The pressure cooker can be used in many ways to cook different kinds of food. The convenience of using pressure cookers and its versatility has helped busy people cope with cooking and its demands. Using the pressure cooker is easy; first-time owners of the pressure cooker can quickly learn the steps to take before cooking foods in steam pressure. This advantage makes it easy for all owners of pressure cookers to enjoy the benefits and maintain their cookers for a longer time.
New generation pressure cookers, also called the ‘modern pressure cookers’ are mostly made from stainless steel. We all know how durable stainless steel is and how convenient it is regarding maintenance. Stainless steel cookware such as pressure cookers can last for as long as thirty years if you use the cooker properly. There is hardly a day I don’t use my pressure cooker because it cooks quickly, so there are no delays when it is meal time. I try as much as possible to find more healthy meals that can be pressure cooked, to get more value from my pressure cooker.
Why Use A Pressure Cooker
1. Cooking healthy foods
Almost everyone is talking about healthy living now; it is the best option to avoid unnecessary medical conditions. Moreover, home-cooked meals remain the best, so having a pressure cooker is really helpful. You can use it to cook a wide range of healthy meals quickly. If you like foods with rich flavour, then the pressure cooker is for you, cooking foods in steam pressure helps to retain the flavour, this may not be possible if you boil your food in water.
Pressure cooking is fast; this means the nutrients in your food will not be compromised. After all the effort, it will be a shame to lose all the essential nutrients while cooking the food. This can happen when you fry or boil foods. But the steam pressure generated in the cooker helps to dissolve unwanted fats and keep the nutrients intact. Pressure cooking is excellent for vegetarian recipes.
2. Save more energy
Pressure cookers can help you save more energy and reduce the threat of emissions in the atmosphere. When using a pressure cooker, you can save as much as 70% of the fuel used to generate the heat needed for cooking.
Pressure cookers have been redesigned to be eco-friendly; this indication can be observed on the packaging of your cooker. You may also find more information about the eco-friendly features in the user manual for your pressure cooker. It is a much better option than your gas stove.
3. Explore more recipes
Using pressure cookers makes it easy to explore more healthy meal options for your family. You can cook foods and get the results fast enough to try other recipes. Meals that would have required three hours to prepare can be ready in an hour or less if you use pressure cookers. Pressure cookers can be used to prepare recipes that require cooking methods such as simmering, braising, poaching, boiling, making soups and a wide range of desserts.
All that money saved from your energy bills can be used to explore more healthy recipes and buy bigger meat cuts for your family. Cooking during the hot summer is also less stressful when you use a pressure cooker, it generates less heat, and you won’t need to spend too much time cooking.
4. Safety features
Pressure cookers have many safety features to protect the user. The modern designs have also been improved to exclude features such as the hissing jiggle on the lid which made many people uncomfortable. The handles have also been designed to be sturdier, and it is safe to move your cooker around the kitchen.
The safety pressure release mechanism, gasket and well-designed lids protect you from the steam pressure after cooking. Now, you will not need to make guesses when using the pressure cooker because its features are basic and the user manual indicates all the steps to help the user. Modern pressure cookers have also been enhanced with triple ply finishing all around the vessel to prevent food from scorching.
5. Cooking fast meals
Pressure cookers can also offer commercial value or help you cater for parties or family gatherings. For example, you can cook foods like potatoes at half the time it will take if you used a microwave oven. Pressure cooking helps you prepare meals with tender meat cuts with enhanced flavour your guests will enjoy. You can also cook beans, legumes and many other vegetables in pressure cookers.
6. Ergonomic advantages
The size of a regular pressure cooker can be compared to your conventional pots. You can use pressure cookers regardless of your kitchen size. They can also be easily stored away after use.
Pressure cookers can also be used for deep frying, this can be done with the lid off, the base of your pressure cooker is wide enough to accommodate foods to be fried, and it has been triple plated to prevent scorching when cooking soups or sauces.
7. Outdoor cooking
Pressure cookers are also excellent for cooking foods when you go camping or hiking. You may need to cook over an open fire out there in the open. The flames can discolour the outer parts of your pressure cooker. To avoid any stains you can rub some soap on the outer part of your pressure cooker and the base before placing it on the open fire.
If you have a pressure cooker while camping outdoors, you can use it to distil and purify water. This feature will be most helpful in case of an emergency or when your bottled water runs out suddenly. Mountain climbers who plan to reach very high altitudes will also find the pressure cookers very helpful. At the peak of high mountains, you can cook and get clean water with the pressure cooker.
Pressure cookers can be used in so many ways. This is why they are so popular; the best part is that when you own a pressure cooker, you gradually find more ways to use it and enjoy the benefits.