Cooking in a pressure cooker
The pressure cooker is one of those essential elements that every kitchen must have, since it is extremely practical in the preparation of certain foods in a shorter amount of time.
The operation is pretty simple, it is a pot that works at high temperatures by being sealed hermetically, without allowing water or steam escaping under a certain temperature.
By being completely closed, the pressure cooker allows reaching temperatures above water’s boiling point, achieving faster cooking and making the most of the generated heat.
The first times we use these pots it is very difficult to be able to calculate the time the take cooking, for which it is normal that some foods get over done or some others such as the potatoes and fish turn into mush, but it is a matter of practice.
Once we get used to the time a pressure cooker takes, delicious and quick dishes are achieved.
Every pressure cooker has a valve at the top, which fulfills its mission by allowing steam to escape when maximum tolerable temperatures are reached.
The instructions always clarify that this valve should always be kept clean, since with use it can be blocked with food remains and that can be dangerous.
A detail we should be aware of is that when the valve begins ringing, this is the warning that water has reached boiling temperature, at this time we can reduce the heat to save energy.
A pressure cooker should never be opened when it is at boiling point. We should wait for it to cool off or even place it under a faucet to reduce the temperature before opening it.
Many recipes can be prepared reducing cooking time due to the pressure cooker, where the most common foods cooked are rice, beef, chicken, vegetables, lentils, chickpeas, etc.
