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Home » Printables

Instant Pot Cooking Times Cheat Sheet Free Printable

Published: Mar 17, 2022 · Modified: Mar 8, 2023 by Ginny · This post may contain affiliate links.

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If you are like me (or the rest of the world, it seems!), you might struggle with instant pot cooking times. Grab this free Instant Pot Cooking Times Cheat Sheet Printable to keep handy and save time researching the appropriate time to cook different foods.

simple steps to download, print, laminate and use the air fryer cheat sheets to look up common cooking times.
Follow These Steps to Save You Time in the Kitchen!
Contents hide
1 🧑‍🍳 Cheat Sheet Benefits
2 🍳 How Long Does it Take to Bring Food to Pressure
3 🧅 Quick Release vs Natural Release Pressure
4 🌾 Cooking Times Rice and Grains
5 🧆 Cooking Times Beans and Legumes
6 🥕 Cooking Times Vegetables
7 🐔 Cooking Times Poultry
8 🐄 Cooking Times Beef
9 🐖 Cooking Times Pork
10 🐟 Cooking Times Fish and Seafood
11 🐑 Cooking Times Lamb
12 🖨️ Snag the 3 Page Cheat Sheet
13 📄 FAQs

One to the biggest struggle for many is how to know how long to cook vegetables, a whole chicken, frozen meats, etc in the pressure cooker. 

It is such a pain that I decided to make my own quick reference guide to keep in my kitchen. I wanted to offer it to you too!

Grab the free Instant Pot Cooking Times Printable and use it as a guide to help you overcome pressure cooker times confusion! 

This printable is one I recommend for anyone who owns a pressure cooker and there is an Air Fryer Cheat Sheet that matches this set as well.

savor and savvy printable

Snag our 72 Page Printable Home Binder Today →

instant pot reference guide with cheat sheet labels.
Cute and Helpful Cheat Sheet Printables!

🧑‍🍳 Cheat Sheet Benefits

  • A helpful guide to knowing how long to cook your favorite foods.
  • Great for pressure cooking beginners and pros alike. 
  • Clean and simple design. 
  • Guide to quick release or natural release.
  • Easy to print.
  • Great for taping on the inside of cabinets for easy access. Or three-hole punch and put in your recipe binder. 

🍳 How Long Does it Take to Bring Food to Pressure

Most recipes when stating the cook time DO NOT include bringing the food up to pressure. If they do include that time, it will be clearly noted.

It is important to account for that time when planning your meals.

Depending on how full the pot is, determines how fast it will take to come to pressure, which could be anywhere from 5-15 minutes.

Looking at the Cooking Times for Chicken below, it states that chicken breasts will take 12 minutes to cook, that DOES NOT include bringing it to pressure so add 5-7 minutes for that for your true cooking time.

The machine will start cooking and the timer starts when it is brought up to pressure.

🧅 Quick Release vs Natural Release Pressure

Each food is listed with a NATURAL or QUICK release next to it.

Quick Release (QR) means once the cook timer goes off with the beep, you can use a wooden spoon (or something like that) to turn the vent valve to the far right to release the pressure.

Use this method when you want to STOP the cooking process.

NEVER USE YOUR HANDS as hot steam is released and will burn you. Keep the vent gently pressed to the right until there is no more steam coming out. At that point, you will be able to unlock the Instant Pot lid.

Natural Release (NR) means when the cook timer goes off with the beep, you will allow the Instant Pot to release on its own without touching it. This will take 10 to 20 minutes.

Use this method when you want to use the pressure time to continue cooking or to tenderize meat.

During this time, the food continues to cook and the steam naturally releases from the machine. It is complete when you are able to turn the lid and release it without any hesitation. If the lid DOES NOT release easily, it is not ready.

🌾 Cooking Times Rice and Grains

All foods listed below should be cooked at high pressure with manual setting. For rice and grains use NATURAL RELEASE for 10 minutes, then QUICK RELEASE. A recipe like Cilantro Lime Rice fall into this category.

Food Liquid RatioCooking Time
Bulgur1:320
Couscous, Israeli 1:22-3
Farro1:210-12
Kamut, Whole1:210-12
Millet1:1.7510
Oats (Quick) 1:21
Oats (Steel Cut) 1:215
Oats (Old Fashioned)1:210
Pasta, Penne or RegularCOVER4
Pearl Barley1:2.520-22
Polenta1:49
Quinoa1:11
Rice (Basamati, Jasmine)1:14-6
Rice, Brown1:120-22
Rice, White1:14
Rice, Wild1:220-25
Spaghetti1:26
Steel Cut Oats 1:310-14
Rice and Grain Cooking Times Instant Pot

🧆 Cooking Times Beans and Legumes

Take note of the cooking times are different whether the beans have been soaked prior to cooking or not.

FoodLiquid RatioCooking Time
Adzuki/Azuki/Aduki1:316 or 4 Soaked
Anasazi1:220 or 5 Soaked
Black Beans1:325 or 8 Soaked
Black Eyed Peas1:315 or 5 Soaked
White Kidney Beans 1:335 or 12 Soaked
Red Kidney Beans 1:325 or 8 Soaked
Chickpeas1:340 or 15 Soaked
Great Northern Beans1:325 or 8 Soaked
Lentils (Green or Brown)1:310
Lentils (Red or Yellow)1:36
Lima1:320
Navy1:325 or 8 Soaked
Peas1:38
Pinto1:325 or 8 Soaked
Soy 1:345 or 20 Soaked
Beans and Legumes Cooking Times Instant Pot

🥕 Cooking Times Vegetables

Most vegetables are QUICK RELEASE unless they are longer cook or some root vegetables. Pumpkin Puree is a NATURAL RELEASE as the sweet potato and baked potatoes are.

Food Cooking Time Release
Artichoke (Whole + Trimmed)9-11Quick
Asparagus (Whole or Cut)1-2Quick
Beans (Green, Yellow, Wax)1-2Quick
Beetroot (Small Whole) 11-13Quick
Beetroot (Large Whole) 20-25Quick
Broccoli (Florets)0-1Quick
Broccoli (Stalks)3-4Quick
Brussel Sprouts (Whole)3-4Quick
Cabbage (Whole or Wedges) 3-4Quick
Carrots (Sliced or Shredded)2-3Quick
Carrots (Whole)6-8Quick
Cauliflower (Florets)2-3Quick
Celery (Chunks) 2-3Quick
Collard Greens 4-5Quick
Corn on the Cob 3-5Quick
Leeks 2-3Quick
Okra2-3Quick
Potatoes (Whole)10-20Natural
Potatoes (Baby) 5-7Quick
Sweet Potatoes12-18Natural
Vegetable Cooking Times Instant Pot

🐔 Cooking Times Poultry

This is one area you need to pay attention as not all poultry is treated the same for NATURAL and QUICK RELEASE. Our Turkey Drumsticks are a NATURAL one as is the Honey Teriyaki Chicken.

Food Cooking Time Release
Chicken (Whole)6/lbNatural
Chicken Breast (Bone In)12Quick
Chicken Breast (Boneless)5-8Quick
Chicken Thighs (Bone In) 12Quick
Chicken Thighs (Boneless)6-8Quick
Chicken Legs (Drumsticks)15-20Quick
Chicken Wings 5-7Natural
Cornish Game Hen12-15Natural
Duck (Whole)10-15Quick
Duck (Bone In Portions)12-15Natural
Turkey Breast (Whole)20-25Natural
Turkey Breast (Boneless) 7-9Natural
Turkey Leg (Drumstick) 15-20Natural
Chicken Cooking Times Instant Pot

🐄 Cooking Times Beef

These Beef recipes for the most part NATURALLY RELEASE just as our Ribs, Beef Tongue and Brisket do.

FoodCooking TimeRelease
Brisket/Chuck/Round (Large)20-25Natural
Brisket/Chuck/Round (Small)15-20Natural
Corned Beef Brisket90Natural
Flank Steak25Natural
Ground Beef5Quick
Meatballs5 / lb5 min Quick + Natural
Ribs20-25Natural
Shank25-30Natural
Stew Meat 20 / lbNatural
Beef Cooking Times Instant Pot

🐖 Cooking Times Pork

Most of these recipes will NATURALLY RELEASE like the Keto Pork Chops or Ribs.

FoodCooking TimesRelease
Baby Back Ribs10 / lbNatural
Butt Roast15 / lb Natural
Chops, Bone In (Inch Thick) 5Natural
Chops, Boneless (Inch Thick) 4-5Natural
Ham8 / lbNatural
Sausage10-15Quick
Shoulder55Natural
Spare Ribs25Natural
Tenderloin7-9Quick
Pork Cooking Times Instant Pot

🐟 Cooking Times Fish and Seafood

All seafood and fish are QUICK RELEASE.

Food Cooking Time Release
Crab (Whole)2-3Quick
Fish (Whole)4-5Quick
Fish (Fillet)2-3Quick
Lobster2-3Quick
Mussels1-2Quick
Calamari20Quick
Clams4Quick
Salmon5Quick
Shrimp or Prawn1-3Quick
Fish and Seafood Cooking Times Instant Pot

🐑 Cooking Times Lamb

All lamb are NATURAL RELEASE with the exception of ground lamb.

Food Cooking TimeRelease
Ground Lamb5Quick
Lamb Shanks 30Natural
Meatballs5Natural
Leg of Lamb (Boneless 3.5-4 lbs)35-45Natural
Stew Meat (1 Inch Cubes) 15-20Natural
Lamb Cooking Time Instant Pot

🖨️ Snag the 3 Page Cheat Sheet

  1. Grab the Free Instant Pot Cooking Times Cheat Sheet. Save it to your computer.
  2. Print it out and store in your Recipe Binder or laminate to put in your cupboard.
  3. Use as a reference anytime you cook in your Instant Pot! 

Hang up inside cabinet doors above your Instant Pot, so you open quickly reference the sheet. I used a three-hole punch and put it in my recipe binder as well since it is always out and on the counter.

Go an extra step and laminate the papers so you can keep them out and use them. They will wipe clean, so no worries if splatters get on the pages. 

📄 FAQs

What does quick-release pressure in Instant Pot mean? 

The quick-release of pressure is when you turn the knob on top of the pressure cooker lid to release all the built-up steam inside. A strong jet of steam will quickly spray out of the knob, depressurizing the pot, so be careful not to burn yourself. 

How long does it take the Instant Pot to come to pressure?

Coming to pressure all depends on what you are cooking. It will take anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes. 

Why did my Instant Pot not seal? 

This is a common issue that happens from time to find. Sometimes if your rubber seal is not on tightly you will find it can’t come to pressure. Another common issue is you go over the max fill line on the side. Too much food can be a culprit as well. The last scenario is when your quick-release valve is turned to “venting.” I bet one of those things is the culprit.

Why did I get a burn notice on the pressure cooker? 

The pressure cooker isn’t meant to cook extra thick foods. If you have a really thick chili of stew it can’t begin to cook. So, as it pressurizes it will burn the bottom. If you do not deglaze the bottom of your pot the stuck-on bits can cause the burn notice. 

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About Ginny

Hi! My name is Ginny and I know how busy life can be! I am a mom working hard to prepare healthy meals for my family that is always on the go!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Brenda says

    February 08, 2021 at 12:38 pm

    Thank you for the tips! So appreciated!

    Reply
    • Ginny says

      February 11, 2021 at 8:23 am

      Awesome!! Enjoy!

      Reply

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Family Photo Hi! I'm Ginny and for over 30 years, I've been creating simple and easy recipes without sacrificing on taste for our family on the go. I can't wait to show you how to do the same for your family. Read More...

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