A pressure cooker has appeared a long time ago and helps housewives in preparing various dishes. The cooking process in this case is halved, if not triple, which greatly facilitates our lives. In addition, all the nutrients in the cooking process are preserved, unlike other cooking methods. But some do not have it or they simply do not know how to use it. And you need to know the operating mode so that nothing bad happens. Now we will consider everything in detail.
How old-style pressure cookers work
This dish is used for faster cooking. When heated, steam appears, which helps to do this. In the old type there is a pressure valve located on the exhaust pipe, on the cover. One of the main elements is the o-ring. If it is not there, then the pan will not work as it should.
Important! Before you begin to work, carefully inspect the sealing gum for defects, if any, then it must be replaced.
How to cook in an old-style pressure cooker: step-by-step instruction
If after the inspection everything starts to cook normally. At the same time, do not forget that this kitchen utensil should not be completely clogged with products - a maximum of two-thirds of the volume. So where to start?
We prepare pressure cooker products
Before cooking, you need to prepare products for this. Sometimes in the box from under it there is an instruction in which everything is written in detail. Consider the most common products that can be prepared in it:
- Meat. Before you start cooking, season with various spices. If you want, you can fry the meat in a pan before sending it to cook in a pressure cooker.
- Seafood. To begin with, they must be thoroughly washed, and then put in a pressure cooker and add at least 175 milliliters of water to them. When cooking fish, grease the basket with vegetable oil so that it does not stick.
- Legumes. Soak the food for five hours in water without salt, after the expiration date drain it. Add pure water, preferably with 1 tbsp. l vegetable oil. After that, add the bean products to the pan and start cooking.
- Vegetables. If they are frozen, defrost them, and if fresh, rinse them.
- Cereal products. Soak them for 4 hours in room temperature water. But if you are going to cook rice or oatmeal - you can not soak them.
- Fruits. First you need to wash them. To prepare fresh fruits, half a glass of water is required, and if it is dried fruit, pour only one glass.
The main stage of preparation
Once the vegetables and fruits are ready, you can proceed to the next step - laying vegetables. For this:
- First put the product that you want to cook in the pressure cooker and add as much water as needed to prepare this product.
- Before closing the lid tightly, remove the safety valve. Check that the closing mechanism works - and the lid is snug against the pan. Only then can it be put on a preheated oven or on the largest burner in a gas stove. Turn on the hotplate at full power, soon after that the pressure cooker will start to work - the water will evaporate, forming steam.
- As soon as she gains the right pressure, cooking will begin. You can check this with the help of a pressure sensor, which will start releasing steam.
Important! Do not forget that as soon as the steam starts to escape, you must install the valve.
- It is necessary to reduce the power of the heating element so that the pressure cooker stops whistling. Just be careful, the water should continue to boil. Take note of the time it takes for your chosen product to cook. The whole point is to maintain pressure in the dishes while cooking is in progress. The valve will only work if you do not reduce the heat in time.
Reference. A pressure relief valve is necessary to prevent the pressure cooker from rupturing if you forget to relieve pressure in the pan.
How to get products from a pressure cooker
After the cooking time has ended, turn off the stove and reduce the pressure. There are three ways to do this:
- Natural. It is used if you cooked dishes that require a lot of time, for example, cabbage rolls. Even in the cooking process, you can begin to lower the pressure. The total time it takes is 10-20 minutes.
- Accelerated. You can press the button designed to relieve pressure, which is on most older models. After lowering it, the pressure decreases.
- Cold. In this case, you need cold water. The pressure cooker must be put in the sink and then turn on cold water so that it falls on the lid. Let her stand until the pressure drops. Make sure that no water enters the valve. This is the fastest way.
Important! This method is not suitable for electrical appliances.
It can be opened only after a complete decrease in pressure in the pressure cooker. To make sure of this, slide the pressure regulator, if no sounds are heard, then everything is in order - you can open it.
Important tips for using an old-style pressure cooker
In order for her to please delicious and healthy dishes as long as possible, it is necessary to properly care for her. Here are some guidelines to help you with this:
- Before the first use, be sure to wash as best as possible in order to wash off industrial dirt.
- Check the cleanliness of the O-ring and the body of the cover with which it is in contact so that it does not let steam through. Also protect from damage.
- Do not cover the dishes themselves during storage. This is necessary so that the ring is not damaged.
- When dry cleaned with cotton pads and tooth powder, it will always delight you with its radiance.
- So that the lid does not deform, it should not be tightly closed while the cooked food is cooling.
- Make sure that the fire does not touch the handles, otherwise they will deteriorate.
So, careful storage and operation, and the pressure cooker will work like a clock.
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