disappointed of my new pressure cooker

[Aden]

I finally cooked my first pressure cooker meal (belly pork, butternut, potatoes, cauliflower and butter bean) last night. It was tasteless and plain looking. My PC was noisy and generated steam for the whole cooking time.
Cut the long story short, I might have misread the instructions and done something wrong. It should be easy to use this thing. Anyway, I will try again days later.

I was thinking to get a smaller pressure cooker to cook rice. Hence, I can cook the main meal and rice on different pcs at the same time, rather than mixing them in one pot. In fact, the plain rice can be kept warm in another pot.

or do you guys use a normal source pan to cook rice?

[Dave Lochner]

Originally Posted by Aden

I finally cooked my first pressure cooker meal (belly pork, butternut, potatoes, cauliflower and butter bean) last night. It was tasteless and plain looking. My PC was noisy and generated steam for the whole cooking time.
Cut the long story short, I might have misread the instructions and done something wrong. It should be easy to use this thing. Anyway, I will try again days later.

I was thinking to get a smaller pressure cooker to cook rice. Hence, I can cook the main meal and rice on different pcs at the same time, rather than mixing them in one pot. In fact, the plain rice can be kept warm in another pot.

or do you guys use a normal source pan to cook rice?

There isn't much advantage to cooking white rice in a pressure cooker as it cooks so fast. Brown rice is a different matter as it takes almost an hour in regular pot.

When cooking meat, try browning it first in the PC. Don't worry about the brown bits in the bottom of the PC, they will flavor and color.

[longjonsilver]

Originally Posted by Aden

My PC was noisy and generated steam for the whole cooking time.

So far, i haven't seen anyone mention the variable of the stove setting. Turn the stove up high and you will get lots of steam and whistling from the pressure cooker. Turn the stove down low and you should get occasional steam and little whistling.

just a thot

jon

[Sea Dreaming]

Originally Posted by Aden

I finally cooked my first pressure cooker meal (belly pork, butternut, potatoes, cauliflower and butter bean) last night. It was tasteless and plain looking. My PC was noisy and generated steam for the whole cooking time.
Cut the long story short, I might have misread the instructions and done something wrong. It should be easy to use this thing. Anyway, I will try again days later.

I was thinking to get a smaller pressure cooker to cook rice. Hence, I can cook the main meal and rice on different pcs at the same time, rather than mixing them in one pot. In fact, the plain rice can be kept warm in another pot.

or do you guys use a normal source pan to cook rice?

Sounds like you did not turn the heat down after pressure was reached. You want to turn the heat down but not enough to lose pressure. On my gas stove I can usually turn the heat down to MD low.

By no means comprehensive instructions:
1. Put the food in the pot and cover with the lid. Make sure the lid is locked and sealed correctly.
2. Put the pot on the stove on high heat. Heat until pressure is reached. On jiggle top cookers this is when the pot let's off its first blast of steam. Other pots may have an inicator that pops up.
3. Turn down the heat but not so far that the pot loses pressure. With a jiggle top cooker the pot will let off short blasts of steam at about 3 minute intervals. Indicator type pots also let off steam but it may be more difficult to tell.

4. When your pot reaches pressure and you turn down the heat, this is the point when you start timing your cooking. Do not start timing until the pot has reached full pressure.

5. When your food is done cooking turn off the stove and cool the pot per recipe instructions before opening the pot!

[scallowayuk]

Originally Posted by Aden

I don't like cooking and have never used pressure cooker in my life before.
Having read the threads about the pressure cooker meal on boat in this forum, I finally got my new pressure cooker.

I thought I only needed to put all ingredient in the pressure cooker and placed it on the heat for a few minutes until the stream started to escape from the valve. Then I could remove it from the heat and let the food continue being cooked. In fact, it is my illusion.

After reading the instructions of pc, I am disappointed of it and it is not what I expect. I have to place it on the heat for the whole cooking time, even though it is only 10-15 minutes. It is a kind of speeding up the cooking process. Watching some pc cooking videos, I dislike seeing so much steam coming out from the valve. Some chief even make so much smoke while frying the ingredient in the pc. It is not good for me , as I don't want to have so much smoke and steam on the boat. It will be smelly in the saloon.

My main reason of getting a pc is for the galley ventilation on the boat. If I still want to use it, I may have to put the pc in the cockpit before releasing the steam.

How can you guys deal with it? Sorry that I am not a cooking person and have very low tolerant of smoke and steam on a small boat.

hi, how do you cook then boiling anything causes steam and frying causes smoke, but as you said you cook for much shorter time with a pressure cooker and they need very little water except for rice, and yes they carry on cooking as long as theres pressure even off the heat and releasing it outside is a good idea ,i do. ive been using one for over 30 years and swear by it, also saves on gas, there is a knack to them, i would suggest you persevere for a bit longer. you can also use them like an ordinary saucepan by putting a tube where the weight goes and directing the steam outside, and obviously there safe in bad weather as the lid is clamped on, no nasty spills, even if it falls off the cooker. regards

[Alex74874]

I use a pressure cooker to steam small beets. I routinely take off the thin skins with my hands, before eating them. Nutritionally, is it better to leave them on?

[weavis]

Originally Posted by Alex74874

I use a pressure cooker to steam small beets. I routinely take off the thin skins with my hands, before eating them. Nutritionally, is it better to leave them on?

I take them off too...

[Mike OReilly]

I made great use of our pressure cooker during our current (near to end) season. Starting with an unexpected bonanza of wild moose, elk and deer meat. This meat was so lean you couldn’t see any fat on it at all, so hard to cook. In the pressure cooker it was tender, flavourful and yummmmmmY!

I used the cooker multiple times for various bean and dried food meals. The great thing is you don’t have to remember to do the pre-soak (something I usually forget ).

Got lots of use for chilis, stews, soups, plus just hard veg pre-prep (carrots, turnips, even cabbage). Love it!

[zeehag]

i found pressure cookers overrated.
you will not use it more often on a boat than in your home.
if you donot pressure cook items, do not rush out to buy one now.
i have one, and i use it about as often as i did in my land homes before 1990.
so it stores stuff inside it until i need to cook something--err want to cook something in it--mebbe one meal per year i have been cruising. (6 or 7 depending if opb counts hahahaha)

[Three Sisters]

Originally Posted by Aden

I finally cooked my first pressure cooker meal (belly pork, butternut, potatoes, cauliflower and butter bean) last night. It was tasteless and plain looking.

Well then, thank you very much for finally trying it and giving your findings.

I must say that is exactly how I remembered it decades ago. And then reading several threads and endless outfitting queries with glowing recommendations for a pressure cooker...I thought I may be forgetting something. Now, after reading your review I can only add the word mush.
Tasteless mush.

Almost forgot to add: Your ingredients made my mouth water. Just not in a pressure cooker.

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Three Sisters

Well then, thank you very much for finally trying it and giving your findings.

I must say that is exactly how I remembered it decades ago. And then reading several threads and endless outfitting queries with glowing recommendations for a pressure cooker...I thought I may be forgetting something. Now, after reading your review I can only add the word mush.
Tasteless mush.

Almost forgot to add: Your ingredients made my mouth water. Just not in a pressure cooker.

This is exactly opposite to my experiences. I find meals in my pressure cooker to me MORE flavourful. I think the pressure infuses the food (meat, beans, veg) with the flavours, making it all taste even better. Perhaps it’s the amount of spices or liquids? I dunno, but I’m amazed at your results.

Zee, I agree that if you haven’t cooked with one before cruising, that it’s unlikely you’re going to embrace it on the boat. It’s kinda like most things; moving onto a boat is not going to change who you are.

This said, I do think pressure cooking is different than normal cooking. I’ve been quite tentative in my use of it — until I got away from simply following recipes and started experimenting and learning to use it my way.

[JPA Cate]

In general, talking about pressure cooking, I did not ever use one when I lived on land. I discovered on our first offshore passage the extreme virtue of a pot whose lid had a positive closure. This was found out when a pot of soup, with the soup spoon in it, got flipped off the stove. Not only did we lose "seconds" to the meal, but we had a humongous mess to clean up, and it had to be done right now, because it had made the cabin sole slippery, to say nothing of soup going into the bilge.

So, the pressure cooker soon became my friend. Now, Jim and I left the States from San Francisco, which has a cool climate. Eventually, we found ourselves in the Solomon Is., and they are a lot closer to the equator. I learned to make bread in the pressure cooker, which could be done on top the stove, rather than in the oven. With a little creativity, you can even bake cakes in the pressure cooker. [Without the gasket, of course.]

You gotta have a pot or two, and my two are PC's that nest. I have never regretted it.

And, of course, when we were gifted with a fresh hunk of funeral beef that had walked into the village that morning, the PC was used to create chile colorado. Not having been hung at all, it took that particular beef 1-1/2 hrs. to cook on pressure long enough to become tender. You can also do home canning in one.

Some things cook very well in the PC. Jim does the ham hocks in it for black eyed peas, and it is really delicious.

I think you can overcook food in one, and then it would be horrible. But used for tasty food that fits the style, it's good, imho.

Ann

[Island Time O25]

I only use it to cook cuts or dishes which require very long cooking/stewing times. Also what I found helpful is to grill the meat a bit first on a cast iron skillet and then transfer it to the pc as this grilling infuses add'l flavor and allows for even more juices inside the meat to do their work from the inside.

My typical pc recipe would be to stew lamb shanks (pre-grilled as above) with enough spices, etc. Then in a separate pc (or regular pot) boil large peeled potatoes and some large carrots, parsnips, etc. Then just pour the lamb shanks over the cooked veggies. The meat should be falling off the bone without any effort. And I get a tasty meal of lamb for the 1/3-1/2 price of any other lamb cuts.

[Sailor g]

Originally Posted by JPA Cate

In general, talking about pressure cooking, I did not ever use one when I lived on land. I discovered on our first offshore passage the extreme virtue of a pot whose lid had a positive closure.

So, the pressure cooker soon became my friend. Now, Jim and I left the States from San Francisco, which has a cool climate. Eventually, we found ourselves in the Solomon Is., and they are a lot closer to the equator. I learned to make bread in the pressure cooker, which could be done on top the stove, rather than in the oven. With a little creativity, you can even bake cakes in the pressure cooker. [Without the gasket, of course.]

Some things cook very well in the PC. Jim does the ham hocks in it for black eyed peas, and it is really delicious. Ann

I am also not a cook or baker by hobby-someone who wants to spend time in the galley. I cook because we like to eat. A pressure cooker is just a tool that helps me do that faster so I can be back in the cockpit enjoying the views and enjoying life. Hopefully, with practice you will find that true too.

I am with Ann. I never used a pressure cooker when living on land. A pc, though, is an amazing tool to extend propane when you are on a passage or away where getting propane isn't as easy. It also helps when you want to prepare food ahead of time to freeze-cutting the time over a number of meals means less time in the galley!

It does tenderize meats wonderfully but won't add flavor just because of being cooked that way. You have flavor with herbs or stocks just like regular cooking.

Just follow the directions for your pc. The amount liquid is key. (I have burned pork chops when new to pc-ing-because after browning, I didn't get the liquid under them and they stuck. LOL! ) It should put out much less steam though than normal cooking. I started with recipes that came with the pc then added others from here & internet searches. I let everything cool naturally-which reduces cooking time and seems easier than the others.

Best of luck! I hope you find the pc works for you too!

P.S. Ann, the ham hocks & peas sound amazing!

[CarlF]

I'm with zeehag - if you don't use a pressure cooker at home don't expect to use one on your boat. This didn't used to be true when stoves on boats were horrible. With an alchohol stove, a pressure cooker was a necessity.

While we do have a pressure cooker aboard, we don't enjoy stewed meats and vegetables that much in warm places (although on the coast of Maine it's great)

Our Victron inverter has caused a remarkable change in our cooking. Most meals now include the use of our induction hot plate that can deliver the same BTU's as a restaurant stove and our Cuisinart Griddler (which does much better than the sorry excuse for a barbecue hung on a rail ). While these draw a a lot of watts they are so quick that the batteries are up to it. The Griddler perfectly cooks four boned chicken breasts or four fish fillets in 4 minutes. And in most cases, the power has been provided by solar panels instead of a propane tank.