Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Cooking tips for Indians - Pressure cooking
Advantages of Pressure Cooking:
I have seen many Indians reluctant to use a pressure cooker for making curry, the key part of an Indian meal. Probably they think that pressure cooking does not bring about much taste to the curry. May be there is a little truth in it, since adequate water is required to pressure cook. Much time is saved by pressure cooking compared to open cooking. While cooking openly, one has to watch continually, stir it so that it is not burnt, and be attentive all the time, taking atleast half an hour. Pressure cooked curry tastes a little bit different from that of an open cooked curry, probably because of more water. However, it's not a full trade off. The loss of taste is less, compared to the time saved. However, it is an individual decision. If one thinks the best way to use his/her time is to stand by while open cooking, it is his/her decision. With proper technique and experience, one can cook fine-tasting curries with a pressure cooker. And curries cooked in water are healthier than those cooked in oil. One can look for pressure cooking Indian recipes in the Cooker company's brochures. I don't think the loss of vitamins is much compared to open cooking. Though pressure cooking occurs at higher temperature, loss of vitamins is less since less water is lost.
Tips for pressure cooking:
Don't use too much water. Use water to just immerse the vegetables, and not any more. Actually, water can slightly less than immersing. Fry the green peppers, curry leaves, onions, turmeric, spices, etc. first and then put the cut vegetables, red pepper and salt, and stir, and finally pour water and close the lid. You will learn the adequate number of whistles to cook and the time to wait before opening the lid, by trial and error.
Choosing a pressure cooker:
Size: There is a trade off between the size of the cooker and cooking time. Generally, for six servings of curry (3 people*2 meals), a 5 liter cooker is sufficient. Choose your cooker size based on your needs.
Type and Brand: Pressure cookers with external seal (gasket) take more time to cook, and it is costly as well as cumbersome to replace those gaskets frequently which do not last long. An example is Prestige (India). Those with internal seals like Hawkins (India) cook much faster and the seals do not need replacement usually. The ISI marking in India is not really based on standards in reality. I would suggest you to go for Hawkins, a bit expensive by Indian standards, or any other internal seal cooker. Cheaper brands too are safe because of the built in safety valve.
Metal: The best cookers are non-stick, stainless steel, and aluminium-alloy - in that order. In the first two types, you can keep the curry in them without transferring it to a different container. But in the third type, since a curry corrodes the aluminium alloy which is harmful to health, you have to transfer the curry to a different non-corroding (non-aluminium) curry as soon as the curry cools; this requires washing an additional utensil.
Shape: It is easier to mix in a wide-bodied cooker, and it heats up faster as well.
So, I would recommend a Hawkins, Non-stick, Wide bodied, 5-7 liter pressure cooker.
Please let me know if have more information and recipes.
I wish you a happy and great-tasting cooking!
¶ 8:02 PM
Advantages of Pressure Cooking:
I have seen many Indians reluctant to use a pressure cooker for making curry, the key part of an Indian meal. Probably they think that pressure cooking does not bring about much taste to the curry. May be there is a little truth in it, since adequate water is required to pressure cook. Much time is saved by pressure cooking compared to open cooking. While cooking openly, one has to watch continually, stir it so that it is not burnt, and be attentive all the time, taking atleast half an hour. Pressure cooked curry tastes a little bit different from that of an open cooked curry, probably because of more water. However, it's not a full trade off. The loss of taste is less, compared to the time saved. However, it is an individual decision. If one thinks the best way to use his/her time is to stand by while open cooking, it is his/her decision. With proper technique and experience, one can cook fine-tasting curries with a pressure cooker. And curries cooked in water are healthier than those cooked in oil. One can look for pressure cooking Indian recipes in the Cooker company's brochures. I don't think the loss of vitamins is much compared to open cooking. Though pressure cooking occurs at higher temperature, loss of vitamins is less since less water is lost.
Tips for pressure cooking:
Don't use too much water. Use water to just immerse the vegetables, and not any more. Actually, water can slightly less than immersing. Fry the green peppers, curry leaves, onions, turmeric, spices, etc. first and then put the cut vegetables, red pepper and salt, and stir, and finally pour water and close the lid. You will learn the adequate number of whistles to cook and the time to wait before opening the lid, by trial and error.
Choosing a pressure cooker:
Size: There is a trade off between the size of the cooker and cooking time. Generally, for six servings of curry (3 people*2 meals), a 5 liter cooker is sufficient. Choose your cooker size based on your needs.
Type and Brand: Pressure cookers with external seal (gasket) take more time to cook, and it is costly as well as cumbersome to replace those gaskets frequently which do not last long. An example is Prestige (India). Those with internal seals like Hawkins (India) cook much faster and the seals do not need replacement usually. The ISI marking in India is not really based on standards in reality. I would suggest you to go for Hawkins, a bit expensive by Indian standards, or any other internal seal cooker. Cheaper brands too are safe because of the built in safety valve.
Metal: The best cookers are non-stick, stainless steel, and aluminium-alloy - in that order. In the first two types, you can keep the curry in them without transferring it to a different container. But in the third type, since a curry corrodes the aluminium alloy which is harmful to health, you have to transfer the curry to a different non-corroding (non-aluminium) curry as soon as the curry cools; this requires washing an additional utensil.
Shape: It is easier to mix in a wide-bodied cooker, and it heats up faster as well.
So, I would recommend a Hawkins, Non-stick, Wide bodied, 5-7 liter pressure cooker.
Please let me know if have more information and recipes.
I wish you a happy and great-tasting cooking!
¶ 8:02 PM