Instant Pot Staples

Getting an Instant Pot as a low histamine eater is honestly life changing. It’s one of the few appliances that I don’t mind giving space to in my tiny galley kitchen.

I put off getting one for the first 6 months of my low histamine diet – I didn’t grow up in a house that pressure cooked, and culturally we’re taught to fear and respect unattended cooking devices. When I did break down and get one, I got it like new off of Facebook marketplace. Turns out they’re a popular holiday gift, and there are lots of non-limited eaters out there who don’t want it and can’t wait to get rid of it.

But once I did get the hang of Instant Pot cooking, I started using it multiple times a week and bringing it with me on the rare occasion that I travel overnight. It’s excellent at time saving for some of my harder-to-cook staples and the best way to handle broth and soups.

Here are a few of my Instant Pot staple recipes that I can’t live without.

Quinoa

I like to freeze well cooked quinoa into lunch portions and then throw the thawed amount into sautéed peppers, onions, asparagus, etc for a quick pilaf.

1. Combine 1 cup quinoa with 1 1/4 cups water in the pot.
2. Close the lid and set to pressure cook on high for 10 minutes.
3. Allow the pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes, then vent the remaining pressure. Open and fluff with a fork. I like my quinoa well cooked and soft, and this amount of time fully opens the germ for easier digestion.

Wild Rice

Wild rice isn’t actually rice at all, but a kind of seed! It’s high in protein and freezes and thaws well. It can be pricey if you don’t know where to purchase it. Trader Joes sells bags for a reliably low price, as does Whole Foods’ generic brand.

1. Combine 1 cup wild rice with 1 1/4 cups water in your pot.
2. Close the lid and set to pressure cook on high for 30 minutes.
3. Allow the pressure to naturally release for 10 minutes, then vent the remaining pressure. Open and fluff with a fork. Properly cooked wild rice will be soft and fully split open so that the lighter colored insides are visible. If your wild rice is still closed, don’t eat it.

Brown Rice

I’m that weirdo who always used to ask for brown rice at Chinese restaurants (back when I could eat at Chinese restaurants…) instead of white rice. It has more fiber, it holds you longer, and it has a nice nutty taste.

1. Rinse 1 cup of brown rice under water to allow the starches to drain, until the water runs mostly clear.
2. Combine the cup of rice with 1 1/3 cups of water in your pot.
3. Close the lid and set to pressure cook on high for 15 minutes.
4. Allow the pressure to vent naturally.
5. Remove the lid. Fluff with a fork and freeze into portions immediately. NEVER let cooked rice sit at room temperature for longer than two hours before eating.

Veggie Broth

Boxed or canned broth is off limits on the low histamine diet. Making your own with an Instant Pot is super easy, and also a way to ditch the sodium that a lot of pre-made broths carry.

1. Peel and roughly quarter two small or one very large white/yellow onion. Add to pot.
2. Add two stalks of celery snapped in half, as well as two larger carrots or several heaping handfuls of carrot peels, if you’re being thrifty.
3. Pour in 1 tablespoon of olive oil or your tolerated oil of choice.
4. Optional but nice – add the stalks from your shucked parsley, a bay leaf, and cracked black pepper to toleration.
5. Add 1 tsp of salt, or more to taste. Shake in a small amount of turmeric for color.
6. Seal your pot and set to pressure cook on high for 1 hour. Allow all pressure to release naturally.
7. Open the pot and remove vegetables and herbs. Your broth should be golden in color and have a nice neutral taste.
8. Decant broth into usable portions and freeze. This is my favorite silicone broth portioner.

Golden Beets

Beets are an anti-inflammatory superfood. I love how they taste but always hate the next day when you forget that you ate them and think that you’re dying when you go to the bathroom.
*Gold Beets Have Entered The Chat*
Like their purple siblings, golden beets are a root veggie with a nice earthy taste, but a little mellower. Best of all, they’re bright orangey yellow – no staining to your counter top or insides.

1. Peel your beets. If they’re larger, cut them into pieces. All beet pieces that go into your instant pot should be roughly the same size, maybe 3 inches across.
2. Place the metal trivet that came with your Instant Pot into the bottom of the pot, arms reaching upward towards the pot’s opening.
3. Pour 2 cups cold water into the bottom of the pot over the trivet.
4. Place your beets in an even layer on the trivet. Don’t stack them upwards.
5. Close the pot and pressure cook on high for 14 minutes.
6. Allow pressure to naturally release for another 15 minutes.
7. Manually release all remaining pressure.
8. Your beets should be fork tender. If they’re not, reseal the pot and cook for another 10 minutes. I’ve only had this happen once or twice, and I think it was due to under ripe beets because the cooked beets also had very little color or flavor.
9. Freeze your beets as is or slice before freezing.