king pro pressure cooker / instant pot

lulublue22

Any one any feedback on either of these . I’m looking for something that will take the stress out of cooking during the working week - the king pro seems to have a lot of functions / fairly versatile and seems to be quick and easy to use with a keep warm function which would be handy for us. Just wondering if it’s gimicky and will end up at the back of the cupboard after 2 uses or will be the lifesaver for a busy active household.

tks

[Deleted User]

I’d say gimmick. Have one about a year now and it’s only used to cook rice the odd time. Definitely not worth the price as everything is a faff of preparation for it.

noplacehere

Depends on your use really. I use mine all the time. My mum doesn’t use hers much at all. I make risotto, full chicken, stews of all kinds. it’s quick and I don’t need to stand over it while minding the kids so it’s perfect for me

lulublue22

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117660272#Comment_117660272

Thanks for that - do ye cook stews / curries / soup / pasta etc as those are our staple winter fare so that’s what initially attracted me to it -currently use a casserole dish in the oven.

[Deleted User]

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117660281#Comment_117660281

No there’s no much “prick this, fry that, etc” before you put anything into it that you may as well just get something ready and put it in the oven. They’re small too if you’ve many to cook for.

lulublue22

perfect tks

noplacehere

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117660281#Comment_117660281

Yes. My standard ‘Irish’ (everyone has their own version) stew, a beef/carrots balsamic stew I make, curry when I’m using full chicken thighs. Pasta probably not much because it only takes ten minutes anyways?

I don’t do half the fry off faffing and it’s fine. Stew for example, fry off the meat, toss it onto a plate for a minute (may or may not even bother…) then fry the veg. Whack back in the meat and stock then lid on and walk away

lulublue22

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117660278#Comment_117660278

We are so busy with shift work / college / work , school and activities that the thought of bunging everything into one pot and being able to have a keep warm function for the college student seems appealing. As does getting everything ready the night before and using the delayed timer function so food is cooked when we come home !

lulublue22

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117660309#Comment_117660309

perfect tks

Tree

They make great bolognaise, and boiling the pasta separately can be done whenever then

Mystery Egg

I have an instant pot and love it. I use it for searing, pressure cooking and slow cooking. It's really great for one pot dishes. In the last two weeks I've cooked Mongolian beef (slow cooker), chicken biryani (pressure cooker), soup (saute + pressure) and lamb curry (slow cooker). You can also cook pasta successfully in it, in a Bolognese sauce with added liquid. When feeding a big crowd a roast dinner, I make a mound of orange and honey glazed whole carrots in it.

You need to learn how to optimise it. Slow cooked and pressure cooked dishes need extra seasoning I find, almost double the spices and salt. Slow cooked food needs minimal liquid. You can thicken sauces just before serving using a cornflour slurry on a high saute heat.

Once you are ready to experiment a bit it is a fantastic addition to a busy cook's kitchen.

lulublue22

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117661663#Comment_117661663

Thanks for the feedback - I do think we could make good use of it - we tend to do a lot of one pot dinners if possible. Was thinking of a 5 l or 5.8 l king pro for a family of 4 . Haven’t seen the instant pots around - other than on amazon. Do you mind me asking what size and model one you have ?