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Nina’s Tips and Techniques: Breakfast with the Instant Pot

Why would I want to make a hard-boiled egg in the Instant Pot? It’s the easiest thing in the world to make!

Yes, it is easy to make a hard boiled egg…it is also easy to mess up a hard boiled egg. just one minute too long or too short and your hard boiled egg could be under or over cooked. Eggs are arguably the most difficult thing in the kitchen to cook because they are so sensitive to heat and can go from done to overdone in a second! Many of the best chefs in the world test applicants in their kitchens with a simple test – cook me a hard boiled egg, or cook me a perfect omelette. It takes real skill to make an egg PERFECT. Instant Pot can help! Again, the controlled environment brings consistency each time. You don’t have to watch it or time it and the eggs come out beautifully!

I’ve heard Instant Pot is great for oatmeal, but I tried it and takes forever, not to mention the oats were all mushy. Where did I go wrong?

Your Instant Pot has a few settings that can be used to cook oatmeal. The porridge button is really best for a longer cook—there are some great recipes for overnight oats that use this setting. You can also use the rice setting or the manual pressure setting. I prefer the rice setting because it’s easy to open the pot at the end of the cook time and check to see if the oats are cooked to my liking. If they are under I can cook it for a few more minutes. One of the things I don’t like about the pressure settings is that it takes a long time to release the pressure and if you force the valve open it will spew gelatinous oatmeal water EVERYWHERE (yes, I did this). Also, pay attention to what kind of oats you choose—steel-cut oats do not cook the same as rolled oats. For the longer cook times the steel-cut oats will hold up better. If you want a porridge consistency choose the rolled oats. If you want a classic rolled-oat oatmeal quickly, use the rice setting.

Recipe: No-Fuss Instant Pot Oatmeal

1 cup rolled oats
1 cup water
1 cup milk or almond milk
½ tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp maple syrup
¼ cup chopped dried apricots, prunes, or raisins (optional)
pinch salt

Combine ingredients in the Instant Pot. Close the lid and use the rice setting. When the time is up quick release the pressure and remove the top. Enjoy!