Slow Cooker and Instant Pot Mexican Food Recipes (2024)

FAQs

Does the Instant Pot work well as a slow cooker? ›

And yes, almost all work like a separate slow cooker does. As you study up on how to use an Instant Potas a slow cooker, however, one of the most common mistakes is thinking that the temperatures on both appliances allow for a direct conversion. That's incorrect: Low on one is not equivalent to Low on the other.

Generally, if your slow cooker meat, soup, or stew recipe calls for 8 hours on the low setting or about 4 hours on the high setting, it should be fully cooked in about 25 to 30 minutes in the Instant Pot.

Another tip, taken from an Instant Pot Facebook group, is to open the valve all the way on your Instant Pot lid when slow cooking. This allows some moisture and steam to release and keeps the Instant Pot from overcooking your slow cooker recipes.

Do you need to seal the valve? No, you shouldn't seal the lid if you're using the Instant Pot slow cooker function, as a tight seal will prevent the steam from escaping while cooking. You should use a tempered glass lid or cover the lid in tinfoil instead.

Since the Instant Pot exploded onto the home cooking scene a few years ago, many people have chosen to get rid of their slow cooker in favor of the multi-functional appliance. You can cook your favorite recipes no matter which setting you're using, but you'll need to adjust the cooking time.

Look at your slow cooker recipe and see what time you should cook your recipe on high. Then, take that number and multiply it by 6. That number is the amount of time you can cook your slow cooker recipe in your instant pot in minutes.

When comparing appliances, you'll find that the pressure cooker beats even the most energy-efficient slow cooker in terms of using less power and adding less heat into your home. Pressure cookers consume much less power than a standard electric oven, which uses around 2,000 watts of electricity on medium heat.

High on the Instant Pot Function does not get as high as high heat on a slow cooker, but by adding 15 minutes per hour of slow cooking, you can experience similar results. High reaches about 210 degrees F, which is 10-20 degrees less than a slow cooker on high.

The Instant Pot® tempered glass lid seals in heat, steam, and flavor, and lets you keep an eye on your dish when steaming, slow cooking, and warming. With modern stainless-steel accents, this lid is also perfect for serving.

When starting your cook, you want this lever pointing toward "sealing" and not "venting." Sealing means the Instant Pot is going to hold all the pressure created inside the pot, while venting is what you'll likely do to release the pressure when the food is finished cooking.

What happens if I forgot to seal Instant Pot? ›

If you forget to seal your Instant Pot's valve, the appliance may not work properly. The Instant Pot uses extreme pressure and heat to cook ingredients, which is why it cooks meals so much faster than a stove or slow cooker.

A slow cooker and a Crockpot are the same thing, essentially. A slow cooker is an appliance of which there are lots of brands. Crockpot is one brand of slow cooker. Crockpot popularized slow cookers when they launched their version in the 1970s.

Can you stop slow cooking and start again? It is not recommended to stop slow cooking and start again, otherwise you risk falling into what the USDA calls the “danger zone” for food, which is 40-140 degrees Fahrenheit.

The Instant® Superior Cooker Chef Series, from the makers of Instant Pot®, is the multi-cooker that can sear/sauté, slow cook/roast, steam, warm and more.

Use my guide for converting recipes below. It shouldn't take more than 15-20 minutes to heat up. If after 20 minutes your Instant Pot is still heating, rather than counting down the cooking time, it is likely struggling to reach temperature.

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.