Product Reviewed:
Sitram Pressure Cooker
I’ve always dreamed of owning a pressure cooker. We’ll maybe I’m exaggerating little bit because I don’t know if I even knew what a pressure cooker was a few years ago. My mom never cooked with one, so I didn’t learn their value growing up. Pressure cookers will revolutionize your cooking, and I truly believe every time-pressed cook needs a pressure cooker!
This little cooking gem scared me when I first received it, as I feared a food explosion splattered on my ceiling. I must admit this kitchen gadget is a bit mysterious at first. I took a deep breath and watched several YouTube videos before tackling the first cooking episode. After using it a few times you will wonder where the pressure cooker has been all your life.
And I’m not exaggerating here! Did you know brown rice could cook in 15 minutes? Yes, I’m talking the same brown rice that takes 45 minutes to an hour to cook on the stovetop that never seems to have the right texture. Well, I’m here to tell you — invest in a pressure cooker and you can have perfectly cooked brown rice any night of the week.
I also made beans from scratch in the pressure cooker. In the pressure cooker, dried beans cook in 20 minutes flat — no overnight soaking plus one or two hours of cooking time required! Of course this means you can add as much salt and seasonings as you like and save lots of money and time!
You can probably feel my excitement, but here’s one more fascinating story. I placed chicken breasts, carrots, curry, chicken stock and onions in the pressure cooker and in 10 minutes I had dinner on the table. I served this over brown rice. Amazing!
I’d say the only hard part of using the pressure cooker is there is a little bit of a learning curve. You have to be willing to experiment to get to know your cooker. Each cooker releases steam at different rates and this can affect the cooking times, especially for rice and beans. I would really like to see more recipes on the manufacturer’s website, and video tutorials would have given me more confidence before my first trial. After using the Sitram Pressure Cooker, I’m no longer fearful of an explosion as the pressure cookers of today are nothing like our grandmothers’ cookers!
I perfected this brown rice recipe and it will be a weeknight staple in our house. Enjoy!
Pressure Cooker Brown Rice
Recipe developed by Kristina LaRue, RD
Makes 3-4 cups
Ingredients
1 cup brown rice
1 cup low sodium chicken stock
2 cups water
Directions
- Place water in bottom of pressure cooker, Then place rice and chicken stock in small stainless steel bowl that fits inside the pressure cooker. (I used an 8-inch round cake pan). This keeps the rice from sticking to the bottom of the cooker.
- Secure and lock the lid to the pressure cooker. Bring the water to a boil until you hear the pressure cooker whistling and steam begins to escape. Reduce heat to medium-high and cook for 12-15 minutes. If you like your rice more al-dente, cook for the lesser time. 15 minutes will produce softer fluffy rice.
- Remove pressure cooker from heat source and allow pressure to escape before opening. (The little red indicator will fall down).
- Pour rice into a bowl and fluff with a fork. Allow to rest for 5 minutes until water residue is absorbed and rice is fluffy.
