Pressure cookers

[Cobwebs]

I'd always been one for gadgets and must have cupboards full of just about everyone you can think of, gathering dust now I might add. I have a pressure cooker which is about 10yrs old now but only used it a couple of times and used the base as a pan to make chutney.

My actual cooking aids now are:

1 Samsung Hotblast combi microwave (roasts, slim fry (like air fry), microwave, steams, grills, convection oven, hotblast (hot air blown down onto food when roasting or baking) and lots more. (roasts a large chicken in 30mins)
1 Samsung combi microwave
1 Ninja Air Fryer
1 Large Slow Cooker I use this for stews and casseroles
1 Small Slow Cooker (I use this for spaghetti bolognese and other bulky sauces)
1 Halogen Cooker (not used this for some time though)

I use the hob on my main cooker about two or three time a year and the top oven is never used. The bottom fan oven I use very rarely.

Yes I did spend money on the appliances but they have all paid for themselves in energy savings now either individually or using one or two at the same time when making a meal.

The most frequently used aids are the slow cookers and the air fryer. If I buy a joint of meat I usually cook that in the large slow cooker as it cooks meat perfectly and if you leave the joint in a bit longer it's ideal for pulled pork or beef.

If I had to cut down to just 2 aids then it would have to be those two I think.

 

[Resurgam]

I am about to send my meter readings to the company and I can see that there has been less use in the last month than the forecast amount. The pressure cooker is obviously an energy saver.
There were stove top pressure cookers in Lidl recently so I suspect that they are not unusual. Cost about £30.

 

[Annb]

My mother used to use an old fashioned Prestige pressure cooker, very successfully. Many years ago I bought a more modern one - stainless steel and without the weights on top. I bought 2 new seals about a year ago because I wanted to get it back into operation but when I put one on, I found the lid wouldn't lock - something has gone wrong with the mechanism. It's a shame because it's still in excellent condition but totally useless as a pressure cooker and I have loads of other steel pans anyway. I would buy a new one because they are great time and money savers, but I can't afford it, so I continue to waste money on fuel but try not to use slow cooking methods to save electricity. There are ramifications to that of course - cheap meat can be slow cooked but fast cooking needs more expensive meat. Can't win!

 

[Resurgam]

My mother used to use an old fashioned Prestige pressure cooker, very successfully. Many years ago I bought a more modern one - stainless steel and without the weights on top. I bought 2 new seals about a year ago because I wanted to get it back into operation but when I put one on, I found the lid wouldn't lock - something has gone wrong with the mechanism. It's a shame because it's still in excellent condition but totally useless as a pressure cooker and I have loads of other steel pans anyway. I would buy a new one because they are great time and money savers, but I can't afford it, so I continue to waste money on fuel but try not to use slow cooking methods to save electricity. There are ramifications to that of course - cheap meat can be slow cooked but fast cooking needs more expensive meat. Can't win!

The pressure cooker will make a big difference to the cooking time even for tougher meat - I made the mistake of over cooking a chicken a while ago and it simply fell apart - I tried to lift it out of the pan - stuck two meat lifters into it and it disintegrated. The old hens used to go into the pressure cooker on a trivet - now I know why.