American – Cook With Sami B

Instant Pot Whole Chicken

Chicken is wonderful. Growing up, I only liked eating white meat chicken. I found thighs, legs, and backs to be entirely too much for me. Besides, my mother always made the juiciest chicken breast whenever she roasted her chicken. Someday, I’ll do a pollo al horno (oven-roasted chicken) recipe to post here. Hopefully it’ll be just as good.

When I bought my Instant Pot years ago, one of the things that intrigued me was the fact that it could cook a five- to six-pound whole chicken in about an hour. This is insane to me, because I normally oven-roast my chickens for 20-25 minutes per pound. The Instant Pot does it at about 5.5 minutes per pound. So, for a five pound chicken, the traditional oven method takes an hour and forty minutes to two hours and five minutes. However, the Instant Pot cooks the same sized bird in about 63 minutes from start to finish! That’s about 4 minutes each side of browning, 2 minutes to deglaze the bottom of the pot, 10 minutes to build pressure, 28 minutes (rounded up) for cooking, and about 15 minutes for a natural pressure release.

On top of this, the oven method does not produce much by the way of drippings, whereas the Instant Pot creates a delicious broth that you can freeze to use for later. My recipe below will create a delicious, juicy, tender, fall-off-the bone chicken with a flavorful broth. This chicken is great for meal prep, simple dinners with picky children, chicken salad, cheesy chicken alfredo (a hit with the kids!), chicken for salads, or anything else your heart desires.

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I bought my Instant Pot in 2016 for about $69 from Amazon. At the time, having newly bought a house, extra expenditures were not on the list. We were going to have a simple Thanksgiving and Christmas and start to save money again. That meant not just spending money on the newest, flashy things. I’ll admit that I have a bit of a thing for kitchen gadgets. Toaster ovens, waffle makers, slow cookers, blenders, choppers, you name it. If it was a new gimmicky thing, you can bet your bottom dollar I at least considered buying it.

One of my best friends wanted to get me an Instant Pot as a house-warming gift. She sang its praises from top to bottom and said I had to have one. Well, when I saw it on sale on Amazon at such a deeply discounted price (it used to sell for over $100), I couldn’t NOT get it. My friend was a little disappointed and got us a deep fryer instead. That poor deep fryer has now been collecting dust on the patio since we can’t really have high fat food anymore.

In the meantime, the Instant Pot has almost never failed me. Within a couple of weeks of getting the Instant Pot, I finally took it out of the box and wondered what I was going to make first. I decided that a whole chicken would be the first experiment to see if this appliance was all that it was hyped up to be.

I seasoned it liberally with salt and a poultry seasoning I used for my roasted chicken, sauteed it on all sides, and set the cook time based on the 5.5 minutes per pound calculation. Folks, let me tell you that my husband keeps telling people how much luckier he is than I am because he married a woman who can cook.

I’ll say that Pinterest helped me along.

Equipment List:

6-quart Instant Pot
Trivet (I used the one that came with the pot)
Cutting board
Chef’s knife
Measuring spoons and cup
Oven-safe casserole dish to place the chicken in after cooking
Gloves (I use them to handle raw meat and minimize the chance of cross-contamination)
Wooden spoon to scrape up browned bits
Plate to place browned chicken prior to pressure cooking
Small bowl for the squeezed lemon juice

Ingredient List:

Broiler or fryer chicken.* (*See note below)
Desired amount of preferred seasoning. I used my own homemade Adobo seasoning.
1 tablespoon Kosher salt*
Lemon
2-4 tablespoons of preferred fat (I use bacon grease), divided
1 cup of water

*Note #1: Make sure the chicken you get isn’t too big for your pot. I can easily get a six-pound chicken into this pot, but that’s about the largest I’d go in a 6-quart. If you have an 8-quart, you could probably go for a seven- or possibly eight-pound bird. If you have a 3-quart, I recommend you stick to Cornish hens, since you can handle them pretty easily in the 3-quart. If you go for the 3-quart, reduce the water to about 1/2 a cup if you don’t want a ton of broth.

*Note #2: You can certainly omit the salt if you want to watch sodium intake. I only used salt for the cavity of the bird since my Adobo seasoning already has salt in it.

*The cast of characters.*
*Why did the chicken cross the playground? To get to the other slide! Har, har!*

Recipe Instructions:

Don’t skip this step!: Take note of how much your chicken weighs, rounded to the nearest half pound! You will need this number when you calculate how long to cook the chicken for under pressure.
(Optional step) Wash your chicken. I know, there is a lot of information regarding whether you should wash your chicken. Does it need to be washed in the first place? Won’t it make the germs fly all over the kitchen? Does it really need the gamey taste washed out? I grew up in a Dominican home where you wash the chicken to make sure you get at all of the leftover pin feathers from the processing, peel off any outer skin, and wash off the accumulated blood. I usually just use plain water. My mother would wash the chicken with white vinegar.
Whether you wash your chicken or not, pat the bird dry inside and out with paper towels. This will help to ensure the seasoning sticks to the bird and you get as even of a sear as possible.
(Optional step) Season the cavity of the bird with salt.
Season the outside of the bird liberally.
Tuck the wingtips back behind the bird. Even though you don’t run the risk of burning the wing tips, tucking them back provides for better presentation and also gives you the option of broiling the bird for a crispy skin later!

*I seasoned the outside liberally with my homemade Adobo seasoning. I heavily salted the inside cavity, too.*

Set the Instant Pot to saute mode and higher for a hotter pot.
Once the display reads “HOT,” drop in two tablespoons of your grease or oil. Swirl it around the inner pot to coat the bottom.
Sear the chicken on both sides, starting breast-side down. Sear for about three to four minutes a side.
Meanwhile, cut your lemon in half and squeeze the juice into a small bowl. Do not discard the lemon.

Place your trivet, with the handles out, on a clean plate.
Remove your chicken and set on the trivet atop the plate to rest a moment. Stuff with the squeezed lemon halves.
Deglaze the bottom of the pot with a little bit of the water from the measuring cup and a squeeze from half the lemon. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up those flavorful bits from the bottom of the pot. (My mouth is watering right now.)
Once the pot is deglazed, push the “Keep Warm/Cancel” button to stop the saute mode.
Pour the remaining water into the pot.
Carefully lower the trivet with the browned chicken into the inner pot.
Pour the lemon juice all over the chicken.

*Set on top of a rack, ready to pressure cook!*

Set and lock the lid onto the pot. Turn the sealing valve to sealing.
Pull out the calculator or ask Google or Siri to calculate the weight of your chicken by 5.5. Round UP to the nearest minute. (Example, a 5.5 pound chicken times 5.5 minutes is 30.25 minutes. I set this for 31 minutes of cook time.)
Press the poultry button and adjust the time to the calculated number (or you can use the manual button. It’s all the same). The pot should be on high pressure.
Walk away.
After the cook cycle is over, wait at least 10 minutes of natural pressure release prior to quick releasing any remaining pressure.

*The resulting broth was full of flavor.*

Remove the chicken and place into an oven safe dish. At this point, you can broil the chicken for a few minutes to get some delicious crispy skin.

*Resting for a mere second before I tore into it.*

When I pulled this chicken out, I lost the thighs, legs, and wings. It was super juicy and flavorful. I had it in an oven-safe casserole dish and I probably could have popped it in the oven for some browning, but I could hardly take this picture without gnawing at some breast meat!

Like I mentioned earlier, this chicken is so versatile for anything you want. Think BBQ chicken sliders, salad-topping, tacos, enchiladas… the possibilities are endless.

What do you like to use your chicken for? Hit me up in the comments!

Thank you for sharing some of your screen time with me! If you liked this recipe, please hit the like button so I know to make more content like this. Tell me what you want me to try making next in the comments below. Also, check out my Facebook and Instagram (tag me at @cookwithsamib) for more photos and my Pinterest for what inspires me. Finally, don’t forget to subscribe to my blog for updates when I hang new posts!

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Buen provecho! – Sami B.

Instant Pot Frozen Hamburgers

Hamburgers are one of my favorite things to eat. When done right, they are juicy, flavorful, and all around awesome. I love a well-seasoned, perfectly cooked, juicy burger. My favorite burger joint is a place called Clarke’s CharBroiler, which has a ton of choices to make your perfect burger. I don’t go there often because it’s spendy, but it’s delicious. It’s also a fairly quick drive to and from the office.

My recipe for burgers from frozen works pretty well and can be increased, if needed.

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I enjoy burgers so much, that I’m pretty sure both kids came out the womb craving ground beef patties. I largely ate burgers, pizza, ice cream, and hot dogs while pregnant. I tried to eat right, but the cravings were real. So I decided to enjoy myself and eat burgers. When else could I eat what I wanted (within reason)? I was totally eating for two. Yes, excuses, I know.

As my kids grew up to be somewhat picky eaters, we could agree that one thing they would probably always enjoy is a burger. But think about the expense of going to the golden arches to get an OK burger. The time, money, and gas it takes to pick up a Happy Meal for the littlest one and a “Quarter Pound” for the big one. Making sure that the burger is plain, which isn’t just without cheese. Not to say that McDonald’s doesn’t have a place in their lives – after all, it’s a thing I do with them when we go to see the doctor – but when I learned how to make an Instant Pot burger from frozen, the game changed dramatically.

First of all, I will mention this. I love my Instant Pot. I will do my best to figure out how to cook everything in it. I know it’s ultimately impossible, but you can’t blame a girl for trying, and I’m sure gonna try. This appliance has changed my cooking life and added confidence in the kitchen, something I never had before.

That being said, I was skeptical about pressure cooked burgers. Why not throw it on the grill or make it on stove? Well, for starters, I don’t mess much with the grill; sometimes I just don’t want to stand there flipping burgers. Secondly, cleaning up the splatter after cooking on the stove is just a pain. I don’t like my stove much because it’s electric and I prefer a gas range. I also don’t like how long it takes to cook frozen burgers on the stove. After all, I don’t have a whole lot of room to work with on the stove, so I inevitably do one burger at a time, which.takes.forever. Not conducive to a quick meal.

Then, I read a post on the Instant Pot Community Facebook page about cooking fresh burgers for 10-15 minutes in the Instant Pot. I was intrigued. So I decided to give it a try with frozen and see what I came up with.

I haven’t had a bad Instant Pot burger yet. My kids devour theirs nearly every time. My husband is a believer and suggests it as a quick meal.

In fact, last night, we were at a loss last night for quick dinner options. We looked at each other after a minute and said “burgers.”

We were eating within 35 minutes.

I think it’s safe to say that this recipe is a keeper. Read on for the recipe and let me know what you think!

Equipment List:

Instant Pot – I used my 6-quart. The size pot depends on how many burgers you want to make.
Trivet with legs – the one that came with my pot is perfect
Aluminum foil

Ingredient List:

Frozen burger patties – I used 1/4 pound burgers from Costco
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper
Garlic powder
Or, seasonings of your choice
Condiments, lettuce, tomato, buns (or lettuce wraps if you’re going no carb)
1 cup water for the inner pot

Meal ingredients for Instant Pot Frozen Burgers — *Cast of characters for tonight’s quick dinner*. I think it took me longer to set up the photo than actually prep and make the meal!

Recipe Instructions:

Tear a piece of aluminum foil just over 12″ long. Place a frozen patty directly in the middle.
Season liberally and to your heart’s content.

Seasoned frozen beef patty for Instant Pot Frozen Burgers recipe — *Salt, pepper, and garlic all over my burger. Yummy!*

Wrap each burger by loosely folding the foil over.
Add one cup of water to the inner lining of the Instant Pot.
Place trivet inside the pot.
Stack the foil-wrapped burgers on top of each other in the pot. This allows the burgers to retain as close to a circular shape as possible during the cooking process. *Note that the ones in the middle will be fully cooked, but slightly pink in the middle.

Instant Pot burgers from frozen! — *This is how frozen burgers wrapped in foil look stacked in the Instant Pot.*

Lock the lid in place and set the steam release valve to sealing.
Press the manual/pressure cook/meat button and using the +/- buttons, adjust the time to 18 minutes. (If you stack and don’t want any pink, go with 20 minutes).
About five minutes before the cooking cycle is over, prepare your toppings and condiments.

Instant Pot burger from frozen. — *One of the burgers after the cooking cycle was over. Nice and juicy!*

Instant Pot burger cooked from frozen on a bun with mayo. — *I decided to slather some mayonnaise on one of the burgers I made.*

Assemble your burgers.
Enjoy!

Instant Pot burger from frozen with cheese, lettuce, and tomato. There's a pickle and some chips to go with! — *An assembled dinner in less than 30 minutes.*

How do you like your burgers? Let me know what sides you like with your burgers in the comments below!

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Buen provecho! – Sami B.

Instant Pot 1950s Sunday Pot Roast

“Sam, the 1950s want their pot roast back” – my husband after eating my old-fashioned pot roast that I made in the Instant Pot.

It’s just that good. A warm, flavorful, comforting meal of beef chuck roast, potatoes, and sweet, buttery carrots with delicious gravy in every bite. I made this pot roast for the first time last year and my husband has raved about it ever since. I could tell that he liked it because he kept going up for more even though he was full.

Yup, it’s just that good.

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Although pot roast was never a thing for me growing up, I associate it with Sunday afternoon dinners after church services. Several years ago, when visiting family in Phoenix, my mother-in-law made one for after worship supper that was delicious. The delicious and savory smell greeted us when we came home after socializing with the other congregants. It was a smell that makes me think of a warm and happy home. I wanted to do that for my family.

Despite my desire, I was never good at making pot roast in the oven, old-fashioned or not. I could never get it fall-apart tender and I didn’t have an hour per pound or the patience to spare to get the job done. I tried everything when making it in the oven, resulting in fail, after fail, after fail.

On a number of occasions I have done a great pot roast in the slow cooker, but that involves searing the meat on a separate pan on the stove, then transferring the contents to the slow cooker. In the morning. Before work. With two rambunctious, demanding-my-attention-all-the-time boys that I have to get ready and fed before school lest I want to have the meltdown to end all meltdowns from either or both of them. (Despite that description of them, I love them dearly and can’t picture my life without them.)

My slow cooker pot roast is nothing short of fantastic. I endeavored to convert it into an Instant Pot version, because, why not?

A good pot roast starts with chuck roast. A chuck roast is a cheap cut of meat that’s tough and stringy with all of that fat running through it. Because of this, a chuck roast only becomes tender from low and slow cooking temperatures and long cooking times. So the slow cooker is the only way to get it done, especially if I can’t hack it the oven. Right?

Right?

WRONG! The Instant Pot can get you a spoon tender, melt-in-your mouth result just as well – or better – than the traditional methods.

My pot roast recipe which fools people into thinking I spent three hours alone just cooking the thing. Maybe I’m the Hispanic June Cleaver, it’s so good.

Don’t let me sway you away from the slow cooker version of this dish. It certainly has its place. There is something about the smell of delicious meal welcoming you home after a long day’s work. I love that about my slow cooker. My Instant Pot will never replace my slow cooker. But my slow cooker does not do anything fast. It wasn’t build for that.

Now, before I jump in, I need you to be aware of something. In this exact form, this isn’t a weeknight friendly recipe. However, you employ a few shortcuts if you want to have this meal the same day.

For example, you could skip the sauteing of ingredients and just dump and go and be eating in about 1 1/2 hours. And that’s fine. BUT, meals like pot roast, chili, and beans are always better the next day because the flavors have had a chance to meld.

I made this recipe and had it the same evening and it was phenomenal. But the next day, my boss who cannot eat meat due to dietary concerns asked me where I got my lunch. This old-fashioned pot roast recipe upset the balance in the world.

Ever see Once Upon a Time in Mexico (AKA Desperado 2)? There’s this side story about Sheldon Sands, a CIA agent who eats the same pork dish at every Mexican restaurant he ends up at. In one particular scene, he meets with El Mariachi and remarks that the slow cooked pork he’s eating is the best he’s ever had. And because it’s the best he’s ever had, it upsets the balance in the world. In order to reset the balance, he has no choice but to kill the cook.

My pot roast upsets the balance in the world. It is the pot roast of pot roasts, the recipe to end all recipes of this sort. Try it and you won’t be disappointed. Just don’t shoot the chef after you eat it.

For my 1950’s Sunday Pot Roast, read the recipe below.

Equipment List:

6-quart Instant Pot
Cutting board
Chef’s knife
Measuring spoons
Measuring cup
Tongs
Ladle to scoop the deliciousness
Wooden spoon
Veggie chopper (optional)
Plate
Aluminum foil

Ingredient List:

3-4 pound chuck roast, cut into two even sized pieces
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons dried or ground oregano
2 teaspoons salt (cut down to 1 teaspoon if you’re sensitive to sodium)
2 teaspoons pepper
2 tablespoons of cooking oil (I used bacon grease)
2 cups of beef stock
2 teaspoons of fish sauce or Worcestershire sauce
1 yellow onion
3 ribs of celery
6 cloves of garlic
a few sprigs of fresh thyme (optional)
a few sprigs of fresh rosemary (optional)
baby carrots (your choice how much)
creamer potatoes (your choice how much)
4 tablespoons of salted butter, divided
Au jus seasoning packet (I used Lawry’s)
Dried parsley for garnish, if desired

Ingredients for an instant pot old-fashioned pot roast. — *Cast of characters for tonight’s recipe.*

It’s a lot of ingredients. But they all work together to produce a delicious pot roast. Trust me when I say it’s all worth it.

Recipe Instructions:

Slice the onion into half-rounds. Set aside.
Using the veggie chopper or your chef’s knife, dice the celery and garlic. Set aside.
If using, wash and pat dry the rosemary and thyme sprigs. This is optional, but I have these herbs growing in my garden and I wanted to use them here.
Mix together your dried seasonings. Do not include the fresh rosemary and thyme here. Reserve those for later.
Place the potatoes and carrots on separate pieces of aluminum foil. Add salt and pepper to taste and drop in one tablespoon of butter in each. Wrap up the foil and set aside.

Buttered creamer potatoes for my instant pot old-fashioned pot roast recipe. — *I did the same with the carrots. I also decided to season each in their own packets for added flavor.*

Cut your roast into two or three uniform-sized pieces. You will want each piece to fit in the bottom of your inner liner.
Season each piece of meat with the dry seasonings. Don’t be stingy with the seasoning here. You should use it all up.

Cut and seasoned chuck roast for my instant pot old-fashioned pot roast. — This is how your roast should look prior to searing. Feel free to add more seasoning if you want.

Push the Saute button and adjust the heat level to more. When the display reads “HOT,” put in the cooking fat and swirl it around the bottom of the pot.
After about a minute, brown the pieces of meat for about two to three minutes a side. Flip using tongs. Do not disturb the meat while it’s browning and make sure to not crowd the bottom of the pot.
While the meat is cooking, mix your wet ingredients in a 2-cup measuring cup.

Seared chuck roast for my old-fashioned instant pot pot roast. — *This is the color you’re looking for on the roast. Those browned bits equal delicious flavor that will blow your mind.*

Once the meat is seared, remove from the pot and set aside on a plate.
Meanwhile, pour in about a 1/4 cup of liquid mixture and the remaining butter and deglaze the bottom of the pot using your wooden spoon. Make sure to get as many of those browned bits up as possible since this will add depth of flavor to the finished dish and will prevent the pot from displaying a burn notice during the pressure cooking process.
Saute the onions for a few minutes, then add the celery and garlic. Saute the vegetables until they become translucent. Take care in this step to not burn the garlic.
Pour in the remaining liquid mixture and mix well. The browned bits will infuse with the liquid.
Place the roast back into the pot. If you cut it, be sure to nestle the pieces in evenly.
If using, place the rosemary and thyme on top. of the roast.

Prepared ingredients for instant pot old fashioned pot roast. — *I know this is going to be goooooooooood eating!*

Press the “Cancel/Keep Warm” button to stop the saute function.
Place the foil packets on top of the roast.

Now, you might be wondering, why put the veggies in now? It’s going to be a long cook time and they’ll turn to mush! True if potatoes and carrots are going straight in to the pot. But something about putting them above the rest of the ingredients and wrapped in foil keeps them from disintegrating. They certainly get cooked, but they don’t fall apart when you stick in a fork.

Seal and lock the lid. Place the pressure valve to sealing.
Press the manual or pressure cook button (I used the meat button. Note that there is no difference here) and using the +/- buttons, set the time to 60 minutes.
After the cooking cycle is over, let the pot naturally pressure release for about 15 minutes. Carefully release any remaining pressure by moving the pressure valve to venting.
Carefully remove the lid.
Remove the foil packets and set aside.
Remove and dispose the herb sprigs.
Remove the roast and set aside on a plate. The roast may fall apart at this point, so take care to not have hot liquid splashing on you!
Press the “Keep Warm/Cancel” button again.
Press the “Saute” button and adjust the heat to more.
Pour in the au jus seasoning and stir with a wooden spoon to incorporate. Allow the mixture to bubble for a couple of minutes to thicken to the desired consistency.
Slice meat.
Serve with the thickened sauce, potatoes, and carrots.
Enjoy!

*Look at it. Just look at it. It needed a hunk of bread!*

Bread hack: wrap in plastic and freeze your bread in medium sized hunks so you can heat up when the mood strikes! Warm in a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes and slice to desired sized pieces. Crusty bread is great for sopping up that delicious sauce!

Let me know how you like your pot roast and when you usually have it. There isn’t one “right” way. I usually know it’s a hit when my husband goes for a second serving on a full stomach! I hope you enjoyed this recipe as much as we did!

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Buen provecho! – Sami B.

Instant Pot Pulled Pork

Ah, the pig. It is a great animal for all sorts of meals. Think about whole pigs cooked in a pit, Kahlua pig, ham steaks for breakfast, ham hocks for baked beans, and – of course – bacon! You can have pork products for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Some parts are succulent like bacon or fat back. Others are really lean like loin. When done well, a meal featuring pork is a meal to write home about.

Pork seems to be very popular in the summer. However, you can have pork any time of year. You don’t have to wait for an end-of-summer barbecue to have a delicious pulled pork slider!

Jump to the Equipment List. Jump to the Ingredient List. Jump to the Recipe Instructions.

Pork shoulder is a tough cut of meat. Also known as pork butt, Boston shoulder, butt, or Boston butt (because it was transported in barrels known as “butts” back in the day), it has lots of fat that running through the fibers of meat. This cut benefits from low and slow cooking because the fat renders out through those fibers, adding flavor and making the end result tender.

The shoulder is my favorite cut of pork for my Cuban-Inspired Slow Cooker Mojo Pork. My husband has used the lower part of the shoulder, known as the picnic, for his own pork recipes in the cast iron dutch oven. When cooked for a long period of time at low temps, the shoulder becomes tender, succulent, and delicious.

~~So, expect to spend hours if you want to do anything with the shoulder.~~ While the shoulder benefits from long cook times, the Instant Pot cuts down on that time and still produces that delicious, succulent, tender result you get from low and slow cooking. You read that right. Instant Pot to the rescue!

You will be making delicious pulled pork whenever the mood strikes. Read on for the recipe.

Equipment List:

6-quart Instant Pot* (*See Note below)
Chef’s knife
Cutting board
Measuring cup
Measuring spoons

*Note: I used a 3-pound pork shoulder in this recipe. You may be able to go up to about 6 pounds in the 6-quart. Keep in mind that you will have to cut the meat so that it fits evenly in the inner liner of the pressure cooker. If you have a larger roast – Let me know, I’ll be right over – then consider sizing up to an 8-quart (plus an additional 1/2 cup of water) or freeze half the roast for another day.

Ingredient List:

3-pound pork shoulder
Salt and pepper to taste
Garlic powder (optional)
1 medium white onion
4 tablespoons of cooking oil, divided
Two bottles barbecue sauce of choice (I used what I had on hand)
1/2 cup of water
Cole slaw mix with pre-made dressing (or you can make your own)

Ingredients for my Instant Pot Pulled Pork recipe! — Cast of characters for tonight’s meal.

Recipe Instructions:

Slice up the onion and set aside.
Slice the pork shoulder into two or three even cuts. You want to be able to fit each piece independently into the bottom of the pot for searing.
Season the pork shoulder pieces with salt, pepper, and garlic (if using)
On your Instant Pot, select “Sauté” mode and adjust to high heat.
When the display reads “HOT” pour in two tablespoons of your cooking oil. Swirl it around to evenly coat the bottom of the inner pot. It’s natural for the oil to collect along the edges of the pot due to its design.
After about a minute, sear each side of the pork pieces for about two minutes per side. This may have to be done in batches, which is OK.*

Pork shoulder cooking in an Instant Pot — I was able to sear only one piece at a time. More than that, and the meat would have been *sweating* instead of *searing*.

*Note: Crowding the pieces causes them to sweat instead of sear. You want that maillard reaction to deepen the flavor profile of the meat and resulting sauce. Trust me on this. “Dump and go” cooking has its place in busy lives, but if you can spend the time searing your meat and incorporating those burned bits into your dish, the result will be that much better.

Seasoned and seared pork shoulder — This is the color you’re looking for when searing the pork.

Remove the shoulder pieces and reserve on a plate. Cover with foil in the meantime.
Add a little bit of the water to the pot. Begin deglazing the bottom by scraping with a wooden spoon.

Browned bits in the Instant Pot — That deliciousness will add depth of flavor to your dish.

When the pot is mostly cleaned, add the onions and sauté. The onions will release moisture and help deglaze any remaining bits.
Sauté until the onions turn translucent.
Pour in the rest of the water and nestle the pork pieces in one even layer on top of the onions.
Pour one container of barbecue sauce on top of the pork. Do not mix.*

*Note: Thick sauces have a tendency to cause a burn notice with the Instant Pot. Thick sauces on the bottom of the pot will scorch and not allow the pot to come to pressure. Not to mention that the burned flavor is something the dish can’t recover from no matter what you do.

Repeat after me: thick sauces on top, do not stir.

Turn off the “Sauté” mode by pressing “Keep Warm/Cancel.”
Place the lid on and lock it into place. Turn the steam valve to sealing.
Press manual or pressure cook (I use the meat button) and set the timer to 45 minutes under high pressure.
Meanwhile, make your cole slaw and marinate in the fridge until you’re ready to eat.
When the cook cycle is complete, let the pot rest for 15 minutes. Then, release any remaining pressure by turning the valve to venting.
Toast your buns, if using.
Remove the pork roast from the pot. It may fall apart here, and that’s fine.
Shred the pork with two forks.
Press the “Keep Warm/Cancel” button and then “Sauté.” Stir the sauce with your wooden spoon until it’s reduced to your liking.
Return the shredded pork to the sauce or keep it on the side and spoon a little sauce over to keep it moist.
Serve with a side of the remaining barbecue sauce. I like my pulled pork with a heaping spoonful of slaw in a lightly toasted bun.

How do you like your pulled pork? What’s your favorite barbecue sauce? Let me know what sides you enjoy with your sandwiches! If you liked this recipe, please let me know by liking this post.

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Buen provecho! – Sami B.

Instant Pot Sweet Corn Spoon Bread Bites

Inspiration struck as I was looking at the pantry. I was thinking about a baby shower I was going to the next day. I wasn’t cooking anything for it but I was wondering what I would make. I saw a box of corn meal and it dawned on me that I love and miss sweet corn spoon bread.

I thought to myself, why not try and make some? So, I got to experimenting. This experiment resulted in way too many corn spoon bread bites and a recipe that I’m happy to share with you.

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Spoon bread is ooey, gooey, and sweet. It’s cooked all the way through to a safe temperature, but very soft and delicious. I would add this to the comfort foods list. This would go well for end-of-summer barbecues or potlucks that focus on “small bite” fare. This can be easily consumed with your hands, or you can use a fork and knife instead.

I’ve had spoon bread at Thanksgiving, too. It replaced the sweet potato casserole as the sweet dessert-before-dessert. Sometimes I prefer spoon bread to sweet potato casserole because it isn’t too sweet.

Spoon bread is the kind of side that my kids enjoy and will ask for continually. Some Mexican restaurants serve a similar side dish called sweet corn cake. It’s got the consistency of a cake and is slightly sweet. Whenever we go to El Torito, we make sure to grab a larger bowl of it to share between me and the kids.

Equipment List:

6-quart Instant Pot
Trivet with legs
Egg bite mold (I use this one)
Paper towel to cover the mold
Aluminum foil to cover the mold
Two medium-sized mixing bowls
Wire whisk
Measuring spoons and cup
Plate larger than the mold to pop out the bites

Ingredient List:

1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup corn meal
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons white sugar
A pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup sweet corn (drained if from a can)
1 large egg
1 tablespoon sour cream
2 teaspoons milk
1/2 cup creamed corn (about 1/3 of a can)
4 teaspoons unsalted butter, melted and at room temperature
Cooking spray or melted butter to grease the egg bite molds
1 cup water for cooking

Cast of characters for this experiment. I definitely ended up making a lot that night! I was also making dinner in my other 6-quart and my 3-quart Instant Pots. Let’s talk about multitasking!

Recipe Instructions:

Mix all the dry ingredients together in one bowl.
Mix all the wet ingredients together in a separate bowl.
Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just incorporated. Little lumps are OK, but you don’t want to activate the gluten in the flour.
Grease your egg bite mold. This will help the bites pop out when done cooking.
Pour the batter into the mold.
Cover the mold with a paper towel to collect any condensation that may occur.
Cover the mold and paper towel with aluminum foil.
Pour one cup of water into the inner liner of your Instant Pot.
Place the trivet inside.
Carefully place the mold on top of the trivet.
Seal and lock in the lid and set the sealing knob to the seal position.
Press manual (or pressure cook, depending on your model) and using the +/- buttons, set it for seven minutes’ cook time.
After the cooking cycle is complete, carefully turn the knob to the venting position for a quick release.
Carefully remove the lid and the mold. The mold will be hot!
Place a plate upside down over the mold and flip.
The bites should pop out easily. If not, run a knife around the edges of each bite.

If you enjoyed this, like this recipe. What occasion do you make these bites for?

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Buen provecho! – Sami B.