675. Instant Pot Corn Potato Cheddar Soup

Amazing Gadgets

    Whenever I'm at my son's place in Montreal, the first few days go into cleaning his place. Out of all my three kids he's probably the one with the most gadgets. Home cleaning becomes an easier task and love that our clothes do not have that awful damp smell. The wonders of a clothes dryer. His kitchen too is equipped with some of the best and powerful appliances. Every visit and we add a new gadget. 

    This time round I was appalled at the state of our very useful pressure cooker. The bottom no longer sits well on the hob and I just don't want to get you into the colour of the poor pressure cooker. So I insisted that we buy an Instant Pot as anyway I'd read so much about it and a few bloggers even use it regularly. In a small kitchen we need gadgets that are multi functional. So the Instant Pot fits that description. 

   I would recommend an Instant Pot anytime. However, don't think I'll get one for my home in Mombasa because of the frequent power cuts and power fluctuations. However, here it works like a charm. I had put some tuvar dal on the slow cooker mode and gone to the market. When we got back home after 3 hours the dal was cooked. I cook rice in it frequently because its also a rice cooker. Saute some dry sabji or a sabji with gravy. No noisy whistles and the best think is that it does not generate heat like a hob, grill or oven does. You can steam stuff in it so next recipe to try is dokhra in the Instant Pot. Can put eggs to boil and don't have to worry about water getting over. It all works on a timer. As soon as the time is over, the Instant Pot goes into the warm mode. The options are endless.

   When Preethi who blogs at Preethi's Cuisine suggested #Fireless Cooking as our 102th theme for FoodieMonday/ Bloghop group, I knew what I wanted to show off... my new Instant Pot :) As my son is reading my post as I'm typing, he comments ' you could have blogged anything your cook here as its all fireless!' My reply ' yes I know but I so want to show off my Instant Pot'. He walked away with a quizzical look on his face and must be thinking that I'm crazy :0

   I made some soup in the Instant Pot. It was ready within 15 minutes. Check out the recipe for a quick and filling soup.

INSTANT POT CORN POTATO CHEDDAR SOUP
4-6 Servings

3 cups small cubes of potatoes (peeled and cubed)
2 cups sweet corn (fresh or frozen)
2 cups milk
2 cups water
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 medium onion finely chopped 
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tbsp olive oil or butter
1½ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper powder
1 tsp chilli flakes
¼ cup chopped spring onion
¼ cup chopped fresh coriander

1. Add oil in the inner pot of the Instant Pot (IP).
2. Switch it on to the saute mode.
3. As soon as the oil becomes a little hot, add the chopped onions. 
4. Stir frequently and cook the onions till it becomes soft.
5. Add the garlic. Stir and add potato cubes. Add salt and the water. Mix well.
6. Close the lid of the IP. Turn the vent to the sealing position.
7. Set the timer to 5 minutes manually.
8. After the 5 minutes are over, cover the vent with a dish cloth.
9. Move the vent to the venting position.
10. Lift the vent gently using a long spoon or a knife.The steam will come out. Its best to use a dish cloth so that you don't get burnt with the hot steam and it doesn't create a mess.
11. Open the lid. 
12. Set to the saute mode again. 
13. Add corn and milk and let it simmer for 5 minutes.
14. Add cheese, pepper, spring onion and coriander. Mix well.
15. Serve piping hot soup with some bread of your choice.
16. If you are not going to serve the soup immediately, close the lid. It will stay hot for 10-15 minutes. 

Tips:

• Add any other veg of your choice.
• I mashed some of the cooked potatoes to make the soup base a bit thicker.
• You can add ¼ cup cream if you want to.

You may want to check out some of my Fireless Cooking Recipes:

Vegan Mixed Berries Ice Cream (freezing)

Mangonada (freezing and blending)

Peaches and Cream Oatmeal  Cups (baked)

Tzatziki (mixing and chopping)

Sending this recipe to the following event:

FoodieMonday Bloghop