Google “Instant Pot” and you get back 47 million results! Right there is the proof that the Instant Pot has risen to cult status or at the very least a standard tool that every well equipped kitchen might want to consider getting.

As someone who actually loves to cook the old-fashioned way and hates unnecessary kitchen tools, I waited quite a while before deciding that an Instant Pot was worthy of my limited counter and storage space. In fact it was my quest for a new rice cooker that got me most interested but my need to find better solutions for my clients was another motivating factor. And with a full assortment of other features such as a slow cooker, electric pressure cooker, steamer and yogurt maker, all in one, it was time to test this tool out.

First up, the issue of time. Too often clients complained to me about their lack of time and limited creativity to make delicious meals. Knowing that Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health research identified home cooking as one of the most important steps towards better health keeps me focused on ways to make cooking easier for clients. This one tool does a lot but using the pressure cooking feature is what has really won me over because it cooks all foods in a fraction of the time it takes to do it stovetop.

Pressure cooking is not as much of a mystery as it seems. Very simply, the food and liquids are sealed inside the pot. Then, as the heat increases, it forms steam and pressure which raises the boiling point of the liquids and increases the pressure to force them into the food. The end result is dramatically faster cook times making some meals in as little as a third of the time traditional cooking methods require. This is the answer to almost every “I don’t have time” argument.

Creativity is another major roadblock in the list of woes and excuses thrown out on why people no longer cook as they once did. Yet, no matter your cooking level, you can easily create new and tasty meals in an Instant Pot. The daunting issue of cooking skill and tending what’s on the stove gives way to simply having good ingredients, spices and herbs. Plus there is ample support around in the form of cookbooks and Facebook groups dedicated just to using electric pressure cookers and slow cookers.

Finally, I want to ease any fears you have leftover from stories your mother might have shared about using pressure cookers. The Instant Pot has a ton of safety features including sensors that monitor temperature and pressure, alerts if the top is not on right, etc. My model even includes an app accessed through a bluetooth connection that let’s me watch and control my pot without being in the kitchen. For the most part, all you do is plug it in, add your ingredients and tap a few buttons.

So if you are looking for another way to streamline the job of cooking and make putting a healthy dinner on the table a little easier and healthier, then an Instant Pot might just be the new tool you need to add to your kitchen. And, if you follow my articles, I will be sharing more about using mine including an article about making foolproof non-dairy yogurt, and more, in the coming weeks.

For now, my Instant Pot still sits on my counter because I found that whenever I put it away, I was reaching for it sooner than I expected.

Let me know in a quick email or on my Facebook post if you have an Instant Pot and what your favorite uses and recipes are. Be GLAD for health!

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