The Best Instant Pot Recipes To Make With The Pressure Cooker Feature

No matter how hard you fight it, an Instant Pot is almost certainly going to weasel its way into your life at some point.

The New York Times has written about it as “The Kitchen Gadget That Spawned A Religion.” Devotees of the appliance have branded themselves as “Potheads.” And almost more significantly, your Aunt Kathy in Florida has been posting to an Instant Pot Facebook group for the past year. Face it, the Instant Pot is officially mainstream.

Even if you already own two slow cookers and three different types of rice cookers, the Instant Pot can achieve a few things those devices can’t. Among the latest model’s functions are slow cooker, rice/porridge cooker, cake maker, yogurt maker, sauté/sear, steamer, warmer, sterilizer and most importantly for the purpose of this article, pressure cooker.

The pressure cooking function is a lifesaver for anyone who wants to turn big hunks of meat into tender, fall-off-the-bone deliciousness in a freakishly short amount of time. And if you’re someone who cooks a lot of legumes, the pressure cooker allows you to cook dried beans ― which typically require soaking overnight and several hours of cooking ― in less than an hour total, from start to finish. The Instant Pot’s pressure cooker feature doesn’t function much differently than a classic pressure cooker, but it gives you the benefit of being combined with about eight other appliances.

Pro tip: If you’re looking for Instant Pot recipes that take advantage of the pressure cooker feature, you don’t have to search specifically for “Instant Pot recipes” or buy cookbooks specifically written for Instant Pots (though Melissa Clark’s is exceptional, if you want one). Just search the internet or old cookbooks for “pressure cooker recipes,” which have existed for decades, and use those recipes interchangeably with the Instant Pot.

In the meantime, below we’ve collected some of our favorite recipes from bloggers. They all use the pressure cooker feature of the Instant Pot, so take your pick and find out what Aunt Kathy’s fuss is all about.

1Instant Pot Chicken And Spinach RamenHalf Baked HarvestGet the Instant Pot Chicken And Spinach Ramen recipe from Half Baked Harvest
2Life-Changing Instant Pot Beef StewPinch of YumGet the Life-Changing Instant Pot Beef Stew recipe from Pinch of Yum
3Instant Pot Chicken Tikka MasalaSavory ToothGet the Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala recipe from Savory Tooth
4Instant Pot Turkey Meatballs And Spaghetti SquashHalf Baked HarvestGet the Instant Pot Turkey Meatballs And Spaghetti Squash recipe from Half Baked Harvest
5Vegetarian Lentil Tortilla SoupPeas and CrayonsGet the Vegetarian Lentil Tortilla Soup recipe from Peas and Crayons
6Instant Pot Spicy White Bean Beef StewHalf Baked HarvestGet the Instant Pot Spicy White Bean Beef Stew recipe from Half Baked Harvest
7Pressure Cooker Ropa ViejaA Calculated WhiskGet the Pressure Cooker Ropa Vieja recipe from A Calculated Whisk
8Instant Pot Mac And CheesePinch of YumGet the Instant Pot Mac And Cheese recipe from Pinch of Yum
9Instant Pot Spicy Pineapple Chicken TacosHalf Baked HarvestGet the Instant Pot Spicy Pineapple Chicken Tacos recipe from Half Baked Harvest
10Instant Pot Wild Rice SoupPinch of YumGet the Instant Pot Wild Rice Soup recipe from Pinch of Yum
11Instant Pot Mashed PotatoesPinch of YumGet the Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes recipe from Pinch of Yum
12Instant Pot One-Pot Spaghetti With Meat SauceSkinny TasteGet the Instant Pot One-Pot Spaghetti With Meat Sauce recipe from Skinny Taste
13Instant Pot Red Beans And RiceA Pinch of HealthyGet the Instant Pot Red Beans And Rice recipe from A Pinch of Healthy
14Instant Pot Chicken CacciatoreLexis Clean KitchenGet the Instant Pot Chicken Cacciatore recipe from Lexi's Clean Kitchen
15Spicy Instant Pot Carrot SoupPinch of YumGet the Spicy Instant Pot Carrot Soup recipe from Pinch of Yum
16Instant Pot Minestrone SoupPinch of YumGet the Instant Pot Minestrone Soup recipe from Pinch of Yum
17Instant Pot Pumpkin Walnut ChiliPinch of YumGet the Instant Pot Pumpkin Walnut Chili recipe from Pinch of Yum
18Instant Pot Korean Beef TacosPinch of YumGet the Instant Pot Korean Beef Tacos recipe from Pinch of Yum
19Instant Pot Macaroni And Cheese Five WaysFoodie CrushGet the Instant Pot Macaroni And Cheese Five Ways recipe from Foodie Crush
20Instant Pot PicadilloSkinny TasteGet the Instant Pot Picadillo recipe from Skinny Taste
21Instant Pot Chicken Noodle SoupNumber 2 PencilGet the Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup recipe from Number 2 Pencil
22Instant Pot Pork CarnitasCooking with CurlsGet the Instant Pot Pork Carnitas recipe from Cooking with Curls