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I have been teasing you with pictures, videos, and hints about the Mealthy CrispLid for weeks, so I am super excited to finally have this review ready for you!

If you don’t know what the CrispLid is, no worries, you’re in good company. Since the product just released this month, it is still very new and not yet well known. However, I am sure this will change because the CrispLid is an awesome, revolutionary product!

So what is the CrispLid? The CrispLid is an appliance that transforms your electric pressure cooker into an air fryer!

Mealthy has offered my readers a discount of $10 off a purchase of $59 or more with the code THISPILGRIMLIFE. You can use this code on the MultiPot, CrispLid, or other great Mealthy items. 

Mealthy CrispLid Review

The CrispLid sits directly on your pressure cooker, resting on the stainless steel pot. (You can set the pressure cooker lid and power cord to the side when using your CrispLid).

I have been using my CrispLid for weeks now since I was sent one to test, review, and share with you. I’ve been giving sneak peeks on Instagram as I use my CrispLid for breakfasts, lunches, and dinners. I have put the CrispLid to use making egg rolls, carrot fries, “fried” chicken, egg drop soup toppers, breakfast sausage, and so much more.

Keep reading to see a list of what I consider to be the Pros & Cons of the Mealthy CrispLid, to read answers to common questions about this product, and to get five simple recipes to get started once yours arrives! 

Watch the review video on YouTube!

CrispLid Pros & Cons

PROS

• Small footprint, easy to store. This is quite possibly one of my favorite aspects of the CrispLid. Finding storage in my small kitchen was easy.
• Works with an appliance you already own. I love that I can use the CrispLid on any of my three Instant Pots!
• Fits with both 6qt and 8qt sized pots. You can use your CrispLid on either your 6qt or 8qt pressure cooker. Just make sure you use it with the stainless steel inner pot and leave the pressure cooker unplugged.
• EASY to use. Take your CrispLid out of the box and you’re ready to go!
• Simple settings. There are no presets on the CrispLid. There are simply the temperature setting, the timer, plus or minus buttons for adjusting both, and a start and stop button.
• Glass lid makes it easy to track the progress of cooking. Checking the status of cooking/browning is quick and easy, thanks to the glass lid and the ease of removing and returning the lid.
• Does not heat up the kitchen. Skip turning on the oven and keep the kitchen cool.
• Does not require preheating. Take food out of the fridge/freezer, put in air frying basket, start cooking. Simple as that.
• Uses less oil/butter. Air fried foods only need to be brushed or sprayed with oil/butter, rather than being cooked in a layer of oil in a pan or submerged in a pot.
• You can cook from frozen. 
• Higher temperature range than other air fryers. The CrispLid’s temperature range goes from 300 to 500 degrees, unlike most air fryers that max out at 400 degrees.

CONS

• Takes away the option of using the Instant Pot while the CrispLid is in use. If you only own one Instant Pot/electric pressure cooker, then using the CrispLid will take away from the availability of pressure cooking. This could be resolved with a little planning, but it is a consideration. Also worth noting, if you like to use your Instant Pot to make yogurt, you would want to invest in an extra inner pot so you could use the CrispLid or Instant Pot while your yogurt chills.
• Somewhat small for larger families. Because of the nature of air frying, making large batches at once is not ideal. The best thing would be to cook in a couple of batches, but if you did layer the food, just be sure to turn it often so it can crisp evenly.
• Potentially dangerous if left plugged in. The CrispLid can still be turned on when it is not in place on the pressure cooker, so you would want to be very mindful of this and unplug the CrispLid immediately after you finish using it.

Q & A

1. Does it get food crispy? Yes. The CrispLid works very well to crisp food.
2. Do I need it? That’s relative. I would not consider it an essential appliance, however it is very useful and practical. If it’s in your budget and you want to be able to crisp/broil/air-fry foods, the CrispLid is a great option.
3. Is it worth the money? For the price, convenience, and multi-purpose aspect, I definitely think so!
4. Is it worth it if you already have an air fryer? Personally, I would not purchase a CrispLid if I already owned an air fryer UNLESS I wanted to downsize to a smaller appliance and wanted to try to sell/pass on my current air fryer.
5. Is it scary to use? Not at all!
6. Is it hard to store? The CrispLid is small and quite easy to store, especially compared to other air fryers.
7. Is it big enough for large families? This one is tricky because there are not many air fryers that will allow you to make large batches of crispy food at once. If you are willing to add a little time to recipes, either to batch cook or allow more time for flipping/turning, then I think the CrispLid could work well for larger families. The CrispLid is also great for browning meat and broiling toppings on food cooked in the pressure cooker. With the small storage size and budget-friendly price, I think the CrispLid is a good option for many family sizes.
8. Does food have to be in a single layer? Air fryers work best when food is in a single layer because the air can circulate best and the food can get evenly crispy. However, I have layered food in my CrispLid and you simply need to rotate/flip the food more frequently to achieve the same results. Layering the food will increase the cook time.
9. What types of food does it work well on? Just about anything! You will find yourself using the CrispLid all the time to cook breakfast meats, lunch items, and dinner! The CrispLid is great for vegetables, meats, toasting breads/pastries, etc.

CrispLid Starter Recipes

Here are five simple air fryer recipes to get you started. Of course, simply tossing veggies in oil, seasoning and salt, and cooking is another great way to try out your CrispLid too.

1. Air-Fried Fries

Peel and cut a couple of russet potatoes into fries. Place in the air fryer basket in an even layer. Brush with melted ghee or oil. Season with salt. Cook at 400 degrees for 16-18 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking.

If you increase the amount of fries, you will need to stir a couple more times and add a little time to the cook time. Cook the fries until they are crisp and browned.

2. Crispy Bacon

Cut the bacon in half so it will fit in the air fryer basket. Lay the bacon in an even layer. Cook at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes (or until desired crispness–depends on the thickness of your bacon), flipping halfway through the cook time.

3. Air-Frier Fried Chicken

I used the batter and instructions from my beloved Pan Fried Chicken Strips. Place a piece of parchment cut to fit the air fryer basket, with holes punched in, (or buy the rounds ready to go for air fryers), or liberally grease the basket. Place the breaded chicken tenders in the basket in an even layer (or stacked criss cross). Cook at 400 degrees for 16 minutes, flipping halfway through and discarding the parchment. After 16 minutes, remove the CrispLid, brush with melted ghee or oil, and air fry 2 more minutes.

4. Crisp Quesadillas

Place the tortillas filled with cheese and desired fillings in the air fryer basket. Brush tops with melted ghee or oil. Cook at 350 degrees for 5 minutes. Carefully remove the quesadillas with a pair of cooking tongs.

5. “Fried” Hand Pies

I used my All-Purpose Pie Dough recipe and a simple jam filling to make delicious hand pies with my CrispLid. Use the recipe for these pop-tarts to help you make the hand pies (I cut into circles with a biscuit cutter so I could fix six in the basket). Brush the tops of the hand pies with beaten eggs, and cook at 400 degrees for 8 minutes. (Optional: sprinkle with sugar after brushing with egg).

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You may think I’m strange, but I never travel on trips without bringing along my chef’s knife. After a bad experience of having to chop a dozen green peppers and onions with no more than a dull steak knife, I’ve learned my lesson. A good knife is now on my don’t-leave-home-without-it list.

I’m okay with being thought a little weird (wouldn’t be the first time!), because I know the value of using good tools in your kitchen. Honestly, it can be what makes or breaks your enjoyment of the task of cooking! 

If you are regularly using dull knives, peelers that take forever, baking sheets that bow up at high temperatures, etc, you’re probably going to be frustrated whenever you enter the kitchen.

I understand because I’ve been there. Which is why I get really excited to share with you quality kitchen tools that won’t break the bank that you can start using right away to make cooking easier and more fun. 

If you want to see some of my other kitchen tools and equipment that I use on a regular basis and highly recommend (including my favorite chef knife I’ve been traveling with for a decade), check out my Shop My Kitchen page. You’ll find all my favorites linked there.

But first!…

Six Kitchen Tools You’ll Wish You Had Bought Sooner!

The title of this post isn’t meant to be clickbait. I GENUINELY wished I had bought many of these items sooner! 

I went back and forth for years on whether or not I actually needed an immersion blender or a silicon baking mat. Once I finally decided to get them, I wished I had bought them sooner!

The peeler is a different story. When my best friend came over to help me prep vegetables for my cookbook testing, I handed her my peeler to use. She hated it. A couple of days later she gifted me a peeler like hers and I saw for myself the difference. A good friend doesn’t let you use a lousy peeler.

So this is me being a good friend to y’all, sharing six kitchen tools (all less than $25!) that will make a huge difference in your kitchen too! 

1. Immersion Blender

I use this every week to blend soups, sauces, fruit, potatoes, etc right in my Instant Pot. It works so well and isn’t pricy like other immersion blenders can be. If you’ve been on the fence (like I was), it’s time to jump in and get one!

2. GOOD Peeler

Like I said, I didn’t know what I was missing. Y’all, get this peeler. It’s the best.

3. One-Piece Silicon Spatulas

Apparently, spatulas with wooden handles (two-piece spatulas) can be one of the germiest places in your kitchen. Gross, right?! That’s why I love my one-piece silicon spatulas. They work really well and are so EASY to clean! I have several because I use them multiple times a day.

4. Bench Scraper

If you do any working with dough, you need a bench scraper. Pizza dough, pie dough, pasta dough, biscuit dough, bread dough… you get the picture. A bench scraper is incredibly useful for kneading, cutting, shaping, and the cleaning up. Get a stainless steel one and you won’t have to replace it for cracking.

5. Silicon Baking Mat

I.wish.I.had.bought.this.sooner. In fact, I want to invest in a second one I love it and use it so much. You can use silicon baking mats for roasting at high temperature, baking bread, making cookies, toasting granola, and more. Food releases easily and they are a breeze to clean.

6. Good Paring Knives

I can’t emphasize the importance of good knives enough. Thankfully, Victorinox makes great knives that are affordable too. We have been using Victorinox knives for the last ten years, thanks to a review we read from America’s Test Kitchen. Paring knives are so handy to have on hand for small jobs, and to pack along on picnics.

What is a kitchen tool you own now that you wish you had bought sooner? Share it in the comments!

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Before we get into the fun makeover nitty gritty, I feel like I need to tell you that my daughter spilled tea on my keyboard and if you notice as you are reading that o’s or i’s are missing…that’s why. The keys are sticky and I can only hope they loosen up in time.

Moving right alng…

(haha, that one was intentional. Keeping you on your toes).

I did a thing this week. Every so often, I just get an itch for a change. Usually this means something is going to get painted, rearranged, or repurposed in some way.

After looking around my house trying to figure out what project I could take on, I settled on finding a new solution for my kids’ laundry. It maybe wasn’t the most exciting project (perhaps not what my Instagram friends had in mind when I asked if they wanted to see whatever project I got into in my stories), but it definitely was born from a need.

Our kids’ clothes have been in a dresser in our living room for a while now. We didn’t hate it, but it did mean piles/baskets of laundry being brought upstairs and too often sitting for at least a day or two.

So I decided to move all their clothes downstairs into the basement. 

Laundry Room Makeover & Kids’ Family Closet

Watch the Laundry Room Makeover and Kids’ Family Closet Q&A on YouTube! 

The Before.

I didn’t get a great before picture because I was just so ready to get working. But you can generally see what the area looked like from when I did the huge basement purge and organize video in the winter, and also what the laundry area looked like the day I started working (sorry about the pic I just borrowed from my Instagram story).

What you can’t tell is that the table was actually where the chest is now, and the chest was in a completely different part of the basement. Thanks to a dolly we had downstairs, I was able to move the chest without involving my husband– who typically does not share the same vision for projects that I do, which is why I prefer to keep most things a “surprise”.

I.e., it’s better in these cases to do it and show him after the fact. He now knows that if he leaves town, he will almost certainly come home to rearranged furniture and possibly painted walls. (I’ve done this twice in our bedroom alone).

The After.

The absolute biggest change was moving my kids’ clothing downstairs to the basement. We already had an empty chest of drawers in the basement from when I did a bedroom makeover in our master bedroom.

Now, the kids each have a drawer for their clothes right next to the washer, dryer, and folding table. It’s been amazing.

Another big change is the hanging area I set up for my boys’ dress shirts and my daughter’s dresses. One of my biggest challenges with laundry has been getting around to hanging up my kids’ clothes afterward the rest are folded and put away. Too often, they would end up sitting in a pile (a neat pile, but a pile nonetheless).

I repurposed a laundry organizer that we had been using to sort our laundry (three bags are supposed to hang on the frame), to be a place to hang some clothes downstairs. I used some extra IKEA shelves that were not currently being used on our bookcases upstairs to create a platform on which to rest the frame.

I mentioned above that I moved the table to it’s current location after moving the chest over. It’s now even more useful and the perfect spot to fold clothes.

The last couple of significant changes were moving the rug from in front of our “pantry” area to this laundry area. It gives us a soft place to change clothes and diapers.

I also switched out the baskets and tidied up the shelves behind the table a LOT. I grabbed a couple of wooden crates from elsewhere in our basement, and a couple of baskets that were not currently being used, to organize all our laundry supplies.

I put up a sign on the shelves and am LOVING the overall tidiness of the space, even if our basement is still unfinished behind everything.

Love my Grove cleaners! 

Q & A.

I asked y’all on Facebook and Instagram if you had any questions about our kids’ clothes or the laundry area, and you delivered. Rather than typing out all the answers (the baby is starting to wake up), I will just point you to the YouTube video since I answer them there.

If you have any other questions or comments, I’d love to hear from you. You can comment here, on YouTube, or chat with me over on Instagram or Facebook. I LOVE hearing your ideas and thoughts.

Here are a few of the questions I answered in the video:

• do our kids actually like having their clothes in the basement?
• how do we fit each kid’s clothes into one drawer?
• what laundry products do we use?

Final thoughts.

Our house is old and major remodels often take a long time to complete (I’m looking at you, kitchen). Finishing our basement is something we’d love to do, but it’s not in the budget or schedule for now.

However, even with exposed pipes, insulation, and whatnot, we still have been able to make the space work for us, and we actually love being down there together. I even just finally got around to hanging up a hammock down there this week.

I share this, because one, “After” pictures still are not exactly “Pinterest Perfect”. But that doesn’t stop us from enjoying our home and being grateful for where we are now.

And for two, it’s highly likely that most of us have homes that still need a little work and our idea list is longer than our current reality. 

I shared on Instagram earlier this week how satisfying it is to take care of our homes and to create spaces that are welcoming and purposeful.

I want to end this post with the encouragement to you to not wait for perfect circumstances or a full budget to start making your home work for your family. Do what you can now with what you have now. 

That may mean repurposing items you have around your house, getting creative and looking past expectations to discover something new.

It could be as simple as decluttering and smarter organization.

Or it may just mean embracing what you have and getting out of the comparison game. I have friends and follow people on social media with amazingly beautiful homes. I’m not going to lie, sometimes I get a little envious. But I always come back to, “Gratitude makes what I have enough”.

There’s always something that can be done to add beauty and purpose and design. What can you do today? 

I’d love to hear from you! What is one thing you’ve done recently in your home to add beauty or purpose? What is one area you love, imperfections and all? 

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