Once the pressure has been achieved, you turn down the heat to maintain that pressure. The amount of time will vary according to what you are cooking. If you do not turn down the heat after pressure has been achieved, you will 1) run out of steam generating liquid and 2) burn/scorch the food you are cooking and 3) cause over-pressuring of the pot.

Is this an electronic digital cooker? Whatever, you need to read the manual that came with the cooker and then read it again. Be certain that you always include enough liquid (water, broth, juice, beer, etc.) called for in the recipes for optimum operating.

Teresa

Thanks, I did read the manual, but it really lacked in info. This is a stove top cooker. Once pressure has been achieved you turn it down. If I choose say Medium High, should I leave it at medium high? Do I bring it up and down depending on the bobble? Do most users find a spot (say medium) that they decide is the right temperature? Does it change based on how long you cook the food according to the recipe? Sorry if I'm not being clear!

BTW, the corned beef was awful. Not because of how I cooked it (I don't think!!). The flavor was fantastic, the meat was chewy and gristly. I bought it today, so it wasn't just old meat. I have never thrown away left over corned beef until today. Christy

Your corned beef could have been ground up for hash...
I haven't used a pressure cooker in years....don't like them not the food cooked in them....but in my memory, there is a gauge on the "bobble" thing that tells you what the pressure is in the pot....as I recall it went like 10 pounds, 15 pounds and 20 pounds.
Linda C

If it's a straightforward pressure cooker with just the jiggler / bobbler that sits on top sort of loose and there is not a gauge then generally speaking you always reduce the temperature to the point where the jiggler is just very gently rocking which I find is medium low. With this type of pressure cooker that's about it. The key is all in the timing and the releasing of the pressure. Some things require that the pressure be released immediately to stop cooking, others you remove from the heat and let the pressure drop naturally by sitting there. I've not cooked corned beef in the pc so I'm not sure if that requires a slow pressure release.

If you get a chance, go get the book "Pressure Perfect" by Lorna Sass. It's a bible for pressure cooking recipes.

For her recipe on Corned Beef with Cabbage and Potatoes (pg 104), she cooks hers anywhere from 55 to 70 minutes (depending on beef weight) and uses a natural release method. This is where you let the pressure come down naturally instead of using a quick release method.

I've found this adds approximately 20-30 extra minutes to the cooking time and if not done when recommended (usually for meats), the meat does come out grisly and tough.

I have a 4 qt. Presto stove top pressure cooker that I love to use. It has the "jiggler" top as yours does, so this is what I do:

~ on high heat, bring the food and liquid in the pot up to boiling

~ put on the lid, adjust to lock it on the pot, put the regulator on the pressure vent and keep the heat on high until the regulator starts to sway and rock

~ lower the heat to low (not medium) to keep the pressure regulator gently rocking to maintain the pressure and start a timer according to the cooking time required for whatever you've got in your cooker

~ adjust the heat under the cooker by slightly raising and lowering the temperature to maintain that slight rocking motion of the jiggler - after more use of the cooker, you will know where to set the temp dial and leave it there; also, a gas stove vs. an electric stove will make a difference, I think

~ when the time is up you can turn off the heat and leave the pot sitting there for a "natural release" of the pressure; this will take 10-15 minutes or more, and should not be rushed - or - do a "quick release" of pressure by carefully carrying the pot (with regulator still on the vent) to an empty sink and letting cool water gently stream over the top of the pot which will reduce the pressure more quickly than the "natural release" method; you can also run some water in the sink with the stopper in place and set the pot in the water, then run a thin stream of water over the lid.

The link below has cooking times and lots of recipes for cooking in a pressure cooker. If you need some recipes, just ask and I'll be glad to post some for you.

Teresa

Here is a link that might be useful: Miss Vickie's Guide to Pressure Cooking

Ditto on Lorna Sass's 'Pressure Perfect'.

She also has several other PC books, including a vegetarian one.

The advice about quick release (i.e., venting the pressure or running cold water over the PC in the sink) versus natural release (leaving the PC off heat and allowing the pressure to subside) should be heeded when specified; beef tends to get stringy when the pressure is released too quickly. It generally takes about 10 to 20 minutes (depending on how full the PC is) for the pressure to go back to normal by itself.

Thank you!! Mine is just the bobbler, there is no guage that tells you how much pressure is in the pot. I'm thinking I left the pressure too high, I let it bobble, not slightly bobble. I think it was generally around medium to medium high, so I'll just need to keep trying it out! I've picked up Lorna Sass's book, and Miss Vickie's books was the one I had and liked. I'll flip through them some more. Thanks for the suggestions. Maybe I'll make some boneless pork chops in it tonight :) Christy

My question is.... can you cook meat while it is still frozen in a pressure cooker? And, if so, about how much time do you add to the cook time?

I am learning!

Tami

Here is some info on cooking frozen food in a pressure cooker:

"It is possible to pressure-cook smaller cuts of frozen meat and frozen poultry. You can also easily pressure-cook frozen vegetables. It is not recommended to pressure-cook large pieces of frozen meat and poultry. To pressure-cook thick pieces of frozen meat like beef or pork roasts, it will take up to one-third more than the normal cooking time, and the results will not taste very good. Browning thawed or partially thawed meat before pressure-cooking significantly increases the flavour of the meat." Source: FastCooking.ca

I have not cooked frozen food by pressure cooking, and I would tend to agree with the information above. If you have to increase the amount of cook time to completely cook a large piece of meat, then where is the time saving that is such a benefit of pressure cooking. Plus, you may end up with an inedible hunk o' meat. Strips of beef or maybe chicken wing pieces might be done successfully. But thawing in a microwave before cooking might be the better way to go.

Teresa

I always cook corned beef in the pressure and it is great. Takes about an hour tho.

Thank you, Teresa. I had read a book, fiction, one time that mentioned pressure cooking frozen meat, so it had me wondering, even tho it was fiction! I have not been able to find anything mentioned in the PC books I've gone thru. I mostly used mine for ribs, but now I have a smoker, so it isn't getting much use, even for ribs.

Tami

I have been using pressure cookers for 6 yrs now. But it is Indian version (I took it along with me to the US). It has a way to release pressure. It releases a whistle sound and I keep count of the whistles to cook my recipes. Its really easy. But I don't know whether we get them in other countries...

Here is a link that might be useful: Art of cooking Indian Food