A few years ago I looked into pressure cookers and decided to put one on my Christmas wish list. My husband bought me a very nice high quality set and I have loved it! It's called the Duromatic Duo
by Kuhn Rikon.

The large 5 liter pot is what I use most and here's what I use it for:
Roasts
Stew
Chicken pieces - usually only if I just need to cook it so I can use it in something like chicken salad
Soups - just about any kind of soup, but split pea soup is particularly good and much faster than normal cooking
Potatoes
Rice - brown rice takes about half the time
You can go to the Kuhn Rikon web site to learn about the benefits of pressure cooking, but in a nutshell it is healthy, uses less energy, and is faster than conventional cooking.
I used to use my crock pot a lot. So much so that I had two until recently. Since getting the pressure cooker, I have found that my crock pot gets very little use. I love being able to put a roast in the pressure cooker and have it done in an hour. Something like a chuck roast takes much less time. The next night I make soup by throwing the leftover beef along with some veggies, potatoes or rice, maybe some beans, broth and water into the pressure cooker and cooking it for 4 minutes under pressure. My family loves the soup, and we're glad to be getting some cooler weather so we can eat it once again.
I do not cook vegetables in it (unless they are part of a soup) because they cook so quickly. I inevitably overcook them.
I should add a note that many pressure cookers with only one pressure setting give instructions not to cook rice and split pea soup in the pressure cooker. The Kuhn Rikon pots have a high and low presser indicator. Their instructions say that these foods can be cooked under low pressure.
I cook split pea soup for 20 minutes and it turns out great. In fact, I didn't even like it until I made it in the pressure cooker. I first made it as a treat for my husband since he did give me the pots. It smelled so good I had to try it and I've been eating it ever since!
For more kitchen tips visit Tammy's Recipes-Kitchen Tip Tuesday.

A few years ago I looked into pressure cookers and decided to put one on my Christmas wish list. My husband bought me a very nice high quality set and I have loved it! It's called the Duromatic Duo
by Kuhn Rikon.
The large 5 liter pot is what I use most and here's what I use it for:
Roasts
Stew
Chicken pieces - usually only if I just need to cook it so I can use it in something like chicken salad
Soups - just about any kind of soup, but split pea soup is particularly good and much faster than normal cooking
Potatoes
Rice - brown rice takes about half the time
You can go to the Kuhn Rikon web site to learn about the benefits of pressure cooking, but in a nutshell it is healthy, uses less energy, and is faster than conventional cooking.
I used to use my crock pot a lot. So much so that I had two until recently. Since getting the pressure cooker, I have found that my crock pot gets very little use. I love being able to put a roast in the pressure cooker and have it done in an hour. Something like a chuck roast takes much less time. The next night I make soup by throwing the leftover beef along with some veggies, potatoes or rice, maybe some beans, broth and water into the pressure cooker and cooking it for 4 minutes under pressure. My family loves the soup, and we're glad to be getting some cooler weather so we can eat it once again.
I do not cook vegetables in it (unless they are part of a soup) because they cook so quickly. I inevitably overcook them.

I should add a note that many pressure cookers with only one pressure setting give instructions not to cook rice and split pea soup in the pressure cooker. The Kuhn Rikon pots have a high and low presser indicator. Their instructions say that these foods can be cooked under low pressure.
I cook split pea soup for 20 minutes and it turns out great. In fact, I didn't even like it until I made it in the pressure cooker. I first made it as a treat for my husband since he did give me the pots. It smelled so good I had to try it and I've been eating it ever since!
For more kitchen tips visit Tammy's Recipes-Kitchen Tip Tuesday.