Wellness

[lolakimono]

@sidsmom and other Instant Pot users, I am looking for your expertise.  I posted this in Wellness, because I am looking for specific functions and I think the Wellness people might know more about this.

Once a week or so we make a big pot of rice in our favorite cast iron skillet, A.K.A. "Old Blackie", using a glass lid and baking it in the oven at 350 for an hour.  This works okay, but it does require some planning throughout the week.

Typically for lunch, I bring similar items in my mini-Crock Pot lunch warmer: rice, veggies, beans-

refried beans + red pepper + rice + salsa

black beans + red pepper + corn + rice

garbanzos + rice + spinach + tomato sauce

You get the idea.

I also do a lot of potatoes- regular and sweet.

I eat a can of beans for lunch over two days. I don't love the waste of the cans for recycling, nor the weight of bringing them home from the store.  I buy the low sodium beans, but I would like to make my own.

I get up at 3:40 on school days, so that I can go to the gym. I really do not have time to do extensive cooking throughout the week, so I am hoping that with the Instant Pot I could speed up the cooking of rice and learn how to make my own beans.  

It is just the two of us.  I pack my lunch 5 days a week (school days) around those staples.  BF does not adore beans, but I can put them in soup or Mexican foods and he's okay.

I was doing some research but getting overwhelmed with the choices.  I was thinking a 6 quart would be a good size, but then I see things about 7 in 1, 9 in 1, 10 in 1, etc.  I also read online that the bigger pots cook the beans faster, but since I am the main bean eater, I wondered if the 8 quart would be too big.

Thank you in advance for any help that you can provide.

[PINKdogWOOD]

Hi Ms Lola, Happy 2020!!!

We don't have one of these pots but we sure do leave out the processed packaged foods that we used to eat years ago. Sounds like we enjoy eating the same mex/spanish foods for sure. We have a food truck up the road from us I visit oft when we run out of their delish homemade w/much love tamales, chichen & pork. I could eat these every day!!! with rice, beans, green salad w/avocados. You get the pickture!

White rice in old blackie, an interesting way to make your rice for the week. I just boil in a pot, make extra so we also have some for another meal or two. Good thing we both love to cook, we do eat really healthy but DH does still love his chips & dips. I'm back off of sweets, desserts, chips, and am much more off the gluten breads too. Makes a huge diff on the wght, diet, tummy bulge too.

[jackthebear]

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@lolakimono wrote:

@sidsmom and other Instant Pot users, I am looking for your expertise.  I posted this in Wellness, because I am looking for specific functions and I think the Wellness people might know more about this.

Once a week or so we make a big pot of rice in our favorite cast iron skillet, A.K.A. "Old Blackie", using a glass lid and baking it in the oven at 350 for an hour.  This works okay, but it does require some planning throughout the week.

Typically for lunch, I bring similar items in my mini-Crock Pot lunch warmer: rice, veggies, beans-

refried beans + red pepper + rice + salsa

black beans + red pepper + corn + rice

garbanzos + rice + spinach + tomato sauce

You get the idea.

I also do a lot of potatoes- regular and sweet.

I eat a can of beans for lunch over two days. I don't love the waste of the cans for recycling, nor the weight of bringing them home from the store.  I buy the low sodium beans, but I would like to make my own.

I get up at 3:40 on school days, so that I can go to the gym. I really do not have time to do extensive cooking throughout the week, so I am hoping that with the Instant Pot I could speed up the cooking of rice and learn how to make my own beans.  

It is just the two of us.  I pack my lunch 5 days a week (school days) around those staples.  BF does not adore beans, but I can put them in soup or Mexican foods and he's okay.

I was doing some research but getting overwhelmed with the choices.  I was thinking a 6 quart would be a good size, but then I see things about 7 in 1, 9 in 1, 10 in 1, etc.  I also read online that the bigger pots cook the beans faster, but since I am the main bean eater, I wondered if the 8 quart would be too big.

Thank you in advance for any help that you can provide.

---

I have the 6 quart which is fine for the 2/3 of us

have never cooked beans in it, and the Mr doesn't eat them much either,  I just use a can and rinse

keep in mind that the IP takes time to heat up too, so rice probably wont be that much quicker.

can't really help much as we don't eat as many carbs 

[lolakimono]

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@PINKdogWOOD wrote:

White rice in old blackie, an interesting way to make your rice for the week. I just boil in a pot, make extra so we also have some for another meal or two. Good thing we both love to cook, we do eat really healthy but DH does still love his chips & dips. I'm back off of sweets, desserts, chips, and am much more off the gluten breads too. Makes a huge diff on the wght, diet, tummy bulge too.

---

@PINKdogWOOD 

Here he is, fresh out of the oven!

My dad sourced him from an estate sale, and he's been gone almost 10 years, so Old Blackie and I have spent many hours together.  Somehow BF dropped the lid and it shattered, but he was able to source another one from Etsy.

[Sooner]

We have for many years avoided unprocessed foods as well and we have two Zojirushi rice cookers that we have used many years for many types of rice.  They work great but so do the Instant Pots.  We have done white and brown in them.

Our newest ZO rice cooker also has a setting for grains and for steel cut oats, and we eat those a lot--set the night before and ready when we get up.

We make beans in the IP all the time.  We have had to cook them a little longer than they say usually.  

We had a DUO 9 in one IP for many years, recently bought the Duo Evo (Plus?maybe?  Evo something) at Williams Sonoma on sale and it is a huge improvement!  The pressure release is much better, the inner pot has handles, and the dial and button system gives you far  more options than just buttons alone.  Having handles on the pot makes life SO much easier especially with beans and broth and such.

The plastic sealing lid to our old one fits the new pot (which is nicer and the saute function works better) but the old pots without handles don't fit this new machine that uses the pot with handles. 

[Still Raining]

@Sooner 

Where have you been all my life???  Everyone else just rolls their eyes.

I admit to spending a lot for two sizes of these rice cookers, but they cook so many things, then stay warm and keep the kitchen cool.  Just throw in what ever you want.

Ladies, DO NOT be fooled with cheap ones, go for the best.

[sidsmom]

Oh my goodness.

You are going to save so much time...you won't know what to do with yourself!!

2 people?

6 quart, 7 in 1 would be perfect

Size

8 quart is big. Really big.  The profile takes up a lot of space.

If you were doing a lot of batch cooking for the freezer (ie soups, etc)

the 8qt might be considered, but the 6qt is very do-able. 

Function

The 7-in, 9-in, 10-in-1 functions:

7-in-1...It's a perfect default for many...especially if cooking rice, beans, soups, etc. 

Tips
The DELAYED function can be programmed to cook at night while sleeping and have it finish right before you get up.  Or have it cook with you're working out in the morning...even have it cook while you're out doing your weekly shopping, cleaning or other things w/out babysitting the stove. 

Also...the 'Instant' in Instant Pot, as we know, is not microwave instant

BUT the time can be reduced by using boiling water before you

close, seal & program. 

It's basically a Dump & Go...no detailed planning.

Wow....this will definitely be a game changer for you & your husband!!

Let us know what you decide.  
Instant Pots are everywhere these days & affordable...

you should be able to cook something in it this week!  

🌼💛

[lolakimono]

@Sooner 

@sidsmom 

What about the gadgets/accessories?  Some IP blogs are suggesting for beans, that you use a lot of extra liquid and then dump it out, for example.

[sidsmom]

@Sooner would probably have a better idea for accessories, etc. 

The only accessory I use is one of those metal 'flower' steamers

(w/ a missing 'petal', no less🙃) for my steamed veg but a

silicone steamer basket would be my 1st choice.  

I never heard of putting beans inside the basket then in the water...

makes sense...for safety.

Mitts...I tried using those 'clam-shell' small mitts, but it felt weird,

so I go old-school & use a dish towel.  @Sooner  any ideas for mitts?

[Sooner]

@lolakimono ANy kind of strainer would work, or the mesh skimmers with a handle to dip the beans out and leave the liquid.

We do have a mesh basket for the IP with a handle that we put eggs in to steam them.  We eat a lot of boiled eggs.  So that is handy.  Other than that, we don't use many extra things.

That green plastic one is a pain because it wobbles when folded to get things out and they tend to fall out of it.