Community Blog: Pressure Cooking

We've got a real pressure cooking expert in our midst! Chef pazzaglia is mad about this style of cooking and is here to teach you everything you need to know so you can speed up your time in the kitchen and feed your family better food. Take it away pazzaglia!

You've seen chefs fighting over one during the Top Chef competition, Jacques Pépin uses it in his latest book and Wolfgang Puck is selling one on TV — pressure cookers are coming back in a big way.

1. It's Faster - The pressure cooker will cook foods in 1/3 of the time of comparable stove-top or oven recipes.
2. It's Healthier - Up to 95% of the vitamins in food are retained and not dissolved in water or evaporated into the air as with other cooking methods.
3. It's Tastier - Flavor has gone High Definition with the pressure cooker because, just as the vitamins, it is not dissolving or evaporating away.
4. You will save Money & Energy - According to Mother Earth News, many meals you will make in your pressure cooker will only cost you one penny in energy. But the savings also come with using cheaper cuts of meat (which can fall off the bone in just 30 minutes under pressure) or using dried beans instead of canned! A pressure cooker is a normal pan with a fancy top that can be used on a flame, electric or induction cooktop OR it can be a counter-top gadget (like a slow cooker on steroids). Both versions have a top that locks closed and will not open while there is pressure inside (to avoid boiling liquid from spraying you -safe!) . While liquid boils and turns to vapor inside, the pressure rises and a valve on top (either spring-loaded or jiggly) opens automatically to let out excess vapor and maintain the pressure at about 15 psi. Also on the top of the pan, there is a rubber or silicone safety valve that will pop out and release pressure in case the vapor valve were to clog (to avoid "explosions" - safe!). It is important to note that you can pressure cook in a canner, but you cannot can in a pressure cooker unless the manufacturer has labeled it a pressure cooker/canner. You can use a pressure cooker to cook vegetables, meat, fruits, fish, grains and it is famous for how quickly it can cook beans! A pressure cooker will let you cook in the following ways:

• Brown – this is the first step in many recipes, like risotto, and can be done before or the lid is placed, or after it is removed.
• Boil – just add enough water to cover the food by half.
• Steam - insert the accessory, or a metal-foldable steaming basket with 1/2" of water.
• Braise – brown the food in the pan, and then add cooking liquid (wine, milk, broth, water).
• Stew - throw everything in and close the top.
• Roast – place the meat and vegetables inside with just 1-2 cups of cooking liquid.
• Reduce – after the lid is removed, cook on high flame to reduce liquids if desired.
• Water Bath – place a heat-resistant bowl (ceramic, Pyrex, stainless steel), covered in aluminum foil on steamer basket inside pressure cooker with 1 cup of water on the bottom.

Pressure Cooker Split Pea and Ham Soup
Lentils With Mushrooms in a Pressure Cooker
Pressure Cooker Hungarian Chicken
Spareribs with Barbecue Sauce-Pressure Cooker
Lamb Shanks With Garlic and Port Wine — Pressure Cooker
Perfect Jasmine Rice (Pressure Cooker)
Pressure Cooker (Or Steamed) Chocolate Cake
Pressure Cooker Mocha Cheesecake

Ready for more? Check out all our pressure cooking recipes.

Laura Pazzaglia is the cook and photographer behind Hip Pressure Cooking, a blog to inspire others to use their pressure cookers more often by posting unexpected and delicious recipes with easy-to-find ingredients, vivid step-by-step photographs and recipes in both U.S. & metric measurements.

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