I thank two blog friends for encouraging me to get a pressure cooker and then to actually use it. CJ of Created by CJ and Judy of Patchwork Times often wrote of using theirs, and when I began to ask them questions they offered a lot of help and encouragement.
Dan bought me my six-quart Fagor brand cooker two years ago for Christmas. It was one of two brands available here in our town, and it looked the best. True confession: it took me a year to use it. Yes, I was buffaloed. I finally got brave and tried it around Christmas last year. Dan later told me he had been sorely tempted to wrap it up and give it to me again!!
Here's a picture of mine sitting on my stove top:
It's nowhere near the size of my canning pressure cooker. And you can buy four-quart cookers. My blog friend CJ has several sizes and loves her four-quart.
The pressure cooker my mom had when I was growing up had a "jiggler" on the top that rattled all the while the cooker was under pressure. Today's pressure cookers are called second generation, or new generation, and have no jigglers. They are remarkably quiet and very easy to use. I could kick myself for taking so long to use mine.
Here's a picture of the top of mine:
The dial at the top can be set to no pressure, low pressure, or high pressure. Further down the handle you can see a small yellow dot that is the presssure indicator which pops up when pressure has been reached. To the right of the indicator is the slider which locks the lid closed. As you can see, pretty easy to run.
I mentioned in an earlier post that I bought Lorna Sass's book, Pressure Perfect. CJ recommended Lorna Sass to me and this book and another of hers in particular. Lorna is a pressure cooking guru and is almost single-handedly responsible for the pressure cooking revival that is starting to take place. If you google her, you'll find she has several websites and a number of videos you can watch.
I'm very much a novice at pressure cooking, but I love being able to create wonderful bean soups in a fraction of the time. Would that I had known about this when I was teaching! There are hundreds of recipes I still need to try and I look forward to learning more. Fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately?) for you, dear readers, you'll probably hear about them.
I'm surprised that you were reluctant to try your pressure cooker if your mom had one when you were growing up. Did she pass any recipes on to you? They used a pressure cooker on the Food Network last night--you can do a super fast roast! I look forward to hearing what other delicious things you end up making!
ReplyDeleteHallie, I actually don't remember my mom using her pressure cooker. I know it had the jiggler because she used the pan alot, just not as a pressure cooker, and it had the little pin on the top to hold it. Apparently she had used it as a pressure cooker when I was little, but I have no remembrance of it. And no, she passed on no recipes to me. I'm on my own here, just me and Lorna. :-)
ReplyDeleteMy mother also had a pressure cooker with a rocker. I remember that she used the cooker, but I don't know what she made. She didn't like it -- said food cooked in the pressure cooker tasted the same. Apparently either the cookers or the recipes have improved.
ReplyDeleteBut I remember Bennie (Mike's mother) telling me that she loved her pressure cooker. She said it was her "crock pot."
Seems like pressure cookers exploded sometimes and people were nervous about using them. Are there safeguards on these new cookers?
Kathy, to quote Lorna Sass: "Such family legends began during the forties when pressure cookers had simpler designs.
ReplyDelete"Nowadays that accident couldn't happen because the redesigned cookers on the market have multiple safely mechanisms.
"Now that pressure cookers typically have three backup safety mechanisms built into their designs, it seems fair to call them foolproof."
I spent some time last night and this morning reviewing all the instructions that came with my cooker and it did indeed point out three different safety mechanisms. As long you follow the instructions and turn down the heat as soon as pressure is reached, I don't think there would be any problems.
As far as taste, I don't recall eating any pressure cooked food as a child, although I probably did when quite small, but the things I have made have all had terrific flavor. Of course that all depends on spices and other additions, I'd assume. And not overcooking.
Ah! Overcooking might well be the problem. And I'm sure the recipes have improved right along with the pots.
ReplyDelete