Saturday, February 23, 2013

Saving Money Under Pressure

I've loved this pressure cooking adventure from the minute I started it. Got myself an 8-quart Presto pressure cooker, along with a Fagor Futuro 4- and 6-quart combo and an antique Lagostina that had belonged to a coworker's mother. I love them all, especially the Presto. It's a workhorse, and definitely tough -- I've accidentally managed to fire it up dry, twice, and it's still ok. What's more -- the pressure valve has even survived a very exciting trip through the garbage disposal, and, though it might not be as pretty as it was, it still works fine. Now that's tough!! Pressure cooking has so much to recommend it: Fresh, homemade food with no "junk"; dinner on the table in minutes -- even if you forget to plan ahead; and, you just might find yourself eating an even wider variety of things! That's because it takes so little time to cook even things like beans, potatoes, artichokes, etc., that it's much easier to get them on the table. There's no doubt this approach would help you save money -- things cook in one-third the time, and using very little energy. And you can cook inexpensive things like beans, and cheap cuts of meat, and end up with a dinner worth writing home about, in short order!! Plus, we've found that we're far less dependent on packaged foods, or even, heaven forbid, the local drive-through. But I think the thing that's surprised me most is how it helps us avoid letting food go to waste. Awhile back, there was a lone artichoke in the veggie drawer that I came across while rummaging around for "salad stuff". One of the pressure cookers was already on the stove, with meatloaf cooking away in it. In "the old days", knowing it would take at least 30 minutes to cook, I would probably have put the 'choke back into the fridge, forgotten it again, and it would have ended up, eventually, in the compost bucket. Instead, I trimmed it up and tossed it into the other pressure cooker. And about fifteen minutes later, both the meatloaf and the choke were ready for the table. I'm no longer hesitant to buy or grow potatoes, either -- right now, I have gold, red (new), blue and sweet potatoes on hand. Last night, I cooked a handful of sweet potatoes -- peeled and warmed up a bit, they made an excellent breakfast! It's no problem at all to work potatoes and other things that take awhile to cook into the grand scheme of things, when they cook so quickly in the pressure cooker!! We've found our pressure cookers to be well worth the investment -- you can save money by eating cheaply, cooking quickly -- and avoiding waste!! Read more!