Test Kitchen chef Luke Dale-Roberts take a modern look at the nostalgic world of pressure cooking.
"I have vivid childhood memories of that very particular fizzing sound coming from the kitchen, often accompanied by a somewhat unpleasant smell
Isn’t it odd that the aroma that a pressure cooker gives off is frequently not the most palatable, yet what awaits beneath the lid is a moreish treat whose rich succulence – one that’s redolent of slow cooking at its best – belies the fact that it’s prepared in no time at all.
I started using a pressure cooker again some five years ago, not, I’m reluctant to admit, because I suddenly saw the light and realised my cooking needed one, but rather because I was asked to endorse the machine and the kind people at AEG gave me a few to play with.
At La Colombe, we experimented with them for all kind of applications: risotto ‘a la minute’, braises and, of course, stocks.
In those days, we made a great quail soup in which the beautifully intense game-bird flavour came courtesy of a pressure cooker.
And it was hardly surprising to learn that, at the famous Fat Duck, most of the stocks are also made using a pressure cooker.
‘No loss of flavour’ is the catchphrase of this kind of cooking.
The recipes here are super easy, so get stuck in and take the pressure up a notch.
PRACTICE YOUR PRESSURE COOKING SKILLS
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