I had one that the first 6 numbers would cook for that many minutes, and the "start" button usually acted as an "add 30 seconds" button. You could also program

I had one that the first 6 numbers would cook for that many minutes, and the "start" button usually acted as an "add 30 seconds" button. You could also program a time, but like you, I almost never did that (mostly just if I was using the timer mode, which didn't have the same quick shortcuts).