Cult pot becomes a must-have for mums
IT can saute vegetables in five minutes, cook a whole chicken in 20 and even make yoghurt – so it is no wonder the Instant Pot was top of the festive must-haves.
The multi-purpose cooker, available for as little as £70, has a cult online following and has already sold out in the UK and across Europe. Its Facebook group has nearly a million followers, with fans calling themselves ‘potheads’.
The speed with which it can cook and its safety features mean it can be left unwatched – allowing busy people to cook healthy meals.
Instant Pot’s success is said to be the main driving force behind the rise of multicooker sales, which have soared by 79 per cent globally in the past year to £225million.
A modern adaptation of the traditional pressure cooker and slow cooker, popular in households in the 1960s and 1970s, the Instant Pot combines both those functions while also acting as a rice cooker and steamer. Its versatility has helped it become the best-seller on Amazon.
It was invented by Canadian software engineer Robert Wang, who built the business with little marketing and an obsession with improving the product.
Mr Wang once said: ‘We did lots of takeout, fast food, and we know that is not good enough for our children.’ He used the iPhone as an inspiration for some of the features on the Instant Pot, giving it a range of sensors and capabilities.
Mr Wang says he has read almost all of the tens of thousands of reviews on Amazon looking for ways to improve it.
Today there are ten versions of the Instant Pot costing from around £70.
Mr Wang had aimed to put an Instant Pot in every kitchen this Christmas – but his company Double Insight, based in Ottawa, could not keep up with demand.