Did you just order an Instant Pot? You’re probably wondering “what should I make first in my Instant Pot?” You may have seen lots of recipes floating around the internet and aren’t sure where to start. I’ll give you some ideas and get you feeling comfortable in no time!
What should I make first in my Instant Pot?
On the 365 Days of Instant Pot Recipes Facebook Group I saw a post by a new member named Helen. She asked, “I ordered an Instant Pot and it should be here on Monday. What do you suggest I make first? I want to have ingredients on hand to cook the day it arrives!”
First off, I love that she asked that question. Second it was so fun for me to read the responses of the group members. Here are some of their responses:
Kathy said, “My first dish was kalua pork! Yum!”
Debbie said, “Pot roast, my favorite dish”
Sherry said, “I agree, pot roast with the best mashed potatoes ever. Boiled eggs are so easy and peel better than ever. Taco soup. Meatballs and sauce. Endless possibilities.”
Jack said, “First of all, I recommend you read the manual TWICE, and do the water test so you will understand how the beast works. Then, from all the suggestions pick something you will enjoy eating. The first thing I made was BBQ Baby Back Ribs.”
Judy said, “If you are a first time user, go easy. Also, if you have a friend who is a pothead, call her and get a quick tutorial. It will save so much time. My daughter taught me in minutes. The book can be intimidating.”
I love all of those answers! Plus I have a few suggestions of my own…
I would suggest printing off my Printable Instant Pot Guide for Beginners. It is a great resource to help you feel confident and get you started with your Instant Pot.
If you’re a visual learner you may want to watch this video where I teach my mother-in-law how to use her new Instant Pot.
Some other resources I have that might interest you are:
10 Instant Pot Recipes for Beginners
5 Ingredient Instant Pot Recipes
9 Things You Didn’t Know About the Instant Pot
How to do the Instant Pot Water Test
3 Suggestions to Enhance your Instant Pot Experience
Best Instant Pot Recipes for Beginners
Try some of these Instant Pot recipes and you’ll be quickly hooked to your new kitchen appliance. It may find a permanent spot on the counter, like mine has.
- Hard Boiled Eggs–these are the EASIEST boiled eggs to peel. You’ll need a trivet or a steamer basket of sorts to make hard boiled eggs in your Instant Pot. My Instant Pot came with a trivet. If yours didn’t then I would suggest ordering one. I like this trivet/sling from the OXO brand*.
- Chicken Bacon Chowder–-I love making soups, chili and chowders in my Instant Pot. The soup tastes like it has been simmering all day but it only takes a few minutes. This is an easy and flavorful recipe that I love!
- Instant Pot Mississippi Roast–-Roasts can turn out wonderfully in the Instant Pot. Make sure to use natural pressure release on roasts for best results. This means that when the time is up you don’t move the valve to venting. You just let the pressure slowly release by itself. This will keep your roast from becoming a door stop.
- Instant Pot Cheater Lasagna–if you love the flavors of lasagna but don’t like the effort it takes this recipe is for you! You can make this Instant Pot lasagna pasta recipe with 6 ingredients and in just a few minutes. Pasta dishes have become one of my absolute favorite things to make in the Instant Pot. Check out all of my Instant Pot Pasta Recipes here.
You many also want to watch this quick video where I show you how to find the Instant Pot recipes that will most appeal to you and your family.
What Pressure Cooker Do You Use?
I use a 6 quart Instant Pot Duo 60 7 in 1*. I love this Instant Pot because it has the yogurt making function which I use almost weekly. It has two pressure settings (high and low), and there are also little slots in the handles so that you can rest the lid there instead of putting it down on your counter-top.
*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.
After I did the water test I was still reluctant to try a real recipe. So, I just cooked egg noodles. I got over my initial reluctance about letting off the steam and using the different settings. This success gave me the incentive to try a chicken dish which turned out perfectly.
See?! You got this!
Just received my Instant Pot. Just cooked my 4th meal. Your 5day course was so helpful. Just right, detailed enough to give me confidence. I used 2 of your recipes.
Thank you!
Good for you!!! Get after it.
Hi Karen,
I’m new to the instantpot having only made a few recipes that have come out pretty good. I was disappointed in the Apple Cider Donut Cake. It was so dense it was unappetizing. Was that the texture?
baking in the IP is definitely different than baking in the oven. It uses moist heat so the texture will be more dense and moist. It’s not for everyone but I love it!
Thanks so much for the “How To” videos. They are great! I used my Instant Pot (8 qt) a couple times, and it is back in the box. I had success with the first efforts, but I felt intimidated by the warnings that come with cooking with pressure. After watching a couple of your videos, and now the video of you with your mother-in-law cooking the eggs, I’m starting to see that I can make better use of my IP than I had originally suspected.
I am so happy that I stumbled across your website!! Keep the videos and the recipes coming!
Keep at it! It is fun and eventually you will get the hang of it!
My first project was a roast. It had good flavor, but that was all that was good about it. It was tough, really tough. What a waste of $20…for the roast. The pressure release valve doesn’t really stay in place. It kind floats however it feels like. Poor design. I made spaghetti with prego meat sauce and added hamburger meat. It took twice as long as doing it on the stove. But it was easier to clean up. I got the IP 6 qt as a Christmas gift. It’s just me in the household. I don’t make 6 qts of anything. I left it at my son’s house when I came back home. They won’t use it either. It’s really complicated. I have been reading the FB forum. I bought a few of the accessories and plan to try them out when I go back to my son’s house. Most of the eggbite recipes sound good. But could be made with the mold in the microwave in less than 5 minutes. I like the idea of making yogurt, but there is only me so yogurt will probably go bad before I finish using it. I need some advice for using IP for one person.
That is challenging! Don’t give up on it yet. It is hard to cook for one person. And you’re right. A lot of things would be faster and maybe even easier the traditional ways. I would suggest watching this video to get your started: https://youtu.be/EJd6dC5d62U
I am single one person Instant Pot cook..You can freeze extra yogurt and add to smoothies…Actually you can freeze most anything..Or share with your neighbors..
Hi! I was gifted an 8-quart Instant Pot. I see many recipes for the IP but most of them are designed for the 6-quart models. How do I adjust my times for the larger-sized pot? I still haven’t made much in the IP save for a beef roast (which turned out really well) and a beef stew which really didn’t turn out well at all (meat was great, but vegetables were mushy and the seasoning was off…I tried to adjust the recipe from one that was slow-baked in the oven using a Dutch casserole. Since that last failure, I am hesitant to use it… Thanks for any help you can give!
Basically you can follow any recipe that’s made for the 6 quart pot. The only difference is that the 8 quart pot needs around 1.5 cups of liquid to come to pressure instead of the 1 cup required for the 6 quart pot. So if you’re making a soup recipe that calls for 5 cups of liquid you would just keep the recipe the same. But if you make a recipe that only has 1/2 cup of liquid you will need to increase that amount to around 1.5 cups. If you increase the liquid it might need more seasonings or thickeners like cornstarch. Hope this helps!
Hi Karen,
You are a great teacher! I’m sure your Mother-in-law will be able to use hers. I don’t use my instant pot as often as I should because my husband passed away & the kids are grown and gone.
What was so intimidating for me at first, was all the buttons. Now it seems like I use the ‘Saute’ and “Manual” buttons 90% of the time, so that makes it less scary 😉
Thanks for all your easy & delicious recipes!
That’s all I use too! It’s all you need!
I LOVE my Instant Pot and I just ordered the Fryer top. I have made your recipes and now have made several of my own!!
Good job Rose!!! It’s so fun isn’t it?
Hi Karen, love your recipes just tried your meatballs with chili sauce & grape jelly 😋who knew that the two combos would go so well together😊
Karen I was wondering if you could walk us through using the slow cooker on the IP many of us r leary to use it but want too😊
Thank you😊
I need to do that Susanne! The truth is I haven’t used it much. I know it gets bad reviews as it doesn’t cook like a normal slow cooker. That’s why I’ve been hesitant.
I have the IP DUO 60 V3. Mine doesn’t have the Adjust button. How to you increase or decrease the time in the Sauté Function.
Love your recipes. Both my children got a IP on my recommendation!!
I’m not entirely sure but I think the + and – buttons might work.
One may be an Instant Pot beginner, but only very few I’m sure are COOKING beginners. That said, the first thing one should make in their IP is something they’d not only REALLY personally enjoy, but something that unlocks the full potential of the IP. For ME, I made full-blown beef stew that would’ve taken HOURS to make conventionally. Instead, I learned about the magical time-saving wonders of the Instant Pot straight away by making that dish. FURTHER, I enjoyed beef stew afterward for several weeks with all I’d made, each time mentally patting myself on my back for doing it. Now remember, before IP, I was just a regular guy who’d normally make a meal out of a 5-lb bag of ravioli I’d bought at Costco, let alone making a REAL meal! This made my first IP experience SO MUCH MORE memorable and gave me the confidence to try other things I’d never dreamed of making (which I HAVE done)I! BTW, Jack’s comment above is also spot on. 🙂
Good point Mike!!
Karen I have a 3qt IP … how do you know how much liquid to use … is it 1/2 of what you would use in a 6qt?
Read this…it will help you! https://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/how-to-halve-instant-pot-recipes/
Hello Karen!!
Where do l go to ask questions.
I LOVE my Instana Pot.
Thank you so much for your 365.
are you part of our facebook group yet?