The pressure cooker, or also the "papier mache" or "kuchta", is still a great phenomenon today. Not only would our grandmothers have put their hands in the fire for it, but modern housewives still don't give up on it either. Wonder why? We'll tell you what the secret is and why you too should give in to the pressure and get your own pressure cooker.
In 1679, Denis Papin really knew what he was doing. It is to this French physicist that we owe the invention of pressure cooking, the main aim of which was to speed up the preparation of food. Who knows if he had any idea how evergreen pressure cooking would still be in the 21st century. What's more, modern pressure cookers offer a host of other benefits, including improved safety, thanks to innovative technologies. So let's take a look at why this special pot is so amazing and why it still retains its glory:
More free time
In today's fast-food-obsessed age, more and more emphasis is once again being placed on honest eating. However, with its home preparation it's already a bit of a tougher nut to crack. With classic working hours and a multitude of commitments, many people find it almost impossible to find the time to actually cook. That's why they often reach for easy and quick solutions that can lead them back to a less valuable diet.
But why compromise where a pressure cooker can be an effective solution? Preparing food in it will save you a lot of time that you can devote to more popular activities or to your family. Why is it so quick to prepare in the 'kitchen'? The magic lies in the higher pressure, which allows you to cook food not at 100, but up to 120-140 °C. Thanks to this, the pressure cooker can reduce cooking times by 60 to 70 percent. For example, rice can be cooked in just 5 minutes, lentils in 8 minutes and an honest stew in 45 minutes.
More nutritious food
Did you know that the nutritional value of food depends not only on the quality of the ingredients but also on how they are prepared? So it doesn't matter whether you boil, stew, roast or fry your food. You may have heard that the most nutritious food is prepared by stewing, i.e. preparing it at a low temperature and in a small amount of water, which evaporates under a lid and slowly cooks the food. This way, the ingredients retain their nutritional value and do not lose valuable substances through the escape of steam.
How does a pressure cooker relate to this? Thanks to the special method of cooking in a closed container under higher pressure, the principle works in a similar way. The food is cooked in its own steam and there is no steam leakage, so there is no loss of vitamins either. In the "cook", the food not only retains more nutrients, but also better taste and aroma; in more complex dishes, the flavours blend better. In addition, the Maillard reaction, which (especially in baking or frying) forms harmful acrylamides, usually does not occur in a pressure cooker.
An environmentally friendly lifestyle
A pressure cooker is not in itself a tool for saving the planet, but it is a great addition to a greener lifestyle. What do we mean? If you want to cook more sustainably, you should buy local, seasonal ingredients, buy without packaging or cook without leftovers. With a pressure cooker, you can cook bulk-purchased pulses, rice, pasta and other ingredients quickly and efficiently and avoid buying canned or ready-made meals.
Cooking in a pressure cooker also saves electricity or gas (depending on the type of cooker). Why? By reducing the cooking time, you need much less time to prepare one meal and therefore use less energy. At the same time, energy is not wasted through evaporation as in conventional cooking. As a result, you save money and the planet.
Safe and easy cooking
Cooking in a pressure cooker can seem complicated and even dangerous at first. But nowadays, thanks to modern pressure cookers, there is no risk. Every pressure cooker today has a control valve that allows you to adjust the pressure level. When the level is exceeded, the steam is released by the valve to bring the pressure back to the desired level. At the same time, the pressure cooker also has safety features such as a safety valve or a lid closure fuse.
Thanks to the pressure cooker, you can cook really easily and smartly. Unlike cooking in a regular pot, nothing burns or boils over so easily. Preparing dishes such as soups, sauces or stews will be a breeze for you. You don't have to stand at the stove and stir the food so much that it cooks evenly and nothing burns. When cooking in a "kuchte", you usually just chop the ingredients and put them in the pot with the liquid and seasonings, close the lid and cook. A few minutes later, your kitchen is aglow with a ready-made lunch or dinner for the whole family.
New inspiration
Whether it's a new kitchen, a new blender or a new pan, every change in the kitchen brings a new wind to your cooking. It can motivate you to cook more often, healthier or more varied. Even a new pressure cooker is guaranteed to bring with it new incentives to cook. In the beginning, your curiosity may lead you to new recipes, you may become more interested in the composition of dishes or the quality of ingredients, and the speed and ease of food preparation may make you cook more often and more happily.
Enjoy every change, because with stereotype, taste fades! :)
