There are so many things you can fix in a pressure cooker! You'll be amazed at the amount of time you'll save and how tender meats and beans come out. We've included a few of our favorite recipes, and the readers of Frugal-Moms.com have also added their notes. This is just a small sampling of what you can do with a pressure cooker.

The Recipes:

To show you how easy it is to convert a recipe to the pressure cooker, I'll use one of my favorites. I've made this hundreds of times in my Crockpot and wanted to make it for the pressure cooker also. The original recipe is posted first, and then the adapted one.

Favorite Pot Roast (original recipe for Crockpot)

From Crockery Cookery by Mable Hoffman

3-4 pound beef rump or chuck roast (you can also use arm roasts)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
1/4 tsp paprika
1 tbsp instant minced onion (can substitute about onion powder, but use half as much)
1 cup beef bouillon


In a bowl, combine salt, seasoned salt, pepper, paprika and minced onion. Rub all sides of the meat with this mixture. In a slow-cooking pot, combined seasoned beef with onion and bouillon. Cover and let cook on low for 8-10 hours (50-60 minutes in pressure cooker) or until meat is tender. Remove from pot; slice. Makes 6-8 servings.

Notes:

-If gravy is preferred (the plain juices are phenomenal!) thicken juices with flour dissolved in small amount of cold water after removing meat from pot.

-If desired, vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, white onions, celery, or turnips may be added with the bouillon and cooked at the same time. (Don't forget the mushrooms! MMM!)


Favorite Pot Roast (adapted for the pressure cooker)

For pressure cooker, you need more liquid. I've doubled the beef bouillon/water in the recipe. When converting Crockpot to pressure cooker, the cooking time is cut way down. 8-10 hours on low in the Crockpot is about 50-60 minutes in the pressure cooker under 15 pounds of pressure and a little longer under 10 pounds of pressure (perhaps an hour and 15 minutes).

3-4 pound beef rump or chuck roast (you can also use arm roasts)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
1/4 tsp seasoned pepper (I use regular black pepper)
1/4 tsp paprika
1 tbsp instant minced onion (can substitute about onion powder, but use half as much)
2 cups beef bouillon (I use water and bouillon cubes)

In a bowl, combine salt, seasoned salt, pepper, paprika and minced onion. Rub all sides of the meat with this mixture. In pressure cooker, combined seasoned beef with onion and bouillon. Place lid on pressure cooker, local down and cook under 15 pounds pressure for 50-60 minutes. Bring down pressure either naturally or use the water method. Meat should be tender when you open the cooker. (If not, you can put the lid back on and pressure cook for another 10-15 minutes) Remove from pot; slice. Makes 6-8 servings.

Notes:

-If gravy is preferred (the plain juices are phenomenal!) you can thicken juices with flour dissolved in small amount of cold water. Just bring the pressure down, open the cooker, and then add flour and put on low-medium heat until everything thickens (you can remove the meat first and just thicken the juices if you like).

-If desired, vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, white onions, celery, or turnips may be added with the bouillon and cooked at the same time with the meat. (Don't forget the mushrooms! MMM!)


Fried Chicken

Mom brought over her pressure cooker swearing I needed to use it. I told her I was also leary of them. So today with dear mother in tow I have done 15 lbs of fried chicken. It was so totally easy. I had lots of chicken thighs that I didn't know what to do with. Now they're all taken care of.

For a 6 quart pressure cooker:

1/2 c flour
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 cup shortening
1/4 dried diced onions
1 1/4 cup water

Mix all dry ingredients in bag, add chicken and shake. Put shortening in pressure cooker and fry chicken just like on regular frying pan without the lid or rack. Once browned remove chicken add diced onions and water put rack back in pressure cooker put chicken back in pressure cooker on rack put on lid after the gauge thing on top starts to toggle back and forth time for 15 mins.

After 15 mins. of cooking remove and let sit 5 mins. or until you no longer hear the pressure hissing out run cold water over cooker for a few minutes. I put chicken on a tray and put in freezer until well frozen then put in bags for us to pick individual pieces as needed.

If you cook it right from the pressure cooker it just goes right in to the oven until crisp. But like I said I will be removing mine from freezer and put in oven until crisp.

It is so good and so easy if you are having a busy day and need something quick. I think pressure cookers are more economical because it cooks in such a short period of time. will be doing baked beans tomorrow wish me luck. OMAC pressure cooker is so valuable.


Green Beans and Potatoes

Quarter red potatoes, I cook the potatoes first with a small amount of water about 1/2 to 3/4 cup depending on how big your pressure cooker is, and the amount of potatoes etc. After cooker comes up to pressure time for around 2 minutes (you want them cooked but not mushy) (if not cooked yet bring to pressure again and time for another minute) put the cooker in sink and run cold water over it to get the pressure off. Open the lid and add 1 or 2 cans green beans, some ham scraps or bacon, chopped onions and whatever seasonings you like I use salt pepper sometimes garlic or seasoning salt. Return to burner without the top of the pressure cooker and simmer until beans, etc., are heated through and onions cooked. I do all this ahead of time and just let everything simmer until dinner.

If you want potatoes for mashed potatoes cook them a little longer drain and mash.


Dried Beans

One thing I never knew was that you can cook dry beans in the pressure cooker. Not even soaked first. My instructions say 4 c. water for 1 c. beans and don't fill more than 1/2 full, whereas you can fill other things 2/3. I tried this with Pintos, cooked them 30 minutes on the lower pressure, but it was not long enough. About 40 minutes more did the trick and they were great! This is a Godsend to me, as we love beans, but I always forget to soak them or don't get them in the Crockpot early enough.

You can do anything with liquid in the pressure cooker. I use my Crockpot recipes and usually cook them 30-40 minutes for beef and pork, 20 minutes for chicken.


Brown Rice with Veggies

1 cup brown rice
2 cups chicken broth
1 (2-ounce) package sliced blanched almonds
1/2 cup diced carrots
1/2 cup diced celery
1/2 cup diced green pepper
1/2 cup sliced green onion
1 large tomato, peeled, seeded, and chopped
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 cup chopped parsley

Combine brown rice and 2 cups chicken broth in a metal bowl which fits loosely in a 6-quart Presto pressure cooker. Stir in almonds and vegetables. Place 1 1/2 cups water, cooking rack or steamer basket, and bowl in cooker. Close cover securely. Place pressure regulator on vent pipe. Cook 10 minutes, at 15 pounds pressure, with pressure regulator rocking slowly. Let pressure drop of its own accord. Open cooker and allow rice to steam uncovered 5 minutes. Stir in parsley.

Makes 4 servings.

Note: For a meatless meal, after cooking, stir in 1/2 pound tofu cut into cubes. Pass hot sauce such as Tabasco.


Swiss Steak

The original recipe from Mirro included pickled onions. Those didn't sound so exciting to me, so I adapted this recipe to my family's tastes. I add two cans of stewed tomatoes and 1-2 cups of water, depending on how long I'm cooking this dish. If I make a double batch, I use 2 cups of water so that the meal doesn't burn before I can get the pressure down.

For a 4 QT cooker

1/4 cup Flour
1 tsp. Salt
dash Pepper
1 1/2 lbs Round Steak-1/2 inch thick
2 Tbsp Shortening* or oil
2 cans of stewed tomatoes
1-2 cups water

For a 6-8 QT cooker

1/3 cup Flour
2 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Pepper
3 lbs Round Steak-1/2 inch thick
3 Tbsp. Shortening* or oil
2 cans of stewed tomatoes
1-2 cups water

Cooking Directions for both size cookers

Mix flour, salt and pepper. Dice steak into cubes, coat with flour mixture. Brown in hot shortening/oil in cooker. Add tomatoes and water to steak in cooker. Cover, set control at 10 and cook 30 minutes after control jiggles (or cook at 15 for 25 minutes). Cool cooker normally for 5 minutes, the place under faucet.

Once you open the cooker, you can thicken the juices for a "tomato gravy". Simply mix a little flour with a little bit of cold water, then add to the cooker. Cook with lid off, for about 5 minutes or until juices thicken. Repeat if necessary to thicken juices to the desired consistency.

* Any of the following may be used: fat, vegetable shortening, butter, margarine, etc.


Shredded Taco Meat

This recipe comes from our friends at BabyUniversity.com

Ingredients:

2 - 3 lb Roast (cut doesn't matter -- whatever is on sale!)
3 large potatoes, peeled & diced
1 packet Taco Seasoning Mix and
1 cup water

Put all ingredients in the pressure cooker and lock down. Cook for 30 minutes once it comes up to full pressure. Remove from heat and allow to cool down. Once rocker stops, remove lid and chop up meat and potatoes.

Spoon into heated taco shells, add your favorite toppings, and enjoy!


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Recipes for the Pressure Cooker
(Nitty Gritty Cookbooks)

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What's Related: Pressure Cooker Basics | Printable Crock Pot Recipes

About the Author
Kim Tilley, a tightwad at heart, is a wife, a mother of three active boys and the founding editor of Frugal-Moms.com. Frugal by force and later by choice, Kim cut her income by 60% to stay at home with her children and discovered that anyone can live better for less. Her work has appeared in print publications such as The Tightwad Gazette. In her free time, she entertains herself by chasing kids and finding ways to create something from nothing!

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