Monday 6 March 2017

Review: Instant Pot for Visually Impaired Cooks

Right up front I want to confirm that I am writing this because I am so impressed with the Instant Pot.  I was not given one, I bought it for myself and I am not being paid in any way for this review.

What problems do I have cooking?
I have two problems with cooking:
1. My Sight
I am severely sight impaired which means I have a small £1 coin sized field of vision which isn't even perfect in clarity.  I am not safe with a knife, I discovered this by experience.  And I find it really hard to tell one tin from another let alone when things are cooked.
2. My energy and pain levels
MS is a disease which causes pain (in many different and changing places on different days) and exhaustion.  Every day is different but even on a good day I can not stand for more than a few minutes or stir a pot for more than a few times.

Why did I buy the Instant Pot?
I wanted to try and take some of the load off Mike and Rachel and help cooking meals again.  I had heard from some visually impaired friends that the Instant Pot was great and after reading lots of reviews decided it was worth trying out.  I knew you could cook from frozen and leave the pot to do it's thing without having to stand and stir or watch and check.

What is the Instant Pot?
This is my instant pot on the side in my kitchen.  It is a pressure cooker which plugs into the socket behind it.  I place it close to the hob so that any steam can go up the extractor fan. 

Instant Pot is a Programmable Pressure Cooker designed to be Safe, Convenient and Dependable. It speeds up cooking considerably, uses up to 70% less energy, and produces nutritious healthy food in a convenient and consistent fashion.

How does the Instant Pot help me?
It takes me no more than 5 minutes to saute any meat and onions and then add in whatever frozen veg I want to use (or come to hand) for whatever I'm cooking.  I can sit on a chair to do this and this saves my energy.  It only needs stirring a few times and then I put the lid on, press the button and leave it.
On a good day, so usually about once a week (not at all last week but twice the week before) I can now prepare a meal in the morning, when my energy levels are at their best, and know it will be ready for our evening meal.  This is not only wonderful for Mike but also good for my own self esteem.
And to this the fact that the food I am preparing is healthy and balanced and provides meals for 2 days and this is more success than I even hoped for.

What have I cooked in the Instant Pot?
This is the lamb casserole I cooked in the Instant Pot this morning and is being kept warm until we eat it this evening when Mike gets home.  It is bright in colour because all the vegetables keep their form and colour and nutrients.  To make this I used the saute function to brown the garlic and onion and lamb pieces; I then added a huge range of frozen prepared veg including butternut squash, brocolli, cauliflower, spinach and mushrooms; plus a tin of chopped tomatoes and herbs.  I set the timer to manual for 20 minutes and let it do it's thing.  Within an hour I heard the beeps to say it was ready and it's been keeping warm ever since.

In the last two months I've made:
chicken and lamb casseroles
bolognese
curries
tagine
soups

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