BUT....what is really interesting ( to me at least! LOL!) is that last week I found one of the "jigglers" from my first pressure cooker. I had stashed and forgotten and I assume whoever I gave the cooker to wanted it as just a pot.

It sounds like maybe adding the dairy may have overfilled the cooker?. If it is overfull, then during a quick release some liquid may get into the release valve. I depressurize, open, and repressurize my PC without issues.

I like my pressure cooker, although it isn't electric, it's just a stove top model. I can make chop suey with a tough piece of round in 20 minutes and it comes out super tender. Elery does beans if he's in a hurry, and it's great for oxtail soup. Pasta, though, that cooks in 10 minutes, so I don't think I'd even bother to use the PC for that.

Annie

John, that is good to know.

I don't know what is meant be "I can always find something to do while food is cooking"? do you mean saving time is not worth using a pressure cooker? I often find things to do while food is cooking and that results in things that are burnt and boiled over on the stove.

What I do like about the PC is what I like about crock pots. You can throw everything in one pot.

Re-pressurizing a PC is done all the time with recipes, like pot roast and such when vegetables are added near the end. Repressurizing won't cause the problem you had ... sounds more like there was just too much liquid. When that happens, leave the lid off and switch to a sauté function, if you have it, and let it cook down while stirring. Pasta can get foamy and cause problems, especially if the pot is over 1/2 full.

Try the mac'n'cheese from dadcooksdinner web site. I've made it and it is great.

Mac'n'cheese in pressure cooker.

Like Annie, I can't see the point of Mac n cheese in a pressure cooker. It doesn't take long enough to cook on the stovetop to be worth using a PC, IMO.

Like my Mother always said, "Nasty exploding things." ;-o

I have not made any recipes that called for a quick release of the pressure - fresh vegetables would be the one exception. Generally, when that is the case, the PC is not the best method for cooking. I would never cook pasta in a PC, for example, and I am more like to steam or microwave fresh vegetables, so that I can check them more easily.

A PC has its uses, and it is excellent for some things, but it is not good for everything. I use it mainly for dried beans, rice and grains, and for some vegetables, although I generally mix those in with rice and sometimes at the end of cooking the rice. I do not repressurize at that point, as that can cause the rice to stick, but I will put the rice back on heat at a low temp - like 250° for 2-3 minutes, or until the pressure is back, and then I remove it from heat.

My PC has never exploded, but then mine is less than 10 years old.

It is very important not to overfill the PC, and mine has a clear line that shows its limit. Last week-end I made excellent turkey stock using my large PC pot, and it cut the cooking time by 3/4.

Lars, mine has never exploded either, and it originally belonged to my Grandmother, so I've been using it about 40 years and she used it before that. It never exploded for her either. I don't personally know anyone who had a pressure cooker blow up. The vent on the old models can get clogged with food, especially if overfilled, and the lids could allegedly be opened while still under pressure (although I never knew anyone silly enough to do that). That could result in the contents being blown out under pressure, which could cause some serious injuries, but even that is very rare and is more a problem with the old cookers like mine, which do not have safety mechanisms like the new electric ones.

Annie

I'm ashamed to admit that I've 'sploded' a pressure cooker. Not once, but twice.

Those over-pressure plugs really do work!

Both cases were user error. First time was with the big pressure canner. I've forgotten the reason...mighta' been some chicken skin clogged the vent because I do remember that I was making chix broth. Second time was because I goofed and put a Mirro weight on a Presto cooker. Other than being loud, making a bit of a mess (think of it as a Big Boil-Over), and scaring the crap out of everyone else in the house, there were no bad consequences. Fortunately.

Which reminds me that I need to replace the Presto cooker vent with a vent from the crappy Mirro cooker that is going to the recycler's so I'll not make that mistake again.

Things to know when exploding a PC:

• Six quart cookers make much smaller messes than canner cookers.
• Range hoods are a blessing because they save the need the wash the ceiling.
• You will need to buy a replacement rubber over pressure plug because: A. You're supposed to, according to the directions and B. You're not going to find that used plug until a year from next July.
• Whilst the PC is venting, intervene only to cut the power to the offending burner. Otherwise, just stand back, enjoy the show &, after it's over, call your largest, greediest dog into the kitchen (assuming he's not been permanently traumatized) for Clean-Up Duty.

Put a towel over the pressure release so it doesn't spit all over.

I used to demonstrate and sell PCs. While it's fine to repressurize a roast, etc., in your position, I would have simply simmered the pot, unpressurized, for a few minutes. But, like some of the other commenters, I wouldn't make mac and cheese in the PC in the first place.

Live and learn. Hugs to Lorna Sass and her PC cookbooks.