Tips for Successful Pressure Cooking

Brown meats, poultry, and even some vegetables — like chopped onions, peppers, or carrots — first and then deglaze the pot for more intense flavor. In a stove-top pressure cooker, simply add a small amount of oil, such as olive or canola oil, to the pressure cooker and heat, uncovered, over medium-high heat. Add the food in small batches and brown the food on all sides. Remove the food to a bowl and set aside. You’re now going to loosen up and remove those delicious, cooked-on juices and tiny food particles left behind by deglazing the pot with a small amount of wine, broth, or even water. Return the cooked food previously removed from the pot along with the remaining ingredients and cook under pressure. For an electric cooker, follow the same steps just described, selecting the Brown setting.

Don’t overdo the liquid. Because food cooks in a closed, sealed pot when cooking under pressure, you have less evaporation and should therefore use less cooking liquid than when cooking in a conventional pot. Regardless of what you’re cooking, however, always use enough liquid. A good rule of thumb is at least 1 cup of liquid; however, check the owner’s manual or recipe booklet to see exactly what the pressure-cooker manufacturer recommends. Never fill the pot more than halfway with liquid.

Don’t fill any pressure cooker with too much food. Never fill a pressure cooker more than two-thirds full with food. Also, never pack food tightly into a pressure cooker. If you don’t follow these basic rules for cooking under pressure, the pressure cooker won’t operate efficiently, affecting how the food comes out. You may also cause the safety valves to activate, especially if there’s too much food in the pot.

Remember that even pieces mean evenly cooked food. Food should be cut into uniform-sized pieces so that they cook in the same amount of time.

Use stop-and-go cooking for perfect results. When making a recipe that contains ingredients that cook at different times, begin by partially cooking slow-to-cook foods, such as meat, first. Then use a quick-release method to stop the pressure cooker. Next, add the faster-cooking ingredients — such as green beans or peas — to the meat. Bring the pot back up to pressure again and finish everything up together at the same time.

Start off high and finish up low. When cooking in a stove-top pressure cooker, start cooking over high heat. After you reach pressure, lower the burner to a simmer. No need to worry about adjusting the heat when cooking in an electric pressure cooker. The appliance does it for you automatically.

Play burner hopscotch to avoid burning when cooking in a stovetop pressure cooker. When you reach pressure over high heat, you lower the burner to a simmer. Gas burners react quickly, but most electric burners don’t. If you have an electric stove, use two burners: one on high heat to reach pressure and a second set on a low setting to maintain pressure. Switch the pressure cooker over to the burner with the low setting when you reach pressure.

Set a timer. Have a kitchen timer handy so that after the pressure cooker reaches and maintains pressure, you can set it for the cooking time specified in the recipe. Note that electric pressure cookers have their own digital timers built in.

Use an electric pressure cooker if you want to do pressure cooking the super-easy way. Choose the desired pressure level by pressing either the high or low pressure button on the control panel. Then, set the desired time you want to cook under pressure by pressing the high or low button for increasing or decreasing cook time. Now, press Start. The pressure cooker starts the countdown time when the level of pressure you chose is reached. It then beeps when done, telling you your food is ready.

Bear in mind that high altitude means longer cooking times. You may have to increase the cooking times if you live at an elevation of 3,000 feet above sea level or higher. A good general rule is to increase the cooking time by 5 percent for every 1,000 feet you are above the first 2,000 feet above sea level.

Release that pressure. When the food is done cooking under pressure, use an appropriate pressure-release method, according to the recipe you’re making.

Be sure never to attempt a cold-water release with your electric pressure cooker — unless you want to shorten its lifespan or your own! Never submerge the appliance in water and always be sure to unplug it before cleaning.