Mary-Jeanine’s Favorite Instant Pot Recipes, tried and true!
I’m giving you the links, rather than copying the recipes out on this page. That way you can read all about the recipe in the author’s blog.
If the recipe is on this page, I’ve made it at least twice. I’ll put my VERY favorites at the top of the list.
By the way, I own the 3-quart Instant Pot, and some of these recipes are for 6-quart. I just cut all the ingredients in half.
Chicken and Dumplings – I swear, I dream about this one when I sleep.
Notes:
1. The recipe calls for Bisquick, which I don’t buy, so here is the conversion:
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1.5 tbsp softened butter
2. Last weekend we camped with my brother and his family. Since he’s gluten-free, he brought some Pamela’s Baking Mix and I added melted butter and milk. Worked great!!
Butter Chicken – Hubby said last night this is his new favorite recipe. High praise! I read about the recipe in the Costco magazine, and it turns out this recipe is hugely popular. Be sure to make your own Garam Masala spice mix. Its worth getting a spice/coffee grinder ($15) if you don’t have one. I love that the recipe makes enough sauce that I can freeze half in a pint jar for another meal in a few weeks.
Chicken Tortilla Soup – My friend Candy shared this link and it’s a great one. I use 3 cups of liquid instead of 5 and that’s plenty in my 3-quart IP. Super satisfying and great leftovers.
Notes: maybe you know this? You can put your chicken breasts in your Kitchenaid stand mixer (I have a Bosch Universal which also works well) and the cookie paddles will shred your cooked chicken in SECONDS. I’ve actually also put cooked chicken thighs with the bone which works, but sometimes the knuckles come off and you don’t find them till they are in your mouth, lol.
Spaghetti – I never really liked spaghetti and meatballs or spaghetti and meat sauce, and now I realize it because of the pasta. Now that I use this recipe, the pasta soaks up the tomato sauce and the pasta is a lot more flavorful. I made this once for my MIL who couldn’t stop talking about it, to the point that she bought an IP so she could make it again.
Sour Cream Pork Chops – I kinda stopped fixing pork chops because they were always hard and not very flavorful. All my meat is pasture-raised, so I have to find a good way to cook it so its tender. This way works!
New York Cheesecake – OK, I’ll admit I’ve only made this once, but that’s because its Covid year and I’m not going to make something this rich and then eat half of it. It’s a special occasion dessert and how many special occasions have we had since March 2020? Exactly one: our anniversary in August. Anyway, it was super easy once I remembered to buy all the ingredients. You will need a Cheesecake pan that fits into your IP liner. For my 3-quart, I bought this one.
Bourbon & Cola Beef Short Ribs – I’ve only made this once, but now that I’m reading the recipe, its time to make it again. Very tasty.
Beef Stroganoff – I double or triple the seasonings and use red wine instead of white wine. So much flavor!.
Minestrone Soup – I just made this again tonight. The original recipe is for a 6-quart so I halved the ingredients.
· Notes: needs some more spices/flavors. I usually toss in a bunch of Italian Seasoning.
o I love that the recipe starts with DRIED BEANS, instead of canned, but I’m always worried they won’t cook enough, so I put the beans in bowl with some water and microwave for 2 minutes, then toss in to the IP. Works every time!
o For kale, I get lazy and buy the bagged baby kale from Trader Joes. Just toss right from the bag.
o Since I only use half the ingredients shown, I then make the soup again a few days later with the other half bag of kale, other half can of tomatoes, other half of a diced onion, etc.
o I rarely buy white potatoes. I try to sub in sweet potatoes when possible. So that’s what I did for this recipe too.
o Pasta isn’t necessary, esp when that might mean another trip to the store, like tonight.
o This is a vegetarian recipe, but you could certainly add meat later. I tossed in some chopped pre-cooked chicken sausages at the end tonight.
Other things I like to make in my Instant Pot
Hard Boiled Eggs – I swear the peels practically fly off. 5 mins of pressure cooking, 5 minutes of NPR, 5 minutes of ice bath. (5/5/5)
Steel Cut Oats – I love to set this up the night before (use Delay setting) so I can wake up to instant breakfast. 1.5 cups steel-cut oats, 3.5 cups water, 1 tsp salt. Cook for 4 minutes, then 20 mins of NPR. Add your toppings, keep extra in frig for a week.
Smothered pork chops
Delicious! I didn’t follow a recipe but will share what I did the best I can.
Seared bone in pork chops on the sauté mode with dry seasonings, minced garlic and olive oil. About three mins each side.
Removed chops kept on sauté mode and added 1 1/2 cups of beef broth (I used two whole bullion cubes for extra flavor) deglazed the pot while still in sauté mode.
Put chops back in resting them on trivet.
High pressure for 12 mins; natural release for 10.
Removed chops. Put back on sauté mode. Used unknown amount of flour to thicken the broth. Added sour cream; probably about a half a cup but I didn’t measure.
Put over rice and smothered with that yummy sour cream gravy. A little parsley on top for appearance lol!
Whole thing took about 35 mins and was delightful.
I love that you don’t always need a recipe. I love that I didn’t use a can of soup!
Finally, I’d recommend joining the IP community on Facebook. Tons of great ideas, help and recipes.