What Pressure Cooker Do I Use?

What pressure cooker do I use?

Well I use this one.

This is one I bought in a shop in Southall, West London. Made by Masterchef it is wonderful. I have had it about 14 months and used it non stop almost every day for something or other and just about now the rubber seal is showing signs that it needs to be replaced. 

This is the rubber seal:

You will need to keep the info you had when you bought the pressure cooker, which I didn't or you will have to look it up online like I will. Or remember the shop you bought it in if you actually did the olde worlde thing and actually go to a shop and buy something....

This little shop on the Southall Broadway, London, UK, who's name evades me, is a real Aladin's cave for the curry enthusiast. It has dozens of different types and sizes of pressure cooker from the tiny 1 litre models to huge family tanks.

It is worth asking about them and having a good look. The lady in there was very enthusiastic and friendly. She was the one that told me that every Indian family has a pressure cooker and that it is by far the best thing for curries of all types.

Which of course also means any stew or one pot meal. 

The pressure cooker really does make the meat as tender as if you cooked it in a day in only around three quarters of an hour from when the pressure is up and the rubber seal is not knackered..... 

You will know when it is on it's way when you get little hisses you are not used to and perhaps one day, half way through a nice lamb curry it goes off like an old Puffing Billy and the steam squirts out of the side. Makes you jump......

I have used this cooker for endless curries and hot pots and thoroughly recommend it.

The way this one works is simplicity itself. You pop your grub in according to instructions. If you, like me, get very bored of instructions very quickly just remember that you tend to use a lot less liquid in pressure cookers than you do with ordinary pots and pans. If as a rule of thumb you do not have more than half a finger nail of water about the food then you should be alright. Even that is often too much. You will have to try quite hard to dry out one of these things so ere on the dry side.

You then just lay the top of the cooker over the bottom with the handles around an inch apart and gently, while pushing down slide them together. Then you pop the little nob on the top and within a few seconds a little red button will pop up. 

This is telling you that the pressure has started to build and it is time to turn the heat right down. On a gas ring that's as low as you can, on an electric hob it's 1. 

On an electric hob I find it better to have another ring on 1 and move it over as if the cooker is left on the hot hob it will built up too much pressure and it won't take long for the rubber to weaken and it will need replacing.

I think this is why my rubber seal has not lasted quite as long as it should have. I have an electric hob and over heated it several times before I got the hang of it.

Then you just leave it for as long as the recipe says. If you leave if for longer it doesn't matter that much as the food remains nice and moist. You will need to experiment with this.

Do not leave the thing unattended though. With all the pressure in there..... 

'"That she blows!"......When the time is up you can if you want just grab the button with a gloved hand and pull it off. This creates the famous blow of steam that makes all that scarey noise. It is a quick way to de-pressurise but necessarily the best.

If you want to get the top off quickly to add more food like vegetable once the meat has tenderised then go ahead. Or you want you veg out quickly.

But if you want really mouth wateringly tender meat then it is best to let the cooker cool down and the red button will drop on it's own.

Or you run it under the cold tap to cool it. But for meat, definitely let it cool.

My favourite meat in a pressure cooker is lamb, cooked under pressure for 45 minutes or more that comes out as soft and succulent as if it has been cooked all day in a clay oven....