Instant Pot thread

[mlewis78]

Originally Posted by crich70

I love my instant pot. I don't use it every day but when I do cook something in it whatever it is comes out perfect. I don't make Spaghetti any other way now. I just brown the meat, add 1/2 cup water and the sauce, stir it together add another 1.5 cups of water and then lay the noodles on top and cook at high pressure for 8-10 minutes. Then it's a simple as a quick release of pressure and stir everything together. No more noodles coming out over or undercooked.

I have made this often and have leftovers from it now. I've also been making mac and cheese. I tried a different recipe (from official Instant Pot that they posted on Instagram) that uses heavy cream (1-1/2 cups in the pot and 1/2 cup after it is done with the shredded cheese).

[Hitch]

Gang, how did the Mac & Cheese come out? I have a fabulous and I mean, FAB recipe for Mac & cheese (if I can find it--it's from an old, I mean, 80's F&W or Epicurious, or BA, can't remember) and also one for a Ham/spud au gratin (both types--a fancier, serve for company sort of thing and then the quick-dirty one with yes, I hate to admit it, Cream of Mush soup, some Emmenthaler and OMG, it's amazingly good!), but I'm always always on the hunt for crap I should not eat, like high-fat, high-sodium, high-everything foods like Mac-n-Cheese!

Hitch

[tempest@de]

Originally Posted by Hitch

Ham/spud au gratin

Hitch

Do you think you can share that recipe? I love them, I tried to make them once but they didn’t turn out very good, they where not very creamy like the ones I buy frozen.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by tempest@de

Do you think you can share that recipe? I love them, I tried to make them once but they didn’t turn out very good, they where not very creamy like the ones I buy frozen.

Let me dig them up. Do you want the fancy one or the quick-n-dirty? I hate to say this, but honestly, the quick-n-dirty, use the canned cream of mush stuff is shockingly similar to the "labor most of the day" version.

I'll dig up both, with any luck. The fancy one is from....hmmmmm...I think it was "You've Got It Made" by ...dang. I can't think of her name, but she's a very good cook. Ah, Diane Phillips, that's her.

The other is more Laissez-Faire cooking, as in "throw this all in and see what happens." LOL.

As the Phillips recipe is in her cookbook,I'll send it to you via PM; I see that I scanned the recipe from the book.

Hitch

[Hitch]

Unbelievable, managed to find both the Scallped spuds recipes and another that if you like leeks, you'll go wild for, kiddos. (NB: not IP recipes!!).

This one is the "quick-n-dirty" Scalloped spuds recipe and shockingly...it sounds nuts but it is about 96-98% as good as the one I sent to tempest, with about 5% of the work. This is that recipe:

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/47...toes-with-ham/

And my notes about it:

1. Double the sauce, which means use two cans of the soup, twice the water, season with garlic, salt & pepper to taste (I believe I doubled those too);
2. I used 3-4 cups of ham. I cup! Ha! I spit on one cup of ham only! I make mine with leftover Honeybaked Ham bits.
3. I did not use Cheddar. I did it the first time I made it and promptly switched it up to Emmenthaler, Swiss, or Gruyere, which I substantially prefer. However, it's also rockin' with Cheddar or pretty much any damned cheese you love.
4. Cook on 6 hours on high or overnight on low. The 4 hours didn't do it for me with the increased amount of ingredients.
5. Couldn't, really, be easier.

And again...surprised me how great it came out.

NOW, I also have this, Scalloped Potatoes with Leeks and Thyme, in the how-fat-can-potatoes-make-me category, which is simply TDF (to die for):

https://shewearsmanyhats.com/scallop...es-with-leeks/

All I can say about this one is Oh-my-God. It is just all that.

It's an in-betweeny recipe. It's not for those who want to only open cans of soup or the like, but it's not quite as much work as the Diane Phillips recipe that I sent to Tempest. I strongly recommend against replacing the leeks with sweet onions; the leeks and the thyme (and the heavy cream, let's not blow smoke up our own keisters here) make this recipe what it is.

Pretty straightforward; slice up the spuds, make the sauce (a bit like a bechamel) and pour it over zee spuds, bake ~ 1 hour. OMG, be warned, it's addictive. My husband will do almost anything to get this.

Again, not an IP recipe. None of these are; they are regular oven (DP's recipe); crockpot (the Allrecipes site recipe) and this is also regular oven.

Hitch

[DNSB]

I seem to remember trying Sweet Potato Apple Gratin and a couple of other recipes from (I think) You've Got It Made about 15 years or so ago. I was rather shocked to find that canned sweet potatoes were used. What I did like was that most of the recipes could be made ahead but sadly they did not freeze as well as suggested.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by DNSB

I seem to remember trying Sweet Potato Apple Gratin and a couple of other recipes from (I think) You've Got It Made about 15 years or so ago. I was rather shocked to find that canned sweet potatoes were used. What I did like was that most of the recipes could be made ahead but sadly they did not freeze as well as suggested.

Agreed. I loved her...she had a strata that I could eat weekly, but no, freezing, not so much. She had a tetrazzini, I think it was,that I pretty much hated.

To me, this is definitely--sort of like regular strata recipes, let's say--"make ahead" but a few days and fridge make-ahead, not "make it on December 1st and eat it again in January, 'cuz it's been in the freezer" make-ahead. That's what I was looking for when I bought her book. However, bygod, the woman can cook. So...I use it for that, for just "this is a great recipe, and if needed, I can make it on Sunday and serve on Wednesday" sort of thing.

I freely admit, I have zero recollection of canned sweet potatoes. Let's see...yup, you're right. Brandied Sweet Potato Apple Gratin does use canned Sweet potatoes, which I didn't even know existed, until this moment. Learn something new every day.

Hitch

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by Hitch

I freely admit, I have zero recollection of canned sweet potatoes. Let's see...yup, you're right. Brandied Sweet Potato Apple Gratin does use canned Sweet potatoes, which I didn't even know existed, until this moment. Learn something new every day.

It was something that I hadn't thought about in over a decade and popped into my mind when I read your mention of her.

[mlewis78]

Originally Posted by Hitch

Gang, how did the Mac & Cheese come out? I have a fabulous and I mean, FAB recipe for Mac & cheese (if I can find it--it's from an old, I mean, 80's F&W or Epicurious, or BA, can't remember) and also one for a Ham/spud au gratin (both types--a fancier, serve for company sort of thing and then the quick-dirty one with yes, I hate to admit it, Cream of Mush soup, some Emmenthaler and OMG, it's amazingly good!), but I'm always always on the hunt for crap I should not eat, like high-fat, high-sodium, high-everything foods like Mac-n-Cheese!

Hitch

I have made mac and cheese several times using the Salty Marshmallow's recipe (chicken broth as part of it), but recently I used official Instant Pot recipe that they posted on Instagram. It uses 2 cups of heavy cream (1-1/2 for the pot and 1/2 cup afterwards with the grated cheddar and mozarella sheese (they use other cheeses). So creamy. I have never baked mac and cheese and thought I liked the crispiness of it, but since I started making it in the IP, I don't miss the crunch.

It's just me, so there were leftovers. It coagulates in the fridge (hard to dish out to heat up), but tasted quite good after I heated up in the microwave. The only problem was that it shrunk up while heating up. Still tasted good though.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by mlewis78

I have made mac and cheese several times using the Salty Marshmallow's recipe (chicken broth as part of it), but recently I used official Instant Pot recipe that they posted on Instagram. It uses 2 cups of heavy cream (1-1/2 for the pot and 1/2 cup afterwards with the grated cheddar and mozarella sheese (they use other cheeses). So creamy. I have never baked mac and cheese and thought I liked the crispiness of it, but since I started making it in the IP, I don't miss the crunch.

It's just me, so there were leftovers. It coagulates in the fridge (hard to dish out to heat up), but tasted quite good after I heated up in the microwave. The only problem was that it shrunk up while heating up. Still tasted good though.

Do you use the microwave on Kill? (High?). Or take a bit more time on lower heat? I've found, FWIW, that really, using a bit longer time, lower heat, reduces the shrinkage and suckage. FWIW.

Mr. H is Kill all the way; I'm 3x as long, about 1/3rd of the heat and if naught else, my way results in a lot less cleanup inside the Nuker, LOL.

I can eat Mac-n-cheese either way--baked or not, but I confess to a bit of a yen for the crunch of the breadcrumbs atop. I mean..you couldalways make the cheesy bits and then pop it in a dish, put buttered breadcrumbs atop and run it under the broiler on low...just a thought...

Now you guys have made me long bigtime for that 30+ y.o. Mac & Cheese recipe. Dang. (It's in an issue of either BA, Epicurious or F&W with other homestyle diner dishes--I remember home fries, mashed spuds, this mac & cheese and something else. damn. I think I misplaced that mag, about 10 years ago and now I'm gonna have to go rip the magazine shelves apart, see if I can resurrect it.)

Hitch

[mlewis78]

Originally Posted by Hitch

Do you use the microwave on Kill? (High?). Or take a bit more time on lower heat? I've found, FWIW, that really, using a bit longer time, lower heat, reduces the shrinkage and suckage. FWIW.

Mr. H is Kill all the way; I'm 3x as long, about 1/3rd of the heat and if naught else, my way results in a lot less cleanup inside the Nuker, LOL.

I can eat Mac-n-cheese either way--baked or not, but I confess to a bit of a yen for the crunch of the breadcrumbs atop. I mean..you couldalways make the cheesy bits and then pop it in a dish, put buttered breadcrumbs atop and run it under the broiler on low...just a thought...
Hitch

I think I always run the microwave on high. I am not sure how to run it lower. I could also steam leftovers either on the stovetop or in the Instant Pot. Microwave is faster though and uses saves on dishwashing since I heat up in the dish I'm going to eat it from.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by mlewis78

I think I always run the microwave on high. I am not sure how to run it lower.

With most microwaves, there's a power button that you use to lower the power percentage; you run it down in 10% increments. Obviously brands differ, but try entering a time, then finding the power button and hit that. Or, if it's like mine, hit the timer button first, then enter the time, then hit the power button.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by mlewis78

I think I always run the microwave on high. I am not sure how to run it lower. I could also steam leftovers either on the stovetop or in the Instant Pot. Microwave is faster though and uses saves on dishwashing since I heat up in the dish I'm going to eat it from.

I just tend to...IDK, sort of guesstimate. If Mr. H runs it on Kill, 30 seconds, I'll run it on 3-4 (30-40% of high), for 90 seconds give or take. I just find it works better, especially on reheating leftover meals like meat, say and the like. Also true for things like warming up a cinnamon bun or the like.

Offered FWIW.

Hitch

[GA Russell]

I plan to consume more rice in 2024.

Can an Instant Pot be used as a rice cooker?

Would it be better to get a rice cooker?

Many years ago I had a rice cooker that seemed flimsy, but worked well. Are the new ones better?

Thanks!

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

I plan to consume more rice in 2024.

Can an Instant Pot be used as a rice cooker?

Would it be better to get a rice cooker?

While an Instant Pot can be used as a rice cooker, I prefer my Zojirushi 3 cup rice cooker for rice and congee. The Instant Pot is quite a bit larger and does not have the ability to modify the cooking process to correct for errors such as too much or too little water.

Originally Posted by GA Russell

Many years ago I had a rice cooker that seemed flimsy, but worked well. Are the new ones better?

I went through a couple of cheap rice cookers before I picked up the Zojirushi rice cooker. Like quite a other few brands that are decent such as Cuckoo and Tiger, they use a onboard microcomputer (hence, the MICOM designation) to control the cooking process and have presets for multiple types of rice and other grains (quinoa, steelcut oatmeal, etc. depending on model).