What Should You Know About Pressure Cooking Meat?
Cooking your meat in a pressure cooker is a great way to speed up cooking time and it makes the finished result tender and succulent. In addition, because a pressure cooker is sealed it maintains more healthy nutrients and vitamins that may be lost in conventional cooking.
Where the pressure scores best economically with meat, is with casseroles, stews, and risottos. You can still buy the cheaper cuts of stewing meat but you no longer have to cook for a few hours on the hob or in the oven. This improved cooking time also means that you will save added costs on electricity or gas.
The good news for everyone you cook for is that you can still make economical and delicious meals even if you are time-pressed. You can even cook a whole chicken or roasting joint in a pressure cooker, so you don’t necessarily have to only use diced meat.
Timings will vary depending upon your pressure cooker model and the type of meat you want to cook. As a rough idea, a whole chicken takes between 15 – 20 minutes. Meat for a roast, such as beef, pork or lamb takes between 40 – 60 minutes. By contrast,one-inch cubes or diced meat is very fast to cook taking around 15 to 20 minutes.
Whatever type of meat you wish to cook in your pressure cooker, the method is usually the same. You heat the oil in the cooker, brown the meat and add seasoning before closing the lid and bringing it up to pressure. If you are cooking a casserole, add your usual ingredients such as stock and vegetables and then cook on full pressure for about 30 minutes.
Then quick-release the pressure, stir and bring the cooker back up to pressure again for a further 15 minutes. Doing this will enable you to check how the meat is cooking.
If you are cooking a whole chicken or roasting joint, brown in oil first and then cook on high pressure for about 20 minutes depending on the size of the cut or the size of the chicken.
Many people advise that you allow the pressure to drop naturally once taken off the hob, rather than using quick-release. Once the pressure has dropped, you can make the gravy in the pressure cooker. Some people advise that finishing the meat off under the grill or in the oven for a few minutes is also a good option.
Pressure cooker fans all have different preferences and tricks and the methods can vary between users and recipes.
If you are new to pressure cooking, the easiest way the first time is to follow a recipe, however, whatever meat dish you require, you can certainly cook it in a pressure cooker.
The main difference between using a pressure cooking meat with other methods of cooking is that with a pressure cooker, you will notice improved flavor and will save yourself plenty of money and time.
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