The best Instant Pot multicookers have remodeled dwelling cooking with its no-fuss, one-touch operation. Not solely can they strain and gradual prepare dinner meat stews to perfection, however can steam, sauté, prepare dinner rice, and accomplish that rather more.
Whether or not you’re a novice or a eager prepare dinner, Instantaneous Pots are designed to chop down the time it takes to rustle up scrumptious meals, which additionally means much less prep work and time spent within the kitchen. However whereas Instantaneous Pots have a variety of packages to prepare dinner virtually all the things, there are some issues that you must merely by no means prepare dinner in an Instantaneous Pot. You’ll most likely discover that the outcomes are usually not as nice as cooking within the conventional means, and can solely lead to time wasted, to not point out a disappointing meal.
So earlier than you get cooking, listed below are 10 issues you must by no means prepare dinner in an Instantaneous Pot.
1. Fried hen
Whereas you should use the sauté program to pan fry meat, an Instantaneous Pot ought to by no means be used for deep frying. Except your mannequin has a selected air frying perform, the Instantaneous Pot shouldn’t be designed to warmth oil at larger temperatures wanted for deep frying. Doing so might burn your meals or worse nonetheless, set the equipment on hearth. Equally, you may’t prepare dinner different breaded or battered meals akin to fish. For those who do love fried meals, you’re higher off investing in one of many best air fryers to do the job.
2. Bread
Though there are many recipes for making bread in an Instantaneous Pot, the outcomes won’t ever be nearly as good as you’ll anticipate from conventional baking or by utilizing one of many best bread machines. Because you’re steaming reasonably than baking, you merely gained’t get the crispy crust on the surface of the bread, which is all the time the perfect half!
3. Macaroni and cheese
Any dairy-heavy meals that use milk as the principle ingredient gained’t do properly in an Instantaneous Pot. It is because the excessive warmth of the strain cooker could make the milk curdle, which is able to wreck the flavour and enchantment of the dish. So classics akin to macaroni and cheese or creamy soups are a no-no. Most Instantaneous Pot recipes advise including cream and cheese on the finish of cooking.
4. Stir fry
When you can technically pan fry meat and veggies in an Instantaneous Pot, you gained’t get the excessive temperature wanted to sear your favourite beef or hen stir fry. That’s why stir frys are all the time greatest cooked in a wok, because the large pan and excessive warmth supplies the proper texture and style.
5. Pasta/noodles
Regardless of loads of recipes on-line, avoid cooking pasta or noodles in an Instantaneous Pot. These can foam and froth throughout the course of, and should come out gummy or inconsistently cooked. Follow conventional strategies of boiling pasta or noodles in a pot on a stovetop to get higher texture and outcomes. What’s extra, such meals that splutter may also clog the strain launch valve, resulting in extreme strain construct up.
6. Seafood
Delicate seafood akin to fish, oysters, shrimp, muscular tissues and clams will not prepare dinner properly in both a strain cooker or a gradual cooker. These meals must be cooked rapidly at simply the proper temperature, which is usually tough to do with an Instantaneous Pot. For those who get the timings and temperature unsuitable, your seafood might flip into mush or rubbery lumps. The one exception is strain cooking harder octopus and squid, to make them tender and juicy.
7. Baking cookies
Whereas you may make truffles or desserts in an Instantaneous Pot, baking cookies gained’t be as profitable. It is because cookies must be baked on a flat baking sheet that enables room to unfold out, which merely can’t be carried out in an Instantaneous Pot. What’s extra, you gained’t be capable to get the chewy centre and crunchy, cookie exterior that you simply’d get from oven baking.
8. Yellow and purple lentils
Whereas brown and inexperienced lentils can cope properly with strain cooking, keep away from cooking yellow and purple lentils. These are extra delicate, so that they’re more likely to flip gentle and mushy as they prepare dinner rapidly. After all, that is very best in the event you’re making lentil soup! As an alternative, prepare dinner purple and yellow lentils on the range to protect their texture and style.
9. Grilling
Instantaneous Pots can sear properly, however is not going to give your meals the basic, charred grill marks you’d get from grilling. As well as, whereas an Instantaneous Pot does properly to strain prepare dinner harder cuts of meat, it doesn’t with tender cuts which might be greatest eaten medium-rare like steak. So if you would like that fragrant, grilled taste and texture, you’ll want one of many best grills to get scrumptious outcomes. Plus, these 11 grilling tips and tricks might come in useful too.
10. Jams, jellies, and preserves
If you wish to can your recent fruit for a tasty unfold, you would wish to intently monitor the temperature as you prepare dinner. Sadly, that is one thing you may’t do with an Instantaneous Pot because it solely measures the strain. It’s advisable to keep away from any canning recipes together with your Instantaneous Pot as incorrect cooking and sealing can result in micro organism development, which might lead to meals poisoning.
That can assist you resolve what equipment will fit your wants, take a look at Instant Pot vs air fryer: which should you buy?. Or are Instant Pots worth it?, How to use an air fryer and 11 air fryer mistakes you’re probably making — and how to avoid them.
