stay away from pressure cooking,
coffee brewing and knife sharpening communities though, maybe do I watch those
swedish steel axes benchmarks, for some reason ;)

~~~
fr0sty
> The instantpot is a bit slower

Are you pressure cooking your rice or using the "rice" setting? I've found
rice to cook faster in this vs. my old Aroma rice cooker...

------
scrrr
Is this different from any of the other similar cooking devices?

------
Gravityloss
There's so little innovation and so much to improve in home appliances it's
ridiculous

~~~
nommm-nommm
Such as?

------
wwweston
>"Cooking is a social and emotional practice that creates a lot of meaning in
our lives...So a product that takes centre stage in cooking practices also
creates a sense of attachment by being an agent in our social and emotional
lives."

Note that this is the _opposite_ of Soylent, which treats cooking and eating
as a distraction from the central problem of nutrition.

(I suppose you could alternatively say it's a _complement_ to Soylent, which
you could characterize as unhitching nutrition from cooking and eating rather
than banning them from the process, letting people _choose_ whether they want
to pick up all the activities together or separately.)

------
lightlyused
Cult member here.

When I got mine after black friday, I made an chicken curry (my own spice
blend) and it was fantastic. Total time from start to finish was about 30
minutes and only 10 of that was prep time, cutting onions/meat, blending
spices, sautéing and roasting the spices. I think I did 8 minutes on high
pressure, then natural pressure release. I've also made steel cut oats,
jambalaya, rice, chili, and bean soup from dried beans. Clean up is easy which
is a big plus in my book.

------
kriro
How open and hackable/interfacable is the Instant Pot? I own a Thermomix which
is pretty locked down and closed. I'd love a machine with that functionality
(good blade+heating pot in one basically) and the ability to build my own
tools to interact with it. The guided cooking of the Thermomix is pretty neat
(essentially a touchscreen with instructions and preloaded recipes). I'd love
that in open (use my own recipes etc.).

------
agentgt
I find meat cooked by pressure cookers and especially slow cookers sort of
disgusting.

Mainly it boils down (pun intended) to the texture and the meat is lacking in
caramelization (maillard reaction).

But I haven't tried the Instant Pot so maybe it has a solution for that.

If I could grill all the time I would. I almost can as I have a kamado style
grill which has its own cult following as well (see Kamado Guru [1]).

There isn't much you can't cook on one of those grills.

[1]: [https://www.kamadoguru.com/](https://www.kamadoguru.com/)

~~~
moftz
I usually try to sear the outside of the meat before I throw it into a slow
cooker. I use cheap, tougher meats that wouldn't really be desirable cooked
any other way.

~~~
QuercusMax
Definitely this. Sear your meat, then slow-cook it, then, if you want, broil
it to crisp it up. I do this when making carnitas and they turn out amazing.

------
cseelus
Reminds me of the ThermoMix:
[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermomix](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermomix)

From Wikipedia:

'The functions can be accessed simultaneously to provide what the manufacturer
calls "12 functions": steaming, emulsifying, blending, precise heating,
mixing, milling, whipping, kneading, chopping, weighing, grinding and
stirring. Several of these differ only by the speed of the motor.'

------
Dove
I am Instant Pot patient zero in my social circles. I have infected almost
everyone I know, and they have infected almost everyone they know. It's just
that good.

------
awwstn
[perhaps related] The late, great Roger Ebert wrote a book about rice cookers:
"The Pot and How to Use It: The Mystery and Romance of the Rice Cooker". Like
pretty much everything Ebert ever wrote, it's excellent:

[https://www.amazon.com/Pot-How-Use-Mystery-
Romance/dp/074079...](https://www.amazon.com/Pot-How-Use-Mystery-
Romance/dp/0740791427)

~~~
et-al
(And this is the original blog post that inspired the book:
[http://www.rogerebert.com/rogers-journal/the-pot-and-how-
to-...](http://www.rogerebert.com/rogers-journal/the-pot-and-how-to-use-it))

------
csnewb
Instant Pots are AWESOME for meal prep especially for those who are
bulking/cutting weight. In under one hour on a Sunday night, I prepared enough
chicken, brown rice, and veggies to eat for lunch every day for a week (I
don't eat breakfast and generally eat salad for dinner). The food tasted
decent, but the amount of time spent on preparation can't be beat.

------
eddiecalzone
Surprised no one has mentioned the HIP Pressure Cooking website or book, both
fantastic. Their buyers guide is a must if you're new to the cult:

[https://www.hippressurecooking.com/pressure-cooker-buying-
gu...](https://www.hippressurecooking.com/pressure-cooker-buying-guide/)

------
andkon
One thing I'll say — it doesn't just make things faster. It makes things so
much tastier. Any stewing or braising dish gets done much quicker, and the
meat retains so much more moisture while still getting its connective tissues
broken down.

I have never failed to make a tasty meal in mine.

------
OJFord
> _the official Instant Pot Facebook group_

Well, that's a potentially clickbaity-sounding headline justified!

------
pkamb
Some enterprising Hacker News-type should source/market a nice sealable
silicone lid for the Instant Pot pot. So weird that the company doesn't sell
them. I'd buy 3 for my 3 pots. Easy storage in the fridge, all in the same
pot, then reheat tomorrow.

~~~
lotharbot
[https://www.amazon.com/Instant-Pot-Silicone-Cover-
Models/dp/...](https://www.amazon.com/Instant-Pot-Silicone-Cover-
Models/dp/B011HLNE1M)

this is the exact product you're asking for ("Creates an air-tight and water-
tight seal on the Instant Pot stainless steel inner pot.")

~~~
pkamb
That one appears to be an old model and is out of stock everywhere. And from
the reviews, it does not seem to actually seal the lid of the pot. No better
than the cutting board I currently place on top of the pot to "seal" the lid.

\- "Lid is too big, not even close to sealing."

\- "very loose fit"

\- "This cover just rests on top of the Instant Pot liner. I was expecting it
to "snap" on, similar to Tupperware, or something. I'm very disappointed."

~~~
lotharbot
[https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01K082HI4?psc=1](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01K082HI4?psc=1)

some reviews complain of fit, but a lot more say it's perfect. YMMV of course.

~~~
pkamb
Good find; I don't think that product existed a couple months ago when I was
looking. Purchased and fingers crossed that it snaps on tight!

------
pmoriarty
Sorry, I just don't buy that these things can never explode, since defects in
manufacturing and design do happen. The potential for exploding in my cookware
is just not worth the risk when I can use conventional pots and pans that
don't have this risk.

------
neonnoodle
The thing is terrific and I too have recommended it to anyone who will listen.
I just hope they keep their quality control standards high as the popularity
increases.

It's a huge money/time saver. I think it's already paid for itself for me as a
yogurt maker.

------
Dowwie
My instant pot was my second pressure cooker. The first was a cuisinart, which
was a nightmare to use -- it wouldn't secure the pressure valve without..
encouragement.

I'd love to know what your favorite meal is to cook with the pot. Mine is
chicken tagine.

~~~
_JamesA_
I had the exact same experience. I gave up on pressure cooking after having
the Cuisinart fail to seal way too many times.

It defeats the purpose if you have to baby-sit and fiddle with the lid for an
hour hoping to get a seal.

I have only had that issue once with the Instant Pot so far and it was solved
with a quick re-seating of the sealing ring.

~~~
Dowwie
favorite recipe?

~~~
_JamesA_
The "Perfected Pot Roast" recipe from the "Great Food Fast"[1] book by Bob
Warden is absolutely amazing.

[1]: [http://a.co/441GESa](http://a.co/441GESa)

------
hx87
I just wish the Instant Pot (and really, all electric pressure cookers) had a
fast-response PID controller so that it could keep 15 psi like a stovetop
pressure cooker instead of maxing at 15 psi and averaging 10 psi.

------
dbg31415
How does anything pick up a cult following? By being awesome.

I love that I can take frozen chicken and throw it in the pot, dump in like 2
other things, and presto less than half an hour later I have delicious taco
meat.

------
cr0sh
Neither my wife nor I have ever had the want or need for a pressure cooker,
but if we ever do, this particular one might be worth looking into, given all
the good things people have said about it.

I think we just don't mind if we have to wait for something to finish cooking;
plus she likes "active cooking" \- the prep work, the attention to cooking,
etc. I understand the desire for "set and forget" \- which is why I have my
own such appliance (if you will) - a Traeger smoker. I got tired of always
having to attend to my gas smoker (checking water levels, wood chips,
temperature and gas settings). I just wanted to put the meat in, turn on the
temp, and let it run for however many hours needed.

For other things, though, we like to use either a slow cooker, or for smaller
amounts of things, our set of "ancient" Sunbeam/Rival Bean Pots (we typically
find them at antique stores). Sure, either way takes hours to cook something,
but we just set them, go to work, and come back home and they're done. We've
never had an issue or reason to think this a problem (our house is worth more
in insurance money, tbh), even using the 40-50 year old Bean Pots.

That said, what I wish could be sold/made available would be a modern and
"safe" (I put that in quotes because one of these could never be perfectly
safe) consumer-model pressure fryer. Think of combining a pressure-cooker with
a deep-fat fryer (and realize just how dangerous that sounds). At one time
(back in the 1970s, IIRC) a company did market such a product, but it didn't
last on the market (not sure why - may have been a safety issue for all I
know).

Basically, I want to have fried chicken like I can get at KFC and elsewhere
(also known as "broasted" \- though that's a trademarked term, I think). It
could probably be used for other fried foods as well. But I doubt we'll ever
see one, because of the safety reasons and because fried foods aren't on the
"high up" list of many people today (health reasons).

I've considered a commercial pressure fryer, but the fact that they require
220v (so I'd need a new outlet run), plus require a ton of oil ($$$) - in
addition to all the other potential issues with a pressure fryer - has
dissuaded me from that route (not to mention that they are pretty expensive to
purchase).

Note: Whatever you do - don't try to pressure-fry in a regular pressure-cooker
(I doubt the Instant Pot can handle it either) - the seals and such aren't
designed for it, and you'll have burnination and other fun on your hands if
you attempt it (at best).

------
Emc2fma
There was an AMA yesterday on Reddit by the founder of Camelcamelcamel. He
said that the Instant Pot was tied with the Amazon Echo for having the most
people tracking it. Pretty impressive.

------
EGreg
Is it basically a pressure cooker? What makes it "instant"?

~~~
sosborn
The brand name.

------
closed
When I was looking for a pressure cooker, I dropped into the subreddit
r/pressurecooking and was surprised to see it was basically devoted to the
Instant Pot!

------
darkstar999
I already have a (great) rice cooker and a (not so great) slow cooker. Does
the instant pot _actually_ replace those two appliances? Does it sous vide?

~~~
fr0sty
Does not do sous vide, but it certainly can replace your rice cooker and slow
cooker. Only trouble is having only one appliance prevents you from cooking
parallel (making curry _and_ the rice to serve it over, for instance, would be
a problem).

~~~
jm547ster
Not purpose built for sous vide but the keep warm setting hovers ~70C which is
nice for well cooked but still moist chicken. I believe the smart model has
adjustable keep warm settings and is more fit to purpose for sous vide.
Instant pot also sell an affordable immersion circulator.

------
delbel
Can I use the Instant Pot as an autoclave? I've been using a pressure cooker
with a propane turkey burner for my tissue culture experiments.

------
djhworld
Never heard of it before this article came out.

Is this just a US/Canada thing? I remember my parents having an old-school
pressure cooker 20 years or so ago.

------
krzat
What is the difference between Instant Pot and similiar, cheaper devices? They
look like one company makes them all.

------
vit05
CamelCamelCamel founder said on his AMA that instant pot is the number one or
2 as the most monitoring product

------
tambarskjelve
I seriously believed the article was about a pot smoking cook making instant
meals.

------
seesomesense
Aldi sells a clone for around $40. I have had one for some years.

------
hokkos
What will happens when american discover Thermomix and Cookeo ?

------
oh_sigh
I see so many articles like these. Honestly they all read like one of those
pages that is advertised at the bottom of a CNN article.

~~~
losteverything
After reading 'add HN to cart' I really wonder why this is #1

~~~
rashkov
I was heartened by how poorly "add hn to cart" would actually do on this site.
Most of those articles are instantly killed by various filters. Maybe I should
go back and have another read through the comments, but that was my takeaway
and also something I've noticed when browsing /new.

That said, it doesn't surprise me to see this at the top of HN. It is a geeky
cooking tool with a cult following. I'm certainly intrigued.

~~~
losteverything
Coincidentally we joked about the name ("pot") in both my jobs.

It's featured on an endcap and does not sell one bit. This was a surprise.

------
agumonkey
I thought it was a pressure cooker turned into cannabinoid extracting machine
...

------
jefurii
Lots and lots of marketing?

------
cjg
I didn't think the BBC did advertising.

~~~
Cthulhu_
It's a gray area - where do you draw the line between reporting on a cult and
advertising a product? Is [http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-
trending-39158975](http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-39158975) an advert
for that site? Is [http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20170303-we-should-thank-
bu...](http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20170303-we-should-thank-buffy-for-
todays-golden-age-of-television) an advert for Buffy? Is
[http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-39188826](http://www.bbc.com/news/world-
asia-39188826) an advert for the arms industry?

~~~
spacehunt
I got a full screen ad that couldn't be closed when trying to visit the link
in Firefox for Android.

~~~
djhworld
Do you live outside the UK?

The BBC is publicly funded, visitors to BBC news from outside the UK will get
served ads.

