24 Real Food Instant Pot Main Dishes & Sides Made in 5 Minutes or Less
I’m all about helping you make dinner as uncomplicated as possible while still feeding yourself and your family whole foods — even if you forget to plan! Here are 24 Real Food Instant Pot Main Dishes and Sides made in 5 minutes or less — so you DON’T have to resort to fast food or pizza delivery when you find yourself in a meal planning snafu!
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Uh-oh… it’s 4:36 p.m. and you’ve just realized that you forgot to thaw the meat or haven’t had time to make it to the store this week…
And you’re having a tiny panic attack because your family is going to be starving in less than an hour. (Or, if they’re like my teenagers, they start asking “What are we having for dinner tonight?” at 3:30.)
I get it, Momma. Been there, done that, got many t-shirts. 😉
That’s why I’ve put together this round-up of 24 Real Food Instant Pot Main Dishes and Sides Made in 5 Minutes or less!
24 main dishes and sides that will come to your rescue when (let’s be honest, it’s “when” not “if”) you’re in the middle of your oops-I-didn’t-plan-dinner-again panic attacks.
Tuck this one away, Momma. Pin it. Do whatever you have to do…
This is meant to make your life way easier!
Some of These Recipes Don’t Follow All The “Traditional/Nourishing” Food Prep Rules…
I’ve hand-selected each of these recipes, yet you may be surprised to notice that a few of them have beans or rice that aren’t soaked or sprouted first.
Y’all know I’m a die-hard Nourishing Traditions fan who believes in properly preparing grains, beans, nuts, and seeds…
However, I’m letting that slide this time.
I mean, if your uh-oh dinner moment comes down to a decision between a whole food meal made with unsoaked beans or pizza delivery — that’s a no-brainer, right?
You pick the whole food meal, and you absolutely do not feel badly about the unsoaked beans or rice this time!
Not that big of a deal and this is not a contest to see who can be the Most Perfect In Food Prep. 😉
Need Help with Meal Planning Using Your Instant Pot?
Good! You’ve come to the right place!
Here at All The Nourishing Things, we’re obsessed with Instant Pots and meal-planning!
I love to put the 2 together to create a winning combination that saves time, effort, and even money.
If you’re brand-new to meal planning, let me plan dinner for you this week, ok? You can get your feet wet, fall in love with cooking dinner in your Instant Pot, and then be inspired to meal plan with your Instant Pot again and again!
Download our FREE Real Food Instant Pot Dinners 7-Day Meal Plan with printable shopping list!
And, make sure to check out this post — 6 Instant Pot Meal Preps That’ll Save Your Sanity — for 6 foods you can make TODAY, in 1 Instant Pot! These are meal components that can be used throughout the week to put meals together, even on the fly!
24 Real Food Instant Pot Main Dishes and Sides Made in 5 Minutes or Less!
So, let’s dive in… starting with some Real Food Instant Pot main dishes in 5 minutes or less.
Don’t have an Instant Pot yet? Good luck making dinner in 5 minutes or less without it! 😉 Having an Instant Pot has literally changed my life. So much, in fact, that I actually have 2!
Instant Pot Pork Tenderloin with Sweet Potatoes & Apples from A Mindfull Mom
Real Food Instant Pot Main Dishes Made in 5 Minutes or Less!
Perfectly Steamed Wild-Caught Crab Legs
Easy Chicken Biryani in the Instant Pot
Instant Pot Vegan Burrito Bowl
Pork Tenderloin with Apples & Sweet Potatoes (paleo, Whole30)
Eggs 5 Ways in the Instant Pot
Pin these 11 Instant Pot Main Dishes Made in 5 Minutes or Less!
Alright, maybe you actually DID plan dinner, you actually DID thaw the meat, and you actually DID go to the store this week.
I hope you’re giving yourself a big pat on the back, because those are BIG victories, Momma!
Maybe you just need to save yourself some time, get out of the kitchen for once, and put your feet up. Or take a hot bath. Or spend some time scrolling mindlessly on your phone to check out for a bit.
No judgment here. (May I suggest my Instagram feed as a great place to start?)
Fluffy Soaked Instant Pot Quinoa from All The Nourishing Things
Here are some healthy, Real Food Instant Pot Side Dishes in 5 minutes or less!
Pair these with one of the 5-minute main dishes above or use them to fill the plate and go with another culinary masterpiece as your main course.
Either way, I’m all about helping you make dinner as uncomplicated as possible while still feeding yourself and your family whole foods — even if you forgot to plan!
Real Food Instant Pot Side Dishes Made in 5 Minutes or Less!
Keto Instant Pot Cauli-tatoes (paleo, Whole30)
Dairy-Free Cauliflower “Cream” + 5 Genius Ways To Use It
Instant Pot Brussels Sprouts in 3 Minutes
Pressure Cooker Butternut Squash
Green Beans with Coconut – Beans Poriyal
The Easiest Instant Pot Cauliflower Recipe – Zero Cook Time
Bacon-y Green Beans & Mushrooms
Pin these 13 Instant Pot Side Dishes Made in 5 Minutes or Less!
Our Most Popular Instant Pot Recipes & Posts
Need more no-fail Instant Pot recipes? How about the best Instant Pot information, troubleshooting, and tips? Here are the most popular Instant Pot recipes and posts here at All The Nourishing Things!
- FREE Download: Real Food Instant Pot Dinners 7-Day Meal Plan
- 6 Instant Pot Meal Preps That’ll Save Your Sanity
- 4 Ways The Instant Pot *Really* Does Save Time (+ 8 tips to account for & speed up pressurizing time)
- 50+ Nourishing Keto Instant Pot Dinner Recipes
- Instant Pot Chicken Tikka Masala (Paleo, Whole30)
- Instant Pot Spinach-Artichoke Meatball Soup (Paleo, Whole30, Keto)
- 6 Best Instant Pot Resources (Real Food Only!)
- I’ve Had My Instant Pot For A Year… and here’s what I think! (An Honest Review Of The Instant Pot)
- How To Cook Wild Rice In The Instant Pot
- Dump & Cook Instant Pot Taco Soup
- Instant Pot No-Peel Applesauce
- Instant Pot Mexican Beef Stew
Pin it!
What meals or sides do you make in 5 minutes or less? Do you use your Instant Pot when you’re short on time or forget to plan?
Yesss! I needed this. Since I have like no time, I’m always trying to find super fast and healthy meals. Thanks!
What a lovely round up! This is simply amazing!
Fast IP recipes will come in handy during the holiday season when I’m too tired to cook and clean piles of dishes! 🙂
All of these look amazing! I don’t know which one to try out first. Maybe the potatoes because I am obsessed!
Potatoes are always a great idea!
a busy momma’s best friend…this list AND the IP!! Some great ideas!!
Definitely! We need all the help we can get!
Thanks for putting this list together! I’m always looking for meals I can put together quickly on those days we’re coming in the door right before dinner. I’ll definitely be coming back to this list when I plan out our weekly menus!
Wow, so many great ideas . . . my head is spinning with where to start. I’ve really been enjoying my instant pot, but my repitoire is limited — so these new recipes are great! thanks
Thanks for this roundup! I looove a quick and easy meal and these all look so tasty.
This is so helpful, especially when you’re stuck in a rut and need some quick dinner and side ideas. Thanks for collecting all of these lovely recipes for us to get inspiration from.
Such a great collection of delicious recipes. I love that these are all under 5 minutes of cooking time!
What a great recipe roundup! I’ve been wanting to get an IP, now I have a good number of recipes to get started.
This is such a great post, who doesn’t need more 5 minute recipes!?! Thanks for including me as well!
Great round up of recipes! Thank you for including my Pork Tenderloin in this collection–we LOVE it at our house. Can’t wait to try a few more of these.
Very happy to include you! We’ll be trying that tenderloin ourselves soon!
I am always struggling with busy weekday meals.. and this post is what I needed! Thanks 🙂
Great! I hope it’s helpful to many!
Great post! Love my IP and this whole collection!