Pressure King Pro – How Does it Work?

How Does the Pressure King Pro Work?

The Pressure King Pro creates a sealed environment where steam from the heated contents builds and causes the pressure to increase. This high-pressure environment allows the boiling point of liquid to go above 212°F (100°C), causing the food to cook faster.

Pressure King Pro Pressure Cooker

The Pressure King Pro pressure cooker is a great home cooking tool that allows food to cook quickly while locking in all the goodness. For the Pressure King Pro to work, liquid such as stock, water or some form of sauce must be added.

Once the required minimum level of liquid is reached, the lid can be placed and locked for a tight seal. The user then selects the required function and time to cook their meal. If using the fast reheat or slow cook function, the pressure valve is left in the open position to allow steam to release; otherwise, the pressure valve is placed in the closed position.

For recipes using the Pressure King Pro, read my article on Pressure King Pro Recipes.

Unlocking the Benefits of Using a Pressure Cooker

In a world where time has become even more precious, the pressure cooker is the one tool in the kitchen that can help reduce the time spent cooking meals. My time at home is valuable as a chef who spends almost 50+ hours cooking in a professional kitchen.

Like you, we spend much of our time working to pay the bills, and often, making home-cooked meals can slide. Instead, we reach for something quick that will take the minimum time. The consciences are we never know what is in these meals and what damage they are doing to our health.

The pressure cooker allows me to batch-cook meals quickly and know every ingredient in the dish. The pressure cooker allows me to make my ready meals to use when time is short or to create a quick meal for the family ahead of time.

Advantages of Using the Pressure King Pro

Here is a list of advantages I have found using a pressure cooker at home:

1. Saves Time and Energy

Cut down on the time spent in the kitchen using a pressure cooker. A pressure cooker can cook food 20 times faster than conventional cooking. This means using less fuel or energy and saves time.

2. Create More Nutritious Meals

A pressure cooker creates a sealed environment that keeps all nutrients inside the dish. The quicker cooking time means less nutrients are cooked out of the dish and this also has a knock on effect of creating a more flavourful meal.

A study published in the Food Science Journal showed that cooking broccoli in a pressure cooker retained up to 90% of Vitamin C. Using other methods, such as boiling and steaming, the vitamin C loss was more significant, losing between 22% and 24%. This study has shown that water-soluble vitamins are retained using a pressure cooker over traditional cooking methods.

3. Enhances Flavour and Texture

Cooking in a high-pressure environment forces the heat into food, cooking them much quicker. This allows meat to tenderise much faster and brings out more flavours. Cooking in a high-pressure, moist environment is equivalent to cooking at low temperatures for extended periods.

Cheaper cuts of meat taste amazing when cooked using a pressure cooker because the heat allows connective tissue to break down and become tender.

Chef Tips

Ok, I will stick my chef hat on for this following explanation. The flavour is created in food from the browning of food; think of a seared steak. This is known as the “Maillard Reaction” and causes compounds within your food, like sugar, to caramelise and turn brown. This increases the flavour of your food and is why we love a seared steak or even a toasted bagel.

The Maillard reaction occurs at temperatures above 250°F (121°C), so by pressure cooking foods, the flavour is increased due to prolonged cooking. This means you get a punch of flavour from cooking foods in a pressure cooker.

4. One Pot Wonder

The pressure cooker is a slow cooker, steamer and pressure cooker all in one. Use your crockpot or slow cooker recipes in your pressure cooker with ease. You can brown or saute in your pressure cooker before pressing the lid and hitting stew to tender your meat fork. It’s straightforward to clean afterwards, which is a huge bonus.

Disadvantages of Using a Pressure Cooker

With all the advantages of using a pressure cooker, there are a few disadvantages, which I will outline here.

Disadvantages Of a Pressure Cooker

1. Can’t Check Cooking Progress

You can check the dish to see if it’s cooked mid-cooking. While you have the pressure cooker on to check to see if the meal is cooked, you have to stop the cooking process. This involves hitting cancel, opening the pressure valve to release the steam then unscrewing the lid. If it isn’t cooked to your liking, you must put the lid on and bring the temperature up again to get it back to pressure. This process can take between 5 and 10 minutes and isn’t ideal.

2. Won’t Roast Like Your Oven

It won’t fit all your cooking needs. The pressure cooker can’t be used for roasting chicken or pan-frying steaks. Your pressure cooker is more suited to recipes with some form of liquid or as it needs to create steam to build up the pressure. Don’t get me wrong, you could efficiently heat a roast in it on brown setting, then add in enough liquid to cook it but you wouldn’t be roasting it. You will still get an amazing, tender beef and a stock that makes the best gravy. It just wouldn’t be the same as roasting in an oven.

3. Overcooking

Some ingredients can cook faster than others. For example, if I were to cook my beef stew recipe, I could easily add chunky carrots to the beef, and they will hold up while it becomes tender. If I added potatoes in at the start, they would be gone by the time the cooking process is down. In situations like this, you may need to add additional ingredients in at different stages to ensure everything is cooked perfectly. Potatoes can take 5 minutes to cook compared to 20 or 30 minutes.

Pressure King Pro Settings

Now that I have discussed the benefits of using a pressure cooker, I will go through my Pressure King Pro settings to explain what each one stands for. Each setting on the Pressure King Pro has its own time and temperature. The time for each setting can be adjusted depending on which one you select. The list below will explain each setting, time, and temperature.

Settings:

1. Stew Function
   • The default Time is 30 mins and can be adjusted between 1 to 120min.
   • Temperature is 150°C/302°F, and the pressure is 50kpa
2. Rice Function
   • The default Time is 12 mins and can be adjusted between 1 to 20min.
   • Temperature is 160°C/320°F, and the pressure is 50kpa
3. Fish Function
   • The default Time is 8 mins and can be adjusted between 1 to 15min.
   • Temperature is 150°C/302°F, and the pressure is 50kpa
4. Meat Function
   • The default Time is 13 mins and can be adjusted between 1 to 60min.
   • Temperature is 140°C/284°F, and the pressure is 50kpa
5. Pasta Function
   • The default Time is 10 mins and can be adjusted between 1 to 15min.
   • Temperature is 155°C/311°F, and the pressure is 50kpa
6. Soup Function
   • The default Time is 25 mins and can be adjusted between 1 to 40min.
   • Temperature is 150°C/302°F, and the pressure is 50kpa
7. Steam Function
   • The default Time is 3 mins and can be adjusted between 1 to 25min.
   • Temperature is 150°C/302°F, and the pressure is 50kpa
8. Browning Function
   • The default Time is 3 mins which can’t be adjusted.
   • Temperature is up to 150°C/302°F
9. Fast Reheat Function
   • The default Time is 1 min and with no time adjustment.
   • Temperature is 100°C/212°F, and the pressure is 50kpa
10. Slow Cook Function
    • The default Time is 24hrs and can be adjusted by 30min.
    • Temperature is 100°C/212°F, no pressure

Delayed Cooking

The Pressure King Pro also comes with a delay timer, which you can set to a maximum of 24hrs. This gives you the option of getting your meal in your pressure cooker before work and having it piping hot when you get home. Once all time has run out in the cooking process, the Pressure King Pro heat function will come on and keep your food warm until you hit the cancel button or 24 hours have run out.

How to Clean the Pressure King Pro

Cleaning the King Pro Pressure cooker is a very simple process. The inner pot can easily be removed, which is excellent for pouring out soups and sauces and cleaning.

Method:

1. The inner pot has a not stick coating on it, making it easy to clean; make sure not to use anything too abrasive. One of the great things about the Pressure King Pro is that food never tends to burn, so there is not much of a clean-up.
2. Next, remove the inner lid with a rubber gasket around it. This needs cleaning but don’t use anything abrasive. Dish soup will do just fine.
3. The lid is where you need to direct most of your attention. First, once you have finished cooking your meal, remove the lid. Pull the pressure valve straight out and remove the little basket underneath.
4. Next, remove the rubber gasket from the float valve, which is next to the pressure valve. The float valve is the small circle that pops up when it reaches temperature, and the pressure valve is what you use to release the steam.
5. Clean each whole in the lid and inside, then dry everything and insert the float with gasket, pressure valve, and basket.
6. Push the gasket onto the inner lid and insert it back into the lid.
7. At the rear of your Pressure King Pro you will find a condensation cup, which is meant to catch any condensation that forms in the locking mechanism when you unscrew the lid. Remove this and wash it.
8. The outside of the Pressure King Pro will need to be cleaned with a wet cloth and dish soap. Never submerge this in water as you may cause damage to the electrical parts
9. Once all parts are washed and dry reassemble your Pressure King Pro and its good to go.

Summary

The Pressure King Pro is a great tool to have in the kitchen and can really make life a little easier when it comes to cooking family meals. With care and a little practice, you could easily batch-cook a whole bunch of family meals and make it look like you’ve been slaving over a hot stove for hours.

If you have enjoyed this article make sure to read article on Pressure King Pro Recipes