The Best Instant Pot to Buy in 2022: Complete Buying Guide

Despite the pot not having a non-stick coating there was no sticking during the sauté stage. We slow cooked our beef chili for six hours on the ‘more’ setting and the result was a delicious meaty chili with soft beef. The Instant Pot beeps to alert you that cooking has finished and the temperature of the chili at the end of cooking was 176 F/ 80 C. The chili wasn’t thickened to our liking but by switching back to saute it was easy to reduce it to the perfect consistency.

A larger model (8-quart capacity or more) should work well. You might be able to in a 6 quart but 8+ gives you more flexibility. Well, that’s why we’re all here today – to see the final battle; the Instant Pot Duo vs Duo Nova comparison! As usual, we’ll check each pot separately, and then we’ll talk pros & cons, ending with my honest opinion on which one I think wins the game.

As a plus Duo Nova has bot the 3 quart and the 10 quart size – the latter is not similar to the Duo Classsic model . There is also a Manual module, but I only recommend it for more experienced users. In Manual mode, you get to select your own settings , but if you don’t know how the pot works, there’s the risk of the food coming out over- or under-cooked. Having said that, the stainless-steel finish gives it a reassuringly robust look. Once all the steam has been released, the float valve goes down and the Instant Pot is de-pressurized. This can take anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes, depending on the amount of food you’re cooking and the temperature of the ingredients.

The stainless-steel cooking pot doesn’t have handles for easy lifting, if you’d prefer handles consider another model such as the Instant Pot Pro or the Instant Pot Evo Plus. The Instant Pot Pressure Cook program can use high or low pressure. A majority of the recipes that you encounter will use High pressure. If a recipe doesn’t state whether to use high or low pressure, you can probably assume it’s high pressure. Sealing Ring – allows the Instant Pot to build pressure by creating a tight seal when the contents are heated to a high temperature. It can be washed in the top rack of the dishwasher or by hand.

I really think they’ve shot themselves in the foot as I fear many people consider purchasing an Instant Pot, see the 986 models and give up because they can’t figure out what model choose. Instant Pot accessories will also be easier to find in a 6-quart or 8-quart size. Seriously, so much food fits in the 10-quart.

instant pot duo nova

We believe this ability is crucial; to effectively saute right in the pot vastly increases the number of meals you can make with only one dish to clean at the end. Ultra vs Smart Wifi detailed comparison (I’m sure you’ll enjoy the smart programs these pots have to offer). In terms of accessories, the Instant Pot Duo comes with the standard inner pot and steam rack . Both accessories are dishwasher safe and don’t have any chemical coating.

Since I am only 78 years old I am anxious to meet the challenge of a new adventure and expect to produce many savory meals and delicious deserts in the years to com with my new skill set. As such, the pot can be used to cook soups , beef stew, bean chili, and more. In addition, it is equipped with several other cooking functions like slow cook, steam, yogurt making, rice making, pressure cook, and Keep Warm module. For a speedy Thai red curry, the manual pressure cook function was our choice. As with the chili ,we used the saute function to brown chicken legs before adding all the other ingredients and pressure cooking on high for 20 minutes. The pressure release was a slightly louder 79dB and while the sides of the pot and all the handles stayed cool, the metal part of the lid reached a high temperature of 187 F/ 86 C.

In my experience, the condensation collector rarely fills up but I have found that when I cook pasta, in particular, liquid tends to collect and it can get messy! Get into the habit of checking for liquid in the condensation collector after every use. The condensation collector catches moosoo air fryer any moisture that builds up on the rim. This usually comes from moisture dripping from inside the lid into the rim of the Instant Pot base, when the lid is propped open. You need to clean the anti-block shield periodically, especially after you’ve cooked frothy or starchy foods.