what really caught my attention was how the Instant Pot can cool a 16 hour Kalua Pig in just 90 and actually be better ... that's some kind of mad scientist stuff right there!
You know, growing up, I really hated Sunday pot roast in the slow cooker, because it was always so dry & just not fun to chew. A crockpot has a little hole in the lid to vent the pressure so that the lid doesn't rattle or pop off, which has the adverse effect of losing moisture, which then dries out the meat.
Granted, there are techniques to work around that, but with the Instant Pot, because it's specifically designed to hold the pressure, there's no moisture loss, which means things like Kalua Pig effortlessly comes out better.
the oatmeal recipe (another thing I tend to eat a few times each week).
So there are a variety of types of oatmeal & ways to cook the oatmeal. I like to do mine in the IP & I like to use the "triple-stripe" system for toppings (I basically just line up 3 stripes of toppings, and...that's it. lol). I recently converted over to using a pasta bowl (large, flat, and thin) & it's really awesome! Here's steel-cut oats: (four stripes, but who's counting!)
Regular oats:
A dessert version: (which was oddly good, lol)
I tried a few sizes & ended up settling on the 30oz 8.5" bowls:
I use a smaller dishwasher-safe cereal bowl to cook it in the Instant Pot. So basically a cup of water, trivet, bowl, then oatmeal cover with water (optionally add in raisins or dried cherries, as they plump up & warm up as it cooks!), then I dump it into the pasta bowl, stir in maple syrup & pour in the milk, then line it up with toppings & voila, an awesome breakfast!
Total time is around 15 minutes...5 minutes to preheat, then 10 minutes to cook. So I can wake up, dump oats & water into a bowl & press the button, hop in the shower, and breakfast is ready when I get out! Not having to babysit the cooking process is HUGE! Particularly because I have ADHD & have zero attention span LOL.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on the 10-in-1 v. 7-in-1 device
If budget isn't an issue, I'd absolutely recommend getting a model with more features, because then you're covered for the future! The 7-in-1 is simply the most common one & is at a good price point (there are cheaper & smaller models, but then you're missing out on features, capacity, etc.). Currently, the best model is the Instant Pot Max: ($150)
This one has the ability to push the pressure up a little higher (to 15 PSI), which means you can do pressure-canning in it. Note that pressure-canning is entirely different than pressure-cooking & is done for food-storage purposes. It's a nice feature to have, but not essential in any way.
If you have the budget AND the counterspace, Ninja makes a model with a built-in swing-lid airfryer ($200), so you can sort of doing everything in one machine:
All of the pressure cookers work the same (they raise the pressure locked inside of the pot in order to cook faster), and then there are bonus features depending on the individual (the 10-in-1 has more programs, such as Bake mode, the Max has pressure-canning, the Ninja Foodi has a built-in airfryer lid, etc.). They also have themed Instapots, such as R2-D2: (they even have a Baby Yoda model!)
Instant Pot also makes their own air-fryer lid, if you'd rather go with that, as it's a bit smaller on the counter than the giant Ninja Foodi lol. I currently have 3 models (6qt, 8qt, and 14qt - the 14qt is from a different brand, GoWise). I had a 3qt, but it runs a little too hot, so it didn't get used much & got donated to a friend haha.
I mostly use the 6qt 7-in-1, and then the 8qt for dual-cooking & for larger stuff (like a huge batch of full corn on the cobs), and then the 14qt gets used mostly for like a whole turkey & for cooking pounds & pounds of chili for family get-togethers, work potlucks, etc. I used to have the Instant Pot Smart model, which is programmable, but like 99% of the recipes I do are simply on "Manual" mode for a set period of time, so the programming functions weren't really all that useful in practice.
So the 10-in-1 model is a really great way to go because you get all of the features of the 7-in-1 model, plus the baking feature & also the sterilizing feature (nice if you have baby bottles & whatnot). The one you linked also has a better GUI interface, as well as an Egg preset, which is handy! It can also do sous-vide, although the pot is a bit small so you can't do larger items or items in bulk.
If you're up for some more kitchen reading, my current "trifecta" in the kitchen is the Tasty OneTop induction hotplate, Instant Pot, and Anova Precision Oven. The long-term work requirements & cost justification has really worked out for me since I've set this all up!
That's a lot to take in, however, so I'd suggest picking up that awesome 10-in-1 Instant Pot (more modern interface, more features, etc.) & then starting out with that for awhile before committing to anything else haha!