Last Updated on January 26, 2023 by HodgePodgeDays
The pressure cooker is a wonderful invention. The modern version of the device is safe, convenient, and adaptable to a range of recipes. It works via a simple principle: when water is put under pressure, it can be brought to a higher temperature before it boils. This means that food cooks much faster.
This is a great advantage when you’re cooking fatty cuts of meat, of the kind that should typically be braised or stewed over a long period. But it’s also great if you only eat plants. Let’s take a look at four kinds of food that are a great match for your pressure cooker.
Stews and Soups
Just about any kind of soup can be made in a pressure cooker. Simply brown your vegetables to your liking and then throw them in the cooker. They’ll quickly disintegrate, allowing you to easily blitz them in the end. Add water according to your personal taste: if it feels a little bit thick and pasty, then add more. If it’s too watery, then you can always reduce it some more. Don’t forget to season.
The same applies to stews, except that you’ll forgo the blending stage at the end.
Breakfast oats
You might think of breakfast oats as something that you can quickly put together in a pan in the morning. Combine oats with water and a pinch of salt. You can add a little bit of your preferred milk alternative if you like, but it’s not a requirement.
Things are much easier and quicker with a pressure cooker, especially if you’re cooking for the entire household. Thow a few choice fruits in there: blueberries and raspberries will add a little bit of extra acidity. Then, garnish with fresh fruit and seeds.
Curries
Cooking curries in a pressure cooker will help to unlock those key spice notes, and generally help you to take things to the next level. Lentils and chickpeas will become soft and tender after just thirty minutes or so. You don’t have to mess around with things like curry bases, unless you intend to get advanced.
Rice and quinoa bowls
You’ll need to adjust your water-to-rice ratios when you’re cooking it in a pressure cooker, but there’s a considerable advantage: once you get everything right, it’s essentially fool proof, and you’ll be able to do it without any supervision. Fluff it at the end with your fork.
This is a contributed post.