My new pressure cooker is coming tomorrow,NEVER used one before! HELP!

[Ridgerunner]

The only thing I'll add to this great information. Look through or blow through the opening for the pressure gauge every time before you use it so you know it starts open. And read the recipes, especially related to time and whether to quick-cool under cold water or let it come down naurally.

 

[msgenie516]

Quote:
Thank you for that great hint! It's so basic and simple but I never even thought about it!

 

[peeplessinNC]

I clean out my pressure vent with a pipe cleaner *almost* after each time I use the cooker. And, I hold the lid up to the window to see that I can see thru the vent and that it's not clogged.

 

[peeplessinNC]

Some more tips I thought of:

~ look in your manual for the amount of liquid needed for your PC to generate enough steam for the pressure - too little and the food may burn and not cook correctly; too much and you might have lots of very hot water dripping around the edges of the pot while cooking

~ store the lid upside down on the pot, it saves the sealing rings from extra wear

~ pressure cookers and pressure canners are two different things; a canner is much larger to hold canning jars filled with food for processing for long storage

~ a cleaner like Barkeeper's Friend will clean up a stainless PC easily

~ notice if your PC has two fill lines inside the pot; the lower one is for items like soup and stew that completely fill the interior; the higher line is the uppermost level that bulky food should reach, like a pot roast sitting in some cooking liquids - the height of the roast should not go past the upper line

~ when cooking cubes of meat, it is helpful to have the cubes all the same approximate size (my mom's stewed beef was always my favorite dish that she made when I was growing up)

Hope this helps those starting out with their pressure cooker!