Maid Rites in the Instant Pot

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If you are looking for a way to recreate Maid Rite loose meat sandwiches at home, you are in the right place. Making maid rites in the Instant Pot means you can get the classic steamed ground beef filling at home.

Make a tasty maidrite sandwich at home  with the help of a pressure cooker. It is a perfect simple meal that tastes like the Iowa classic.

I have had a recipe for making maid rites in a skillet on the site for a while. But it turns out folks feel very strongly about their Maid Rites.

I have received quite a few comments on the recipe and on social media that said true maidrites are steamed. So, I thought about the best ways to recreate a steamed filling at home.

Then it occurred to me. The Instant Pot uses steam to build up pressure.

So using the pressure cooker would be a great way to cook the ground beef with steam.  And let me tell you, the results were delicious.

What is a Maid Rite?

A maid rite is a loose meat sandwich made from crumbled hamburger. It’s like a sloppy joe without the sauce.

Add a slice of American cheese to make it a cheese rite. The sandwiches and the restaurants that bare the same name started in Iowa.

However, the restaurants are franchised across the midwest. There used to be two in my hometown in West Central Illinois, but now we are down to one

A lot of local folks are regulars there. And many expats have to make a stop when they are back in town.

Tips for Making the Most Authentic Maid Rites

Adding water to the ground beef mixture before you cook it helps to keep the meat crumbles nice and small.

Purists may leave the onion out, and that’s fine. But we think they add a little something.

Classic maid rites are a little bit greasy. The wax paper wrappers are usually a bit wet.

So we like using 85/15 ground beef, and we don’t drain it. However, you can use leaner beef or drain the grease if you want.

We just use a slotted spoon to serve the mixture so it’s moist but not sopping wet.

Use a classic white hamburger bun. This isn’t the time for fancy brioche or pretzel buns.

Mustard and a pickle are classic toppings. However, cheese and/or ketchup are tasty too.

What to Serve With Maid Rites

At the restaurant, you would likely get fries. However, at home, we tend to keep it simple.

On this particular night, we served our loose meat sandwiches with fried potatoes and creamy dill cucumber salad.

Creamy coleslaw or a tasty pasta salad would also be great options. We tend to eat maidrites on hot, busy days, so easy side dishes are normally a must.

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a review in the recipe card.

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