The latest craze (or maybe I'm just late to the party) is pressure cooking. I purchased an electric pressure cooker. Among the advantages, so I've read, is nutrition, as nutrients are lost in boiling or steaming. I like my pressure cooker because it cooks 70% faster than other methods. I spend less time at the stove. I like the fact that I don't have to heat up the kitchen to boil water for pasta, rice or vegetables.
With an electric cooker, everything is timed, so you can't overdo it. You can make it act like a crock pot with a push of the button. One less appliance.
Pressure cooking process: put water and food in the pot; lock the top; bring up to pressure (could take 17 minutes); cook the prescribed time (between 2-20 minutes), then either release the steam, or let it release by itself (takes longer, at the same time food is still cooking.) Always follow the safety precaution. Steam on skin will cause some nasty burns.
Here are 12 things I have cooked in my electric pressure cooker – with varying degrees of success.
1. Rice – the best ever. Really – done in 15 minutes from pouring in 1 cup rice, 2 cups water to fluffy hot rice.
2. Potatoes – Cooked for a large event. I filled it almost full of raw potatoes, done in 20 minutes.
3. Beets – Took 20 minutes, but end product was tender beets, and I just rubbed off those nasty peels.
4. Vegetable Stock – got overstock vegetables about to go bad? Celery, onions, bok choy, broccoli, etc. (especially a good use for kale if I happen to be in possession of any.) In 20 minutes you have broth that you didn't have to pay $2.99 for a quart.
5. Squash – Next to rice, the best ever! Cook first, peel after.
6. Garbanzo Beans – I read you should soak these overnight, the same for all hard beans. After that, however, they cook in relatively short order.
7. Pasta – Most recipes for pasta include sauce and meat. I like how you don't have to boil water first. It is very quick. I am still experimenting on timing, however.
8. Zucchini – I almost turned a batch into mush. Shorten your cook time with this one.
9. Peppers – I turned to mush on purpose, took the tough skin off, and spread the mush on top of hummus.
10. Frozen vegetables – I used frozen corn with zucchini. It slowed the zucchini turning to mush.
11. Meat on the bottom/steamed veggies on steamer tray above – This would have worked with a roast. Steak, not so much, unless the person you are cooking the meat for likes boiled steak. I'll stick to vegetables.
12. Apple and Pears – My latest project because I had 20 lbs of fruit. I peeled a bunch, added a little sugar and water, cooked them and then mashed into a compote. Very tasty. I want to try with the peels on next, since peeling was tedious.
I haven't even started investigating canning – the prime function of a pressure cooker.
Here are some How-to-do-it charts and recipes. I would avoid the YouTube links. They are usually product specific, and those people are way too cheery!
https://fastcooking.ca/pressure_cookers/cooking_times_pressure_cooker_vegetarian.php
http://missvickie.com/howto/times/howtovegtimes.html
http://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/how-to-use-electric-pressure-cookers-article (I like this one)
http://www.wearever.com/hints-and-tips/CookingwithPressureCookers/Pages/CookingwithPressureCookers-Tips.aspx
