Eating your veggies has never been easier with countertop kitchen devices like Instant Pots. Even experts agree.
Chef Vahista Ussery, a registered dietitian nutritionist and founder of the culinary education company To Taste, tells CNET that, compared to traditional stovetop steaming, Instant Pots offer a more set-it-and-forget-it approach. This makes them ideal for novice cooks or those who are multitasking in the kitchen. “Set it and forget it” also sounds wonderful for cooking after a long, busy day.
But how exactly should you be steaming your vegetables in an Instant Pot, especially to ensure you’re not losing an abundance of nutrients in the process? This is what chefs have to say.
How to steam vegetables in an Instant Pot
Ussery explains that, depending on the type of Instant Pot you have, there are two settings for steaming vegetables: high pressure, which is available on all models, or the steam setting.
The steam option is also a pressure function, according to the Instant Pot community, but it operates differently because it heats the pot continuously rather than cycling the heat on and off. This causes the pot’s bottom to get hotter. On my model, I have the option to use low, high or no pressure with the steam function.
Regardless of which setting you choose, Ussery offers the following simple instructions:
Add ½ to 1 cup of water to the bottom of the pot. Ussery says that ½ cup is the perfect amount for her 6-quart model. Just make sure the pot’s base is covered with water, but not so much that it will boil up through a steam basket and boil the vegetables. Add a steam basket to the pot. It should sit slightly above the water level. Add vegetables to the basket. A single layer is best, so you’re not overloading it. This will allow the steam to hit all sides of the vegetables. The more crowded they are, the more steam gets blocked from reaching all the veggies. Close the lid of the Instant Pot, and set it to seal. If you have a steam button, you now have a choice. You can press “steam” and set the time, or you can select “high pressure" and select the time. For non-starchy vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower, Ussery says zero (yes, zero is a time on the Instant Pot) seems to be the ideal time. For starchy vegetables like potatoes and squash, try cooking for around 2 minutes. For more information on specific veggie cooking times for the pressure cook setting, you can reference Instant Pot’s Cooking Time Tables. When finished steaming or pressure cooking, immediately use the quick release to help stop the cooking process. After the steam is released, you can open the lid and remove your veggies. Enjoy!
“I have found the steam function works slightly better than high pressure on my Instant Pot, but I have read and heard from others that they believe the reverse to be true, so be sure to test your pot and decide for yourself,” advises Ussery.
A steam trivet inside an Instant Pot. Getty Images
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