Use the pressure cooker correctly - how it works

Cooking with the pressure cooker saves time and protects nutrients. The operation of the pressure pot is easy if you know the basics.

How to start cooking with the pressure cooker

If you want to cook with a pressure cooker, first choose the right size for the number of servings required. Models with a capacity of 6 liters and up are suitable for families for 4 and more people. Everything below is suitable for smaller households (4.5 l) and single portions (3.5 l).

• Before you start cooking, check that the lid, the inserted sealing ring and the valves of the steam pressure pot are intact. You should also examine the moving parts for the pressure display and the handles.
• Fill the pan with the food. It can be vegetables, fish or meat. You can put loose vegetables in a colander that matches the saucepan. If necessary, lightly braise the meat with fat beforehand. Or you can add all the ingredients for a stew or soup according to the recipe.
• To do this, fill the appropriate amount of liquid that is important to generate sufficient water vapor. At the same time, this will prevent burning on the bottom of the pot.
• Add small steam pressure pots with a volume of about 3 liters with at least 125 ml, medium-sized ones with a volume of 4 liters with about 250 ml and larger pots from 6 liters with about 750 ml of liquid.
• In total, you must not fill the steam pressure pot higher than up to three quarters of the total volume. For foods that produce foam, are viscous or swell strongly, you should only use half the pot height. This is the case, for example, when cooking legumes and stews.
• Now put the lid on and close it so that the handle clicks into place. You can hear and feel this closing clearly on most pot models. Push the closure of the pressure pot so that pressure can build up in the pot.
• Place the pan on a stove that matches the pan diameter and start the energy supply. Set the desired vapor pressure level (regulator on the handle) on the lid.

The cooking time starts with a hiss

Depending on how much you increase the pressure in the pot and which foods are to be cooked, the cooking time will be different. The higher the pressure - level 2 is the highest for most pots - the higher the cooking temperature inside, the shorter the cooking time required. This protects vitamins and brings color and taste advantages.

• As soon as the steam in the pot builds up pressure, your pot will indicate this. For example, a pen or a kind of button on the lid lifts up. There are usually two markings on this.
• At cooking level 1 (1st mark is visible), the food is cooked at around 110 degrees Celsius. The setting is suitable for sensitive foods such as vegetables or fish with a short cooking time.
• Use cooking level 2 (2nd marking) to cook and braise meat, side dishes such as potatoes, soups or stews. You can also use it to boil or sterilize canned vegetables or fruit. The temperature at level 2 is around 120 degrees Celsius.
• When the temperature and pressure level are reached, you can usually hear this with a slight hiss. Now the lid valve begins to open to release excess steam. With a strong additional energy supply, a lot of steam sometimes escapes.
• Now the actual cooking time of your dish begins. You should now cut back or interrupt the energy supply at the latest.
• The more experience you have with your saucepan and the properties of your cooker, the more precisely you will find out whether you can reduce the temperature before the cooking point is reached. It varies from pot to pot and from stove to stove.

Finally, carefully reduce the pressure

For optimal results, it is important, especially with vegetables and fish, to precisely match the cooking time and then to lower the temperature in the pot as quickly as possible. Meat, on the other hand, usually forgives when the cooking time is overdone a little. After the estimated cooking time has expired, reduce the pressure in the pot.

• Move the slide in the direction of "open valve". Warning: Sometimes a lot of hot steam escapes suddenly. Always make sure that nobody is standing in the "steam direction".
• Remember: If the steam hits your skin directly, you risk severe scalding. The outside of the pot also gets very hot. Therefore always use the pot handles to operate.
• You do this until no more steam escapes and the pressure indicator has completely lowered. Under no circumstances should you use this procedure for foamy and viscous dishes.
• You can quickly lower the pressure and temperature in the pot by first taking it off the hob and holding it under cold water. Make sure that no water runs into the handle or the valves.
• You can also simply wait for the pressure and temperature to drop without adding any more heat. During this time, however, the content still cooks a bit.
• After the pressure has disappeared, release the lock on the lid handle. Now you can open the lid safely and inspect your food.
• After use, you should carefully rinse the lid by hand and carefully clean the valves and the sealing ring again.

Guide values ​​for the cooking times of various foods

You will quickly gain experience of what food you need to cook and for how long. Make a note of what you achieved good or bad results for. At the beginning you can use the following guidelines:

• Potatoes, level 2, 7 minutes
• Cauliflower, level 2, 3 minutes
• Broccoli, level 1, 3 minutes
• Beans, fresh green, level 1, 7 minutes
• Rice, level 2, 7 minutes
• Goulash, half & half, level 2, 20-30 minutes (depending on the amount)
• Lentil soup, level 2, 15 minutes
• Vegetable soup, level 1, 10 minutes
• Beef soup, level 2, 30 minutes