Pressure-Cooker Lamb Stew

I received an InstaPot for Christmas this year, which I am absolutely in love with.  It’s a pressure-cooker and slow-cooker in one.  It can sear, has a timer, can keep things warm, and because of all the safety features, it completely takes the worry and hassle out of pressure cooking.  I use it for making broth every week, but lately I’ve been more adventurous with it and seeing what it can do with tougher cuts of meat that I would otherwise have to cook for hours.

This lamb stew was one such recipe.  On the stove top, I would have cooked it for at least 3 hours (and if you don’t have a pressure cooker, you could do this instead).  It probably would have taken at least 8 hours in a slow cooker (also an option if you don’t have a pressure cooker).  But, in the Instapot, it was ready, tender and delicious in 35 minutes (plus the 30 minutes it takes for the Instapot to come to temperature and develop a pressure seal).  In fact, you could even add your meat frozen if you needed to (I’d pressure cook for 40-45 minutes in that case).  Yay for meals where you throw everything into a pot and then just come back when it’s time to eat!

Serves 4-5

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs lamb stew meat (you could substitute beef or goat), cut into 1″ cubes
• 1 acorn squash
• 3 large carrots
• 1 large yellow onion
• 1 sprig rosemary (2 if it’s small)
• 1 bay leaf
• 6 cloves garlic, sliced
• 3 Tbsp broth or water
• 1/4-1/2 tsp salt, to taste (more if using water, less if using broth)

1. Peel, seed and cube acorn squash.  A nice trick is to microwave the whole squash for 1 minute.  This makes it easier to cut, seed and peel.  Slice the carrots into thick circles.  Peel the onion, cut in half, and then slice into half moons.  Depending on whether you like your veggies softer or firmer in your stew, you can cut the pieces bigger (for firmer) or smaller (for softer).
2. Place all of the ingredients in your pressure cooker (yes, it’s that easy).  Cook on high pressure (on the Instapot, use the soup/stew setting) for 35 minutes.
3. Carefully release the pressure before unlocking the lid.  Enjoy!