Matt Pelton - Cooking Under Pressure

2018 Matt Pelton

All rights reserved.

Instant Pot and associated logos are owned by Double Insight Inc. Used under license.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form whatsoever, whether by graphic, visual, electronic, film, microfilm, tape recording, or any other means, without prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief passages embodied in critical reviews and articles.

The views expressed within this work are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Cedar Fort, Inc., or any other entity. Permission for the use of sources, graphics, and photos is also solely the responsibility of the author.

ISBN 13: 978-1-4621-2883-9

Published by Front Table Books, an imprint of Cedar Fort, Inc.

2373 W. 700 S., Springville, UT 84663

Distributed by Cedar Fort, Inc., www.cedarfort.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Pelton, Matt, 1976- author.

Title: Cooking under pressure / Matt Pelton.

Description: Springville, Utah : Hobble Creek Press, an imprint of Cedar Fort, Inc., [2017] | Includes index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2017057340 (print) | LCCN 2017060656 (ebook) | ISBN 9781462128839 (epub, pdf, mobi) | ISBN 9781462121885 (perfect bound : alk. paper)

Subjects: LCSH: Pressure cooking.

Classification: LCC TX840.P7 (ebook) | LCC TX840.P7 P424 2017 (print) | DDC 641.5/87--dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017057340

Cover and page design by M. Shaun McMurdie

Cover design 2018 Cedar Fort, Inc.

Edited by Melissa J. Caldwell

Also by Matt Pelton

From Mountaintop to Tabletop: A Complete Guide to Cooking Wild Game

The Cast Iron Chef

The Cast Iron Gourmet

Dutch Oven Pies: Sweet & Savory

Up in Smoke: A Complete Guide to Cooking with Smoke

Beginner's Dutch Oven Cookbook

Dedication

I dedicate this book to all of my friends who stepped up when the pressure was tight (pun intended) to help me test the recipes for this book. I cant begin to tell you all how much that meant to me. Thank you all for all of your friendship and support over the years!

Contents

Introduction

I have to admit that when I was approached about doing an Instant Pot cookbook, I didnt know too much about the Instant Pot. I had seen them and even eaten several meals made in them. I was familiar with pressure cookers. Ive been cooking with stovetop models for my entire life. It has always been my go to when I needed to braise meat quickly or cook potatoes in a hurry. The very first time I used the Instant Pot, I was hooked. This tool is super user friendly, easy to use, and very consistent. The instructions for setup were easy plug and play. I had my first meal cooked (chile verde) within two hours of opening the box. In all of my recipes following, I have included the instructions that I used to create the dish. There will be adjustments depending on the particular ingredients you use (some veggies and meats will have a higher moisture content than others). These recipes will give you a really good basis to have gourmet success with your Instant Pot. A lot of the recipes that I have included in this book are award-winning dutch oven recipes that I have adapted to cook under pressure. Many of these recipes I have held back for a number of years and have released just for this book. Enjoy!

In this section I have compiled a list of cooking terms and tips that will help you in your quest to be a gourmet cook.

What Is an Instant Pot?

T he Instant Pot is a brand name of electronically controlled pressure cookers. There have been many of these pop up on the market recently. A pressure cooker is a vessel that cooks food quickly by increasing the heat by increasing the pressure. For more than a century, pressure cookers have been used as a means to cook things quickly and have been critical in canning and bottling meat especially (the higher heat and pressure is needed to kill off harmful bacteria in meat). The Instant Pot and others like it are fully functional pressure cookers but are very easy to use with their functions and controls.

Bases and Mother Sauces

ROUX: Roux is a mixture of fat and flour used for thickening liquids and for flavor. I use butter almost exclusively in my roux because of the flavor. There are several stages of roux. First is a blonde rouxthis will have the most thickening power but will lend the least amount of flavor. You want to use a blonde roux whenever you make white or light color sauces. To accomplish this, you want to saut the flour and butter together stirring constantly until the mixture smells like popcorn and will appear blonde in color. Next is the dark blonde rouxthis roux is used for thickening darker sauces such as soups and stews and poultry gravy. It will not thicken to the point of the blonde roux but it will add loads more flavor and give you a lighter consistency. To achieve this, continue stirring and cooking past the blonde roux stage until the color appears similar to dark blonde hair. You should smell a slight nutty flavor. Next is light brown rouxthis is the roux you should use for brown sauces and gravies. I use this exclusively for dishes made with beef. It provides a nice bold flavor but does not thicken as well as the blonde roux. To achieve this, continue cooking and stirring past the blonde point until the roux is the color of chocolate milk; it will have a very nutty aroma. Next and final is the dark brown or brick roux. I only use this roux for Cajun cooking. It is a staple for Gumbo. Its used primarily as a flavor and not nearly as much for thickening. To achieve this, continue cooking past the light brown stage. Stir rapidly at this point or it may burn. The color will become a rich brownish red and will have a very strong smell. Be careful as it is easy to overcook the roux and burn it.

Regardless of the roux that you use, make sure to constantly stir it. When you mix in your liquid ingredients, it is better if they are cold. The cold liquid poured into a hot roux will create a chemical reaction with the starches and literally explode them into the sauce creating smaller bonds and therefore a smoother sauce. Your grandmas roux likely consisted of stirring in flour into the bottom of the skillet after cooking pork chops or chicken that were cooked in butter or oil. She then poured water and slat and whisked it into a gravy for the meal. This is still a great technique, especially to match the flavor profile. Now that you understand what a roux is, you can make a superior sauce using the same technique.

MIREPOIX: This is the base of so many recipes. Its very easy to make and provides the building blocks for wonderful flavors. It consists of 2 parts onion, 1 part carrots, and 1 part celery cooked in oil or butter to sweat the essences, and then liquid is added to make a sauce.