Testing my pot. If the weather craps out on the weekend, I am making split pea soup! I found out that our niece the Nibbling Nellie likes split pea soup. She does not eat chicken but she likes split pea soup. Go figure.
Mr. B came back from his trip, and his first reaction was, “Cool. A pressure reactor! I can set some reactions in phosphoric acid in it.” Oh no. You can’t. 
I too succumbed to the allure of the Instapot on Prime Day. I have not yet joined the Facebook page, but learned from this thread about the necessity of naming the appliance. When I shared the names here with H, he said that Usain Bolt is on the cover of SI as the fastest man in the world - and so my pot has been named: Insane Bolt, or The Bolt for short! If I take to using this thing, then I imagine bolt will become a cooking verb in our house. In the meantime, it’s staying in its box until I find a few things that I’m confident will put it to best use in our household.
Ours arrived from Amazon yesterday. Unboxing it now to do the water test I’ve seen mentioned. Thinking of Ribs for our first experiment. I love ribs but have never had success making them (can’t get them tender and fall off the bone). Any tips?
For St Louis style pork ribs: Remove membrane if not already done, season with dry rub or salt and pepper. Stand the ribs on their ends, coiled like a snail, in the pot. Two racks from Costco (so ~7 pounds) fit fine; you can squeeze three in, but there’s not enough room for steam to circulate and they’ll cook unevenly. Add a cup of apple juice, apple cider vinegar, or a mix of the two. Meat button, 30-35 minutes, NPR for at least 15 minutes. Remove with tongs to a large cutting board. Cut into individual ribs, coat with sauce, bake at 400 until sauce starts to crisp, about 10 minutes.
Takes me about 90 minutes start to finish, which is much faster than the 4 hours my oven baked ribs recipe takes.
Wow, thanks! It sounds easy and delicious.
Thanks @allyphoe - that is similar to a video I was looking at. NPR means I just do nothing for 15 minutes, then turn the pressure release, right? (I am a complete newbie to this)
I think so, swimcatsmom. I did it this morning, just let the pot sit for about 15 minutes, then I got tired and turned the valve to release, and only a small amount of steam came out. These extra 15 are important because they add cooking time.
Thanks @BunsenBurner - husband is off at the store getting the ribs (don’t know where today went) and we will be cooking them as soon as he gets home)
I hard boiled some eggs today, then made refried beans from dry pinto beans. So far, everything has been easy and tasty!
Making @allyphoe 's ribs. 
Yes, NPR for 15 minutes means to let it sit until the counter says L0:15. The pressure will entirely release long before the temperature drops enough for the Keep Warm function to kick in, so no need to turn it off or unplug.
The ribs were a huge success! Niece the Nibbling Nellie took a small piece, then grabbed a couple and scarfed them down. Then she asked, “Are we going to have the leftovers for lunch tomorrow?” She posted the picture of her plate on her Facebook page. She has never such yummy homemade ribs, according to her. Thanks, @allyphoe !
It is going to be mild and sunny, so no pea soup for me. I just realized that I can use my VIP on the deck, so we can have hot food without overheating the house.
So annoyed . . . my Insta-Pot did not arrive on Friday even though I have Amazon Prime!!! And it was supposed to be here. The only other time I’ve seen that happen was one Christmas when UPS got overwhelmed.
I was really hoping to play with it this weekend. 
I managed the test, and hard boiled eggs. They’re actually really good - the yolk is perfect.
Tonight I’m making black bean soup with chorizo. I’m having fresh crabs for lunch and I can tell you I’m wondering what would happen to a crab in this thing.
http://instantpot.com/cooking-time/seafood-and-fish/
It will be steamed, just faster.
@eyamamom - how long did you cook your eggs? I did some for 5 minutes & they were not done enough.
Most people like the recipe that goes: a cup of water in the bottom, trivet in pot, as many eggs as you want on the trivet, 6 minutes under pressure, 6 minutes of NPR (wait until display says L0:06), 6 minutes in an ice bath.
I personally use 5 minutes under pressure and 5 minutes of NPR. If I’m making more than one layer of eggs, I cut the time under pressure back by a minute, because the larger volume of cold eggs takes longer to come to pressure, and that increases the overall cooking time.
IP takes some trial and error, more so for things like eggs and veggies that are easy to overcook or undercook and less for things like beans and stews that tolerate a wide range of cooking times. I found it helpful to keep notes until I got a better feel for things.
Chickeny Tomatoey Pasta:
In the bottom of the pot, put a pound or so of chicken breast, cut into bite-size chunks. (Thigh is unlikely to substitute well due to cooking time issues. Chicken tenders work fine, and are actually a better match for the cooking time, but make for awkward eating.) Season heavily (1-2 tsp each) with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Add a pound of rotini noodles. Add 3 cups of water; this will not be enough to cover the noodles. Add a small can of tomato paste (not sauce; either plain or seasoned works). DO NOT STIR. (Not stirring is important, because tomato tends to scorch to the bottom and then your pot overheats and turns off and you have half-burnt half-raw mess. The order of layering is important; you want the chicken to release moisture that will be absorbed by the pasta.)
Cook for 3 minutes under pressure (fastest way is to hit Poultry, press adjust once to get 5 minutes, press - twice to get 3 minutes). One minute NPR; putting a cold wet cloth over the hot metal part of the lid will reduce any spray a little more. Carefully and slowly release the remaining pressure. Stir stir stir. Add 8oz Monterey Jack cheese, cut into chunks. Stir stir, put the lid back on for a couple of minutes to melt the cheese, stir again.
Thirty minutes from lid on to table; about 20 of those minutes require no attention or thought whatsoever.
Man, I’m feeling so behind! Haven’t done a thing with mine yet and I’m starting to get confused! Brought the instruction book to try and look over today when I need a mental break at work - however, it sounds like I may need a mental break from the instruction book!!!
I guess I will just take step #1 - read the book, do the water test.