Friday, May 29, 2015

Chicken and Rice in a Hurry

Sorry to make this blog post without a picture but we ate it. I had some boneless chicken thighs that needed to  be use and not much time last night. So I pulled out the pressure cooker and went to work.

First I turned on the saute and threw in a chopped onion, a handful of fresh garlic, salt, pepper, adobe, and the chicken thighs into the bottom of the pressure cooker where I was heating about 1/8 a cup of oil (use your choice of oils). I let the onions turn to a little translucent and seared the chicken for about five minutes. 

Then I added a cup and a half of rice, two tablespoons of butter, and three cups of water. I made sure the butter was melted to give some flavor to the whole thing- nobody said it was healthy!!!  The top was ready to go on and push the meat/stew button and away we go. The cooking time was about 35 minutes under pressure.It came out really great. The rice was perfect. I let it rest as the chefs would say and then mixed it up a little. 

This was good, filling with a veggie on the side. We called it dinner and leftovers for the next day. I usually try to take a picture so you can see what it looks like but there was not time. The husband had his fork and knife in hand waiting for a plate to attack. 

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Lynne Under Pressure.....Cooking

Greeting and salivations!
I am writing this blog because a friend of mine hooked me on using a pressure cooker to do fast meals. We were on our way to a program her daughter was doing and I was complaining about cooking and the mess every night. Every night is make the mess before we eat and clean the mess after we ate. After spending years a slave to the stove and feeding a family I wanted to plan my escape.

Kay, the friend, said that I needed something I didn't probably even know about-an electric pressure cooker. She extolled the virtues of the machine as we made our way up the interstate to Sarasota. She spoke about how pressure cooking locks in the flavors and cooks the contents in less than half the time. How the electric machines have so many safety features that you didn't have to worry about blowing it up like my mother's old fashion one. She talked about the machine being a slow cooker, being able to saute, and make rice all in the same pot-not at the same time. She enticed me with the removable stainless steel pot that can be had from 4 quarts to 8 quarts...whatever your heart or family size desires. I drooled at the thought of having a one pot meal which could be two meals which means two days of cooking in one. I could see myself down to two plates and two forks in the evening which means I get to watch Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy!!! Oh what a dream this machine must be to offer that much freedom to a kitchen slave for the past forty years. The best memory I had of my mother's  pressure cooking offerings was the corn flake breaded pork chops that melted in your mouth. I am sure she used it for beans and other things but the pork chops were heavenly.

So the next day while I was working at home on paperwork in front of the television, I had the YouTube channel on watching whatever appeared from the many subjects that people post. Low and behold the InstaPot Channel popped up and there were an array of little videos on how to use it and what to make in it. This was a Tuesday. I went straight to Amazon and bought one which arrived on Thursday and had a roast in it by Friday. Who knew that you could have meat, potatoes, carrots, onions and celery in about forty minutes and leftovers for the next day!!!! My kitchen chains have been removed. Kay freed me from those days of spending at least two to three hours in the kitchen slaving over a stove and three or four pots cooking away spewing their contents on the stove that had to be cleaned after the conventions of the meal were done. It is serve from the pot and be done with the meal!!! What a concept.

After watching every YouTube video that featured a pressure cooker and reading every post on Pinterest, my friend Kay said it was time I either did a blog or a vlog. So here we are with the first  entry. I am including a picture of one of my eye of round roast and veggies...YUM!! Watch for recipes and tips to come.