“Life-Changing”?–Eh, Not So Much (Beef Stew)

I poked fun at the title of this recipe a few days ago on Facebook, but the truth was that I was already planning to make it.

I wouldn’t call it “life-changing,” but it certainly was easy.  And it turned out OK, not great, but part of that was my fault.

I didn’t thaw the stew beef first, and I was curious to see how the meat would do if I used the normal meat/stew setting (35 minutes after coming to pressure).  The answer was “not great.”  The meat was tough, though it was cooked on the inside. The veggies were perfect. The recipe suggested finishing the dish in the oven (I did 18 minutes at 375 degrees). I also threw in some leftover roasted potatoes I had from another meal (during the oven-finishing phase). I don’t think the potatoes changed the outcome at all, either way.

I wasn’t happy with the texture of the meat, and the sauce/gravy was just OK. It was a bit sweet, I guess from the sugar and tapioca. I could have used a bit more kick from garlic or cayenne or some herb mixture.

Overall I don’t think I’d make this again. I might try another beef stew recipe that looks better to me, or I might just stick with the slow cooker for stews.

A Whole Meal in the IP: Baja Pork Stew, Jasmine Rice, and Broccoli Florets

I haven’t gotten up the nerve to try cooking two dishes at the same time in the IP (veterans on Facebook call it PiP or Pot-in-Pot). But for last night’s dinner I staged the meal and cooked all three dishes in the IP, serving it up by 6 p.m.!

Step 1:  Veggies (Broccoli Florets)

I had some broccoli florets from Trader Joe’s that I needed to cook up.  I did it thusly, following advice from this site:

• 1 1/2 cups of water into the IP
• insert steamer basket
• Put broccoli into the steamer basket
• Lock and seal lid; push Steam button and set timer for 3 minutes
• Quick release when done.

I tossed the broccoli with some melted butter, garlic salt, and pepper, covered the dish and put it aside, and quickly rewarmed it in the microwave when it was time to serve dinner. I thought it was delicious. Same exact instructions for cauliflower florets, I take it.

Step 2: Jasmine Rice

I frequently cheat and buy microwavable frozen jasmine rice packets from Trader Joe’s, but I decided to try to make it myself. I looked up a bunch of different sites on this, and here’s what I did:

• 2 cups of water in the IP
• 2 cups* of jasmine rice, rinsed and then into the IP with the water
• Cook on Manual setting (high pressure) for 6 minutes**
• Natural release for ten minutes, then quick release
• Fluff rice with a fork

*I wanted extra rice for my leftovers (butter chicken and bourbon chicken, as well as my main course). For just one meal I’d stick with one cup rice and 1 cup water and reduce the time to 4-5 minutes.

**I actually cooked it for 5 minutes, but some of my rice was a bit hard and undercooked. With two cups of rice, I’ll try six minutes next time.

Step 3: Main Course (Baja Pork Loin Stew)

I used this recipe.  The original blog post is a bit to wade through, so here’s what I did.

1. In a bowl, mix 3/4 c. chili sauce, 2 T spicy brown mustard (Gulden’s), 2 T Worcestershire sauce, and 1 T maple syrup.
2. Cube a boneless pork loin (mine was around 1.4 lbs; the recipe calls for 1-2 lbs) and put it in the sauce to marinate, stirring to coat the cubed meat.  Cover the bowl and put it into the refrigerator. The recipe says to marinate it for at least 30 minutes; I actually left it in there for several hours, and it turned out great.
3. Heat 1 T olive oil in the IP on Saute. Then I added diced onion (supposed to be 1.5 cups for one large onion) and sauteed it, stirring, for a couple minutes (2-3 min., per the recipe).
4. Add peppers. I used 1.5 c. of the diced frozen pepper strips from Trader Joe’s and a fresh habanero pepper, which I seeded and chopped. (The recipe also calls for two chipotle peppers, diced, and 1 T adobe sauce. I misread and forgot the chipotle peppers. I’d use them next time, but it turned out great without them.)  Saute the peppers for a couple more minutes.
5. Peel a large sweet potato and slice off four thin slices. Cube the rest and put the cubes aside.  Add the four sweet potato slices to the peppers and onions along with 1/2 c. water; stir everything up.
6. Remove the cubed pork from the marinade and put into the IP on top of the peppers and onions mixture. (The recipe says “do not stir.”)
7. Close and seal the IP; cook for 8 minutes (Manual, high pressure). Then quick release the pressure.
8. Open the IP and add the cubed sweet potatoes. Add a bit of salt and pepper (about 1/8 tsp each).
9. Cook on high pressure for 5 more minutes and then quick release again.

I served the pork stew over rice; the recipe suggests egg noodles. I like rice better, and I thought the jasmine rice flavor paired well with the sweet/spicy pork stew.

I thought this meal was great. The pork stew was delicious and not that hard to make. The broccoli turned out perfect.

Catching Up on 4-20 Day

It’s been awhile since I’ve blogged, but I’ve been using my Instant Pot almost constantly–well, between trips, anyway.  I went on five out-of-state trips in 29 days, from March 10 to April 8.  In some instances, I was home between trips for only 1-2 days. But after the first trip or two, I was sick of eating restaurants and wanted home-cooked meals, so every time I was home, I’d run to the store, buy the ingredients for several IP meals, and cook up a storm. I figured my husband would have something to eat while I was gone and I’d have something home-cooked even the first night I was back.

Anyway, with so much time having passed and so much rapid-fire cooking, I may miss a couple of recipes I’ve made, but I’ll summarize both some hits and some misses.

Ones I/We Really Liked

1. Chipotle Chicken:  This goes first because it was so ridiculously easy.  I threw 1.5 lbs of boneless, skinless chicken thighs into the IP and 16 oz. of salsa from a jar. I just seasoned the chicken with a bit of salt and pepper before pouring the salsa over it, but I’ve seen other recipes that suggest a packet of taco seasoning. I mixed two different flavors. (Hubbs thought it was a bit too hot, so I’ll be sure to stick strictly to mild salsas next time.)  I cooked it for 13 minutes on high, followed by a quick release. I let it cool for two minutes, and shredded the chicken. I served it over rice with guacamole, cheese, and more salsa as taco bowls. I thought it was great, and SO EASY.  I might kick it up next time with some diced fresh tomatoes or cilantro, and some black or refried beans in the taco bowls would be good, too. It would work fine in tortillas.
2. Pulled Pork:  I love pulled pork and often order it in restaurants. I rarely try to make it myself. This recipe was really good, I thought.  It takes a bit longer (1 hour in the IP plus a 20-25 min. natural release), but it was quick and easy to get into the IP and then to finish. I served it on hamburger buns with coleslaw on top and we both thought it was really tasty.
3. Butter Chicken:  I’ve shared my previous success with Chicken Tikka Masala and how I love to make Indian food at home because it’s not safe for me to eat it in restaurants due to a severe food allergy (sesame) and the risk of cross-contamination.  Anyway, this recipe has been wildly popular on my favorite Facebook group (Instant Pot Community), so I thought I’d try it.  The recipe suggests using minimal chicken (only around a pound) and saving the extra sauce for something else later. I decided the heck with that and used 1.5 lbs, and I think next time I’d use 2-2.5 lbs.  You cook the chicken thighs whole and can either serve them that way or cut them up into smaller bites later. (I might try that first next time. It worked fine for my Chicken Tikka, using the poultry button on the IP.)  The only problem I had with the recipe was that it was oddly written such that the salt was listed after the chicken, so I missed it until I was already pressure cooking.  Hubbs: “It’s good, but it tastes like it could use salt.”  Also, the recipe calls for a full teaspoon of cayenne pepper. I like things hot, but it could be cut back to a 1/2 tsp. or even less if someone doesn’t share my love for heat.
4. Red Beans, Sausage, and Rice:  The IP is supposedly really good at quickly cooking dried beans without needing to soak them for hours, so I thought I’d try this one.  This again is not a super-quick recipe, but we thought it was really tasty. It makes a ton. I just cooked rice to go with it every time we wanted to eat more of it.

Meh–Wouldn’t Make Again

1. Easiest Ever Orange Chicken:  This is actually a slow cooker recipe that I adapted for the IP (used the Poultry setting).  It certainly is easy, with just a handful of ingredients, but I didn’t think it turned out that great. The sauce was watery. I’ll stick to my tried-and-true Panda Express Orange Chicken bottled sauce and cook the chicken either in the oven or the IP.

2. Curry Chicken with Potatoes:  Again, I thought the sauce was too watery and found it a bit bland. Won’t make again.

Jury’s Out

I also made Bourbon Chicken.  I think my husband must have liked it because I made it between trips 3 and 4 and it was gone by the time I got home. I have it on the menu again this week and will give it my own assessment.

P.S.–Ribs

I wrote most of this blog post last night while cooking my first batch of IP ribs (baby back). The Facebook group raves about what a great job the IP does with ribs.  I combined a couple of different recipes.  I made a dry rub from Epicurious, and let the ribs (one rack) sit on baking sheet in the fridge for half an hour. Then I put the ribs in the IP with 1 c. cabernet sauvignon (I used Two-Buck Chuck) and about half a bottle of BBQ sauce (I used a yummy honey-bourbon sauce).  30 minutes on high with a natural release (about 25 min.), then baste with more BBQ sauce and broil for 3 minutes.

The taste was good, but we agreed the ribs cooked have been cooked a little longer. They weren’t “fall-off-the-bone” tender–I know ribs purists think they shouldn’t be, anyway–but they took a little more work to eat than we wanted.  I think I’d probably do everything the same but add 3-5 minutes to the IP time. They were maybe still a bit frozen, too.

So that’s it from 4/20 Day (now 4/21)!