Instant Pot Duo Review: We Used It Every Week for 3 Months

The Instant Pot Duo has become one of the bestselling kitchen appliances in history. With over 50 million units sold, it's hard to argue with the market. But popularity doesn't always mean right for everyone. We cooked with the 6-quart Duo multiple times per week for three months before forming our opinion.

The Time Savings Are Real

A beef stew that takes 2.5 hours on the stovetop takes 35 minutes in the Instant Pot. A whole chicken: 25 minutes versus 90 in an oven. Dried beans that need overnight soaking and an hour of cooking: done in 30 minutes from dry. These aren't marginal improvements — for busy households, they're significant.

The 7 Functions: Which Ones We Actually Used

The Instant Pot markets itself as a 7-in-1. In three months of regular use, we genuinely used four of those functions: pressure cooker (constantly), slow cooker (weekly), sauté (as a prep step for pressure cooking), and steamer (for vegetables and eggs). The yogurt maker and rice cooker functions work but are less useful given that dedicated appliances do those jobs better.

The Learning Curve

Pressure cooking requires a mental adjustment if you've never used a pressure cooker before. The sealing mechanism, pressure release methods, and cooking time logic take a few meals to internalize. Expect your first 3–4 dishes to be a learning experience before the process becomes intuitive.