The Instant Pot is a multi-functional third-generation smart electric pressure cooker, and can be used to sauté, steam rice, cook beans, make yogurt, braise and more. It’s safer than its predecessors, with safety locks, digital readouts and a manual valve to release pressure when you need to jump the gun.

According to Britannica, the pressure cooker’s sealed chamber superheats water to create steam with a temperature as high as 266 F (130 C), well above boiling point, which you recall is 212 F (100 C). As a result, food cooks more quickly and its nutrients are preserved.

The first pressure cooker, called Papin’s Digester, was invented in 1679 by the French physicist Denis Papin. Charles Darwin referred to it in his 1835 book The Voyage of The Beagle, when he bemoaned the impossibility of cooking food in boiling water at high elevations in the republic of Mendoza (now Argentina). The new invention was not produced for sale for almost 200 years, when stovetop models were introduced in Germany and England. They subsequently made an appearance at the 1939 World’s Fair. After the Second World War, pressure cookers became popular with 1950s home cooks; second-gen stovetop models were used by one-third of North American households. But safety concerns diminished its popularity until the third generation — the Instant Pot and its cousins — appeared on the culinary landscape.

Which brings us to my kitchen: how useful can a smart pressure cooker be? The first dish I made was pork and beans, a staple in our home.

I used the Pot to sauté onions, garlic and aromatics, then added four varieties of (unsoaked) dried beans, a smoked pork hock, liquid (roasted tomato sauce, water) and seasonings. I closed the pot and set the timer. After 35 minutes, I toggled the release valve to depressurize so I could check on doneness: the kidney beans were still crunchy. I added 15 minutes to the timer, and afterward let the pressure self-release for two hours to extend the passive cooking time. Total time: 1 hour cooking + 2 hours steam release + 1 pot to wash.

In “real time” stovetop cooking, I cook the beans, and the hock — separately from the beans — then shred the meat. I sauté onions, garlic and aromatics, then add them plus the pork, its cooking water and seasonings to the cooked beans and simmer the whole shebang for an hour. Total time: 3 ½ to 4 hours + 3 pots to wash.

Clearly the Instant Pot is more efficient. But I work at home, so time has a different meaning than simple efficiency. Plus, I like to tinker with my food while it cooks — not easily done in a pressure cooker. In the future, I might use the Pot to cook the beans and pork hock, but I might transfer them to a stovetop pot, where I can tinker to my heart’s content. Or not.

Important things to attend to: do not fill the Pot past two-thirds, to allow space for steam generation. Use two cups of liquid per cup of dried beans — and remember that cooked beans expand! Salt the beans during cooking so they hold their shape, but do not add acid of any kind (lemon juice, vinegar) or the beans will not soften. (Add acid to taste at the end.) If the beans are underdone, turn the Pot back on and cook them longer. Clean everything, especially the gasket, after every use. Familiarize yourself with safety procedures in your operating manual.

Next time: making beef stock in the Instant Pot. But first we eat our beans, a lovely way to care for ourselves and our family.

Pressure cooker beans with smoked pork and smoked paprika

I have an 8-quart Instant Pot. If yours is 6 quarts, reduce the amount of beans and liquid. Add condiments from your fridge at will to season this pot.

Serves 8-12.

• 1 large onion, minced
• 1 head garlic, minced
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 whole cinnamon stick
• 2-3 pods star anise
• 1 Tbsp. sweet paprika
• 2 tsp. smoked paprika
• 1 Tbsp. mixed dried basil, rosemary, theme, oregano
• 4 cups dried beans (Great Northern, pinto, baby lima, kidney)
• 2 c. roasted tomato sauce (link to Column, 21 September 2021)
• 6 c. hot water
• 1 smoked pork hock
• ¼ c. tomato paste or ketchup
• ¼ c. pomegranate molasses
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• Sriracha or hot sauce to taste

Put the onion, garlic, pepper, and oil in the Pot. Sauté for 10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients. Cover and cook on high pressure for 45 minutes. Use the steam release valve to depressurize, then taste the beans. If they are still crunchy, cook longer. Depressurize the Pot naturally. Adjust the seasoning before serving.

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When the air fryer craze hit, I admit I was utterly dismissive and hugely skeptical. “That’s just a little countertop convection oven,” I told Dave. “Not interested.” Then when Instant Pots arrived, I said, “But I make fine rice on the stovetop. I have an enamelled cast iron pot for braising, and a stock pot for making stock. Why would I want an Instant Pot?”

Well, I am sure you can see where this is going — to a moment of humbling. To a realization that there is more in heaven and earth than is dreamed of in my philosophy. William Shakespeare wasn’t just a fine poet and playwright, but an astute reader of the human psyche.

I took my elderly Momsy and my sister to visit my youngest son awhile back. We showed up as agreed for Sunday lunch, and when we sat down at the counter, my boy cracked open his Instant Pot and served a luscious chili verde that he had thrown together that morning after sleeping late. Then my sister started raving about how reliant she became on her Instant Pot when her stovetop burners kicked out. A month later, I ate at my friend’s house, and she pulled some terrific fries out of her air fryer and set them down in front of me.

“All right,” I said to the universe. “I get it. Let’s go look at the new toys.”

My change in attitude registered in my family. An Instant Pot from my husband Dave appeared under our holiday tree. I can’t wait to put it through its paces. More on that in a couple of weeks. Then my youngest and his partner gave me an air fryer.

I took that big box into the kitchen and set it up on the butcher block. When I cracked open the carton, a pair of removable metal baskets slid out from within the air fryer’s metal box. Each basket had a removable rack in the bottom.

Dave laughed when I broke into my happy dance. That evening I read the user’s manual, although as my son said, all you do is turn it on, set the temperature, set the timer, hit start. But hey, it’s new technology, and I like to know what the heck I’m doing.

What I have learned about my new tool is that the shape has changed, but in fact an air fryer uses old cooking methods. According to BBC Science Focus, “A heating element near the top of the fryer emits heat into the air in the cooking chamber (radiation), while a fan circulates the heated air rapidly around it (convection). This combination creates a very intense heat transfer, resulting in a cooking method that’s closer to frying than baking.”

So I still belong to the sisterhood of the apron. First we eat, then we can share stories of our favourite kitchen exploits.

Air fryer fries with aioli and lemon ketchup

The promise of crisp fries in half an hour gives me the impetus to make a couple of yummy dips while the potatoes cook. Start the lemon ketchup before the spuds, as it takes awhile to reduce. Serves 3.

• 1 ½ lb. yellow-fleshed or russet potatoes
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Slice the potatoes into even batons and toss with the oil and seasoning. Place in air fryer and cook until crisp, shaking once or twice.

Lemon ketchup

• 2 lb. ripe tomatoes
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 3 Tbsp. light brown sugar
• Sea salt to taste
• Juice of ½ lemon
• 2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
• ¼ tsp. smoked paprika
• pepper to taste

Seed and mince the tomatoes. Simmer with zest, oil, sugar and salt until thick and flavourful. Add remaining ingredients.

Smoked paprika aioli

• 1 egg yolk
• 1 Tbsp. grainy mustard
• ½ lemon, juice only
• 1- 1 ½ c. olive oil
• ½ tsp. smoked paprika
• a handful of chives, minced
• 1 tsp. finely minced fresh rosemary
• 1 Tbsp. minced fresh basil or parsley
• 4-6 cloves minced garlic
• ½ c. chopped olives
• hot chili flakes to taste
• salt to taste
• white wine vinegar to taste

In a non-reactive bowl whisk together the egg, mustard and lemon juice, then slowly drizzle in the oil, whisking thoroughly as you do to form an emulsion. Add the remaining ingredients, balancing the flavours at the end. Cover and chill.

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