With every new gadget you will always have ACCESSORIES!  Well the Instant Pot is not different in this aspect.

Before I give you my list of necessities here are a couple things to keep in mind before you buy something to use with your IP:

• Is it oven safe? Your IP reaches high temperatures. If what you are buying is not rated for oven use, I wouldn’t put it in your IP.
• Will it fit?  Guess what, they are not all the same size – just cuz your brand may say 6qt doesn’t mean it is exactly the same diameter as another brand. I am speaking from experience here – when you buy your pot measure the pot that you cook in. I have purchased pans to use in my IP that says they fit the 6qt and they do not. If your accessory is too big and sits on the top of the pot, your cover will not close and you will not come to pressure.
• I google everything before I buy it – for prices, recommendations, bad reviews.  I look at them all.
• Get on FB and join the 100 groups that are now out there. I joined 2 right away and I had to unfollow them because of the amount of traffic they have – they filled up my feeds. but because I am still a “Friend” I can go there a search for recipes.

There are lots of “accessories” available now, and I usually jump off the boat and get them all. But not this time. And where I have bought a couple of things that I probably won’t ever use, I have a couple of things that I have used the first day they came. So here’s my list of Necessities:

Silicone Egg Bite molds – we don’t eat eggs but I know someone that got these and her kids love them. They will make 2 or 3 different recipes in them and freeze them and her kids have after school snacks – and for athletes an egg snack is on the top of their list for snacks.
Steamer – the IP’s come with a small trivet (if not get one of those right away) and you can put your veggies or what ever you are steaming right on the trivet, but I found it much easier to control the veggies when taking them out when they were on the steamer.
Pot holders – these are not necessarily for the IP’s but the style of them make so much sense for the IP’s. I have little grasping ability in my hands so anything that helps me grab things is a god send to me. These are great!!! You can use regular pot holders but these clean off so much easier.
Grasping Handle – now this is not a necessity for most people, but once I used it I was sold and bought them for 4 other people.  This type of pot holder locks on and make it so easy to life the pot out. I have even used these on other pans and they are very universal.
Seal / Gasket – they come color coded so you can have one for spicy dishes and one for non-spicy dishes. This is a must if you have someone in your live that is sensitive to some foods. Also, these seals/gaskets will stretch which causes the IP not to seal and throws off cooking times. So keep these in mind if you start having problems with coming to pressure – your seal may be stretched out.