Instant Pot Mini Egg Bites, sized for the 3 quart with tips

One hot Instant Pot discussion topic is the making copycat Starbucks sous vide egg bites. And as with most Instant Pot recipes they are designed for the 6 quart model. But what about us with the 3 quart Instant Pot Mini? Check out my basic Instant Pot Mini Egg Bites attempts

While I watched the Facebook groups and discussion about egg bites, I honestly wasn’t sure what the hype was about until I had an actual Starbucks sous vide egg bite the other day. Knowing that most of the recipes are for the 6 quart model, I knew I would need to experiment a little bit for my own version of Instant Pot Mini Egg bites. Ultimately my goal was to create something that I could keep in the freezer to either bring to work for breakfast or eat at the end of a day that ran longer than expected.

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Tips for making Instant Pot Mini Egg Bites

Silicone baby food molds make this easier. I wasn’t sure which ones to buy so I actually bought two versions: one with 4 compartments and one with 7 compartments. I wanted to try and fit two molds into one cooking process. While Instant Pot egg bites are easy to make, they take longer than I expected.

Use the right silicone mold

I bought two versions that both fit the Instant Pot Mini, as part of this experiment. And to keep this easy, I made sure the lids of each are also silicone so that I don’t need to track down the extra tin foil to cover the molds.

The first one has 4 compartments each, of about 2 ounces. The second has 7 compartments about 1 ounce each. The 4 compartment model, barely fits my 3 quart instant pot and with the puffing of the eggs, it was a little tricky to open the lid once the pressure is released.

For my first try, I sprayed the molds with a little canola spray. For the second I forgot the spray. Both came out easily, at least using these molds.

Don’t overfill the molds

You’ll likely have a little leftover egg mixture but avoid the temptation to completely fill the molds. Leave room for egg expansion. They’ll collapse as the cool

The mold can be difficult to get out of the liner without a sling. Try using two tongs.
If you stack two molds, the first one will be tricky but somewhat easier to remove from the pot. The one on the bottom is difficult to get out using tongs. My next plan is to track down butcher string to use as a handle instead of aluminum foil.

No blender? No problem. Do you have a stick blender?

All the recipes suggest blending the egg and cheese mixture. One finally mentioned a stick blender as a backup otherwise pull out your favorite whisk. You’re really trying to get to a fully creamy mixture. This was finally an excuse to take my stick blender out of the box and it worked like a charm!

Make your egg mixture in a pourable bowl

Make your life easier and make your egg mixture into something you can pour from. If you’re already using a blender then you are all set. Since I was using a stick blender, I used my Pyrex 4 cup measuring cup. It was large enough to hold everything and I wasn’t worried about the stick blender marking up one of my vintage mixing bowls.

Instant Pot Mini Egg Bites Basic Recipe

I looked around the web and based on my version for Instant Pot Mini Egg Bites using popular from My Forking Life, Foodie and Wine, and Platings and Pairings.

As I mentioned above, you probably will have a little egg mixture left. I haven’t decided yet if it makes sense to reduce any of the ingredients yet. I suspect a little less of each would be ok.

Basic recipe ingredients

4 eggs
¾ cup grated cheese
½ cup cottage cheese
¼ cup cream (or milk)
Mix-ins such as a chopped up roasted red pepper

Instructions

Fill each mold compartment to about ¾ full. The eggs puff up while cooking. Put one cup of water and your lowest trivet into your Instant Pot. Stack the molds if doing two.

If you’re using the 4 compartment mold (2 ounces per cup), cook on “Steam” for 9 minutes and let natural release for 10 minutes before quickly releasing the rest of the pressure.
If you’re using the 7 compartment mold (about 1 ounce per cup), cook on “Steam” for 8 minutes, natural release for 9 minutes, quick release the rest.

A few notes about Instant Pot Mini Egg Bites

If you try cooking both molds of the 4 cup model, you may have trouble releasing the lid when it’s down if the mold is pressing on the pressure pin. I was able to open the lid by pushing down the pin once I was completely sure all the pressure was out. It was just the pin wedged under the molds

Honestly, my egg bites have come out a little odd-looking, but given they are tasty so I’m fine with that.

To try and save calories and fat, I used reduced-fat cottage cheese and 2% milk. Since I don’t usually keep either in my refrigerator, I bought the smaller packages where I could. I also grated my own cheese to save a few dollars.

Create your own versions of egg bites with your own mix-ins or use different grated cheeses.

Over to you. Have you tried making Instant Pot Mini Egg Bites?

How did it go or what is holding you back from trying? Honestly, they were easier to make than I realize, even though I needed to pick up a new accessory. I’ll be on the hunt next for ideas that I can use for the molds.