(uplifting music begins)
- [Narrator] We are Sorted,
a group of mates who have your back
when it comes to all things food.
From cooking battles
to gadget reviews-
- Ben, it's not worth it!
- [Narrator] And cookbook challenges
to a mid-week meal Packs App.
- [Jamie] Crack your eggs, and bake.
- [Narrator] We uncover the tools
that'll help us all cook and eat smarter.
Join our community,
where everything we do starts with you.
(uplifting music fades out)
(pop guitar music begins)
- Hello and welcome to Sorted Food.
- Today, we're putting the Instant Pot gadget to the test
to see if it deserves a spot in our kitchen.
- Now in the spirit of both fair testing
and chef-y experimentation,
I've already been playing with this bit of kit
at my own home for several weeks,
and I've now picked five recipes
for our normals to try.
- Why do I feel like it's not just the gadget
that's being tested today?
- [Ben] So the Instant Pot
is a standalone plugin appliance
that has many, many functions going on.
So you've got slow cook, you've got steam,
you've got pressure cook,
you've got functions specific for yoghurt or rice.
We're going to test a whole bunch.
- And if you're one of the first 50 people
to order it right now,
we'll give it to you for a special discount price.
- Yeah, you've got the job, mate!
- [Ben] This first recipe, one pot orzo lamb,
and I've chosen it because it's going to test sauté,
high pressure,
and slow cook.
(jolly music)
- First step, switch onto sauté mode,
it's going to beep at you three times.
Add some oil into the Instant Pot
and then sear your lamb.
Like any pan on the hob,
you want to give it plenty of time to get hot
before you add the lamb,
otherwise you run the risk of stewing the lamb
rather than searing it.
- Did the dad check to make sure the tongs work.
Yep.
- This as a recipe is already a really easy recipe.
I'm interested to see how much simpler this makes it.
- Have a look at that.
- [Ben] Whip the lamb out then, into a bowl
and you're going to add your sliced red onion.
- If I'm searing off lamb in a frying pan
where is all that fat and oil going?
- All over the hob. - Oh yeah, good point.
- All over the hob, all over my kitchen.
This has got such deep sides,
it's barely come out.
- Once the onions are softened,
add in a sliced clove of garlic,
paprika, oregano,
a little bit of cinnamon, salt and pepper.
Then a tin of tomatoes, about an equal amount of water,
and your lamb can go back in too.
(jolly music)
Whack the lid on, make sure the vent is sealed,
then cancel it.
Pressure cooker set to high,
30 minutes, job done.
The good thing is while your lamb is cooking
under pressure in a fraction of the time
you can do whatever you want.
(electronic rock music)
Recipe number two,
while our lamb pressure cooks for half an hour,
we're going to test the steam function
by making a steamed pudding, something sweet!
- I've never made anything like this before, Ben,
so you get to really hold my hand I think, here.
- I'm going to be honest,
I hadn't until a week or so ago.
I tried a Sussex pond pudding, failure.
Asked on Twitter for better option,
Guard's pudding was suggested.
Didn't know what it was, looked it up.
This is a version of that.
- Sussex pond pudding.
- Yeah, it looks like this.
- [Barry] Can't get any more British than that, can you?
- So, Guard's pudding,
it is breadcrumbs in a bowl,
that you're going to add sugar, flour,
baking powder, lemon zest and vanilla to.
This is a very, very thrifty pudding.
- I've never heard of it before.
- [Ben] Mix up your dry ingredients
and then you're going to stir in
melted butter,
warmed jam, or we're going to use ginger preserve,
and three beaten eggs.
I've got you a pudding basin that has been greased
and lined with greaseproof paper,
so it's easy to get it out later on,
and the whole mix goes in.
- I think this really shows the difference
between normals cooking and chefs cooking.
Because if you say to me, "steamer",
I'm thinking of steaming vegetables
or maybe salmon, at a push.
You go, "No, we're doing puddings."
- No, that says more about Ben's diet
than anything else. - Maybe that's what that is.
- So this little lining thing here,
that's just to lift it out later.
- [Ben] Tin foil over the top,
so that in your steaming vessel
you don't get any water inside of it.
- Ebbers, is that a bonnet de douche?
(Barry laughs)
Did you bring that from home? - [Barry] Put this on top.
(upbeat jazz music)
Into the Instant Pot.
(upbeat jazz music continues)
Steam function.
We are going for low pressure.
- It's already set,
it remembers what you did last time,
on the theory that you often end up
cooking the same things multiple times.
- On, and we're off.
We'll see you in two hours.
- It says "on", Baz.
- No, yeah, and we're on.
But we're off as well.
- It's like does an alarm clock go off, or on?
(high pitched beep)
- [Ben] Quick release the pressure.
(loud hissing)
- Whoa!
Should we have a look?
- [Barry] Please.
(electric guitar music)
- [Ben] Add the orzo, give it a stir.
- [Barry] What's the meat look like?
- Uh, the meat is looking very, very tender.
- Does it need more water in it, to cook the orzo?
- Nah, mate, there's tonnes of water in here.
- [Barry] Is there?
- [Jamie] Yeah.
- And this is why Instant Pot recipes
you kind of have to follow,
because it's the right ratio of ingredients
based on pressure cook, based on what's left,
and it should all work.
Lid back on,
pressure cook for six minutes.
- Six minutes.
So thinking about how we would cook this dish
without the Instant Pot.
The big thing that we're saving is time,
because this would have bubbled away for a couple of hours,
just in a normal saucepan.
Whereas we've done that in
30 minutes.
- And theoretically, this will also work nicely
if you haven't got access to a hob,
gas hob, regular hob, or whatever,
because it's just a plug.
It's a standalone thing.
(melodic chime)
- Victory.
(melodic chime)
- [Ben] Spinach and olives go in.
Kind of stops the cooking,
but also wilts the spinach.
- [Jamie] Ebbers, I think we're there.
I have to say it smells great.
We've chosen a very lovely bowl,
but it does look good as well.
Shall we see how it is?
(upbeat rock music)
- Cheers.
- This is a bit of me, this.
(upbeat, funky music)
- That is very tender lamb.
- Tender lamb, well cooked pasta,
and then the spinach last minute.
I think it's got everything you want
in a kind of comforting dish.
- The process was incredibly easy.
Like really, really easy.
- Flavour wise, I love it.
But do you feel like you're compromising
on flavour at all, with time?
- Far from, and that lamb is still...
Because it's a nice, fatty cut
that does take a long time to cook,
under pressure you skip past that,
but you still got that unctuous lamb
and it melts in the mouth.
- Well, first test as a pressure cooker, it works!
(quick hissing) - [Barry] Oh my god.
(loud hissing)
I knew that was coming, it's fine.
(upbeat, funky music)
- [Jamie] And we're-
(loud bang) (all laughing)
(banging continues)
(all chuckling)
- Okay, it's finished steaming.
Off with the tin foil.
(funky music continues)
- [Jamie] Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh.
- [Barry] Ooh, okay!
I am with you.
I've made a steamed pudding.
I never thought I'd do that.
(funky music continues)
- [Jamie] Cheers. - [Barry] Cheers.
(funky music continues)
I'm gonna say a word I hate,
but that is incredibly moist.
- It's got the goo of bread pudding.
Yeah.
- Stodgy, sweet,
the ginger and the lemon keeps it kind of clean.
Excellent.
- As a steamer,
there's no doubt that works really well.
I steam a lot at home already,
a lot of fish, a lot of veg.
That's even simpler,
but a bit over the top for a steamer alone.
(electronic guitar music)
- Ebbers, what's next?
- Beans!
So this is the recipe from our cookbook
"How We Cook", and it's how to cook dried beans
under pressure,
without soaking the beans overnight.
Into the pot, throw your beans.
- [Jamie] What beans are these?
- [Ben] Pinto.
Pretty much any dried beans are good.
Cold water,
six times the amount as there are beans.
Some flavours for aromats,
that's onion, garlic,
lemon, thyme.
Generous glug of olive oil
and a pinch of salt.
(tropical beat begins)
Get the lid on,
and you're going to cook it at high pressure for 45 minutes.
- So this beans recipe is from our cookbook
that was not originally created
in an Instant Pot.
So, what do I have to know to change the recipe
to make it suitable to cook in an Instant Pot?
- Depending on what grains, multi grains,
beans you're using,
it's a different ratio.
It's trapped inside,
so you are cooking on a ratio.
This one is 6:1.
(loud whoosh)
(old-time music begins)
While the beans are on,
are you ready for some thin ice?
We're going to tread all over it
and we're going to cook rice!
- Oh, why do I have to be here for this bit?
(all laughing)
- I think this is one of the most commented things,
is to use an Instant Pot to cook rice.
Don't want to make anything up,
we're going to go exactly as per
the official recipe book that comes with the Instant Pot
for their perfect basmati rice.
- Sounds pretty-
- Bold. - [Jamie] You know, bold.
- Foolproof.
Two cups of rice,
soak in cold water for 15 minutes.
At which point we drain,
and then add to the pot with three cups of cold water.
(jazzy music begins)
- So, rice going in.
- If it's properly drained.
(Jamie laughing)
- Do a zhoosh-y.
Do it up, down, up, down.
No, no, just..
No, no.
- What are you talking about?
What's it-
- [Ben] Yeah, see how much water is coming out of it?
Oh my god.
- Oh, Barry. - Seriously?!
Put it into the pot.
All of the rice.
- Oh, he's getting really pissy, isn't he?
- Seriously, every grain!
Do you want a spatula?
- Well that's step one.
(all laughing)
- [Ben] Three cups of water.
Lid on.
- [Jamie] Here we go, Baz.
- Pressure cook for four minutes,
then keep warm for 10,
then release.
- So how does the Instant Pot differ from a rice cooker?
- This does it quicker because of the pressure cooker.
- Mm, okay.
- Right, that's been keeping warm 10 minutes,
release the pressure.
Rice is ready!
(loud hissing)
(Jamie chuckling)
Now as a little experiment,
when you closed the lid and set it to go,
I set a stopwatch.
Because although it says it's pressure cook for four minutes
that actually took 22 and a half minutes
to come up to pressure,
cook for four minutes
and then keep warm for 10.
- I'm not sure exactly what I'm looking for
but it's a little stickier than I'd expect.
I'd say it's overcooked.
- So typically for basmati rice,
I would prefer individual grains.
Each one long, fluffy, identical.
Here, some are soft and squidgy and mushy,
some are longer, but still very sticky.
I'm not sure about this.
You shouldn't be to do that
with basmati rice.
- Well, you shouldn't play with your food either.
- I think you've lost all the beautiful fragrance
of basmati rice.
- Yeah.
That is not good basmati rice.
But that is their perfect basmati rice.
- In the official Instant Pot cookbook.
For me, and I know I'd say this,
but I prefer our method
of how to cook rice with the absorption,
because you can do that with a single portion of rice
or 10 portions of rice.
This two cups really is the minimum,
you could do a lot more,
but it's very difficult to cook smaller portions of rice
in that.
(uplifting music begins)
- Ebbers, you're in!
What are we doing now?
- I know what you're thinking.
This video is only got one classic pudding in it.
Let's do another one you haven't seen
for a decade or two.
(crickets chirping)
Crème caramel.
The point of this is I wanted to test,
because a lot of the Instant Pot blogs and stuff
had desserts,
and flan, or créme caramel, was a very popular one.
And I thought, "That can't possibly work
in an Instant Pot, because you're supposed to
have very gentle bain-marie cooking."
Well, let's see!
Heat up cream, milk, sugar and vanilla in a pan.
Once that's warm,
I'm going to pour it over three beaten eggs
as I whisk.
(uplifting music)
The caramel part of crème caramel,
I've made a caramel and I put it in the bottom
of four ramekins.
Pour it in,
remove the air bubbles from it.
Best way to remove the air bubbles?
(heat gun flickering)
Gone.
(uplifting music continues)
That's the rack that comes with the pot,
so you keep things off the ground.
It can either go in that way
and then you can always lift things out nice and easily.
A little bit of water in the bottom,
ramekins go in.
- The reason Ebbers loves these experiments so much
is because in the past
he wouldn't be allowed to make a flan.
- Lid goes on,
high pressure, nine minutes,
and then natural release,
and then you can take them out and leave them to chill.
So you can literally just walk away
and leave that.
The Instant Pot has control over your custard,
you don't need to worry.
Okay, so,
this has been pressure cooked,
natural release and chilled.
And why I love this dessert is it's a make-ahead dessert
that's really quite impressive.
But like a molten lava cake,
there's only one way to find out if it's worked.
- Oh, fantastic.
(Jamie gasps) - [Jamie] Ooh.
So that's the-
- [Barry] What do you want?
- [Barry and Jamie] Whoa!
- I'm pretty chuffed with that.
The process was really easy.
I guess the proof is in the pudding,
or the eating of.
Now, apparently there's a crème caramel challenge
floating around the YouTubes.
And Jay, do you remember this?
(Jamie slurping) (all laughing)
- Oh, but this is far more of an adult jelly
than that ever was.
Cheers!
(loud slurping) (Barry laughing)
That's tasty Ben, well done.
- Jay, you wouldn't notice,
but as you cut into it,
it's soft, it's wobbly,
it looks perfect in my eyes.
- Strong P word,
but I'd agree.
That is a very good
crème caramel.
- What P word are you going for,
just out of interest?
- [Barry] Wow.
- My beans have had 45 minutes cooking under pressure.
They then had 30 minutes just relaxing.
Should we?
- [Barry] Please.
(jazzy music)
- [Jamie] That wasn't as exciting
as I was hoping it was going to be.
- [Ben] Well it's already had sort of a natural release
of half...
Well, 32 minutes.
(jazzy music continues)
- Oh, that smells amazing.
What's next?
- [Ben] Scoop out the bits you don't want to eat.
The lemon, the garlic, we can squeeze the flesh in
but you don't want the whole peel,
and the thyme.
Season, ladle and serve.
(jazzy music continues)
We're going to serve it with some salsa verde.
Just give it a little bit of a zhoosh,
because basically you're going to stir it in as you eat it.
(jazzy music continues)
- Ta-da!
I have no reference point to know whether these-
- [Barry] Jay, Jay,
this is that puddle dish, the pond dish,
that he was talking about.
- [Jamie] Is this the Sussex pond?
- [Barry] It's the Sussex pond.
(Jamie and Barry laughing)
- Cheers.
(mellow electronic music)
- I mean, I know most of the day
has been me shoe-horning in
classic old things that I would never otherwise
get to cook on the channel,
but I love this.
- It's a very heartwarming dish, isn't it?
Really warming.
- The reason I picked it
is because in the Instant Pot,
simple pressure cook with natural release,
means you can cook dried beans,
or dried chickpeas,
without overnight soaking.
And therefore it shaves quite literally 12 hours at least
off of this recipe.
- Whilst two out of the three of us
have absolutely no idea what it is that we're eating,
I think we can competently say
that the pot has cooked unsoaked beans very quickly,
very well.
- Five recipes in,
now given that an Instant Pot will set you back
just shy of 100 pounds,
about 96 at the moment
with variable pricing online,
what do you think?
- Now that's the first time I'm hearing the price,
but I'm not surprised.
It feels like that should be about 100 pounds.
It doesn't appear to be a great rice cooker,
but it does have three or four other functions
that we've not tested today,
that'll be good to look into as well.
- Does it have a place in the Spafford kitchen?
- If I hadn't bought a new slow-cooker last year,
yes.
But I can't see the reason for having both.
- So for me,
I think 100 pounds is okay,
because I'm paying for the most important thing in my house,
which is safety.
It's a very good pressure cooker.
And if I've got that I would never need
to get a slow-cooker as well.
- Having now lived with this machine,
testing a whole bunch of stuff,
It's kind of changed my viewpoint in it.
Because I think it is the safest
and best pressure cooker I've ever used.
And because it was there,
I also used it for a bunch of other stuff
that I probably wouldn't typically.
But it was there, so I did.
I wouldn't go out of my way to get one,
for six of the seven functions.
But I would for the pressure cooker
and then you get those thrown in,
and because they're there, I would use them.
As always, now it's over to you guys.
Have you used an instant pot before?
Would you like to?
Tell us your thoughts, yay or nay?
- Also what gadget should we be reviewing next time?
Let us know, tweet us @sortedfood,
with the #sortedgadgets.
- We love a challenge.
(loud beep)
(abrupt bang)
- [Barry] Couldn't help yourself, could you?
- No, I couldn't help myself.
It's really good fun!