Give in to the Instant Pot craze

The greatest trick the Instant Pot played on people was convincing them that they were trying something new.

Pressure cookers, slow cookers, rice cookers, steamers - these are appliances that have been around for years. Sure, they are all combined into one shiny device, along with a few other ones, but they now have the cachet of a catchy new name. Your grandma used a pressure cooker. You have an Instant Pot.

While the device has been riding an incredible wave of popularity over the past couple of years, most of the guides showing the best way to use it have lived online on blogs and message boards. That changes this fall, as a slew of new Instant Pot cookbooks hits the shelves, all trying to convince you to jump on the multicooker bandwagon. (Prices range by size, from $69.99 to $159.99; we used the 8-quart at $129.99.)

As for me, I knew I'd like it before I ever opened the box. It wasn't the fawning praise from the hundred of thousands, if