Pressure Cooking 101; Behind The Magic Curtain - Instant Pot DUO PLUS Series User Manual

Pressure cooking 101

Pressure cooking uses steam to raise the boiling point of water above 100ºC / 212ºF.
These high temperatures allow you to cook some foods way faster than normal.

Behind the magic curtain

When pressure cooking, the Instant Pot goes through 3 stages.
Pre-heating
What you see
The display shows On.
Cooking
What you see
The float valve bobs
up and down from
all the steam, then
pops up and seals
the multicooker.
The display switches
to the cooking
countdown timer.
Releasing pressure
What you see
If Keep Warm is on
after cooking, the
timer counts up from
00:00.
If not, the multicooker
goes back to standby
and the display shows
End.
The float valve is still
popped up.
14 | support@instantpot.com | 1-800-828-7280
What you don't see
While the multicooker pre-heats,
it vaporizes liquid to create steam.
Once enough steam has built up,
the float valve pops up and locks
the lid in place.
What you don't see
When the multicooker reaches
the required pressure level,
cooking begins.
The Instant Pot automatically
maintains High or Low pressure
throughout cooking.
What you don't see
Although food has finished
cooking, the multicooker is still
pressurized and hot, which is why
the float valve is up.
Releasing pressure lowers
the temperature inside the
multicooker, which allows you to
safely remove the lid once the float
valve drops.
Tips
The time it takes the multicooker to
pressurize depends on things like food
and liquid temperature and volume.
Frozen foods have the longest pre-
heating time. For the fastest results,
thaw your food before cooking it.
No need to hang around during this
stage — trust that IP magic!
Tips
A higher pressure means a higher
temperature.
Smart Program settings (e.g., cooking
time, pressure level, etc.) can be
adjusted at any time during cooking.
Tips
See Releasing pressure for information
on safe venting techniques and what
they're used for.
Follow your recipe instructions to
choose the best venting method for
your meal.
The Instant Pot cools faster
if Keep Warm is turned off.