How to use your Instant Pot as a Slow Cooker
Yes, your Instant Pot can be used as a slow cooker, and here is how!
Instant Pots have a ton of features ranging from pressure cooker (obviously!), rice cooker, steamer, sterilizer, yogurt maker, soup maker, saute pan, and slow cooker!
The exact features you have depend on which model you have, but to be honest, the functionality is very similar between all of the models, with the face plate interface layout being the biggest difference separating them.
The one major exception is the new Instant Pot max that is the only Instant Pot model that is rated to do pressure canning.
But, all of the models have the slow cooker function. The slow cooker function is a non pressure function.
The million dollar question is ” can I get rid of my trusted slow cooker now that I have and Instant Pot?”
Answer: “Yes…. but”
In many Instant Pot cooking Facebook groups, there are reports that the slow cooker function doesn’t work quite the same as their regular slow cooker, and that cook times need to be increased.
There are 2 things to know about using your Instant Pot as a slow cooker.
First, the Instant Pot only heats from the bottom surface, whereas typical slow cookers heat from the bottom and all of the sides.
Second, setting the Instant Pot slow cook function isn’t the most intuitive.
If you select slow cook function, set your time, and walk away, you may have accidentally set your Instant Pot to “keep warm”.
Unfortunately the terms used on the Instant Pot face plate for slow cooker temperature settings are not awesome.
With a regular slow cooker you are used to “Keep Warm”, “Low”, and “High”.
But, on your Instant Pot, those settings are called “Less”, “Normal”, and “More”
If you simply press slow cooker, set the time, and walk away, you may have your pot set to “Less” – which is essentially a keep warm function.
So, here is the run down of how to set your Instant Pot for slow cooking:
- Press slow cook
- Press ADJUST to change the heat setting between Less, Normal, and More (aka keep warm, low, and high). Some models (the 3 qt mini) don’t have and adjust button. Simply press slow cook again to move through the less, normal, and more settings.
- Set the time using the + and – buttons.
- Walk away.
As for the lid. You can use the regular instant pot lid, and set it to vent. Or, you can get a clear instant pot lid, OR you can use a lid form your pots and pans set that fits!
So, there you have it, how to use your Instant Pot as a slow cooker!
Have you tried to use your Instant Pot as a slow cooker? How did it go? Do you like it?
I have the pressure cooker XL are the slow cooking instructions the same as for the insta pot?
I don’t think so. I am not sure the control panel is the same with the adjust function.
I don’t even know how to turn the darn thing it says ,on, and I pressed meat stew, and it says pressure , high” and normal. On the other side of window; but all its doing is showing ,”ON”. Does this mean its on and how do I set the time? My husband is looking forward to corned beef tonight for st. Patricks day !!! Is it even cooking? It says on but does that mean its cooking?
It takes between 15 and 20 minutes to build up pressure . Then it will start the timer for cooking. They really are great once you figure them out. Google is a lot of help for your particular brand.
Forget trying to use your insta pot in the “slow cooking” program. It is totally useless. I thought it was me doing something wrong, but i have found out that it barely keeps things at a warm point. Tried to make chicken soup. After 21 hours, the carrots were still hard as rock. Chanced it to pressure cooking mode to finally cook. Total would NOT recommend the insta pot for slow cooking. Kinda upset because that was one of the reasons for purchasing the insta pot.
Did you hit adjust to move it out of low and into normal or more? If you just hit slow cook it goes to low – which is “keep warm” on your traditional slow cooker. You have to hit adjust to move it to normal for low, and more for high.
I did that and it did not turn out after being on high for 5 hours!!! Now I’m putting it on pressure cook hopefully we will get dinner at some point. Very disappointed
do you always when using slow cooking have to add liquid
My bbq ribs doesn’t call for liquid but, then the burn setting turned on so I added
a cup of beef broth to my instant pot with normal setting for slow cooking.
I have NO adjust button so it is only normal or keep warm?
me too. same experience. Only heated to 160 even when set on ‘more’
Totally agree – absolutely useless in the slow cooker mode & certainly wouldn’t recommend to anyone. Manuals are useless as well..
Wished we had never brought this cooker – ended up cooking our meal in the oven – total crap!
The Instant Pot cooks perfectly well in slow cooker mode. I just did an 8 hour lamb curry, the meat was falling apart beautifully. The heat settings are related to how many times you press the Slow Cooker button, which toggles the temperatures listed in the manual. And the time is adjustable with + and – keys, in 30 minute increments. If you buy a multi-function electrical cooking device covered in buttons and lights, reading the manual carefully is mandatory. You didn’t guess your way into driving your car, and this is similar. To start, I suggest you first use the middle heat setting (press the Slow Cooker button twice, middle little red light on), try 4-6 hours for a meat dish. As it’s not under pressure, you can easily increase that after testing a piece of meat. Very doable, if you read, practice and don’t give up on this wonderful invention.
Thank you for your detailed synopsis of how to use the slow cooker function.
I’ve had the opposite experience. I was making salsa chicken. The recipe said to cook on low for 6 hours. I hit the slow cook button on my InstantPot and left it on “less”. The chicken was done (nearly overdone) in 2 hours!
There is no adjust button on the newer models. I can adjust with the sauté button, but not while using the slow cooker function. Do you know how to toggle between low media and high within the slow cooker function on newer models?
hit the slow cooker button again to adjust. it took me a while to figure it out
Thanks! You’d think they would say that in the instructions…i had the same question
Thanks anonymouses. Ready to start making my Italian beef for sandwiches tonight and no Adjust button. Nothing in the instructions. Nothing in Instant Hot Pot book I purchased. Without you, well, probably a mess!!! I am drooling in anticipation of tonight’s meal.
Thank you so much, now I can set it on more for the high setting. I would not have figured that out on my own lol
Thank you!
Oh my goodness, thank you
Read the instructions
Yes. Keep pressing slow cook. Many of these answers are found in the instructions
I just found out that you push the slow cook button again to adjust the temp to normal, then again for more.
I hit the slow cooker button twice to put to high setting . I’m sure you can do the same with sauté . I hope this works for my roast tonight
I tried a recipe from a Slow Cooker cookbook that didn’t turn out well. The potatoes and carrots were still very hard after cooking for the recommended time and even after another two hours. I used the glass cover and not the regular lid and the temp was set to”More.” I suspect the fault was that the recipe called for only one cup of liquid and that the IP needs more than that to slow cook successfully. Is that perhaps the answer or is there something else I’m missing? I double-checked the recipe on various sites so the liquid ingredient measurement was correct.
They said that a set back on the instant pot is that the slow cook heats only from the bottom. While a slow cooker cooks from all sides AND bottom. Hence, I guess an instant pot is not good to be used as a slow cooker. 🙂 It is a fast cooker 🙂
My very very old oblong slow cooker heats from bottom only…it’s in 2 pieces: oblong pot on a cook plate! So for me, new instant pot’s slow cooker works the same (other than having to search for instructions on internet.)
Same here, potatoes were rock hard. The weird thing is that I threw them in the microwave to finish them and they stayed hard no matter how long I put them in for???? I’ll keep my slow cooker!
After four hours the onions were still raw.
They need to eliminate the Slow Cook function. What is the possibility of contamination of food when it has been
warmed for four hours. FDA needs to get involved.
? Slow cookers have been around for years. It’s not just warming raw food, it’s actually cooking it
Slow cooker shuts off after 4 hours.
No, the 4 hours is just the default until you advance or retard the time with the+ and – buttons. Could this be a case of blaming the pot when the user has not read the manual? Nor everything is intuitive, you have to research how the IP works. English manuals for all models are at https://instantpot.com/english-manuals/
no my IP has been on slow cook, for 7hrs, only has an hour left…
As a crock pot/slow cooker fanatic user the slow cooker function on my instant pot is useless. No matter how long you set it it will not get foods done—rest of it is ok
what temperature is delivered in the Yogurt mode? Will it work in “low” heat setting?
It’s designed to NOT heat enough to kill [the yogurt starter’s beneficial] bacteria—so it would also not kill the microbes in other foods if it cooks them at all.
Tried the intantpot slow cooker function on “normal” for a pot roast and veggies yesterday. What a mistake that was. The temp runs VERY low – even on normal the meat was tough and the carrots STILL crunchy after 11 hours! Putting in a dutch oven to cook more today and hoping to salvage. Have been reading online and many folks say the same- it is a great pressure cooker but do not trust it as a slow cooker! Waste of time.
You have to use the ‘more’ setting and it will yield nice results! Made a 6 lbs chuck roast, potatoes, carrots and radishes in a wine sauce and cooked it on more for 6 hours. The meat fell apart and the veggies were perfect.
Thank you so much, Debbie! I think you just saved our dinner!
Did you use a slow cooker recipe for that chuck roast, or one for the instantpot?
Thank you! I want to make beef roast for french dip sandwiches but concerned that the meat will be tough if I pressure cook it. I want to try the slow cooker function so I will try your suggestion of selecting the ‘More’ option.
Hello what other settings,?
Slow cooker or slow warmer? My Instant Pot-Crockpot beans sat on NORMAL for 3 hours and they were barely lukewarm. I turned it up to HIGH for another hour and they were a bit warmer….bummer! I had to eventually put the inner pot with the beans in the oven at 350 for an hour to try to bring up to temperature! The contents were all cooked before putting in the pan, so there was no danger of undercooking, just the disappointment of not having them heated adequately for the 4th of July picnic!
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JUST TRIED THE SLOW COOKER ON THE INSTANT POT. YOU CAN KEEP IT.
1. BOOK NEEDS TO HAVE MORE INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO USE THE POT AS A SLOW COOKER AND ALSO A GLASS LID, LIKE OTHER SLOW COOKERS HAVE.
2. I HAD A SLOW COOKER FOR 4 YEARS AND LOVE IT. IT WAS A DIFFERENT BRAND AND GOT IT FROM QVC. LOVED IT. USED IT EVERY WEEKEND AND HAD NO PROBLEMS WITH IT.
3. DON’T NEED A PRESSURE COOKER. I HAVE TWO OF THEM AND STOPPED USING THEM BECAUSE I LIKED THE SLOWER COOKER FROM QVC.
4. TAKING IT BACK TO THE STORE.
SEE FIRST COMMENT.
YOU can keep the instant pot. taking mine back. not enough instructions in booklet for slow cooking. don’t need a pressure cooker have 2.
I had one from QVC for 4 years and used it every day. LOVED IT. YOU ALSO SHOULD PROVIDE THE GLASS LID, LIKE OTHER COMPANIES DO.
Used the slow cooker function to salvage a pot of beans (from scratch.) Could not get out of food burn cycling even after dumping out the beans to another pot, scrubbing the slow cooker pot, base and top.
It worked okay on regular for 9 hours. I will be going through another cleaning cycle of the pot and lid and then trying to cook some carrots to test.
A 2 1/2 lb roast took 5 hrs on high but took longer for the potatoes and carrots.
Hi Debbie,
Can I get your chuck roast recipe? Sounds good!
Tracey
Is there a general rule I can use to adjust slow cooker recipe times to the instant pot since the instant temperature is so much lower? For example, I’m cooking a Thai curry soup that would take 4 hrs in a slow cooker. Would cooking it for 5 hours on high (I have an Ultra which actually uses low med high) be equivalent? Just something to get in the right ball park. After reading this, dinner is going to be late tonight lol. Thanks!
I agree it’s useless as a slow cooker
I’m trying my instapot as a slow cooker one last time today using a lid that fits from my regular pots and pans…if this doesn;t work I will have to order A slow cooker as I gave mine away when it bought the instapot…I’ll update my results tonight.
Hi I am cooking Irish stew in the duo pot today but I am trying to bring the liquid and lamb up to boil using the sauté function first. I am hoping to switch to the slow cooker function for 8 hours when all the ingredients have been added. I will let you know what happens. It’s my mums recipe and you don’t brown the lamb first sometimes nothing else will do when it is cold outside.
I used the Crock Pot function today for the first time on my Duo 80 8 quart Chewbacca Instant Pot (The Star Wars edition from Christmas 2019) . The recipe was from the Internet for Pot Roast. After properly adjusting the temp to high (thanks to your instructions-no Adjust button), it cooked beautifully and tasted great! I will need to make a few adjustments on the recipe, as it was for a larger pot roast than what I had, but it was a great success! My next adventure will be the Rice Cooker function. Thank you!
Simply put read the instructions first.i tried a little test and found out were the real cooking temps.are.now I use it all the time for all my stews and they come out excellent using the slow cooking method.at least my wife thinks so.i admit it’s a little tricky at first however once you get the hang of it you’ll enjoy it. The only downside of the instant pot is how big and bulky it is.anyway good cooking.
I cooked a 3 lb roast, carrots, potatoes and celery in the IP for 6 hours on slow cook (adjusted to more) and the thing was the best roast I’ve ever had. Remember to adjust to MORE or it won’t cook. Another thing you can do, once your slow time is up just pressure cook it again for about 5 minutes on high and natural release…..just make sure there’s enough liquid in the pan before pressure cooking. You could also reverse that method and pressure cook it before slow cooking but just for a short time. Experiment people, right now we have the time 🙂 enjoy!
Frankly, I’m sad when people don’t use the manual, and then write-off the Instant Pot as useless.
The IP’s 3 “slow cooker” temperature ranges are flexible … Less, Normal and More, all thermostatically controlled.
Less: 82-87.8°C/180-190°F (low, lights left hand red light)
Normal: 87.8~93°C/190-200°F (medium, lights middle red light)
More: 93~99°C/200~210°F (high, lights right hand red light)
The TEMPERATURE toggles through the 3 settings by repeat button presses.
The TIME defaults to 4 hours but time can be lengthened or shortened using the + and – buttons.
You can download the manual for your IP model at https://instantpot.com/english-manuals/
If your pot is broken, then return it. If you’ve been experimenting unguided, the manual will shed light.
I have tried to use the slow cooker function several times. it never cooks, only warms. I did adjust the heat up to Med and High as opposed to Low as the recipe called for but it still only warmed. It never cooks. Very disappointing as I really wanted a two in one for pressure or slow cooking.
I have proved that the IP slow-cooks food just fine. But I needed to delve into the instructions. Many folks experience failure because they haven’t read the manual carefully or explored the options. Ergo, without “the knowledge” a little reading gives, the various heat options for slow cooking may not be obvious to you. The IP is fairly intuitive, but some of its possibilities require a little homework. The “cooks from the base only” aspect is not too worrying, as ‘convection currents’ in the liquid cycle the heat through the food, but you must use sufficient liquid. IP models without the adjust button will toggle the low/med/high heat options via repeated pressings of the slow cooker button. The faceplate lights tell you which option you’ve chosen. It really does work… we don’t have to call in the FDA… they’d just say “have you read the manual?” 🙂
Just tried Ropa Vieja on the high setting for slow cooker. The recipe wqs saying 4 hours, after 5 hours even the onion is not really cooked.
Put the meat on some hifh pressure to salvage things then will shred and mix them again, hope to not have ruined everything.
I will buy a slow cooker as the picture of the meal is making me drool.
My Instant pot has a KEEP WARM key where you show an ADJUST key. Does that mean I can’t change the slow cook level?
I made a stew a few weeks ago. After 8 hours on the normal (low) settings, the celery, carrots and potatoes were still basically raw. I changed up to the “Stew” button for the last hour and it came out perfect.
I am trying Mongolian Chicken in the “crock pot” and three hours in, it’s still “warm” on the normal setting. I’m thinking of upping it to the More (High) setting to make sure it cooks for the last hours.
I love using my instant pot for sticky rice and as an air fryer, but so far I am underwhelmed by it’s crock pot capabilities.