About a year ago my last slow cooker died an unnatural death. Somehow I managed to crack ANOTHER one. I was over it, and sent out a mayday to friends and family. I use the darn thing to cook a lot in the winter, and I felt lost.
As I was researching all of the various cookers on the market, I realized that a ceramic insert wouldn't work for me, and I was not going to invest in non stick. I am WAY too crunchy for that, and the hubs is a tough scrubber. When all seemed lost, I stumbled upon Instant Pot.
This thing has changed our cooking lives. It can saute, pressure cook a pot roast in 45 minutes, make slow cooking oatmeal easily, yogurt maker, rice cooker and slow cook anything. I love it for pressure cooking and slow cooking dried beans. (They are so much less expensive and better for you than canned beans. In the winter, we use them in a lot of recipes.) It also allowed me to get rid of a couple of small kitchen appliances (slow cooker, rice cooker) because it serves so many functions.
The other part that made me fall in love is how easy it is to keep clean. I pull the insert out, and put it in the dishwasher! It isn't oddly shaped, or wide like my last slow cooker. That means I can fit it in there without dishwasher tetris.
I make my favorite healthy dinner in it...slow cooker lentil soup! It is healthy, inexpensive and my kiddos LOVE it! That was my most read (and pinned) post from 2015, and I know why!
I'm going to share a new SUPER EASY dinner recipe with you now.
For a family of 4.5 I use:
Easy Healthy Sausage and Brown Rice
5 Large Sausages (I love the Whole Foods German Pork Sausages but any will do)
2 cups of brown rice
1 Quart of Tomatoes (I use jars that the hubs canned this summer, but canned tomatoes should do fine.)
4 cups of Water
Set the Instant Pot to Mixed and 45 minutes later...dinner is done. This was an accidental, desperation dinner turned family favorite. My kids eat every bit!
***edited to say: we have just added a Duo to our house to make yogurt...yes we have two!***
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