Pressure Cooker

[forlife]

Hello, we've been thinking about adding a pressure cooker, are you really happy with them? Has it made cooking better? What kind do you recommend? I hate to spend a fotune, but those Kuhn Rikons look pretty nice?

Thank you.

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

Definitely go with a Kuhn. They are the best, IMO. I bought one after first buying a cheaper brand and having problems with it. If I had bought the Kuhn in the first place it would have saved me money!

It makes cooking so much faster. Soup on the table in less than an hour starting with dry beans!

[ncyg46]

i second the Kuhn Rikon....I love mine.....and Lorna Sass has a great book "Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure" The inside cover pages are timing charts for grains and beans which is worth the price of the book!

[Faith in DC]

I'm going to ask a very dumb question. The only pressure cooker I had was my canner (rocker top). Mrs. D since I know you can, do you use your kuhn for that?

[ncyg46]

Faith...hope you don't mind me jumping in here....I am not Mrs. D and have never canned anything except a long time ago...

http://www.kuhnrikon.com/tips/canning/
Just thought I would send this page...the Kuhn is really not a canning pot according to their website.... Hope this helps.....

Nancy

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

I'm going to ask a very dumb question. The only pressure cooker I had was my canner (rocker top). Mrs. D since I know you can, do you use your kuhn for that?

No, they say it's not precise enough so it's not recommended. I wondered the same thing!

LOL, Nancy, we were posting at the same time!

[ncyg46]

lol....one thing they said was that a real canning pot is built with more safety features and a metal basket to keep the jars separate so they don't break! That sure could be a big mess!
I use mine as a pressure cooker, used to do brown rice in it with my ohsawa pot or whatever it is called, I use it for beans and a regular soup pot...so it gets alot of use!

[Faith in DC]

very interesting. Thank you Nancy and Mrs. D. I always was wondering about that.

I seem to remember the pressure canner/cooker came with directions for cooking foods too. I never tried it.

[Mrs. Doodlepunk]

I don't cook in my older PCs now because they are aluminum.

Also, the plug in the lid for emergency pressure release in the very old one that I have is made of lead! The last time I cooked in it was several years ago. I noticed metallic flecks floating on top of my "gravy" and figured out it was lead from the plug.

I think we went out to a restaurant that night for dinner.

[Faith in DC]

ew I'll um keep that in mind if I ever try and cook in mine.

[Tex gal]

I just bought a Kuhn Rikon pressure cooker today and can't wait to try it out! I used to use a pressure cooker years ago, but it's packed away somewhere and I don't want to use it anymore as I don't know if I could even find new gaskets for it, plus it is aluminum. I am really looking forward to cooking up beans, brown rice, and whatever else I can come up with to help me get meals done in a hurry without relying on canned beans etc.

Do you pressure cooker experts have any special recipes or suggestions for someone just beginning to use a pressure cooker (again)? Do you soak your beans before cooking in the PC? I've heard it both ways, and heard that it does and/or does not affect the nutrients in the beans. ????

[ncyg46]

depends on the bean.... I don't bother with black beans. If you can take Lorna Sass's Vegetarian Cooking Under Pressure out of the library it is wonderful ...just leave the oil out. The inside covers alone are worth the price of the book! They list beans and grains and all the soak, unsoak and timing things!

[Rob]

Has anyone tried the Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker?

[bob2200]

I got my Kuhn Rikon from Pleasant Hills Grain in Nebraska, mail-order. I'm very happy with it. I got the inserts that were optional and I haven't used them yet.

I do pre-soak my beans overnight in the refrigerator.

I grew up with 60 and 100 year old (as of today) canners, and they worked fine; but I think the Ruhn Rikon and other new models have more safety features. The 100-year-old model had a dial gauge and was cast iron. The 60-year old model was the cast aluminum type and had the hissing weight regulator. We just did peaches and apple sauce, so probably water-bath canning would have been adequate.

[Tex gal]

Has anyone tried the Cuisinart Electric Pressure Cooker?

I read several reviews before making the decision to buy the Kuhn Rikon. Here are some problems with the electric ones: they do not get as high a pressure as a "regular" one, so things have to be cooked longer and standard recipes have to be adjusted; once you set them to cook you cannot stop them and open up to add ingredients, test for doneness, etc; you cannot cool them off quickly if desired; and of course they can wear out after a short time. All the recommendations were to go with a standard stove top pressure cooker, unless there is some specific reason you can only use an electric one. If the cost of a K-R is a problem, I think you would be better off with a stove top model of a less expensive brand rather than the electric model. There is nothing to break, and as long as it is a reputable brand so that you can replace gaskets when needed, you should never have to replace it.