15 Essential Recipes for Mastering Your Instant Pot (2024)

Beef Stroganoff for Instant Pot®

This family favorite is truly a one-pot meal. You'll pressure cook the meat until fork tender, adding egg noodles toward the end and finishing with a swirl of sour cream.

Instant Pot® Frozen Salmon

The Instant Pot takes fish from frozen to moist and delicious in under 10 minutes, no thawing required. "Salmon doesn't get much easier than this," says thedailygourmet. "This turned out so moist and I like how it can be seasoned to individual preference."

• 10 Easy Instant Pot Dinners That Require 6 Ingredients or Less

Instant Pot® Lasagna

Wait, lasagna in the Instant Pot? Oh yes, you can Instant Pot that! "A delicious layered lasagna pie in 30 minutes," says Shauna. "And if you want to make it ahead, you can prep the lasagna, put it in the freezer, then put it right into the Instant Pot for an easy dinner."

Instant Pot® Mushroom Risotto

"Traditional risotto is made slowly, stirring often, adding a little hot stock at a time, then more stirring," explains Shauna. "It's a labor-intensive dish that's worth the fuss. However, risotto made in a pressure cooker is so simple and quick that it feels like cheating. It's not. This is the real stuff. You'll probably start making risotto far more often after you try this one."

Instant Pot® Mac and Cheese with Ham and Peas

"Forget about the box mac-n-cheese," says luzflcat. "And make homemade mac and cheese for a weeknight dinner. The ham, peas, and optional hot sauce add some pizzazz to classic mac and cheese."

Instant Pot® Chicken Cacciatore

"This wonderful, traditionally slow-cooked recipe has been translated into a quick and easy pressure cooker meal," says Diana. "Using the Instant Pot, you get an intensely flavorful meal made in minutes that will have your family thinking you simmered this all day. Serve over spaghetti noodles, rice, cauliflower rice, or eat as a stew!"

Instant Pot® Double Bean and Ham Soup

"No pre-soaking beans required," says lutzflcat. "I know it sounds strange, but my mother-in-law always added a can of pork and beans to her homemade bean soup, and seriously, it adds another layer of flavor."

• Our Top 20 Instant Pot Soup Recipes

Instant Pot® Pork Chops and Gravy

"I seldom use canned soup, but I make an exception for this. So moist and tender! Pure comfort food," Bren says.

Instant Pot® Chicken and Dumplings

"I wanted the richness of long-simmered chicken stew, but without the fuss of using a whole chicken. This compromise, using boneless skinless chicken thighs with bone-in chicken breast, gave me the richness of flavor and ease of preparation I was looking for! It's basically chicken pot pie made in a pressure cooker rather than an oven." — Doughgirl8

Instant Pot® Carne Adovado

This shows off the clever combo of saute and pressure cooking in the same vessel! "Chunks of pork shoulder are smothered in an easy-to-make New Mexico red chile sauce and pressure cooked to succulent tenderness," says bd.weld. "Perfect for taco or burrito fillings."

The "Oops! I Forgot to Thaw the Chicken" Dinner

"Use your Instant Pot to turn frozen chicken breasts, basmati rice, and whatever veggies you have on hand into a filling and delicious dinner on those nights when you don't have time to mess with thawing your chicken. This is the perfect recipe if you forgot to take out the chicken from the freezer. Every time I make this I am so happy with how tender and juicy the chicken is, as well as how perfect the rice comes out; fluffy, never mushy." — Buckwheat Queen

• 25 Best Instant Pot Chicken Recipes

Instant Pot® Turkey Chili

"It doesn't get easier than this! Brown some meat, then toss in the rest of the ingredients and hit start! Feel free to adjust the heat level by adding more chipotle peppers and/or adobo sauce. The cocoa powder and cinnamon are ideas I got from my favorite chili seasoning available at a local spice shop — they really transform the dish! I like to top this with sour cream, green onion, and shredded smoked cheddar," says France C.

Instant Pot® Crispy Chicken Carnitas

"Chicken carnitas made in the pressure cooker are quick and easy! We crisp them up in the broiler, and they are perfect to meal-prep and enjoy for the week! Serve with tortillas, diced onions, chopped cilantro, sauteed cabbage, lime wedges, and anything else you like," Margo says.

Instant Pot® Sloppy Joes

"A combination of lean ground beef and apple cider vinegar makes this sloppy Joe recipe slightly sweet and slightly tart, made right there in your Instant Pot," Bren says.

• 15 Instant Pot Ground Beef Dinners

Instant Pot® Pot Roast

"Delicious, easy pot roast recipe. Though I laughed a little at the garlic powder being optional. Garlic is never optional for my family!" — fabeverydayblog

• See our entire collection of Instant Pot Recipes.
• A Beginner's Guide to Instant Pot Cooking