44 Best Soul Food Instant Pot Recipes
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Wanna know my secret to homecooked Southern soul food? What I call “Magical Meals In Minutes.”
Hint: It’s 2 words that are quick and easy.
Did you guess it?
Instant Pot!
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Soul food recipes + Instant Pot = magic!
From the rooter to the tooter, as old Black folks might say. Meaning from the snout to the tail – my secret to a down-home soul food dinner is Instant Pot!
How To Use Instant Pot – Should the Instant Pot valve be up or down?
Instant Pot introduces a new generation to pressure cooking and shows people how to instantly cook a healthy meal!This guide is for you whether you recently bought a new Instant Pot or you’re already using it.I’ll also answer frequently asked questions with helpful Instant Pot user tips. Starting with –> Should the Instant Pot valve be up or down?
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Wouldn’t it be great to enjoy soul food with all the benefits of Instant Pot?
From the turkey leg to the oxtail, I wish everyone knew how easy Instant Pot cooking is for busy households, hectic holidays, and home cooked meals – made from scratch!
The Best Recipes For A Soul Food Thanksgiving Menu
What are some good soul food Thanksgiving dinner recipes? This soul food Thanksgiving menu will make you wanna slap yo mama-but please don’t!
Check out this recipe!
Want fast comfort food that goes beyond Southern?
What’s the difference between Southern food and soul food?
While most soul food is Southern. Not all Southern food is soul food.
Get it?
No worries if you don’t get it yet. Once you start here, you’ll understand as you feast on these easy soul food Instant Pot recipes – trusted, tried, and true!
No more dry, bland recipes!
Forget about dry, bland gravy and tasteless stuffing!
Get ready for tender, juicy meats and flavorful sides that’ll have your family bursting into celebration songs well before the final entrée is served! (Pastor Shirley Caesar U Name It challenge, anybody?)
Black Folks Soul Food Easy Christmas Dinner Menu
A soul food Christmas dinner menu is Southern soul food entrées and Black folks recipes. Try these Black folks’ easy Christmas dinner ideas!
Check out this recipe!
From a Black folks Thanksgiving menu to a soul food easy Christmas dinner – Instant Pot will turn your entrees and side dishes into magical meals in minutes.
With Instant Pot, most traditional stovetop recipe cook times are cut in half!
How do you cook Southern green beans?
Easily, in my Instant Pot! Soul food green beans pressure cook in 2 minutes vs. 2 hours stewing over a large hot pot all day!
Yep! With Instant Pot it’s one-pot… straight to plate!
Instant Pot Cooking Times
How to cook with Instant Pot is one of my favorite topics!I wish everyone knew how easy Instant Pot cooking is for busy households – one-pot… straight to plate!Print my helpful Instant Pot cooking times chart to always know how long to let meats, seafood, vegetables, eggs, rice, grains, and beans pressure cook inside the pot.
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What can you cook in your Instant Pot?
From Black folks’ Southern turkey recipe, candied yams, creamy mashed potatoes, collard greens, fresh cranberry sauce, Black folks red velvet cake, or how about Black folks baked mac and cheese!
…And the list goes on and on like ‘”Beans, greens, potatoes, tomatoes. You name it!”
Instant Pot For Beginners
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What’s that saying about a watched pot?
A watched pot never boils – meaning that time passes very slowly when you’re waiting for something to happen.
Well, them days are over!
Why watch a pot and wait for it to boil when you can get an electric pressure cooker to make your favorite soul foods in an instant?
So instead, start here with these Black folks’ Instant Pot recipes – easy enough for anyone to make and everyone to love!
What’s the best thing to cook in an Instant Pot?
My family’s classic soul food recipes (Black folks’ food) – and I’m so proud to share these recipes with you!
The same Southern comfort food and seasoned buttery-rich flavors in a fraction of the traditional time with Instant Pot.
57 Best Instant Pot Soul Food Recipes
Soul food Instant Pot main dishes
Instant Pot Soul Food Southern Fried Chicken
How do you fry chicken in a pressure cooker? For Instant Pot Southern fried chicken, first pressure cook the chicken in a buttermilk brine to tenderize the meat.Instant Pot pressure cooking the chicken before frying will shorten the marinating process from 24 hours to only 20 minutes!
Check out this recipe!
Black Folks Pineapple Glazed Ham
Black folks are famous for our sweet ham glaze recipes, especially with pineapple and brown sugar. So you may know this Black folks soul food recipe by other names like pineapple ham, pineapple baked ham, or pineapple and brown sugar ham.No matter what you call it, it's the same beautiful and delicious glazed ham recipe masterpiece!
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Black Folks Instant Pot Smoked Turkey Legs
Thanksgiving doesn't have to be complicated or expensive. Black folks Instant Pot turkey legs are an easy alternative to a whole turkey. A welcome addition to your Southern soul food Thanksgiving menu!
Check out this recipe!
Black Folks Southern Shrimp And Grits Recipe
The secret ingredient to Black folks shrimp and grits is the Southern Creole sauce! Typical to soul food and Black folks cooking, the seasonings make each recipe like none other. It's all about the spices and the special sauce.
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Black Folks Soul Food Chicken Spaghetti With Tomato Sauce
Succulent shredded chicken and spaghetti noodles are prepared in a delicious broth seasoned with onion, garlic, salt, and black pepper, making flavorful a meal you’ll love.
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Soul Food Southern Homemade Hamburger Helper
If you want to enjoy Hamburger Helper to the fullest of flavors, always opt for this soul food Southern homemade Hamburger Helper recipe!
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Black Folks Southern Soul Food Meatloaf Recipe
A Black folks' Southern soul food meatloaf recipe is on the shortlist of official comfort foods of the South. A flavorful all-time favorite & classic meatloaf recipe!
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Black Folks Southern Pulled BBQ Chicken
A Black folks’ Southern pulled BBQ chicken recipe is the epitome of finger-lickin’ good! This is the ultimate in no-fail BBQ chicken recipes, whether you’re making this dish from scratch or with leftover BBQ chicken.
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Southern Soul Food Homemade Burger Recipe
What makes a Southern soul food burger?A Southern soul food homemade burger is made with savory bell pepper & sweet onion for a thick, juicy, tender, well-seasoned ground beef patty.
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Instant Pot Corned Beef The Southern Soul Food Way
What is the secret to corned beef? The best corned beef brisket is a Southern recipe favorite enhanced with a soul food pickling spice for maximum flavor. Pressure cooker easy!
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Easy Gumbo Recipe
Nothing's more Louisiana than gumbo! A classic Southern dish and culinary staple in The Big Easy.This easy gumbo recipe is Cajun cooking combined with Creole seasoning & spicy Thai flavors – served over rice and pressure cooker ready in only 15 minutes!
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Instant Pot Southern Soul Food Low Country Shrimp Boil
African-Americans have been hosting gatherings with soul food low country shrimp boils for years. Often called a Southern shrimp boil Big Easy!I love low country boils because they have all my favorite flavors – spicy sausage, tender shrimp, and sweet corn.
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Instant Pot Jamaican Oxtail Recipe
Instant Pot Jamaican oxtail recipe saves 4 hours with this easy pressure cooker method. Cook your oxtail in half the time without compromise to the authentic Jamaican mouth-watering flavors!
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Soul Food BBQ Ribs
Soul food BBQ ribs are a perfect crowd pleaser and an all-time favorite main dish for potlucks, tailgates, game days, or a Black BBQ cookout menu.
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Black Folks Soul Food Hoppin John Recipe
Black folks' Hoppin John is black-eyed peas, collard greens, and rice with Southern soul food flavors. An African American New Year's tradition and comfort food recipe.
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Soul Food Lobster Tail Recipe
How to steam soul food lobster tails:Whipping together a Cajun garlic butter sauce & steaming soul food lobster tail in the Instant Pot is as easy as 1 minute! You may find yourself rereading the instructions thinking it can't be that easy!
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Soul food Instant Pot side dishes
Instant Pot Mac And Cheese
Instant Pot cooking makes mac and cheese quick and easy. Using an Instant Pot for this recipe has transformed a soulful family favorite into a weeknight dinner breeze!
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Black Folks Soul Food Collard Greens Recipe
What is a soul food collard greens recipe? A Black folks collard greens recipe is the quintessential dish of any Southern soul food dinner.
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Instant Pot Candied Yams The Soul Food Way
Candied yams, a traditional Southern African-American dish, can now be cooked to perfection in just 5 minutes with the Instant Pot with no compromise to the dish's iconic tender texture and soul food cinnamon-brown sugar glaze!
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Southern Black Eyed Peas
Soul food Southern black eyed peas are intensely flavored in a thick sauce with smokey & spicy seasonings. Warm, comforting, & flavorful good luck you can eat for prosperity in the New Year!
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Black Folks Soul Food Red Beans And Rice
Experience the rich taste of soul food by way of a simple yet flavorful staple dish. Black folks' soul food red beans and rice. A dish that will make your mouth water when you smell the aroma of savory seasonings and spices as the red kidney beans soak in the rich flavors of this dish!
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Southern Soul Food Baked Beans Recipe
This recipe is a fresh take on a classic Southern dish with an added twist of soul food seasonings and flavors. After soaking and boiling the dry beans, the diced vegetables lay the groundwork. Then, the combination of brown sugar, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, molasses, barbecue sauce, and soul food seasonings truly transforms the dish!
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Southern Cabbage Recipe The Soul Food Way
A Black folks' Southern cabbage recipe is a delicious way to enjoy one of the South's favorite side dishes that's warm and sweet with savory soul food flavors!
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Black Folks Creamy Mashed Potatoes Recipe
Who has the best mashed potatoes? This Black folks creamy mashed potatoes recipe is the best I've ever had & my family's favorite too!
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Black Folks Baked Apple Slices
What makes this a soul food specialty? It’s gotta be the spices! Cinnamon, brown sugar, nutmeg, and vanilla combine with fresh apples to make Black folks baked apple slices.
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Instant Pot Cranberry Sauce
To make homemade fresh Instant Pot cranberry sauce, all you need is water, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, and 5 minutes in the pressure cooker!
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Black Folks Creamed Corn Pudding Casserole
This Southern creamed corn casserole has a sweet corn flavor with onion and garlic for a rich, savory, soul food taste. Add sour cream for a creamy melt-in-your-mouth pudding and parmesan cheese for the cornbread crust.
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Creamed Corn Recipe In The Instant Pot
This homemade creamed corn recipe is sure to be the hit of your next get-together. What’s the best thing about this recipe other than the Southern soul food flavors?The taste is fresh and vibrant because it’s made easily from scratch!
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Black Folks Southern Green Beans In The Instant Pot
Black folks, Southern green beans are not just another bland green vegetable! And with Instant Pot, they're ready in only 2 mins with no compromise to the irresistible Southern soul food flavors!
Check out this recipe!
Black Folks Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots
Love easy Instant Pot recipes? And who doesn’t love a soul food seasoned side dish? Now you can have Black folks brown sugar-glazed carrots in less than five minutes with Instant Pot!
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Black Folks Soul Food Southern Deviled Eggs
Deviled eggs start as hard-boiled egg yolks mashed. Then they're seasoned to perfection and stuffed into the egg whites for a delicious and flavorful appetizer!
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Soul food Instant Pot drinks
Black Folks Southern Sweet Tea
For starters, Southern sweet tea is a delicious blend of refreshingly sweet and tangy flavors. (Mostly sweet flavors when making Southern-style sweet tea the Black folks' way!) But sweet tea is more than just a thirst-quenching beverage. It symbolizes Southern hospitality and good company, enjoyed throughout the deep South.
Check out this recipe!
Juneteenth Red Drink Southern Hibiscus Sweet Tea
What is the official drink of Juneteenth? Southern hibiscus sweet tea. It's a delicious red drink, and hibiscus flowers are native to West Africa. So, hibiscus tea has been part of Black culture since the beginning!
Check out this recipe!
Black Folks Soul Food Homemade Eggnog
Creamy and sweet, Black folks' homemade eggnog has a flavor profile that resembles cinnamon, coconut, and rum. Southern comfort spice eggnog and soul food at its finest!
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Instant Pot chicken – the soul food way!
Instant Pot Whole Chicken Recipe – The Southern Way
How to make a whole chicken in the Instant Pot – the Southern way! It's more than just a traditional chicken recipe – flavorful, tender & juicy – it's more of a soul food flavor burst!
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Soul Food Cornish Hens
This soul food Cornish hens recipe is made the way Black folks season and prepare chicken, so it's moist, juicy, and full of flavor! The only thing these little birds lack is less fat and fewer calories compared to chicken!
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Kamala Harris Instant Pot Lemon Chicken
Got a divided country to unite? Then you need Madam VP's recipe to get dinner on the table in a flash!Meal prep for your family Madam VP's sunshine state-inspired dish quick and easy with Instant Pot!
Check out this recipe!
Black Folks Soul Food Chicken Yock Recipe (Yock-A-Mein)
Chicken yock is a big bowl of comfort. In a warm, flavorful broth, soul food and Chinese food combine for tender chicken and noodles. This dish is also known as Old Sober, yak, yok, yock-a-mein (yaka mein), or simply Chinese yock.
Check out this recipe!
Dessert in your Instant Pot?
Instant Pot Sweet Potato Pie The Soul Food Way
Made with the same soulful flavor profile as my signature Black folks' sweet potato pie™, this Instant Pot sweet potato pie recipe is modern in simplicity and delicious in taste. It is a favorite among both beginner and seasoned cooks!
Check out this recipe!
Instant Pot Banana Pudding From Scratch
Instant Pot banana pudding from scratch – Southern desserts at their finest! This banana pudding recipe just got easier with the help of an electric pressure cooker.
Check out this recipe!
What are some of your favorite soul food pressure cooker recipes?
Which easy Instant Pot recipes from this list will you try first? Leave your answer in a comment below!
Servings: 6
Calories: 508kcal
Equipment
- Instant Pot electric pressure cooker
- Instant Pot Omni Plus oven
- 10-inch cast iron skillet
Ingredients
Ingredients for the shrimp
- 2 pounds shrimp jumbo, frozen or thawed, peeled and deveined
- ½ cup water
- ¼ teaspoon avocado oil or cooking spray
- 1 tablespoon butter unsalted
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Ingredients for the grits
- 1 cup corn grits white
- 2 ½ cups chicken broth
- ½ cup heavy whipping cream and another ½ a cup on reserve in case it’s needed at the end
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons butter
- ¼ cup mascarpone cheese
- 3 strips crumbled bacon (Optional to garnish the dish at the end)
Ingredients for the creamy shrimp and grits Creole sauce
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granulated
- ⅓ cup fresh parsley finely chopped
Instructions
Instructions for the shrimp
- Remove the Instant Pot lid and turn on the sauté setting for 5 minutes. (Although you will not use all of this time. I like to have the extra minutes for the time it takes for the sauté to become active.)
- With the lid off the pot, heat the water, avocado oil, and butter in the stainless-steel inner pot for up to 1 minute.
- Add the shrimp, garlic, salt, and pepper.
- Cancel the sauté setting and close the Instant Pot lid.
- Close the Instant Pot lid (make sure the valve is up – in the position for sealing) and pressure cook on high for 1 minute.
- When the cooking time is finished, allow a natural pressure release for at least 2 minutes.
- To open the Instant Pot lid, move the valve to ‘venting’ and manually release any remaining pressure, if applicable.
- Use a colander to drain the liquid from the cooked shrimp and set the shrimp aside to add to the grits later.
- *To prepare shrimp on the stovetop – Heat the butter and oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and sauté the shrimp with the seasoning ingredients for about 4 minutes until they turn pink.
Instructions for the grits
- Open the Instant Pot lid and add the chicken broth, grits, salt, and butter to the stainless-steel inner pot.
- Close the Instant Pot lid (make sure the valve is up – in the position for sealing) and pressure cook on high for 10 minutes.
- When the cooking time is finished, allow a natural pressure release for at least 5 minutes.
- To open the Instant Pot lid, move the valve to ‘venting’ and manually release any remaining pressure, if applicable.
- Pour in the heavy whipping cream.
- Stir the grits to combine the ingredients.
- Add the mascarpone cheese and continue stirring.
- Remove the stainless-steel inner pot with the grits inside so they don’t dry out.
- Cover the Instant Pot stainless steel inner pot with the Instant Pot lid to keep the grits warm while off of the Instant Pot burner.
- *To prepare the grits on the stovetop – In a large saucepan, bring the whipping cream and salt to a boil, then stir in the grits. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cover, stirring occasionally. After 5 minutes, fold in the mascarpone cheese.
Instructions for the Southern shrimp and grits sauce
- (You may need to transfer the grits to the skillet at this point if you only have one Instant Pot because you will need to use the stainless-steel inner pot for the sauce.)
- Add the heavy whipping cream, smoked paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, and chicken bouillon to the empty Instant Pot stainless steel inner pot.
- Turn on the sauté setting for 10 minutes. (Although you will not use all of this time. I like to have the extra minutes for the time it takes for the sauté to become active.)
- Allow the sauté to come to a boil and let boil for about 3-5 minutes.
- While the sauce is boiling, keep watch of it and occasionally stir to avoid overcooking and burning.
- Cancel the sauté setting and stir in the parsley.
- Remove the shrimp and grits sauce in the stainless-steel inner pot from the Instant Pot burner.
- *Preparing the sauce on the stovetop – In a medium-sized saucepan, stir together the whipping cream and spices and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 15 minutes.
Instructions for setting up Black folks’ Southern shrimp and grits
- Add the grits to a 10-inch cast-iron skillet.
- Optional: you can mix in 1/4 – 1/2 a cup of heavy whipping cream to loosen the grits if needed.
- Place the cooked shrimp on the grits.
- Then pour the sauce over the shrimp and grits.
- Heat the skillet with the shrimp and grits in the Instant Pot Omni Plus oven on the ‘warm’ setting for 5-7 minutes or 5 minutes in the conventional oven on the ‘warm’ setting or 150 degrees F.
- Remove the skillet from the oven and optionally garnish the finished dish with crumbled bacon.
- Serve this Black folks' Southern shrimp and grits recipe right away, and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- While the sauce is boiling, keep watch of it and occasionally stir to avoid overcooking and burning.
- The brand of grits I like to use and recommend is Bob’s Red Mill white corn grits/polenta.
Nutrition
Calories: 508kcal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 42g | Saturated Fat: 26g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 146mg | Sodium: 1023mg | Potassium: 295mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 2949IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 111mg | Iron: 1mg
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The Ultimate Soul Food Recipes Guide
What is soul food? Soul food recipes are African-American recipes full of flavor! A legacy of Southern cooking the Black way. Check out this collection of the best soul food recipes!
Check out this recipe!