What if there was a way that one pot could replace an entire kitchen? Imagine one single pot that could make scrambled eggs for breakfast, mac and cheese for lunch, ribs for dinner, triple cheesecake for dessert—all controlled by your phone. The instant pot revolutionizes college cooking, bringing a kitchen into every dorm room. Now the average student can come home from class and have a home cooked meal practically waiting to be eaten. Here's everything you need to know about the potentially best investment of your college career.

The instant pot and college cooking

College is super busy. With trying to stay on top of classwork and extracurriculars, there is very little time to cook. With the dining hall just a few steps away, it's very tempting to skip a home cooked meal and grab something quickly, however these options oftentimes disappoint or aren't filling enough. Even if you somehow find time to cook, you have to pray that no one else is using the only kitchen in your dorm. The instant pot solves this problem by bringing the kitchen back into your room.

Why is it special?

The instant pot allows you start cooking a meal whenever you have time and then come back and enjoy it when you are free again. The instant pot allows you to cook soup, chili, stew, and just about anything else you could think of. It's biggest selling point is that it reduces cooking time by over 70%. So after you come home from a long day of classes and need to eat a quick, healthy meal, turn to the instant pot for dinner.

What exactly can I make in it?

Think dishes as complicated as vegetarian lasagna: something you probably never thought you could cook in a dorm room. You could also get ambitious and take advice from someone who cooked with just an instant pot for an entire week. The secret is in the instant pot’s seven different settings, which include a sauté button, a slow cook button, and settings for specific food items, such as rice and poultry. Here's a list of 55 things you could cook in your instant pot—basically get as creative as you want, and the pot will take care of the rest. 

Why you should buy one

The instant pot is so much more than your run of the mill pressure cooker. It combines the functions of an oven, a stove, a pressure cooker, a slow cooker and even a yogurt maker in one convenient portable pot. It even improves on the traditional pressure cooker, incorporating special sensors to prevent over heating and exploding under pressure. The versatility of the instant pot will save you money (read: and meal points), as most models come in under 100 dollars and you'll be using it all of the time. It also will allow you to rely on your microwave less often, eat healthier, and try new recipes. The instant pot is changing the way college students cook, making cooking easier than ever before to be a novice chef with limited resources.