I'm in love with my automatic pressure cooker

[spinbaby]

In the last month I've done everything from braises to rice to rising bread dough in the thing--it's just so versatile. Last night I made chili--browned the meat and onion on the sauté setting, added the other ingredients, clamped on the lid, and pressed the "chili" button. It pressure cooked the chili for half an hour and automatically turned itself to warm. Its warm setting is exactly 150 degrees--I checked--so it doesn't keep on cooking like a slow cooker would. I seriously love this gadget.

[CurtEastPoint]

1. Interesting! Never have had one. What model/brand?

[spinbaby]

2. Mine is Instant Pot

But there are a lot of similar models out there.

[The empressof all]

5. You got the best one!

I love my Instapot more than any other small appliance. I love that it has a stainless inner pot. Have you made Congee yet? We are addicted...especially when you add a roasted turkey leg. I use mine at least two or three times a week! So easy to just make smaller batches of stock! My only wish is that I could find a stainless basket for it. I haven't really looked for one but it would make lifting things out a little easier.

[jtuck004]

3. I do some herb cookery, and found that they changed the electrics of crock pots a few years

ago, to make their low settings much higher. Seems people were leaving meat in unsafe temps and growing homemade germs that made people sick.

I appreciate the info. Previously bought a Presto Multi-kettle, $25 bucks or so and it works at lower temps than a crock pot, but yours sounds like it might be useful, and with a better range.

[spinbaby]

4. My crock pot boils food

A warm setting isn't much good if it's cooking the food. 150 is safe without over cooking the food. The gadget also manages barely warm for yogurt culture and rising bread.

[jtuck004]

6. Yeah, my thoughts as well. n/t

[Tab]

7. Although I used to have one

I grew up scared of them (too many crock pots (circa 1950, 1960, etc.) exploded if not properly used or, worse, due to technical flaws.

I'd like to think they're a lot better now. I do have a healthy fear of them, though, reasonably well-founded, but perhaps on the order of my previous fear of gas ovens (am better on that, but refuse to use gas to heat the house).