Pressure Cooking

[Amy Eber]

I just purchased an 8 quart Kuhn Rikon pressure cooker. I haven't used one in 20 years when the bobble top shot onto the ceiling after getting clogged. The new safety features are great and I am now trying to relearn this techinique of cooking. I would really appreciate any recipes/techniques used by more experienced pressure cooking readers. Thanks.

[WolfChef]

If you are interested in a good cookbook for pressure cooking, try: _Cooking Under Pressure_ by Lorna J. Sass.

[ninetofive]

I second the Lorna Sass recommendation. (Her recipe for wild rice is one I turn to again and again.) Before I turned to cookbooks, however, made a lot of rice and beans from the recipes/guidelines that came with the cooker. I'd never used one before, so I was really quite nervous -- I remember my mother's sounding like a bomb about to go off!

Have fun!

[Josefinajoisey]

I grew up on pot roast my mom cooked in the pressure cooker, but recently, when I see pressure cookers all I can think of is the episode of "A Cook's Tour", when Tony Bourdain practically ran out of a kitchen in fear of the pressure cooker being used to make the meal.

[lperry]

I have one of Lorna Sass' books and would recommend her as well. The "Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure" has a nice chart with cooking times for all sorts of different beans and grains. She also has good instructions for making risotto in a pressure cooker (ducks in anticipation of onslaught from angry risotto-stirring purists).

I use my pressure cooker at least once a week, usually when I have to work late. It is great for cooking beans quickly (especially soybeans that take forever), and it is really nice for things like soups and stews. A few minutes in the pressure cooker will meld flavors and tenderize all the ingredients. As an example, Indian dal comes out great with all the spices incorporated and the lentils cooked in just a few minutes.

As a rule of thumb, cut the cooking time for anything by one fourth. Lots of books will tell you one third, but I've found that the residual heat will continue to cook things for a few more minutes while it stands, and you can end up with mush using the one-third rule.

Have fun!

[BarbaraY]

My cooker is very old and I have replaced the seals several times and it still cooks very well.

I use it for dry beans, chuck, short ribs, and I'm planning to cook lamb shanks in it.

I don't cook vegetables in it because I find I have better control cooking them in the usual way.

My SO used to make stew and pot roast in it by cooling the pan with water, opening it and adding the vegetables to cook for their alloted time. Too much problem for me.

I can't see any reason to cook fish in it because fish cooks so quickly. (Might be great for octopus, though.)

[Marlene]

What about using pressure cookers for fried chicken? Anyone?

[beccaboo]

I make mashed potatoes in mine--I peel and quarter them, cook them for five or six minutes (depending on their size) at high (15psi) pressure, then mash them right in the pan with milk and butter and all that. My 7- or 8-liter Magafesa only requires 1/2 cup of water to come to pressure (the Kuhn Rikons are the same, I think), and the 1/2 cup has pretty much disappeared by the time the potatoes are done. Anyway, it's a lot less trouble for me than draining them and drying them out, then mashing them.

I make a nice carrot recipe, too--cut carrots into 2" logs, fry them with some bay leaves, thyme sprigs, and sultanas, then add salt, pepper, and enough white wine too make the pc come to pressure. Cook for 2 1/2 minutes at high pressure, then quick-release.

And rice, and dal, and soup.... I use my pressure cookers for almost every dinner!

[JAZ]

I like Lorna Sass's book too, but now that I've gotten more familiar with my pressure cooker, I've started to adapt regular recipes. If I have a regular recipe I want to adapt, I find something similar (in terms of ingedients -- meats, vegetables, whatever) in the Sass book or the Kuhn Rikon booklet and use that for the timing, cut down the liquid (usually, depending on the recipe of course) and give it a try. I've had good luck that way with split pea soup, goulash, and short ribs.

[Shalmanese]

What about using pressure cookers for fried chicken?  Anyone?

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I've heard this is a bad idea as the pressure seals are not designed to handle the temperatures that hot oil can get up to and can lead to... explosive decompression of very hot oil. You need to buy a special broaster like the ones KFC uses.

[jayt90]

What about using pressure cookers for fried chicken?  Anyone?

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I've heard this is a bad idea as the pressure seals are not designed to handle the temperatures that hot oil can get up to and can lead to... explosive decompression of very hot oil. You need to buy a special broaster like the ones KFC uses.

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There is not a whole lot to be gained over regular deep fried chicken. I find that 10-12 minutes in deep fat will fry chicken parts, or perhaps 15 minutes in a cast iron skillet.

The Colonel's use of a deep fat pressure cooker has advantages in fast food use, however.