Meat with sides (separate) in the instant pot

January 17, 2019 8:04 PM

I'm looking for cook-the whole meal-all-at-once instant pot recipes. Difficulty level: not stews/soups/casseroles. Either pasta dishes, rice dishes (but not risotto), or meat with side that can all be cooked at once and all in the instant pot.

I'm not big on beans, but if you've got a way for me to cook chicken in black bean sauce with a side of rice all at once, I'm all ears.

I'm willing to consider pre-searing, but "finish in the oven" is dumb. If I'm finishing in the oven I might as well just start in the oven.

I have a small (1 lb) pork roast I'm planning to instant pot. Is there a recipe that would allow me to make some glazed beats at the same time? Can I make ribs with a side of corn (not some sort of rib meat and corn mixed together dish)?

posted by If only I had a penguin... to Food & Drink (8 answers total)

Best answer: I think you want your search to include a term such as "pot in pot". Here are some examples (scroll down a bit).
posted by blob at 9:25 PM on January 17, 2019 [3 favorites]

There are even stackable containers if you want to make a bunch of different things (link is just to an example, not a personal endorsement).
posted by trig at 10:50 PM on January 17, 2019

Response by poster: Yeah I'm aware of the pot-in-pot method, but my self-styled attempts have run up against the problem of different cooking times and how to figure those out, which I is why I was hoping for recipes someone else already tweaked.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 4:12 AM on January 18, 2019

Best answer: I made this and I thought it came out pretty good!

https://workitlikeamother.com/2018/12/04/instant-pot-spaghetti-with-meat-sauce/

(I've never sauted in the IP. I always cook the meat and onions separately.)
posted by Pig Tail Orchestra at 4:29 AM on January 18, 2019

Sautéing in the IP is generally how I even out cooking times. Browning taco meat for a bit then stacking rice containers and refried or canned bean containers and doing a short manual cook (7min for rice). Browning whole brats or Italian sausage and then cooking noodles and vegetables pot in pot to the noodle’s cooking time.
posted by annathea at 4:46 AM on January 18, 2019

I have made this chicken and rice recipe many times.
posted by apex_ at 6:01 AM on January 18, 2019

I sometimes use already smoked or prepared meats like ready to eat sausages in my instant pot. My favorite thing to do is pasta with a layer of whatever jarred tomato sauce as the liquid for cooking. I then put guenciale from my local butcher on top. I’ve also done a version of this Where I’ve placed the rice and chicken stock in with the nuggets.
posted by loriginedumonde at 9:33 AM on January 18, 2019

I've cooked lots of [something] and rice in my Instant Pot. I usually put my meat [chicken/pork/beef] and vegetables [carrots, celery, onions and whatever other specific veggies depending on what I'm making] in stock or sauce [teriyaki/beef/veg/chicken/bbq], then put rice in a metal bowl on the included trivet, 1:1 with stock. I've found that whatever time I set to cook the meal makes perfect rice as long as I let it naturally depressurize.

That said, there's no reason you can't keep your pile of chosen veg separate from your protein. Most seem to cook fine at the same setting as the meat. Obviously mushier vegetables might break down too much. But there's no rule that says you can't add stuff later. I often add potatoes as a second step so they cook less and don't fall apart.

Also, I usually pre-sear in cast iron. The built in saute function is ok, but nothing compares to searing in cast iron.
posted by The Deej at 9:39 AM on January 18, 2019