I absolutely LOVE my pressure cooker! My mom bought me one years ago from India (so it's a little different than those here) and while it took me a while to get used to it, I couldn't cook without it now. I use it for beans, whole grains, dal, even beets! Once you have the timing down, it really cuts down on cooking times for everything. In fact, I was running late this morning for work, but still managed to cook up a pot of brown rice in under 20 minutes.

The pressure cooker is awesome for canning meats - specifically deer meat from my husbands hunting. It's a quick easy lunch option for him and pretty easy to do.
I also love cooking pork chops and cabbage in it. The pork chops fall apart and the cabbage gets nice flavor from steaming with the pork. Every kitchen should have one!
I will admit, I was kind of scared when I used mine for the first time - it's huge and can hold 24 mason jars - I had visions of shattered jars and molten hot goo everywhere - but it works perfect!

my partner is from india and he introduced me to pressure cooking. we mostly use it for indian meals but occasionally it comes out to cook rice, beans, or other grains for other types of dishes. Would love some good recipes outside of indian cuisine to use it for. I have tried a few with bad results.

I have a small kitchen with limited storage for small appliances. Do you think a pressure cooker can replace my slow cooker?

Artichokes, risotto (so creamy, so quick!), beans...

Artichokes, beans, pot roast (delicious), risotto

I use mine for beans and rice all the time. It's especially good since I live at nearly 6,000 above sea level, and you can simmer beans all day long and they will still be crunchy!

I use my pressure cooker constantly, cooking everything that one would normally cook on the stove top, with the exception of frying or grilling. It is awesome for stews, soups, beans, steaming veggies. Corn on the cob? Wonderful! The caution is to make sure the vent is kept open and clean, and get the water amount accurate. The challenge is in the timing, which matters more with some foods than others.

I use my pressure cooker to make boiled peanuts.

Yes and I love it! I make stew, chili, mashed potatoes, cook pasta, roasts and whatever else I want cooked quick. Its awesome and I think that everyone should have one!

Another pressure cooker lover here. I use mine at least once a week, if not more, for beans, stews, longer-cooking veggies (beets, artichokes, potatoes), pulled pork, and making stock. The ease of making stock alone makes a pressure cooker worthwhile. I don't own a slow cooker and admit that I don't see the point of one, though I know many who love theirs. Looking forward to more Kitchn recipes/articles with pressure cookers!

I have had my pressure cooker for about 3 months and I am so in love with it! I cook dried beans in it a couple times a week, it is also great for making your own veggie broth and soups, potatoes. Thanks for the idea for artichokes, Lillies and weffie, great idea! And ATN654, boiled peanuts great idea... how long do you boil them for with the pressure cooker?

We received a pressure cooker as a wedding present and I've used it several times, for bean chili and pot roast-y concoctions. BUT I don't get how it's much better/more efficient. The technical cooking time is shorter, but the amount of time I wait for the steam indicator to go back to normal is almost always as long as the cooking time! Basically I end up cooking something for 1.5 hours (including cooking time and time for the steam indicator to return to normal/release status) -- but any dish that I have 1.5 hours for, I usually have 2-2.5 hours for - in which case I'd rather use my Staub cookware. I am totally willing to learn from others - am I doing something wrong?

I bought won almost two years ago after hearing about them for years and finally gave it a try and I love it. I mostly use it for beans and risotto and soup, I have a bunch of recipes I created that are true winners. http://www.joyofkosher.com/2010/10/adventures-with-my-pressure-cooker/

@emmeleau - my pressure cooker has a steam escape switch for, literally, letting off steam, and a button to tell me when I can open. this reduces the steam enough to open in about a minute. I thought all pressure cookers had to have some kind of steam vent like this. Maybe check the documentation/user manual for your cooker.

Beans, stews, risotto (not so much). Love it!

@Emmeleau: does your slow cooker not have a quick release? The little dial on that Fagor above has a steam release function. Most of them you just have to turn the pressure knob until steam comes out. I usually do this wearing oven mitts...and often poke it with a spatula so I can stay well out of the way of the steam. Quick release should only take a couple minutes, instead of waiting the 30-40 for natural release.

Also, risotto, ribs, stew, beans, long-cooking grains.

lella and amanda0730 - you have just rocked my world. will look at manual tonight!

@portlandvegan, about an hour or so.

This is the recipe that I've used more or less:
http://www.goodearthpeanuts.com/recipes/BoiledPeanutsPressureCooker.htm

I love to add brown sugar and a pinch of cayenne to the water to make them swee/salty/spicy.

Hi I use my pressure cooker almost everyday,to cook lentil and curried vegetables,it shortens the cooking time,,

I second the artichoke comments. I usually steam my artichokes. Recently I tried steaming them under pressure, and it will now be my go-to method. Not only is it quicker, but the artichokes were more evenly done and so tender and good.

I am curious. How much time to make a pot of chicken stock in a pressure cooker?

This is so awesome! I requested the pressure cooker recipes - I just started using one, but I am having such a hard time finding pressure cooker recipes online (there are, what, 5 recipes on epicurious for it?). These comments alone are so helpful...

@ithink - a full-bodied chicken stock takes ~30 minutes at pressure, though of course you can cook for longer. I usually boil water in my electric kettle, then add to the pressure cooker to speed up the time even more. I can make stock after dinner in the time that it takes me to clean up the kitchen, which is pretty awesome.

@emmeleau: even if your pressure cooker doesn't have a quick release dial, you can run your pressure cooker under the tap--cold running water--and the pressure will drop within seconds. This is my method.

Corned beef is AWESOME in the pressure cooker. It's like the herbs and spices just infuse into the meat. I've also made a delicious coconut rice with shrimp dish, and use it to make soup fast. Pot roast comes out great too.

Faith, so glad to read that you are finally tackling pressure cooking and getting acquainted with yours! I'm glad to help, troubleshoot and answer any questions. Can't wait to read about your adventures under pressure!

Ciao,

L

Steamed new potatoes (10 mins), meltingly soft carrots (5 mins), lentils (10 mins), casseroles (30 mins).

I received a pressure cooker for Christmas two years ago and adore it! It's a kuhn rikon and gets used at least once a week. I love this model since it does come up to pressure super fast and is not difficult to keep at high pressure so I don't have to sit and babysit it. I have a great book for it by Lorna Sass, really makes a big difference for me not having to guess or always be searching for recipes. My favorite things to make in it are risotto (4 min high pressure!), chili (5 min high pressure) , brown rice (15 min), and i even once cooked a whole 4 lb. chicken (20 min high pressure and it was delicious). I had a slow cooker and sold it, I love the fresher taste of food that comes out of a pressure cooker.

I use it to cook chicken breasts to be shredded (by the mixer). Simple and fast

I made the best boeuf bourguignonne of my life in my pressure cooker. 20 minutes...what's not to love.

I love mine, I make beans, pot roast (delicious), risotto and fast better than jarred marinara sauce; about 20 minutes. Great books to have on hand for pressure cooking are Miss Vickie's Big Book of Pressure Cooker Recipes; Cooking Under Pressure ; Pressure Perfect: Two Hour Taste in Twenty Minutes Using Your Pressure Cooker.

http://allrecipes.com/recipes/everyday-cooking/pressure-cooker/
http://missvickie.com/
http://www.food.com/recipes/pressure-cooker
http://fastcooking.ca/pressure_cookers/cooking_times_pressure_cooker.php

Google is your friend ;)

I use my pressure cooker to make pulled pork. My friends laugh that i have a pressure cooker they recognize that their grandmother had one but I dont care, i call it my microwave for the stove.

Ribs! And pulled pork.

I use my pressure cooker for daily use. i cook rice and mean time i can steam meat, fish, hard biol eggs, chick peas and veggies too. it save gas and with in 15- 20 mins like u can have a complete meal. and if you don't have a rice cooker this is the best way to get rice cooked without hassle!!

Oh yes, this site too for pressure cooking https://www.facebook.com/hippressurecook

Love them! I ditched my microwave and no longer have an oven in a small foreign galley kitchen with a ceramic cooktop, but my pressure cooker is so versatile I can live without the others, and the time and flavor saved is a boon. I also use the thing as a deep skillet and there is less splatter, and I can braise, stew, or steam with layers and the lid on and still have a roasted skin, tender inside. Stocks and stews are the best. The newer heavy bottomed cookers are preferable to the Presto brand that can warp at high initial heat, but I shy away from anything too fancy. My sister-in-law and her family lived on a sailboat in the Caribbean and Pacific and her Presto pressure cooker had to double as an emergency salt-to steam-to-freshwater converter in a pinch with some extra tubing. A real lifesaver!

i use it for tons of things! risotto, quick bolognese, short ribs, pork shoulder, artichokes, beans, so many things!

I love it!!!

Chicken, tamales, beets and beans.

I have a number of pressure cookers and I love them all.

I make dishes ranging from Three Minute Steel Cut Oats to Dessert, with chili, soup, stews, curries and lots of vegetables in between.

The pressure cooker has been a life saver for me. I don't have a lot of time which is why I wrote a pressure cooking cookbook, The New Fast Food. You can find PC recipes on my blog on my website.

Wonderful to see so many people who love their pressure cookers.

My favorite things are beans and greens (rice is good, but a Zorijushi rice cooker is better).

I think beans have been covered.

For traditional collard, mustard, turnip greens, I brown a little salt pork or bacon in the bottom of the pressure cooker with garlic and onion, add in 4-5 cups of greens a handful at a time, and toss in the fat to wilt. Once all the greens are in, I add a couple of tablespoons of hot sauce, a couple of cups of water (and a beer if I'm feeling ornery), put on the top bring to pressure for 20-30 minutes, et voila!

For Asian-style mustard greens or kale. Instead of pork fat, I use a couple of tablespoons of seasoned sesame oil. 30 second saute of minced garlic and ginger, and finely sliced chili. Bong all the greens straight in, add a tablespoon or two of soy sauce to taste, a cup of water and steam.

Now, I have to go make some greens.