Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker Cookbook: Easy Recipes for Fast & Healthy Meals

by Laurel Randolph

Prepare delicious dishes in an instant

The Instant Pot is an incredibly versatile appliance—but it can also be a tad intimidating. Turn to this electric pressure cooker cookbook for guidance and easy, delicious recipes that cut down on cooking and leave you braising, boiling, slow cooking, and sauteing like a pro.

What sets this pressure cooker cookbook

AN INTRO TO YOUR INSTANT Master your pressure cooker with step-by-step instructions, a detailed breakdown of features and functions, safety advice, and more.A WIDE VARIETY OF HEALTHY Dive into fast, family-friendly meals that will have you licking your lips, from a satisfying Bacon and Egg Strata breakfast to a flavorful Chicken Tikka Masala dinner that everyone will love to eat.HANDY TIPS & CHEAT Pressure cook like a pro with recipe hacks, guides to cook times, and tips for converting your favorite dishes.

Take the pressure off of preparing nutritious, tasty meals—even on the busiest weeknights—with this easy Instant Pot cookbook.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction, Reference, Food, Food and Drink, Amazon

297 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 6, 2016

Reviews

[Alissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The three stars is for the lack of pictures. If you're making a cookbook, put pictures of every recipe in it. Period. I don't even need them with the recipe, put pictures together at the end of the book, but please, put in pictures! Otherwise: the variety was nice, the pressure cooker tips were nice, and it was well organized. Overall, this is a pretty good collection of recipes. I tend to be picky about cookbooks, but the ratio of recipes I would be interested in trying from this one is probably close to half--that's high. There are several that I think might make it into a regular rotation at my house--assuming they taste as good as they look like they will. As an Instant Pot newbie, I'm grateful for a place to start that appears so appetizing. I'm glad I bought it, and I'm trying my first recipe tonight.

[ValerieC · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recently got an Instant Pot to replace my Breville that was one of the first electric pressure cookers on the market, but it's more than 10 years old and the control panel was very hard to see. I like the idea of preset buttons, and God knows there are a bazillion IP fans out there on Facebook and Pinterest, so recipes are easy to come by now. Even with my small amount of experience with an electric pressure cooker, I haven't made anything in my very few attempts that actually worked out, except beef stew was edible one time.

This book has 18 pages of good basic operating directions in the front of the book, so that's helpful. There are good helpful hints. There aren't more than a few recipes that caught my interest... just not my taste, but there is a good selection. There is a good standard Index at the back of the book.

The value of the book to me is the times to cook different types of things because if you know how long to cook something in a pressure cooker, you can wing it from there. This book has a lot of charts for this, which makes it worth the book price just for that. I rarely used my first electric pressure cooker because there weren't many recipe sources for these machines then and the one recipe book I did have had everything turning out undercooked or overcooked (like pot roast that tasted like boiled meat, ugh!) because it wasn't specific to an electric pressure cooker, which I didn't know made a difference. I just like to read cookbooks even though I don't love to cook, so since then I've collected several other pressure cooker cookbooks, too. Overall, this one is a great basic resource.

Anyway, I've obsessed about this cooker for well over a year, finally bought one two weeks ago (with all sorts of accompanying accessories) just so that I could quit worrying about it, and... it's still in the box. (The fam is going out of town this weekend and I'm resolved to make something - probably a cheese cake).

[Dawn Stahl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like half of America, I recently got an Instant Pot pressure cooker and am ready and willing to fall in love with it. So far, I'm in moderate like, not love, but this cookbook may push me over into a solid infatuation. The subtitle seems to promise too much — "Easy Recipes for Fast and Healthy Meals" — but, so far, it seems to be delivering.

I like the balance of recipes, which are organized into breakfast; vegetables; beans and grains; soups, stews, and chilies; seafood and poultry; beef, lamb, and pork; dessert; and stocks and sauces. The variety within each category is pretty good, too, covering traditional American fare (chili, pot roast, cheese grits, apple dumplings, etc.) as well as several ethnic dishes (lamb curry, tabbouleh, fried rice, Thai-style corn chowder, pho, matzo ball soup, etc.).

Two things I really appreciate: 1) Each recipe gives prep time, time under pressure, and TOTAL time, plus nutrition info per serving. 2) The end matter includes general pressure-cooking time charts, general cooking conversion tables, the list of the "dirty dozen" and the "clean fifteen," and a resources list that actually gives other helpful resources (www.InstantPot.com, www.HipPressureCooking.com, www.PressureCookingToday.com, etc.) and isn't just a place to promote other books or sites by the author.

Two things I'm not a fan of: 1) Stock photos instead of shots of the actual dishes. 2) The number of recipes that require a small (6- or 7-inch diameter, or whatever fits in your cooker) baking dish used inside the pressure cooker. Unless you really don't want to heat up your oven, the very small amount of total time saved doesn't seem worth the hassle. Plus, many of them are relatively easy breakfast dishes (strata, frittata, french toast bake, etc.) that suddenly seem too complicated for this not-a-morning person once the pressure cooker is involved. I can maybe see an occasion for making individual desserts in ramekins in the pressure cooker, but I don't anticipate ever making a medium-size baked dessert or casserole-style dish or breakfast bake in it.

Those beans, grains, soups, stews, roasts, and stocks, however — I'm ready to fall in love with those.

[Donna Ware · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous recipes

Used pressure cooker during childhood. Never used one after married. Really fastest, easiest, stress free, economical way of cooking. So happy to read these recipes to learn the joy of cooking that awaits me when my instant pot arrives. Don't know which recipe to try first!!!

[Candy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly the Instant Pot Bible!

More than just fabulous recipes. Helpful information about the parts of the pot, the presets and what they're used for, conversion charts and more. Once you have this book, you won't need any other. I have several other Instant Pot books, none can compare or come close to this book. I recommend this book very highly and I never write reviews.

[Letty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great for a beginner

Insightful and great for a beginner. Easy to navigate. However, not enough photos for my liking, only the chapter introduction has a photo.

[Ash · Rating 2 out of 5]

Way too many meat recipes :( But just wanted to cookbook for Instant Pot. I got rid of this book once I found a good vegan book.

[Nancie Lafferty · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5. Well organized, but lacking food photos. Successfully prepared a number of the recipes in this book and everything was spot on - except possibly the prep times (I relax and enjoy chopping veggies) and the times for sautéing onions to perfection.

[Greymalkin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice ideas with flavors that I don't usually see in pressure cooker cookbooks.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book provides instructions and tips for those new to using the Instant Pot. Of the 100+ recipes, I will probably try about 30-40 recipes.

[Lori · Rating 2 out of 5]

A few good recipes, but the others are odd combinations. Overall, the ingredients are something you would have in your kitchen already (with a few exceptions, of course).

If you have an adventurous palette, then this is for you.
If you want ordinary, everyday meals, then look for something else.

[Nora St Laurent · Rating 4 out of 5]

Out of the other Instant Pot cookbooks I’ve reviewed this author takes the time to help the user understand the machine before they jump in and use it. IT also answers the question Why use a pressure cooker in the first place? What are some benefits? I appreciated the Step-by-step Pressure-Cooking do’s and don’ts. I also liked the face that the author took the time to explain what each button meant since many of the machines have different buttons. The terms she goes over are Manuel/Pressure cooker, Sauté – slow cook-steam, bean/chili - meat/stew - multigrain, porridge, poultry, rice, soup, and yogurt.

I also liked the section on converting your favorite recipes to instant pot recipes. The recipes I tried in the book are Steam Fish and Veggies, Shrimp Scampi, and Classic Chicken Wings. They were yummy. The recipes I look forward to making are Brown Butter and Asparagus Risotto, Spaghetti Squash with Parmesan and Pine Nuts, Quick Zucchini Ratatouille and many more.

Each recipe is clearly marked with one of these labels:
Virtually instant – 20 minute or less
Weekday win – 45 minutes or less
Worth the wait – 1 hour or longer
Family-friendly – kid friendly, ingredients serve 4 or more

There are clear Labels for Vegetarian, gluten-free Paleo friendly. Also tagged in the recipe are Ingredient tips, variation tips, instant pot tips, cooking tip – substitution. Each recipe has the nutritional break down per serving for Calories, Total Carbs, Saturated Fat, Trans fat, Fiber, Protein and Sodium but not a breakdown for sugar. The chapters at listed below with how many recipes are in each section.

· Breakfast-vegetables 16 – soups, stews and chilies 16 – Seafood and Poultry 16 – Beef, lamb, pork 15, dessert 9, stocks and sauces 16, Helpful electric Pressure-cooking time chart
· Beans and legumes – grains, meat, poultry, seafood, veggies,
· List changes every year website list current conversion tables
· Resources

This was a very helpful cookbook with recipes my family and I found delightful. I would have loved more color pictures of the recipes. It always helps to see if your recipe turned out the way it was supposed to. Grin! I think the more I use this cook book the more confident I’ll get in using this tool!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the Publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

Nora St. Laurent

TBCN Where Book Fun Begins! www.bookfun.org
The Book Club Network blog www.psalm516.blogspot.com
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[Susan Kendrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Helpful when it comes to the ins and outs of the IP, but few of these recipes look like something my family would enjoy.

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just bought an Instantpot and wanted a good introduction with solid healthy recipes. This did the trick.

[Ann Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

First let me say, I don't own an Instant Pot. I bought this cookbook in an effort to understand the hype. It turns out, this is an excellent cookbook even if you don't own one. All the food represented was real food, cooked with time tested methods in a new age way. I'm still not sure I'll buy an Instant Pot but I will try some of these recipes as the author makes it easy to think about how to make these recipes without one.

[Roberta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great recipes...I wish there were more pictures.

[Wulfwyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got an Instant Pot for Christmas and excitedly picked up several cookbooks for it. This was one of them. I am so happy I chose this book! A good description of the Instant Pot and how to use/care for it starts the book off. The recipes are easy to follow. The ingredients are everyday ones for the most part. The author includes tips and variations with the recipes. Another thing I appreciated is the recipes contain some nutritional information, including carb counts. My dad is a diabetic so carb counts are important in my house. The actual only drawback is there are no pictures of the recipes. I do like to see how my meal looks in comparison to how it is supposed to look. Sometimes they match, sometimes I am left determined that next time it will look like the picture. Haha. So while not having pictures does not affect the ease of following the recipe, it does take out the comparison fun. For someone new to the Instant Pot, I would definitely recommend this book. Inexperienced cooks and those new to pressure or instant cooking will be able to easily follow the recipes. I would recommend they take the time to read through the description, use and care of the Instant Pot before diving into the recipes. I found a lot of helpful advice, and even highlighted things I need to remember, in this section of the book. Vegetarians may find some recipes in here but would probably be better with a book that is directed towards their diet. They might want to borrow this book to read over the helpful advice though.

[Deena · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a pretty good cookbook for IP users. I've tried many of the recipes and all of them, save one, were successes. My only criticisms would be the lack of photos that others have mentioned, and also there are some recipes where they call for you to remove things from the pot in order to saute other ingredients but then never tell you when to add back that first ingredient (Beans, Sausage, and Greens recipe comes to mind immediately, but I think there was at least one more with the same issue). Overall, definitely worth the purchase.

[Thomas Delane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some info on the Ipot and cook times

Weird recipes. Not many American foods. The author must be a refugee from Europe or a veggie hippy dippy. Needs to spend time in cooking an American diner.
Overall dont waste your money.

[Jeanette Hurrelbrink · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good instruction cookbook for a new product. Not sure I will use thy type of recipes found in the book. Breakfast entries look good.

[Stephani Austin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Several helpful recipes, especially helpful for a pressure cooking beginner.

[Dorla Dixon · Rating 5 out of 5]

New to pressure cooking

Skimmed the book and I'm ready to try several of the recipes. I'm new to pressure cooking. This book offers easy to follow instructions.

[PoligirlReads · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just okay. I wouldn't recommend this book for the recipes, but it was a useful resource for becoming more familiar with the capabilities of the Instant Pot (IP).

This cookbook suffers from a distinct lack of pictures. This is the 21st century. I expect my cookbooks to have pictures, and lots of 'em. So that was a major reductor of stars. The other issue is that many of the recipes quite frankly do not sound particularly exciting or appetizing, or they required additional equipment other than the IP. I was really unimpressed with her jam/marmalade/butter recipes.

While there aren't many recipes in here that I'd actually like to try (quite possibly because I can't see any pictures of the end result), the two stars remain because Randolph has given me useful cooking time instructions. For example, while I wasn't into her spaghetti squash recipe, I now know how long to cook a spaghetti squash in the IP. I made delicious ribs not using her recipe, but by using her recommended cooking times. That was very handy, but I can't imagine buying this book for that reason, especially because there are now other IP cookbooks out there.

[Kathleen Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why should you have an Instant Pot? Are you in need of time after getting off of work and trying to get supper ready before the kids get home? Do you want to be able to have and give your kids a healthy option for breakfast that is fast and nutritious? Then I think you should get an instant pot and get this cookbook!

This cookbook gives step by step instructions for pressure cooking. Important to read as there are safety measures that must be taken, as the venting of the cooker. There are 100 healthy recipes in this cookbook. As far as the recipes, some are virtually instant, 20 minutes or less, recipes that are worth the wait, like an hour or so. There are family friendly recipes that will be sure to please.

What is especially helpful with this cookbook, is the electric cooking time charts and the conversion charts. There is a section called the Dirty Dozen and the Clean Fifteen. Basically what that is is foods you should and can and foods you should not eat.

The only downside is that there should be more pictures. Other than that I would highly recommend this cookbook!

I received a copy of this book for review purposes only!

[Suzanne (Doppleganger) · Rating 2 out of 5]

1. This book claims to be for the Instant Pot, which is known for having settings for rice, beans, soup, poultry, etc. Yet every single recipe tells you to use the manual setting. Not one use of the features and settings unique to the Instant Pot. I could have bought any pressure cooker cookbook.
2. Teriyaki Pork Loin turned out great.
3. Spiced Coconut Chicken and Rice: Cooking the bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs in the sauce made the sauce greasy. The recipe has you remove the chicken from the bones while the rice is cooking....but at this point the chicken is going to he too hot to handle. Recipe claims to take a total of 45 minutes, but waiting for chicken to cool made it more like 1 hr 30 min.
4. Chicken and Dumplings: Same issues with the chicken thighs as with #2. Recipe claims to take 55 minutes, but in reality took over 2 hours. I could have done better and quicker using traditional stove top methods.

[Nadine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was debating on whether I would want a pressure cooker so I was pleased to get this book from the member giveaway on Librarything. It convinced me to buy one as the beginning clearly tells you what you can do and I had no idea I could sauté and slow cook in it as well. There are good chapter divisions for types of food and the recipes are clearly and logically written along with what pressure level and type of release to use. I will not buy or keep any cookbook which does not list by recipe name and main ingredient. This book has the two in separate indexes along with urls for the manual and more recipes. I'm picky on what cookbooks to keep on paper or on a computer and this one is a keeper and if I reference it a lot, I'll buy a paper copy.

[Liz Lem · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love my Instant Pot! I remember when my friend Sally bought one and I thought, "I'll never get one of those things!" and any time I say that about something, I end up with that something. Now that I have it, I am having fun cooking in it. This Kindle book cost around $1.50. I could've just used an internet search, but the problem with that is ads. I noticed that every time I look up a recipe on the internet there's more narrative than there is recipe. This book has good recipes and is teaching me how to gauge needed time to cook things in the IP. Since I didn't grow up doing pressure cooking, I find that's my biggest challenge - knowing what button to push and how long it needs. This book is helping and I highly recommend it.

[Nicole Henke · Rating 5 out of 5]

For those of you who like cookbooks with photos, this isn't the book for you. But having said that, the recipes are are SO good, and really teach you to fully use your Insta Pot, that it's almost a MUST have! The book covers everything from breakfast to dessert, with the main courses being the best of the recipes- there are plenty of variations of pot roast that can make your weekly dinners SO easy, by using the left over meat the next night for tacos or sandwiches. And then there are the desserts, that let you free up your oven, which is really good for the upcoming Summer months! This is a good book to give WITH an Insta Pot if you're giving one to Mom for Mother's Day too! So check it out and see what you're missing!

[Rachel DeVaughn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now that I have an Instant Pot, I've been looking for some easy recipes to try.

The author begins by talking about the benefits of pressure cooking, step by step instructions of how to use it, the different settings on the Instant Pot like "slow cook", safety tips and cleaning and caring,

This book is divided up into 8 chapters of recipes like breakfast, vegetables, soups/stews/chilis, desserts, beans/grains etc.

Each recipe is also labeled Gluten free, vegetarian, or paleo friendly which is very helpful. The breakfast recipes and cinnamon applesauce were my favorite recipes.

I received a copy of this book complimentary for blog and social media review. All opinions are my own.

[Heidi Kirsch · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do appreciate the educational bits in the beginning. I didn't think my cooker came with enough info. There is a good range of recipes but personally its not like Joy of Cooking or an everyday, all around cookbook. I have the Kindle version so don't know if its the same for print edition but one recipe runs into another. Instead of having its own page, or even clearly delineated title, one recipe sort of bleeds into the next. And not many photos at all. You can give me a recipe name and ingredients but it's the photo of how it should look that's the clincher. I don't regret buying it, it's just not the first cookbook I pick up.