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October 7, 2020

10 Surprising Uses of the Instant Pot

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The Instant Pot can be used for commonly thought of foods such as soup, rice and hard boiled eggs but did you know all of these surprising uses of the Instant Pot?

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10 Surprising Uses of the Instant Pot

Popcorn

Making popcorn the old fashioned way instead of in the microwave! You know exactly what goes into it and it’s much healthier. You can see exactly how by watching this video. Have you ever made homemade crackers jacks? Caramel corn with peanuts taste so good!

instant pot egg loaf

Egg Loaf

If you need a bunch of chopped boiled eggs for a recipe I have a great trick for you. Some people call this “egg loaf.” Basically you crack as many eggs in a dish that you need and then cook them very quickly in your Instant Pot. Once the eggs are cooked you can cut them up easily on a cutting board. This saves so much time because there is NO PEELING!!! I like to use these eggs for cobb salad, avocado egg salad, egg salad or potato salad.

Corn on the Cob

The easiest and tastiest corn on the cob! You’ll never go back boiling corn on the stove again. My version has the corn slathered with minced fresh garlic, butter, salt and pepper.

a chuck roast is cooked until moist and tender in an hour in your Instant Pot (mine was frozen!) along with seasoned vegetables. The meal is finished off with homemade gravy

Frozen Roast

A frozen chuck roast is cooked until moist and tender in your Instant Pot along with seasoned vegetables. This is good for people like me who want to use frozen items but don’t remember to defrost them the day before!

Boiled Peanuts

The Instant Pot can speed up this usually long process of boiling peanuts! When peanuts are boiled they remind me of the texture of a chickpea or edamame. They are also salty because they are boiled in salty water.

Dulce De Leche

If you’re a fan of all things sweet and caramelly you’re going to love this dulce de leche that is a perfect dipping sauce for apples or to pour over ice cream. All you need is one ingredient–sweetened condensed milk!

Rice Krispy Treats

Use your Instant Pot’s sauté function to quickly make a double batch of rice krispy treats. Stir in some m&ms to make them even better. The pot is big enough you can easily double the recipe and the marshmallows will all fit. This is especially true if you have an 8 quart pot.

Ramen Noodles

I made the ramen noodles in the Instant Pot and my son made them in a pot on the stove. Which turned out faster? Watch the video to find out. You can see other boxed and packaged foods that I’ve tried in the Instant Pot here.

Baked Potatoes

Make fluffy, moist baked potatoes in your Instant Pot without foil and in just a few minutes!

I love making baked potatoes in the Instant Pot because they are:

  • faster than the oven
  • fluffy and moist
  • don’t require foil
  • you can pile in as many potatoes as will fit (even past the max fill line)

Double Boiler

Using your Instant Pot as a double boiler is a great way to melt the chocolate and then keep it warm and melty as you dip, dip, dip until your heart’s content. The Instant Pot keeps the chocolate the PERFECT temperature the entire time that you are dipping. I think that it’s much easier to use than the stove top method or the microwave method because the Instant Pot is placed on the counter and your parchment or waxed paper is placed right next to it. This leads to much less mess and it’s very convenient.

26 More Surprising Uses of the Instant Pot…

Here are some other fun ways to use your Instant Pot! Some are from me and others are from other bloggers. Enjoy!

  1. Vanilla extract
  2. Sterilizing bottles
  3. Cottage Cheese
  4. Flan
  5. Cheesecake
  6. Rasbperry Cordial
  7. Lemon Curd
  8. Apple Cider
  9. Artichokes
  10. Jam
  11. Apple Sauce
  12. Deodorizing house using lemon essential oil on steam
  13. Whole Pumpkin
  14. Proofing bread
  15. Iced Tea
  16. Potato Salad
  17. Rice Pudding
  18. Dog Food
  19. Boxed Mac and Cheese
  20. Chicken Wings
  21. Reheating leftovers
  22. Bone Broth
  23. Tamale Pie
  24. Ricotta
  25. Apple Butter
  26. Spaghetti Squash

And while not surprising, these are my favorite ways to use my Instant Pot...

What is your favorite way to use your Instant Pot? Do you have any surprising or weird things you use it for? I’d love to know! Comment below.

*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

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7 Comments Filed Under: All Recipes, Collections, Instant Pot

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Comments

  1. barbara says

    October 16, 2020 at 8:02 am

    I saw once that you had a tip on reodorizing the instant pot. Would you send it to me again please?

    Reply
    • Karen says

      October 19, 2020 at 7:16 pm

      https://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/how-to-deep-clean-your-instant-pot/

      Reply
  2. Debi says

    October 8, 2020 at 3:45 pm

    Was watching the video of rice krispy cookies with your son. Quick tip I learned. Use a medium binder clip to keep inner pot stable to stir without pan moving. It’s a life saver for mixing things in instant pot.

    Reply
    • Karen says

      October 9, 2020 at 7:45 pm

      Good plan!

      Reply
  3. geri Anthony says

    October 7, 2020 at 1:24 pm

    Karen, I made the creamy chicken soup that you sent me the recipe, so good!🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

    Reply
    • Karen says

      October 7, 2020 at 1:26 pm

      YESSSSS!!! And you used the cream cheese?

      Reply
      • geri says

        October 7, 2020 at 2:49 pm

        Yes,yum👍👍

        Reply

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Welcome!

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Hi, I’m Karen. I know that dinner time can be less than relaxing. Busy schedules and cranky kids and a hundred other things can lead to weariness when it comes to putting dinner on the table. I can help! I make homemade, family-friendly slow cooker and Instant Pot dinners and share the recipes with you.

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Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

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