Is there anything better than the smell of spiced apple cider filling the house on a cold day? How about an easy instant pot apple cider recipe that comes together in no time and is just perfect as a make-ahead drink for a crowd. Perfect for the Holiday season and easily prepped ahead of time, giving you more time to celebrate with friends and family.
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Easy Instant Pot Apple Cider
Instant pot apple cider makes the perfect drink for a cold night.
Easily prepped ahead of time, and kept warm using the 'warm' function on the instant pot, it is the perfect drink for when you have a crowd, or for bringing along to a Holiday party or potluck.
You will need:
- Apples (I find using a variety is better for flavor)
- Persimmons
- Pear
- Orange
- Pomegranate arils
- Cinnamon Sticks
- Mulling Spices
- Maple Syrup or Honey to taste
Tips and Suggestions for Apple Cider Ingredients
Cinnamon sticks can be a little on the expensive side.
To save some money, buy them from a bulk-store such as Costco, where they tend to have larger containers for a lot cheaper.
There are two different varieties of Persimmon:
- Fuyu persimmon are best for eating raw, like you would an apple
- Hachiya persimmon will be a lot sweeter and are better for using in baking and in this instant pot apple cider.
Mulling spices can be bought online or in the spice aisle at the grocery store.
Alternatively, you can make your own using a recipe like this.
How To Make Instant Pot Apple Cider
This is a super easy warm drink to make.
Simply:
- Core the apples, persimmons, and pears
- Cut the orange into slices
- Pop all of the fruit into the instant pot along with the cinnamon and mulling spices
- Add enough water to cover the fruit
- Cook at high pressure for 15 minutes and then allow to naturally release for 10 minutes before forcing a release
- Mash the fruit with a fruit masher in the bowl of the instant pot and then strain through a cheesecloth over a large bowl until you have gotten out enough juice as possible
- Add maple syrup or honey to sweeten and you are done.
You can then serve your instant pot apple cider straight away, or if you will be serving to guests, you can pop the juice mixture back into the bowl of the instant pot and keep it warm using the warm function.
Can This Be Served Cold?
Absolutely.
In fact, these days I always serve it cold.
There was nothing better than a hot apple cider at a Halloween party when I lived in the States, however now in Australia it is HOT on Halloween, so I serve it chilled instead.
Simply allow the apple cider to cool completely before transferring to a large jug or glass bottle with a lid.
Pop into the fridge and allow to get cold.
When it comes time to serve, fill your glass with some ice, and pour over the apple cider.
Perfect.
Optional Decorations For A Festive Apple Cider
If you have managed to get your hands on some cheap cinnamon sticks it can be fun to serve your instant pot apple cider with a cinnamon stick for stirring.
You can also use the cinnamon stick to get a swirl of honey and add it to your drink.
Other optional decorations:
- Star anise (these look so pretty floating on top)
- Cranberries (if you are serving your drink cold then frozen cranberries work a treat)
- Pomegranate arils
- Apple slices on the side of the glass
- Apples sliced through the middle so they have a star shape (see the cranberry cider recipe below to see what I mean by this.)
- Persimmons sliced through the middle so they have a star shape
Need Some More Make-ahead Non-Alcoholic drinks for a crowd?
I love serving nice non-alcoholic drinks for friends that don't drink or are serving as the designated driver for the evening.
Check these out:
- Spiced Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Cider
- Homemade Fall Harvest Hot Crockpot Apple Cider
- Blackberry and Basil Iced Green Tea
- Watermelon Lemonade with Honey
- Fresh Peach and Honey Lemonade
- Turmeric Infused Healthy Hot Chocolate
- Infused Minty Orange Water
- Basil Berry Infused Water
Do you have a favorite drink you like to serve to a crowd? Leave a comment and let me know below.
Happy drinking
xx
Please Note: The nutritional information below is not correct. It does not take into account the fact that the fruit is discarded after cooking.
Easy Instant Pot Apple Cider
Equipment
- Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 4 apples use multiple varieties for better flavor
- 2 persimmons
- 1 pear I used an asian pear
- 1 orange
- ½ cup pomegranate arils
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 2 tbsp mulling spices
- honey or maple syrup to taste
- filtered water
Instructions
- Core the apples, persimmons and pears and cut into quarters. Leave the skin on
- Cut the orange into slices
- Pop all of the fruit, along with the water, cinnamon sticks and mulling spices (tie these into some cheese cloth so that they are easily removed), into the instant pot.
- Pour enough water into the instant pot to cover the fruit
- Set the instant pot to manual high pressure for 15 minutes
- Once cooked, allow the instant pot to natural release for about 10 minutes before forcing a release.
- Mash the fruit with a potato masher in the instant pot to release the flavors
- Place a cheesecloth or strainer over a large bowl and pour the mixture over the top. Press or mash on the fruit in the cheesecloth/strainer so that as much liquid as possible comes through
- Discard of the mashed fruit.
- Add some honey or maple syrup to sweeten if required.
- If serving hot, pour the cider back into the instant pot, and set to keep warm
- If serving cold, allow the apple cider to cool completely before transfering to a jug or glass bottle with a lid and popping into the fridge.
- Garnish with some orange or apple slices, some pomegranate arils, cinnamon sticks or star anise to make it pretty (optional).
Notes
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
If you tried this recipe please comment and rate it. I love hearing your feedback and answering your questions! And if you make this please tag me on Instagram with @wholefoodbellies so I can share it <3
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