Pressure Cooker Hacks Speedy, Savory Dishes To Try

The pressure cooker has become one of the most essential accessories for the modern home cook who wants to get the most out of his/her time by preparing quality meals in a short span. It has transitioned from tenderizing its meat products in record time to offering tasty stews, and the ultimate, oh I-can’t-believe- I-left-it-to-chance rice. Below are the seven pressure cooker hacks that you need to know to make delicious and quick meals worthy to be served to your loved ones. These tips and recipes will be the most helpful to those who have some experience in cooking or those who have none at all. If you are curious about the perfect rice making then you should visit our recent article in which we describe the best and perfect way of rice making.

The Pressure Cooker Advantage

First of all, before we go into the specifics of hacks and recipes, it will be useful to leaf through the manual to know why everyone is so obsessed with the pressure cooker. The pressure cooker therefore works differently from the normal cooking utensils that require heating for long hours with the food boiling inside a pot or baking in an oven. This method also adds to the time of cooking while at the same time preserving the nutrients during the process hence healthy and delicious foods.

Thus, flexibility is the first advantage of using a pressure cooker that cannot go unnoticed. It is versatile because it can be used to prepare soups and stews, cook beans, grains, and even desserts in a pressure cooker. And what is even perfect when it comes to cooking rice is the pressure cooker, for it evenly cooks the grains to be fluffy all the time.

Hack 1: Perfect Rice Every Single Time

Rice is a staple food item on many dining tables, however, achieving that perfectly fluffy rice can be rather a challenge. Perhaps nothing is as off-putting as undercooked or burnt rice, but since using a pressure cooker the process became a piece of cake.

Steps To Make Perfect Rice In a Pressure Cooker:

1. Rinse the Rice: When you are preparing the rice, ensure that you wash the rice under cold water to reduce the content of starch. This helps to avoid the sticking of rice in the process of cooking.
2. Measure Accurately: The most important element to get perfect rice is the ratio of rice and water. White rice requires 1 cup measure rice to 1 ¼ cup measure water. With brown rice, you add a little more water: 1 ½ cups to 1 cup of rice.
3. Add Flavor: A few things can be done to make the flavor better; one can sprinkle it with some salt, add one teaspoon of oil or butter, or one bay leaf or one pod of cardamom in the water.
4. Set the Pressure Cooker: Lock the pressure cooker lid and turn the pressure level to high. Add 3 minutes for white rice. Brown rice on the other hand is cooked for fifteen minutes.
5. Natural Release: May cook for the time indicated on the pot before allowing the pressure to release naturally for ten minutes. Then flowirosafely lift the lid and keep it open, so that you do not contaminate the workpiece.
6. Fluff and Serve: Before serving the rice, one should use a fork to loosen it up. Thus, soft rice will be achieved effortlessly with rare mistakes & inedible Results will be perfectly cooked fluffy rice.

Pressure cookers also make perfect rice, you will not believe just how easy it can be to achieve this. Of course, using this hack will allow you to have delicious rice, no matter whether you are cooking a weeknight dinner or a celebratory one.

Hack 2: Better Bouillons & Broths

Most soups and stews are the epitome of comfort food that is easy to love but challenging to prepare since they often need hours to simmer and get the flavor. By using pressure cookers, the same cooking is done in a very short time as compared to the use of normal cookers.

Quick and Flavorful Beef Stew Recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1 lb beef stew meat cut into cubes
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 carrots, sliced
• 3 potatoes, cubed
• 2 cups beef broth
• 1 cup of red wine and this is optional.
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp thyme
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Sear the Meat: First, begin by browning the beef cubes in a little oil directly on the bottom of the pressure cooker. This step gives the stew an extra layer of richness and that perfect depth of flavor – savory.
2. Add Ingredients: After browning add chopped onion, garlic, carrots, potatoes, beef broth, red wine, tomato paste, fresh thyme, salt, and pepper.
3. Cook: Closing the lid, set the pressure cooker on high pressure. Cook for 25 minutes.
4. Natural Release: After boiling or stewing the food, let the pressure ease on its own for about ten minutes then you can open the lid.
5. Serve: Carry on stirring the stew and it should be ready to be served hot; accompany it with some warm bread or perhaps with perfectly cooked rice.

This beef stew is very delicious, rich in taste, and most importantly, takes very little time to prepare and cook, hence good for anytime meal.

Hack 3: One-Pot Meals For Quick Clean-Up

Single-bowl meals are a great blessing for those days in which time seems to be an enemy but you still want a homemade meal. Pressure cooker explodes this prospect by giving you a one-pot occasion where all the procedures can be done simultaneously, thereby cutting down on both the time and washing up.

Pressure Cooker Chicken and Rice:

Ingredients:

• 4 pieces, of chicken thigh, with bone and skin
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup rice
• Use 1 ¼ cups of chicken broth.
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp cumin
• Salt and pepper according to your taste.
• Fresh parsley for garnish

Instructions:

1. Sear the Chicken: Start by browning the chicken thighs skin side down in the pressure cooker until the skin is a golden flavor. Remove and set aside.
2. Sauté the Onion and Garlic: In the same pot, fry chopped onions and minced garlic until they turn a translucent color.
3. Add Rice & Spices: Stir in the rice, and smother it with the spices – paprika, cumin, salt, and pepper.
4. Cook: Put the chicken thighs back on the rice and then pour in the chicken broth. Place the lid on, and pressure cook on high pressure for twenty minutes.
5. Natural Release: This should be done gradually to allow the pressure build-up to decrease gradually, this may take approximately 10 minutes.
6. Garnish and Serve: This dish goes well with rice orедакitation: Garnish with fresh parsley and serve hot.

Comforting and delicious this chicken and rice recipe is simple and easy and is perfect for a quick and healthy dinner.

Hack 4: Time-Saving Tips For Meal Prep

Meal prepping is a good way of saving time during the week and the pressure cooker is perfect in that in cooks large quantities of meals at a go.

Pressure Cooker Beans:

Preparing the beans from scratch may take a lot of time, but when cooked using the pressure cooker it only takes a short time. As you would cook Black beans, Chickpeas, Lentils, and all the rest of them you have to cook them in large quantities and freeze them for later use in salads, soups, and so on.

Steps:

1. Rinse the Beans: To begin with, aggressive washing of the beans under cold running water should be performed.
2. Add to Pressure Cooker: Put the beans in the pressure cooker, filling them with water so that they are about 2 inches deep. Fry for several minutes more then add salt and any other seasoning preferred.
3. Cook: Close the lid and cook on high pressure for 25-30 minutes in case of black beans or chickpeas. All the vegetables need not more than 10-15 minutes of cooking time.
4. Natural Release: It is recommended that one allows pressure to build up and then reduce it on its own for 10 minutes before opening the lid.
5. Store: After cooking, allow the beans to cool and then place them in suitable and airtight containers where they will be stored in either the fridge or the freezer.

These beans can be used during the week to prepare a variety of dishes and hence settlement is very easy.

Excerpt

The pressure cooker is not only a device that saves a lot of time but it’s a powerful kitchen tool that can make you several tasty meals within a short time without much effort. From cooking to perfection rice to making tasty and yummy stews and one-pot meals these are among the best hacks that will improve your space in the kitchen.

To get more information on cooking and food see this article originally posted at Vortexpedia, the paramount guest posting site. Vortexpedia is a great source of cooking tips, food trends, and much more to make you a better cook and host. Therefore, whether you are a hardworking professional, a family cook, or a connoisseur with an interest in delicious food, several hacks on this list will make a difference.