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Instant Pot recipes everyone should know: Hard-boiled eggs, rotisserie chicken and more

What was life like before Instant Pot? Slow.

Alina Bradford CNET Contributor
Alina Bradford has been writing how-tos, tech articles and more for almost two decades. She currently writes for CNET's Smart Home Section, MTVNews' tech section and for Live Science's reference section. Follow her on Twitter.
Alina Bradford
3 min read
Josh Miller/CNET

You already know that the Instant Pot can be used to make a wide range of dishes, but there's more than just stew, chili and soup. You can make hard-"boiled" eggs, bread, cake and "rotisserie" chicken in the wonder cooker, too.

Read more on Chowhound: How to use the Instant Pot to make your life easier

Pressure cooked hard-boiled eggs

In a pressure cooker you can't technically boil eggs, but you can steam them. This comes with a distinct advantage: The shells slide right off when you peel the eggs. This is fantastic for making big batches of deviled eggs or your weekday breakfast.

boiling-eggs-in-an-instant-pot

An Instant Pot can fit around eight eggs at a time.

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Here's how to pressure cook your eggs so that they come out like hard-boiled eggs. 

  1. Put 1 cup of water in the inner pot.
  2. Place the steaming rack inside the inner pot. Gently lay the eggs on the steaming rack. (I cooked four at a time, but you could easily fit eight.)
  3. Secure the lid and flip the valve to Sealing.
  4. Press the Pressure Cook button and set the time to 5 minutes. 
  5. When the timer is up, let it sit for 10 minutes.
  6. Turn the valve to Venting.
  7. When the pressure float pops, open the pot and carefully remove your eggs. When you're ready to peel them, the shells should slip right off.

Read more: What all the buttons on your Instant Pot mean

instant-pot-egg

The shell slid right off. Now time for a dash of salt!

Alina Bradford/CNET

Bread

There are two ways you can use your instant pot to make bread. You can use it to proof dough quickly, or you you can use it to make moist, delicious quick breads. 

To proof, you'll need to add the dough to the pot, press the Yogurt button and use Low mode.

proofing-bread-in-an-instant-pot

My dough doubled in size in just 24 minutes.

Alina Bradford/CNET

Making quick bread is a little more complicated. Here's a step-by-step guide to proofing and cooking bread using your Instant Pot.

'Rotisserie' chicken

Of course, chicken can't rotate in your Instant Pot. You can get a cook that comes really close to rotisserie in just 45 minutes. It even has a crispy skin!

flipping-the-bird-in-an-instant-pot

Grab a leg and flip carefully.

Alina Bradford/CNET

Here's how:

  1. Prep your chicken for cooking by rubbing it down with the oil and spices of your choice.
  2. With the lid off, preheat your Instant Pot by pressing the Saute button. Tap adjust until the Saute function is set to More. 
  3. Add a couple tablespoons of oil to the pot. Then, add the chicken, breast-side down. You want a deep brown, which usually takes 3 to 4 minutes. Repeat these steps on the other side, using tongs to flip the chicken.
  4. Remove the chicken from the Instant Pot and set aside. Then, place the steaming rack in the inner pot. Add a cup of chicken stock and return the chicken to the pot. It should be sitting on top of the rack.
  5. Lock the lid and set the vent to Sealing. Press the Pressure Cook button and set the timer to 25 minutes. 
  6. When the cooking is done, let the Instant Pot depressurize naturally. This should take about 15 minutes.
  7. Once you have removed the chicken, let it sit for 5 minutes before eating.
instant-pot-sf-smart-home-5-8-18-7748

This chicken falls right off the bone.

Josh Miller/CNET

'Bake' a cake

You can make a steamed cake much like quick bread. The benefits of making it in your Instant Pot are that the cake is incredibly moist and fudgy, making it the perfect companion for a scoop of ice cream.

instant-pot-cake

Instant Pot cake right before I put the lid on the pot.

Alina Bradford/CNET

All you need to do is prep a boxed cake or your favorite cake recipe and follow these directions:

  1. Grease and flour a coffee can. 
  2. Pour the cake mix into the coffee can. Make sure to only fill it 2/3 of the way to allow for rising.
  3. Place the steamer rack upside down in the inner pot and add 6 cups of water.
  4. Place the coffee can into the inner pot, then cover with a buttered aluminum foil square. 
  5. Turn the valve to Sealing
  6. Turn off the Warming button, lock the lid, and set Pressure Cook to 40 minutes. 
  7. Do a natural release of pressure for 10 minutes or until the Instant Pot is ready to open.

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Want more Instant Pot tips? Here's how to convert slow cooker recipes to Instapot recipes.

You can also breathe new life into your Instant Pot with these cleaning tips.