A few times a year I will pull out my pressure cooker, or, actually, to be more accurate, my husband’s pressure cooker. He particularly admired a corned beef that a friend and co-worker made for a potluck using a pressure cooker, and that co-worker gave us a pressure cooker (and the recipe) as a wedding gift.
With St. Patrick’s Day this week, my husband was in the mood for corned beef, so out came the slow cooker. I admit that I am a bit of a milquetoast when it comes to using a pressure cooker. My mom had one when I was young, and it was relegated to the far back of the kitchen cabinet. Between the old-wives’ tales about explosions and the inability to open the cooker midway through to peek at the food, she just wasn’t comfortable using it. She used the pot part to boil potatoes on Thanksgiving, so I guess it got some use. I admit that I have some trepidation about using one, but I am interested in using our pressure cooker as often as we use our slow cooker.
Because the lid is so tightly attached, the amount of liquid and pressure that is allowed to escape during the cooking process is controlled so that it doesn’t drop below a certain level. This creates an efficient cooking environment, and cook times are reduced by about 70% compared to roasting or baking times in a regular oven.
I plan to make these Spareribs with Barbecue Sauce this weekend, along with Honey-Mustard Cole Slaw and Bacon Cornbread.
Got ideas for using Pressure Cooker? Want to get one? Shop for a pressure cooker.
Here's the cooker steaming away. Corned beef in 35 minutes flat.