Best Instant Pot 2022: A guide to the features of this year’s top cookers

Capacity is an important factor, but most popular pressure cookers can make meals for up to six people. Smaller households may still need that kind of capacity, though, instant pot duo nova since large items like whole chickens demand plenty of space. You may also like the fact that you can cook for groups on the rare occasions you have visitors to feed.

On the other hand, stainless steel has a long and proven pedigree of being dishwasher safe and thus doesn’t elicit the same debate. Instant Pot has come down firmly on the “stainless is better” side of the conversation, using stainless pots in all of their pressure cookers. First off, the rubber gasket on the lid is easily removable, and the lid itself is a single piece.

However, the price difference might not be worth it to you – just make sure to think about how often you’d actually use the additional features, and whether this justifies the extra expense for you. Tidying up after cooking can sometimes take as long as making the food itself. If you have a busy lifestyle, then this is yet another thing that you have to make time for during your day. An Instant Pot can save you a ton of time, and give you more chance to rest and relax. Now that we’ve given a brief overview of the key similarities and differences between the Instant Pot models, let’s take a closer look at the pros and cons of each one. If you’re still on the fence about which Instant Pot is for you, then this section will hopefully be a big help.

The Instant Pot Duo Nova hits a sweet spot of offering some of the newer, more convenient features without a high-end price. The Duo Nova has the button layout of the Duo mixed with the auto-seal lid of the Duo Ultra and the blue LCD display from the Duo Plus. All of my recipes are written to work in ANY model of Instant Pot. Some models come to pressure a little faster than others, but the cook times are within a few minutes.

So if you feel really nervous about going off recipe, I’d recommend using a 6-quart. If you’re still interested in this product, it’s 99% identical to the current Instant Pot Duo. The seven cooking functions and the thirteen smart programs are pretty much the same.

In what we’ve found to be the most differentiating of our cooking tests, the saute test; the DUO Nova performed wonderfully. It got hot enough to easily brown eve hearty veggies like carrots and made quick work of diced onions. We believe instant vortex 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. The Instant Pot Duo is considered a classic among all the Instant Pot products.

So it’s just a matter of how much cooking volume you’ll need and if you’re considering on getting the Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid later down the line. Although the inner pot is dishwasher safe, it didn’t quite fit snugly in my dishwasher, so I had to handwash it in soapy water. However, it doesn’t take too long to wash the pot and sealing ring, while the pot exterior can be easily cleaned with a damp cloth. Results seemed the same on a few tries, despite reducing the water content.

instant pot duo nova

Today’s pressure cookers use a sealing system that keeps contents safely inside, then release steam gradually. They’re so easy to operate, even a novice can handle them safely. Even though the Instant Pot Duo doesn’t come in the larger 10 qt size like the Duo Nova, there are still 3 different sizes to choose from. This is particularly great when compared to instant pot pressure cookers from other brands, which often take a “one-size-fits-all” approach. Before we get into our comparison, it’s probably best to take a look at what Instant Pot actually is. Although the term “instant pot” is often used in place of products such as “slow cooker” or “pressure cooker”, Instant Pot is also the name of one of the most popular worktop cooker brands.

With a large, easy-to-use LCD display, IQ coupling and a pressure release button, the Instant Duo Nova 7-in-1 pressure cooker is a must-have for every busy home chef. The Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid is sold separately and is compatible with 6-quart Instant models that don’t already have air-frying capability (the Duo, Duo Nova, Duo Plus, Duo Gourmet, and Ultra). The Air Fryer Lid comes with a fry basket and other accessories; it allows you to air-fry straight from your pressure cooker. In addition to air-frying, the Air Fryer Lid adds broiling, baking, roasting, reheating, and dehydrating functionality to compatible machines. And 15 customizable one-touch smart programs make it easy to prepare oatmeal, eggs, cakes, beans, and more with the push of a button. The has 15 one touch preset programs covering off the main foods you’re likely to cook in the multi-cooker, as well as various manual settings for the different functions.