A few years back, Instant Pots reigned as the must-have appliance, due to their ability to expedite the cooking process. Not only that—Instant Pots can slow cook, roast, bake, steam, air fry, and dehydratecountless ingredients, helping to create some of the most tasty and memorable dishes. But just because this versatile gadget can technically do it all, that doesn't mean it should. In fact, there are a handful of foods that just shouldn’t be pressure-cooked.
Among them are dairy and fried foods, as well as burgers and steaks. These foods are not Instant-Pot-friendly for a multitude of reasons. And while Instant Pots are a useful tool when baking cheesecake, custard, or mousse, it's definitely not the best method for other types of desserts. When it comes to cookies and pies, your best bet will always be to trust your oven.
Here are the foods you shouldn't cook in an Instant Pot.
If you’re thinking of making a homemade vodka sauce or broccoli cheddar soup in your Instant Pot, think again. You should always avoid adding dairy to your Instant Pot because the high temperature will cause it to curdle, separate, or clump together. Instead, add cheese to your dish once it’s finished cooking.
When it comes to making healthier versions of your favorite fried foods, it’s best to avoid the Instant Pot altogether. Pressure cookers lock in air and moisture to expedite the cooking process, which simply doesn’t work for foods that are meant to be crispy. Dishes like fried chicken, potato skins, and onion rings are better suited for an air fryer, otherwise, they’ll become a soggy, oily mess.
While you can certainly whip up a batch of Instant Pot burgers, it’s probably not the best cooking method. Plus, there's nothing more idyllic in the summer than a juicy char-grilled burger. And that's the trick—the only way to get that beautiful smoky char is to prepare your burgers on the grill or in a cast-iron pan. Making burgers in an Instant Pot will steam them instead, which isn't the way to go.
Steaks
Similarly to burgers, the best way to achieve that smoky char on a steak is to grill it or cook it to your desired temperature in a cast-iron skillet. Not only will the steak be juicer and more decadent, but it will take half the time to cook, too.
Cookies
The perfect cookie has a soft, gooey center and deliciously crisp edges, which is only made possible by an evenly heated oven. Baking your cookies in an Instant Pot isn't a good idea for a few reasons. For one, there isn't much room to bake a batch of cookies, but more importantly, the moisture from the Instant Pot will make the batter spread out.
Just like cookies, pies thrive when baked in dry heat from an oven. Otherwise, it’s nearly impossible to make a pie with a firm and flaky, crust (which if you ask us, is the best part). However, you can make a delicious and fruity pie filling in an Instant Pot—just be sure to bake the whole treat in the oven for the ultimate pie experience.
In general, seafood such as fish, oysters, shrimp, muscles and clams are just too delicate for pressure cooking and slow cooking modes. They are foods that are meant to be cooked quickly at just the right temperature, which is hard to do with an Instant Pot.
In general, seafood such as fish, oysters, shrimp, muscles and clams are just too delicate for pressure cooking and slow cooking modes. They are foods that are meant to be cooked quickly at just the right temperature, which is hard to do with an Instant Pot.
They are most commonly used in industrial settings to quickly prepare meat or stocks. However, in most scenarios, Elite Chefs avoid using pressure cookers because they provide less control over the final dish. Chefs often prefer slow cooking techniques that accentuate and pull out the flavors of the food.
Most modern electric pressure cookers make it impossible for someone to open them while pressure is building on the inside. But, regardless, you shouldn't attempt to open one while it's in use. If you need to open your cooker while food is cooking, turn it off first and release the pressure before opening.
Mostly we boil potatoes in a pressure cooker, but like rice, potatoes also contain a lot of starch. This is the reason why boiling or cooking in this pressure cooker is not considered good for health. If you still plan to use cooker for the same, add a lot of water and wash them thoroughly post cooking.
Thus, it is advised to avoid cooking foods like French fries, pakoras, or tempura in a pressure cooker. Delicate foods like pasta and noodles can easily get overcooked and turn mushy in a pressure cooker. These foods cook quickly on the stovetop, so using a pressure cooker for these foods may result in a soggy texture.
4. The Instant Pot became an unnecessary appliance taking up space in my pantry. The Instant Pot is safe and effective at cooking food thoroughly, but I found that the downfalls of the machine didn't justify its space in the kitchen.
If you are interested primarily in slow cooking, you should buy a dedicated slow cooker. They're more reliable with a range of slow-cooker recipes than an Instant Pot. We found Instant Pot multicookers specifically could not successfully slow-cook dense, high-volume recipes such as beef stew or pot roast.
If you're looking to save counter space or don't want to spend a lot of money on separate appliances, then an Instant Pot could be worth the expense. However, if you're only going to use one or two functions of the Instant Pot, it's worth considering if separate devices would be more cost-effective.
Follow this tip: While at least 1/2 to 1 cup of liquid is essential to well-cooked food in the pressure cooker, too much liquid will pull the flavor out of foods. Unless otherwise specified in the recipe, use just enough liquid to bring the cooker to pressure.
It is safe to cook frozen food in a pressure cooker because it uses pressure to move food through the "Danger Zone" quickly. As a result, you don't run into the issues that you would find by cooking frozen food in a slow cooker, where it can stay too long in the Danger Zone and could become unsafe.
Is it worth buying an Instant Pot? Yes, we do think an Instant Pot is worth it, particularly for pressure cooking. There's a reason it's one of the most popular kitchen appliances out there.
No need to worry about the exact amount of liquid in the recipe if you're using your Instant Pot as a slow cooker; as long as it has 1 cup or more total, you should be safe.
Unfortunately, once you overcook a piece of meat in the pressure cooker, there's no going back. You'll be left with a pile of dry, crunchy, tasteless fibers and no amount of additional pressure cooking is going to put that moisture back into the meat. Earlier, I explained how ingredient size affects the cooking time.
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