The thermometer symbol on an instant pot can mean one of two things. Either the ‘Keep Warm’ function of your pot is active, or it’s an indicator of whether you’re using Fahrenheit or Celcius as your unit of temperature.
Which of those applies to your pot depends upon the model you’re using, please check out the article below for a comprehensive explanation.
What Does The Thermometer Symbol Mean On The Instant Pot?
The thermometer symbol on an instant pot can mean a few different things, so we completely understand if you’ve come searching to find out what, precisely, the meaning is in your case. When you’re dealing with an appliance such as an instant pot which can be dangerous, it’s always worth making sure that you completely understand everything you can.
In most cases, the thermometer means that ‘Keep Warm’ mode is currently active. This mode is used to ensure that food is still being kept warm after the cooking process has ended, and is immensely popular among instant pot users. This is the case for the following instant pots: Duo Nova, Duo Plus, and Instant Pot Smart Wifi.
The other great way to tell if your instant pot has the keep warm mode active is to see if the timer on the front of the appliance is counting up. If it is, then keep warm mode is likely active. The clock begins to tick up in that situation because it is used to keep track of how long a natural release the pot has had.
For example, if a recipe calls for ten minutes of natural release, then you would wait until the keep warm timer had been ticking for ten minutes.
In some of the pots that Instant Pot sells, a thermometer on the display isn’t actually used to indicate the keep warm function. Instead, it is used as a visual aid to help you see whether the temperature is being measured in celsius or Fahrenheit.
Naturally, if the thermometer has an F next to it, then you’re measuring in Fahrenheit. Alternatively, if the thermometer has a C next to it, then you’re measuring in Celcius.
This is the case for these instant pot models: Duo Evo Plus, and Max. Whether you’re using Fahrenheit or Celcius doesn’t matter, all that really matters when you’re using an instant pot is that you keep track of which one you’re using, so that you can adjust temperatures accordingly.
Does The Thermometer Symbol Mean The Same On All Instant Pot Models?
It certainly doesn’t!
On some instant pot models, the thermometer symbol is used as an indicator of whether or not the keep warm cycle is active. If it is active, then the thermometer will be lit up, and the timer will be counting upwards too. Alternatively, the thermometer will be off, and the timer will be counting down.
The models where this is the case are the Duo Nova, the Duo Plus, and the Instant Pot Smart Wifi.
On other models of instant pot, however, the thermometer is actually used similarly to a toggle switch to see whether you’re measuring in Fahrenheit or Celcius. The internal temperature of your instant pot is obviously very important when you’re cooking food, so it pays to ensure you know what the exact temperature is: knowing the unit is a part of that.
The instant pots which have this feature are the Duo Evo Plus and the Max.
Can I Still Use My Instant Pot When The Thermometer Symbol Is Lit Up?
That depends upon what instant pot you’re using – the thermometer symbol means something different depending on which pot you spot it on.
If you spot a thermometer symbol on a Duo Nova, a Duo Plus, or an Instant Pot Smart Wifi, then you can use the instant pot when the symbol is lit up. When the symbol is lit up, it is an indication of the fact that the keep warm feature is currently active. A lit thermometer means that your food is being kept warm.
Therefore, you can still use the instant pot, provided you simply want it to continue warming the food within it. If you want to use it for another feature, you’ll have to restart the cooking process.
If you see the thermometer on the Duo Evo Plus and the Max, then you can definitely keep on using the instant pot! All the symbol is in this context is a visual indicator of whether the temperature you’ve set the pot to cook at is in Fahrenheit or Celcius. The thermometer will have a small ‘F’ or ‘C’ alongside it to let you know which you’re using.
Hi all! I’m Cora Benson, and I’ve been blogging about food, recipes and things that happen in my kitchen since 2019.