Better than Takeout Instant Pot Recipes - 365 Days of Slow Cooking and Pressure Cooking (2024)

Make dinner in the Instant Pot or Crockpot instead of ordering takeout! These 23 Chinese/Asian food recipes are better than takeout and don’t take much effort.

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Better than Takeout Instant Pot Recipes - 365 Days of Slow Cooking and Pressure Cooking (1)

Better than Takeout Instant Pot Recipes

Orange Chicken

Tender bites of chicken in a flavorful orange sauce. Perfect with rice and broccoli.

Instant Pot Orange Chicken

Slow Cooker Orange Chicken

Chicken Lo Mein

Noodles, bites of chicken and lots of veggies are pulled together with a savory asian sauce.

Instant Pot Chicken Lo Mein

Cashew Chicken

This cashew chicken is just as good as your favorite Chinese restaurant. It’s super easy and flavorful and it’s all made in the comfort of your own kitchen. The instant pot speeds up the process and helps get dinner on the table in minutes.

Instant Pot Cashew Chicken

Slow Cooker Cashew Chicken

Beef and Broccoli

Tender pieces of beef are served alongside broccoli and a savory and slightly sweet Asian sauce for a homemade version of your favorite Chinese takeout dish.

Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli

Slow Cooker Beef and Broccoli

Chicken Broccoli Rice Bowl

Brown rice is topped with a savory asian-inspired sauce, tender pieces of chicken and bright green, barely cooked broccoli florets.

Instant Pot Chicken Broccoli Rice Bowl

Mongolian Beef

Saucy tender bites of beef with a savory and sweet sauce sprinkled with sesame seeds and scallions.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

Tender bites of chicken, sweet pineapple chunks and colorful bell peppers served with a sweet and sour sauce. All made in one pot, your Instant Pot.

Instant Pot Sweet and Sour Chicken

Slow Cooker Sweet and Sour Chicken

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

An incredibly easy and delicious recipe for lettuce wraps. Hoisin sauce gives these ground chicken lettuce wraps lots of flavor and the rice and water chestnuts add texture. Get a whole head of lettuce ready because you’re not going to want to stop eating these chicken lettuce wraps!

Instant Pot Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Slow Cooker Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Sesame Beef with Zucchini

Tender chunks of beef with bites of zucchini in an easy stir fry sauce.

Instant Pot Sesame Beef

Slow Cooker Sesame Beef

Egg Roll Bowls

The tastiest garlic sesame sauce coats ground beef (or ground chicken or turkey) and is tossed together with cabbage and fried wontons. This recipe is inspired by chinese egg rolls but it’s given a fresher spin.

Instant Pot Egg Roll Bowls

Firecracker Chicken

Sweet and spicy tender pieces of saucy chicken made quickly in your electric pressure cooker.

Instant Pot Firecracker Chicken

Beef Fried Rice

A fast and easy way to make fried rice. My version has a pound of browned ground beef.

Instant Pot Beef Fried Rice

Chopped Chinese Pork Salad

Pork loin is cooked until tender in your electric pressure cooker and then tossed with shredded cabbage, cilantro, green onions, cashews, quinoa and a homemade sesame dressing. This is a perfect summer recipe and it can be made ahead of time.

Instant Pot Chopped Chinese Salad

Slow Cooker Chopped Chinese Salad

Korean Beef Tacos

Tender shredded seasoned beef is rolled up in a warm tortilla with crunchy cabbage, diced avocado, chopped cilantro, sriracha sour cream and a splash of rice vinegar. When you bite into this taco it’s like a party in your mouth. All the flavors and textures come together in a perfect union.

InstantPot/Slow Cooker Korean Beef Tacos

Cheater Korean Beef and Rice

A quick version of a classic recipe made in your electric pressure cooker. The best part is that the beef and rice cook at the same time in the same Instant Pot.

Instant Pot Cheater Korean Beef

Slow Cooker Cheater Korean Beef

Chicken Veggie Korma

A rich and creamy mild curry-like dish with tender bites of chicken and vegetables.

Instant Pot Korma

Slow Cooker Korma

Chicken Tikka Masala

Tender bites of chicken in a tomato sauce with creamy coconut milk. We like to serve this with rice or naan bread. The sauce is so good I could drink it.

Instant Pot Tikka Masala

Slow Cooker Tikka Masala

Teriyaki Chicken

This easy chicken teriyaki recipe uses a homemade sauce made with pineapple juice, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic and ginger. It has the perfect balance of sweet and savory. You can even use frozen chicken! Make it a meal by serving it with rice, pineapple chunks and shredded cabbage.

Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken

Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken

Teriyaki Salmon and Rice

Frozen salmon fillets are thrown into your electric pressure cooker with some rice and cooked until flaky. This is such an easy and fast way to make salmon. Serve your salmon and rice with veggies and you have a complete meal.

Instant Pot Teriyaki Salmon

Chicken Adobo

An easy 6-ingredient recipe for the tastiest chicken ever! A Filipino recipe of tender chicken thighs braised in vinegar and soy sauce with lots of garlic.

Instant Pot Chicken Adobo

Slow Cooker Chicken Adobo

Thai Chicken Noodles

A true one pot meal! The chicken, sauce and noodles are all cooked at the same time in minutes in your electric pressure cooker. The noodles are enveloped in a mild creamy peanut and lime sauce and the peanuts, cilantro and red bell pepper give texture and color. A delicious and easy recipe to make any night of the week.

Instant Pot Thai Chicken Noodles

Thai Coconut Soup

Sometimes this soup is called Tom Kha Gai or coconut galangal soup when you order it at a Thai restaurant. Don’t be scared off by the name. This is a super easy version that even a beginner cook can handle. It has the most amazing broth ever. Coconut milk, thai curry paste, lime juice and lemongrass all combine to make a soup that is surprisingly life changing.

Instant Pot Thai Soup

Slow Cooker Thai Soup

Yellow Chicken Curry

A thai-style coconut curry with moist bites of chicken, tender bites of yellow potatoes, vibrant turmeric and curry powder all made quickly at home in your electric pressure cooker. Bonus: The jasmine rice is cooked at the same time and in the same pot!

Instant Pot Yellow Curry

Slow Cooker Yellow Curry

Better than Takeout Instant Pot Recipes - 365 Days of Slow Cooking and Pressure Cooking (2024)

FAQs

Which is better slow cooker or Instant Pot? ›

An Instant Pot does have more functionality (like sautéing, pressure cooking, slow cooking, and acts as a rice cooker, steamer, and warmer!) than a slow cooker, but if you don't plan to use all of its extra functions and just prefer the simplicity of a slow-cooker, then you might prefer a Crock-Pot.

Can you slow cook something and then pressure cook it? ›

Generally, if your slow cooker meat, soup, or stew recipe calls for 8 hours on the low setting or about 4 hours on the high setting, it should be fully cooked in about 25 to 30 minutes in the Instant Pot. For chicken or turkey, use the 15-minute poultry button.

What's the difference between a pressure cooker and a slow cooker? ›

Slow cookers and pressure cookers are large countertop appliances that can be used in place of pots, pans, and even ovens. The distinction between them is in their names; slow cookers cook food slowly, while pressure cookers cook food fast using pressure.

Which is better a crockpot or slow cooker? ›

If you're planning to cook your meals mostly when you're not home or overnight, then sticking to a Crockpot might be a better choice, since the heat distribution is more even and there is no need to stir at all.

Is chicken breast better in slow cooker or pressure cooker? ›

So can a Crock-Pot cook better chicken than an Instant Pot? Well, it really depends on what you're making. The Instant Pot cooks chicken much faster than its non-pressure counterparts, but the resulting texture isn't going to be the same as what you'd get with a slow cooker or Dutch oven.

Is slow cooking or pressure cooking healthier? ›

Is cooking in a pressure cooker healthy? Yes, cooking in a pressure cooker is healthy. Unlike a slow cooker, which cooks foods for a long time at a lower temperature, pressure cookers do use high heat when cooking - but not for a long time. This means that most of the nutrients won't be lost.

Does food taste better in a pressure cooker or slow cooker? ›

As the ingredients cook under pressure, their flavors are concentrated, resulting in a richer taste. Tenderization: Pressure cooking breaks down tough fibers in meats and other ingredients, making them more tender and juicy.

Does pressure cooker taste as good as slow cooker? ›

Both appliances produce deep flavors.

Slow cookers utilize long cooking times to develop these richer flavors, while pressure cookers use high heat and pressure to impart as much flavor as possible in a shorter time.

Can I use an Instapot as a crockpot? ›

Press the "Slow Cook" button to select the slow cooking function. Set the cooking time and temperature. The Instant Pot has three temperature settings for slow cooking: low, medium, and high. Use the "Adjust" button to choose the temperature and then use the "+" and "-" buttons to adjust the cooking time.

What is the best meat to cook in a pressure cooker? ›

You can still pressure cook leaner pieces – like eye of round and top sirloin – but these work best if they've been stuffed, shredded or rolled (with other ingredients). Best cuts of beef to use: Chuck steak, Round Roast, Shoulder, Pot roast, Ribs, Brisket, Oxtail.

Which makes meat more tender slow cooker or pressure cooker? ›

Traditionally cheaper cuts of meat always slow cook better. Slow cooking breaks down the connective collagen in meat, which turns into unctuous gelatine. This creates that soft and tender mouth feel we all crave.

Is corned beef better in slow cooker or pressure cooker? ›

If you want your corned beef in a fraction of the time it normally takes, I highly recommend cooking it in the Instant Pot or pressure cooker. A 3 1/2 – 4 1/2 corned beef will be perfectly tender in just 60 – 90 minutes as opposed to several hours in the slow cooker or on the stove top.

What cannot be cooked in a slow cooker? ›

10 Foods You Should Never Make in a Slow Cooker
  1. Raw Meat.
  2. Seafood.
  3. Pasta.
  4. Rice.
  5. Delicate Vegetables.
  6. Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts.
  7. Dairy.
  8. Wine and Other Liquor.
Jan 19, 2024

Which type of slow cooker is best? ›

Our favorite slow cooker is the GreenPan Elite 8-in-1 Electric Slow Cooker. It maintained a steady, low temperature during testing, was easy to clean up, and the exterior stayed cool to the touch. Slow cookers: The countertop appliance you know and (maybe?)

What is the most popular size slow cooker? ›

The 6- or 7-quart models are among the most popular, but that doesn't necessarily mean they're the best choice for everyone. (By the way, here's our favorite slow cooker brand.) Find yourself among the descriptions below to learn which slow cooker we'd recommend for you.

Does slow cooker taste better than pressure cooker? ›

Both appliances produce deep flavors.

Slow cookers utilize long cooking times to develop these richer flavors, while pressure cookers use high heat and pressure to impart as much flavor as possible in a shorter time.

Why is a pressure cooker better than a slow cooker? ›

As for convenience, because a pressure cooker cooks so darn fast, you aren't sacrificing all that much on that front, either. Anything that takes eight hours to cook in a slow cooker can be cooked in about 45 minutes in a pressure cooker, and most things cook much, much faster even than that.

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