How many people will she be cooking for - 5 to 10?

I have pressure cookers but not an Instant Pot, but whatever I cook in a PC could be made in an IP.

When I make Japanese style soups, I add dehydrated vegetables, and these are very convenient to store, and have surprisingly good flavor and texture when added to soups. My favorite dehydrated vegetables include mushrooms, red bell pepper, cabbage, carrots, onion, and chives. I also keep a supply of mixed soup vegetables, which I think has everything I mentioned except for mushrooms and chives. For the broth, I like to use Knorr granulated chicken bouillon, and I buy that in very large containers, but I often use bonito soup base concentrate, which comes in bottles and is dashi based. I use Red Boat Fish sauce instead of soy sauce for most soups, and I use jarred ginger, which must be refrigerated, like the fish sauce and dashi soup base. I use a wide variety of noodles in my soup, and I usually add egg drop, but you can substitute tofu.

I'm not sure how this would work in an Instant Pot, as I generally make this on the stovetop, but I would think it could be adapted.

Thanks, Lars! Your soups sound like they'd work as make ahead packets, which would be great. And yes, making soup should be no big deal. The settings are: pressure cooker, rice cooker, slow cooker, yogurt maker, steamer, sauté pan and food warmer. Between slow cook and sauté making soup should be easy, even without the pressure.

She's most likely to be cooking for 1-2 in it, or perhaps making a stew or something that can sustain her for a week. There are pressure cook programs for soup/broth, meat/stew, beans/chili, poultry, rice, multigrain, porridge, and steam (as in steamer, but with pressure). There are some other programs as well. And the manual is very clear.

"She can cook anywhere there's a plug. :" I would suggest checking what plug-in electrical appliances she's allowed in her accommodation. Universities here demand electrical checks on anything students bring with them and ban some types of equipment.

Good point, Floral, but worry not. Her mom already made sure of that. The building is only a few years old and designed for the current kind of student, draped in electric gizmos, unlike some older places which limit heating appliances to small clothes irons. There's a whole online world of meals you can make with an iron.... (Mostly guy food...)

Main thing is to have enough liquid or she'll get a "burn" notice. You can always cook off liquids after the pressure cooking has finished. I recommend getting a basic Instant Pot cook book for the basics.

Yogurt! I can make 5 regular mason pint jars of yogurt in mine.

u tube has a ton of recipes

This technique makes the most perfect brown rice. I add in diced veggies: butternut squash, peppers, onions mushrooms, turnip at the beginning. After it is done and pressure has released, I stir in chopped fresh spinach and let it sit for a few minutes with the lid on, until it wilts. One of my favorites.

https://www.cookwithmanali.com/instant-pot-brown-rice/

That's great, AOK! I've heard that rice cookers have a hard time with brown rice. so a perfect recipe is great, and she'll love the specifics about the vegetables.

Elizabeth, your spaghetti is perfect for college students. Great quickie meal to feed the boyfriend.

Dave, I was asking here because while she can follow directions and has a discerning palate, she doesn't have enough experience to tell a good recipe from bad. I know and trust the folks here. You're right, however, that YouTube and all kinds of other places on the 'net have thousands of recipes.

Thanks, All, for the advice.

I'll add that the brown rice recipe makes a lot as written. I often cut it in half,which makes about three healthy servings, four if you're a dainty eater.

So many good recipes. All those crock-pot recipes have been up-dated for the insta-pot.

Japanese curries use chicken, potatoes and vegetables. The madras brand curry in the tin works fine. Marbella does well in a insta.

Taco stew is a goodie that can be a meal day one as a salad. Day two ,three, tacos and/or burritos, breakfast burritos adding re-fried beans, rice, fried eggs or scrambled. Day four, add more stock for a tortilla soup with tortilla chips. Nacos?. Recipe, taco stew

(blog uses shopping suggestions using a brand of cans but just a guide)

Any vegetables on the 'like' list would work. Unless she does not like tacos, lol.

All around the NYU and Colombia campus are taco and burrito joints. Chipotle, etc.

I know you don't like making seasoning blends but this one is easy. Maybe her mother has the basic ingredients.

I would have adored an instapot at that age, especially with first apartment with two roomates. Often boyfriends made six for dinners.

We were very vegetable forward and mostly made stir fry. Eggs or chicken or both. One roomate Japanese so that added to the variety.

DH wondered recenly why we don't have one.(instapot). We do, but i took it to the beach house, used once, and back in the box. (he has no memory of using it). I must have made a moose stew with house guests. Perfect for stews. Previously i used a crock pot. Instapot is better.

No judgement, i do like it, but just not the way i cook now. I especially like that the cooking insert is stainless and not teflon. Rest of the meal into the fridge, and another few meals can be re-heated.

I'm guessing she will get a few meals from her mother that she likes.

Absolutely. The reason I got her the same one is the size was approriate (6 qt.) and her mom has been showing her how to use it. In California, tacos are pretty much staples, so a good suggestion. Thanks, Sleevendog, for the recipe. I think she could do it with two cans of cooked beans, instead of four cups all different.

To be clear, I make spice blends all the time. I just make enough for what I'm cooking rather than to store. And for casual, small batch, non-specific cooking, I like some premixed ones that I can just grab and be done. I haven't found any lack of quality in the ones I use. And the college girl could just grab a packet of taco seasoning at the store if she doesn't want to make her own. ;)

Her first year, food was hard to get on campus. It had to be ordered and had a long wait time in line to receive, and (no surprise) she hated most of it. So with having a private room, and a postage stamp kitchen for the five of them (plus boyfriends), she can at least make nutritious food she likes, but she has little time to cook, and was never interested before her year of scrounging for any edible food, and I don't see her setting up a pantry any time soon. The Instant Pot will free her from waiting on access to the kitchen, and turn out food either slow cooked while she's out or sped up with pressure.

The Breville version I was given is the best slow cooker I've ever used. I'm glad to hear that that's true of the Instant Pot as well. Thanks!

I would be hesitant to give an Instant Pot to someone who is not experienced with the use of a pressure cooker.

dcarch

Her mom is teaching her and she's a science nerd who can follow directions. I'm not worried about that part.

HaHa! I consider myself to be very good in various sciences and experienced in the kitchen, yet I had to repaint the kitchen ceiling a couple of times.

Pasta sauce on the ceiling was not the original design color scheme. LOL!

dcarch

LOL! Well, take heart that the young are pretty durable and these electric multicookers make less pressure, with more safety features.