In a previous post I have come out strongly against pressure cookers – primarily because I am a slow cooked food advocate -it takes time to make a proper stock or sauce. Also, I had never really tasted a well cooked meal from a pressure cooker. The few I had as boat meals from other cruisers tasted pretty mushy. They typically were stews of some sort – just not a lot of flavor.
Well – I have become a convert – sort of.
I bought a pressure cooker from Amazon.com – it’s a Spanish model by Fagor called a Duo – its a 5.5 quart model with two pressure setting – 8 psi and 15 psi. Its nicely made out of 18/10 stainless, with an aluminum core for sautéing, and cost about $90.
Why do I like this pressure cooker – one reason – propane usage – there is no question that it really cuts down on cooking time. Here are the recipes of the things I have cooked. They are my own recipes – sort of adapted to the things I keep on the boat. We had all of these ingredients on hand after being sailing for about 10 days with no resupply. If there is one thing I hate it’s the sailing cooking pundits that write a lot of recipes in magazine articles – then can’t cook any of that stuff when they are underway because they don‘t have the ingredients.
The Propane Chef tell it as it is – if we are sailing – or at anchor – and I have it – I will cook it. But most important….
“Don’t cook what you bring – Cook what you catch” Lord Bowler from a Briscoe County episode- who cooked a rattlesnake rather than open a can of bean – a TV episode from the 1990’s – Bruce Campbell fans take note….
Carnitas
2 lb pork butt – well trimmed
1 onion
3 cloves garlic
1 stick cinnamon
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp red chili flakes
2 tbs cooking oil
2 bay leaves
Cut the pork into 1-2 inch chunks and sauté up on high heat in small batches until well browned – don’t crowd the pork – this might take up to 20 minutes on a propane stove – use the crock pot to sauté in. Add the onions for 5 minutes, then the garlic for one. Add the chili peppers, bay and cinnamon and about 1-2 cups of water. Cover the cooker and heat till pressure builds at about 15 psi – cook for about 20 minutes.
Once the pressure is released you will have these great pork chunks – I refry them in a bit of oil to make them crispy. Enjoy with tacos, eggs, or make a sauce. Throw away the stock – since it is a bit hard to deal with.
Pinto beans
8 oz pinto beans – soaked overnight
1 clove garlic
½ onion
2 strips bacon
2 Japanese chilies (the little hot dried one that come in small bags in the super mart)
2 bay leaves
Sauté up all of the ingredients but the beans – add the beans and about 2 cups water – cook at 15 psi for about 8 minutes. These beans are soupy. You can dish them out. Or save some of the stock to make refried beans later.
Black Bean soup
8 oz black beans – soaked overnight
Chop the rest of this stuff…
1 onion
2 cloves garlic
2 strips bacon\
2 carrots
2 pieces celery
2 bay leaves
Sauté everything up but the beans – add them and about 2 cups water – you could use some stock for this, but I preferred not to – stock is a valuable commodity when cruising – cook at 15 psi for about 10 minutes.
Vichyssoise – or Potato Leek Soup
4-5 potatoes peeled and quartered
2 leeks – white parts only
1 sweet onion
1 tbs tarragon
2 tbs butter
1 qt chicken stock
8 oz cream
Peel the potatoes. Clean and chop the leaks. Cook the leaks, onions and butter together for about 10 minutes until they get a good sweat up – you are bringing out the sugars. Deglaze with the stock and add the tarragon. Cook at 15 psi for about five minutes. When cooled, blend the soup in you blender. (Yes, we have an inverted, but a food mill would work just as well). Return to the pot and add the cream. Heat gently, but not to boil. This soup works well warm or cold – its gets better as it sit for a few days.
Well – there you have it. There are a lot more recopies I feel I can alter to meet the demands of the pressure cooker. Tonight – I will steam some potatoes for about 5 minutes to make a potato salad, rather then using 20 minutes of propane to boil them. The pressure cooker is not for everything but it does seem to have its uses.
Leave a Reply