Under Pressure by Chef Kelly Sears

Certain recipes seem to gravitate to particular cookware and time commitment; short ribs, brisket, and pork shoulder = a Dutch Oven and a low, slow oven; risotto = a 30-40 minute stir at the stove in a deep round-sided saucepan, cakes, meatloaf, bread pudding = a moderate oven in the appropriate bakeware for about an hour.

That’s a lot of cookware and a lot of time. About 9 months ago, I bought a pressure cooker. No, not this pressure cooker:

This is the pressure cooker that would shake, rattle, and roll around the kitchen causing everyone to take cover in case she blew her top! This pressure cooker, and all the safety issues that went with it, is a thing of the past.

Risotto in seven minutes, dried beans in 15, cake in five, a whole chicken in less than 20; today’s pressure cooker should be called a pressure reliever.

It’s summer, it’s hot, and I’m hungry. I don’t always want to turn my oven on for hours to make pulled pork and I may be gone all day to grill; the pressure cooker can get the job done in less than 30 minutes for a 3 pound roast.

If you are a fan of the crock pot for saving you time in the kitchen and “doing the cooking for you,” wait until you try a pressure cooker. A crock pot may cook all day so when you get home dinner is ready, but the prep work still needs to be done in the morning. What about the days when you walk through the door at 6:00 with a hungry family in tow and nothing on the stove? Almost anything can be cooked in a pressure cooker and done in less than 30 minutes; even “weekend” dishes can become Wednesday evening faire.

Still not convinced? Chef Matt Zagorski, representative from Fagor, will be at Marcel’s from 11am – 2pm, Friday, June 28^th sharing recipes, tips, bringing truth to myths, and most importantly, taking the “pressure” out of cooking! I’ll be there, hope to see you too.