Illustration: Nicholas Davison

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Overfilling
There is a "max line" inside the Instant Pot, but it only applies to slow-cooking. If you're pressure-cooking, the ingredients shouldn't come up to that line, especially if you're cooking anything that expands during cooking, such as grains, beans or dried vegetables such as mushrooms. When you're pressure-cooking those ingredients, only fill the pot halfway (which is far below the max line) to avoid clogging the venting knob, creating excess pressure or leaking.