As I mentioned last week, I am new the Instant Pot world but I am falling hard and fast. “What Can’t the Instant Pot Do?” is my new motto. Five out the last seven days’ worth of dinners have been from the Instant pot! After last night’s venture into pork chops (and some guess work with how long to let them cook in there on my part), they ended up really yummy, but definitely way overcooked and a little dried out. It led me to wonder if there were some things that are better left to the original ways of preparing them.

And by golly, it’s true. Here are some tips from some popular food bloggers about eight foods that should not be prepared in the Instant Pot for best results.

1. STEAK

Steak, like my sad pork chops, are one of those things that can easily turn out dry and overcooked if cooked in the pressure cooker. You’ll get a much tastier result from grilling, broiling or searing on your cooktop.

2. HAMBURGERS

A hamburger would essentially just get steamed in the Instant Pot and what makes a hamburger so glorious is the caramelization and searing of the meat. They cook up quickly anyway, so there is no need to cook them in the Instant Pot.

3. LENTILS

Brown and green lentils do just fine in the Instant Pot, but the more delicate varieties like red and yellow basically just turn into mush.

4. PRIME RIB

Don’t waste an expensive piece of prime rib meat by cooking in the Instant Pot. It’ll make the meat dried out and rubbery.

5. FRIED CHICKEN.

An Instant Pot tends to really soften things and would give the opposite effect of what you are looking for with anything fried. It is not capable of making anything crispy.

6. BREAD

If you cook bread in the Instant Pot, the result is steamed bread that is dense and has no crust. As much as kids (and plenty of adults too :) ) hate the crust, what is bread without crust? That’s just weird.

“Baking bread gives airiness, and the crust is formed when moisture evaporates; this can’t happen in the moist environment of the Instant Pot.” –Panicker

7. COOKIES

There are some really spectacular desserts you can make with an instant pot but cookies are not one of those things. Because of the moisture, you will never be able to get those nice chewy edges or a soft middle. “Plus you won’t be saving any time—a batch of cookies in the oven can cook in less time than it takes the Instant Pot to reach pressure.” –Clarke

8. JUMBO SEA SCALLOPS

“Don’t cook jumbo sea scallops in an Instant Pot; they can go rubbery quickly. They deserve to be [prepared] on a piping-hot pan.” –Jacky

Is there anything that you would add to this list that has not turned out particularly well for you in your Instant Pot? Please share your wisdom in the comments below.