Friday, December 13, 2024

Are They Called Instapots or Instant Pots?

Honestly, I am at a loss. Can I just call it Beef Stew and let you figure out the rest?



Everyone eventually purchases things that may or may not have been foolish, or at least I do. We have one of those drawers in our kitchen that have the appearance of a chamber of horrors that we use as a storage place for cooking junk I have purchased. What a liar I am! Actually, if you include my roll around toolbox in the garage, I have almost too many drawers to count.

If you will send the children out of the room, I will share a few photos.

WARNING  - These photos may be offensive to some!






Yes, I actually own a Left-Handed Open-End Wrench. Also, far too many Cable Ties.


Anyhow, at some point in the past, I purchased an Instant Pot, or Instapot, or whatever. Maybe you know what I am talking about, they are like a plastic cased pressure cooker pot, I guess. I have used it maybe 10 times and stored it on top of the freezer in the Laundry Room for the rest of the 8 years we have owned it. All I can say is someone will host one hell of an estate sale when I die.

At some point I decided to make a stew meat beef stew in my instapot/Inspant Pot. It actually was pretty good. This is how I did it.


Ingredients:

1 pound of beef stew meat (I only used a pound of what is shown here)
1 package of Lipton Onion Soup mix
1 Tablespoon Lawry's Garlic Salt
Salt, black pepper, to taste
1 small can of Tomato sauce
2 cans of mushroom soup
1 can of beef broth
1 Bay leaf
1/2 cup frozen green peas
3 medium carrots
3 smallish red potatoes
1/2 of an onion, Quartered








Directions:

Prep the vegetables – I left mine sor'ta chunky


Season the beef with salt, black pepper and garlic salt, then brown the stew meat until it gets mostly done. My Instapot has a setting to do this, which leaves the fond in the pot. I did mine in batches.




Return beef to the pot


Add mushroom soup, Lipton Onion Soup Mix, Tomato Sauce, Beef Broth, and the Bay Leaf






Seal pot and set for recommended time for beef. I think it was 12 minutes. When
 the cycle has completed and pressure is released, Open the pot. It will look like this.


Add Peas, carrots, potatoes, and onion.


Reseal pot and cook as a vegetable cycle. Maybe 8-10 minutes. This will assure the vegetables are not overcooked (to mush) and the beef is cooked to a nice tenderness. When the pressure is released, Serve.






It made a nice meal. Was it worth buying the pot? Probably not, but It will be available in a “nearly new” condition at the estate sale when I leave for the big Waffle House in the sky. 


I don't plan on dying anytime soon, but one never knows. Just so you'll know before you show up at the estate sale, we don't own an air fryer.

In the meantime, look here if you are interested. You might find some nice junk to clutter up your laundry room.

https://www.estatesales.net/MS/Jackson?force-reload=true

Thanks for looking at my post.

God Bless You.




14 comments:

Anonymous said...

"These photos may be offensive to some!"

Really, only to every sane person over the age of three, so good job.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for making my home packed lunch useless today.

Anonymous said...

I have two of those drawers in my kitchen. Wait.. three. And I love my Instant Pot. I've owned two of them.

Anonymous said...

You are definitely ready to make a Little Rascals Surprise Cake. Meep Wow! Looking forward to that recipe here.

Anonymous said...

If I ever have to choose a last meal, this and a pan of home made cornbread would be at the top of my list. Thanks for the posts ZBPB!

Anonymous said...

Throw some green beans in there and you have the ideal stew!!

Anonymous said...

I've never had an instapot-thingie. The idea of cooking anything under high pressure in plastic disturbs me. I do have an air fryer although I don't know why since our oven has a convection setting. I've used the air fryer twice - once to cook some portobello mushrooms and another time to cook a Cornish game hen using the rotisserie feature. Young parents like the air fryers to cook fries and fish sticks for the kids.

That stew looks delicious. I wish I remembered how mama made beef stew. She used water instead of canned cream of soup and it produced a very tasty broth. Me? I put an entire bottle of a drinkable Merlot or Cabernet in my stew and call it bourguignon.

Thanks, Chef Bear.

Anonymous said...

Mr. Bear, I love your writings. Check out the ratings by America's Test Kitchen on Air Fryers. I was very slow to join the AF world. I use mine daily. I toast nuts and bread. It is the only way I cook fish now. There are many uses and much healthier.
Thank you for your efforts.

Anonymous said...

Damn! I’m cooking this one TO-DAY.

For a retired widower, the Instapot is a boon and a blessing.

Anonymous said...

We have one of those drawers in the kitchen. I call it the "hell drawer".

Kay Jerome said...

You can organize those drawers. My 70+ years of data shows that they stay organized an average of 6 days.
How low and slow does stew meat have to cook to be tender? I only use my IP now because low-and-slow in the oven only works about 50 percent of the time. And never on the stovetop.

Anonymous said...

Try boiling green peanuts in the instapot. Fast & tasty!

Stuff About ZeroBear PolyBear said...

4:56 PM - I cook boiled peanuts only one time a year. My metabolism turns them to fat almost immediately. My dad was a very wise man He was my hero, and I loved him very much. His favorite country saying was, "They use peanuts to fatten up hogs in Georga." I don't know about hogs, but they work on me. They are as addictive as dope to me and I try not to allow them in the house, but I love them!

Anonymous said...

I call it Dinty Moore Beef Stew. Had some for lunch today.


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