Are you wondering what quick vs natural release is when using your Instant Pot? In this article, I'll go over a few questions that are common when it comes to doing a quick release and natural release.
You all know how much I love my Instant Pot, so much so I just added my second IP. In How to set up an Instant Pot Duo Nova you can see me unboxing my new Instant Pot.
These new pressure cookers are such a versatile kitchen gadget and that's just one of the reasons I love mine. They can act as a slow cooker, yogurt maker, a steamer, as well as act as a warmer.
They can be used for a rice cooker. I use my IP as a rice maker all the time to make my Instant Pot Rice recipe.
What Is Quick Release And How To Do It
Quick-release (QPR or QR) is when you manually turn your sealing knob from sealing to the venting position.
Quick Release will quickly release all the steam that is inside of your Instant Pot. The steam that is being released can cause a burn so please be very careful.
If you look closely at your pressure cooker's lid you will see a metal pin and the sealing knob. The sealing knob says sealing and venting.
When trying to build pressure the knob will need to be set to sealing. Unless you have a new model with a self-sealing lid you won't have to turn the knob it will seal on its own.
As you can see in the image the sealing valve is still closed and the metal pin is up. That means the Instant Pot is full of pressure.
To do a quick release you will need to turn the sealing knob to venting. Or push the knob if you have a self-sealing lid.
Doing this will release all the steam inside the pressure cooker quickly. Quick Release will only take a few minutes to do.
When all the pressure is gone from the inside of the Instant Pot the metal pin will drop down. The pin will do this no matter if you do a quick or a natural release. When the pin is down then you can open the lid of the Instant Pot.
What Is Natural Release And How To Do It
Natural Release (NPR or NR) means that the steam will naturally release from the Instant Pot. You don't have to do anything for this to happen.
When the metal valve has dropped then all the pressure is gone. I do recommend to turn the valve to venting before removing the lid. This just ensures that all the pressure is released from inside the pressure cooker.
Doing a natural release will take about 10-25 minutes depending on what you are cooking. The LCD screen on the front of your IP will say L10 or L25, this means that it stopped cooking 10 or 25 minutes.
Again the time it takes to naturally release depends on what you are cooking. The fuller your inner pot is the longer it will take to release.
When To Do A Quick Or Natural Release
Now let's talk about when to do a natural release. If you are cooking foods that tend to be foamy or have high starch content, (think of potatoes) then a natural release is best.
If you were to do a quick release with starchy foods then there would be starch coming out with the steam. This causes food splatter to come out from the pressure release valve.
If cooking a large volume of liquid say a soup, then it's best to do a natural release. When cooking most meats it's best to do an NR as well. The slow drop in temperature will help to make the meat more tender.
Quick Release is great if you want to stop the cooking process, this helps from overcooking your recipe. Vegetables are a great example of when to use QR.
Doing a QR or an NR will depend on the recipe. If the recipe says to do a QR but you do an NR the food may overcook.
Or doing a QR may cause what you are cooking to not be fully cooked. Most recipes will say if you should do a Natural or Quick release.
I hope this helped to understand what Quick VS. Natural Release is.
Answering The Question "what's there to eat" ~ Jen
Other My Creative Manner articles you may enjoy are:
- How To Set Up An Instant Pot Duo Nova
- Instant Pot Whole Chicken
- Instant Pot Mac and Cheese
- How To Do A Water Test In An Instant Pot
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