My 5 Fav Slow Cooker Recipes You Can Make in Your Instant Pot (+ 40 More!)

It’s easy to believe the Instant Pot is all hype – if you have a slow cooker, why bother? But what if you could make your favorite slow cooker recipes in the Instant Pot in 45 minutes and it wouldn’t be all mushy/dull? That’s one of the reasons I love my Instant Pot!

It’s actually really easy to take your old Crock Pot meals and make them in your new “electric pressure cooker” – almost all of them work!

You just need at least a cup of liquids, don’t overfill the pot, and figure out your best guess at timing. 😉

I have more extensive instructions for converting slow cooker meals to the Instant Pot, but for today, let’s just have fun with delicious, easy recipes!

My First 5 Slow Cooker Recipes in the Instant Pot

As pictured above, some of the early recipes that I knew worked in a slow cooker and hoped would work in my new and scary Instant Pot were:

BBQ Chicken Thighs – so frugal!
Instant Pot Country Style Ribs (from slow cooker recipes)
Instant Pot BBQ Beef
Any homemade chili – my recipe is in Better Than a Box
Basic Beef Roast – something I’ve always done in my Crock Pot without a recipe. We demonstrate how in our Instant Pot & Slow Cooker Meals Kids Can Make videos!

Eventually we got a second Instant Pot, both to make bigger batches and because I kept wanting to make a main dish in one and also easy rice or a side dish in another! Did you know you can even quickly steam vegetables in the Instant Pot? I literally set it for zero minutes. 😉

Make your Instant Pot work for you!

I won’t tell if your Instant Pot is still in its box, pinky swear. 😉

I left mine abandoned in the basement for almost a YEAR because I have a new-thing-instructions phobia, but now I have TWO Instant Pots and they’re both in constant use!

Turns out it’s so easy, a kid can do it — I’ll send you a quick video of my children unboxing and setting it up when you grab your FREE download mini eBook:

Get the Instant Pot Guidebook for FREE!

What’s in the Guidebook?

You’ll love the simplicity of your Instant Pot, and the free downloadable guidebook will help you:

Adapt your own favorite recipes from the slow cooker
Cook FROZEN ground beef
Hard boil eggs perfectly
Cook squash, steam veggies, and make applesauce in your IP
Make dry beans in an hour and perfect rice without boiling over
Steam veggies al dente and make Paleo cauli rice in minutes
Cook a whole chicken and make FAST bone broth

Whether yours is still in the box or you’ve used it a little but want to know more about those techniques, or if you’re still pining for an IP on your wish list, I can’t wait to give you these simple baby steps to success!

If you’re new to the IP, you can do this. Make it easy on yourself – I have an Instant Pot video of my kids unboxing the thing, it’s that easy!

Where to Buy an Instant Pot

This is the 6-quart Instant Pot I started out with. After a few years, we added an 8-quart partly because I knew I would use two at the same time often enough, partly because it was the Prime Day sale, and also because I wanted more space for certain recipes. Both are a pretty basic model and you don’t need more bells and whistles than that!

The Prime Day Sale is now! Get your Instant Pot now for a big discount!

If you’re deciding on size, most people say it’s better to get a deal on the 6-quart and just have 2 rather than go big, BUT if your family has 5 or more people or you really like to batch cook or do more than a pound of beans, the 8-quart may be the best choice. My full Instant Pot review and buying guide for features, size, and model.

You can even get a carrying case to travel with it! See my review of the Instant Pot carrying case we have.

If you’re still on the fence about adding an Instant Pot to your kitchen appliance arsenal here are my Instant Pot pros and cons.

Slow Cooker Recipes That are Easy to do in the Instant Pot

I asked other colleagues around the web to share their favorite Instant Pot recipes that came from a slow cooker, and they didn’t disappoint. Some of the recipes here are the slow cooker version, but remember to just use the adaptation instructions and you’ll easily be able to make them quickly in a pressure cooker.

Beef Stew (Paleo)

Traditional Cooking School Instant Pot Sourdough Cornbread Pressure Cooker Recipe

My dear friend Wardee at Traditional Cooking School can do just about anything with her Instant Pot – cakes, bread, main dishes, veggies, even “stacking” multiple kinds of food at once!

She’s offering a free sourdough cornbread Instant Pot recipe!

This cornbread is delicious, nutritious, super easy to make, and it only needs 12 minutes of cook time.

GET THE FREE INSTANT POT SOURDOUGH CORNBREAD RECIPE