|
|
ABOUT PRESSURE COOKING
You are about to find out why Fagor Pressure Cookers are the single most important piece of cookware you'll ever own. You will find in the Fagor Pressure Cooker your new best friend in the kitchen, enabling you to prepare healthy, diverse meals in 70% less time than traditional cooking. Cook risotto in 7 minutes, chicken in 15 minutes, rice in 5 minutes and even cheesecake in 30 minutes!
Fagor is the leader in the pressure cooker category. Our quality pressure cookers are valued and trusted by home cooks and professionals alike. We have earned our reputation by specifically designing our cookware to be long lasting, safe and easy to use.
Convenience, quality and style are what set our products apart from the competitors. All Fagor models feature components that greatly reduce the cooking time and take the guesswork out of the pressure cooking experience.
Enjoy your Fagor pressure cooker year-round:
In the summer: Because foods are cooked under pressure with the lid on, this reduces heat in the kitchen area. Enjoy healthy and simple rice, beans or potato salads!
In the fall and winter: Delicious soups and stews in no time at all!
In the spring: In a pressure cooker, you can keep most of the color found in fresh, spring vegetables because pressure cooking maintains the natural color and flavor of foods. Some Fagor models can be used as pressure canners as well, helping you stock your pantry with your favorite sauces, jellies or meats.
What are the Benefits of Pressure Cooking?
FAST. Saves up to 70% in cooking time! Your favorite recipes can easily be adapted to cook in 1/3 of the time.
EASY. Just load the ingredients and liquids into the cooker, close the lid, bring to pressure and cook, then release and open the lid.
It’s that simple!
HEALTHY. Because foods are cooked under pressure, up to 50% more vitamins and minerals are retained. Also, shorter cooking
times retain more nutritional values of food as well as the natural color. In addition, it cooks without oil.
SAFE. Fagor Pressure Cookers have three safety valves that permit any possible excess pressure to escape, so the cooking
experience is completely secure.
VERSATILE. All types of foods can be cooked in a pressure cooker – from vegetables, rice, stews, soups, chicken, fish, meat,
even desserts.
ENERGY EFFICIENT. Because pressure cooking reduces cooking times up to 70%, this means a tremendous conservation of energy.
OFFERS GREAT TASTE. The steam pressure breaks down the fibers in food in a very short time, leaving food moist and succulent,
with an intense intermingling of flavors.
How A Pressure Cooker Works excerpt from The Ultimate Pressure Cooker Cookbook, by Tom Lacalamita, Simon & Schuster
A pressure cooker is basically a metal pot with a lid. The lid components vital to the function and operation of the pressure cooker are the rubber-sealing gasket, pressure regulator, and pressure-relief valves. When the lid is properly locked into place on the pressure cooker, an air- and steam-tight seal is created. As the cooking liquid in the pressure cooker is heated over high heat to the boiling point (212 °F), steam is created. Since the steam cannot escape from the sealed pressure cooker, it remains trapped inside and pressure is created. The internal cooking temperature will vary depending on the different levels of pressure created by the trapped steam. The amount of pressure is measured in pounds of pressure per square inch (psi). Some of our models only cook at high pressure, while others have two pressure levels. In developing and testing the recipes contained in this book, high pressure was used for each recipe with excellent results. For the most part, foods cooked under high pressure are cooked at 250 °F, which is 38 °F hotter than when food is boiled in a normal pot and speeds up the cooking process considerably.
Pressure Cooking at High Altitudes
If you are cooking at high altitudes the cooking times must be longer, as water and cooking liquids come to a boil more slowly. A rule of thumb to remember is to increase the cooking time by 5% for every 1,000 feet above the first 2,000 feet ( 3,000 feet above sea level, add 5% to cooking time; 4,000 feet, add 10% ; and so on). Since the cooking times increase at altitudes higher than 2,000 feet, you will also have to add more cooking liquid to compensate. There are no fixed rules, so try increasing the cooking liquid by approximately half the percentage of the additional cooking time. For example, if the cooking time is increased by 10%, increase the cooking liquid by 5%. |
|
