Pressure Cooker Troubleshooting Guide
When you run into problems using a pressure cooker, those issues can’t be fixed with the same familiar techniques you might use when roasting in the oven or simmering on the stovetop—you can’t take off the lid for a peek, or adjust the heat up or down without serious consequences. After spending months in the kitchen with our pressure cookers, we came up with a few key tricks to fix the common problems we ran into.
Problem: Scorching
Solution: Use enough liquid and scrape up browned bits.
Scorching can happen to anyone on occasion, but to limit the incidents, we made sure there was always enough liquid in the pot, especially for recipes with longer pressurized cooking times. Also, be sure to scrape up any browned bits (fond) left from browning before putting the pot under pressure.
Problem: Pressure Loss During Cooking
Solution: Turn up the heat, then back it off.
When using a stovetop pressure cooker, it’s normal to adjust the heat level a few times during cooking in order to maintain pressure. If the pot loses pressure, simply turn the heat back to medium-high to restore the pressure as quickly as possible, then turn the heat back down to prevent scorching.
Problem: Uneven Cooking
Solution: Prep ingredients as directed.
Whenever we came across unevenly cooked beans, rice, stew, or roast, we could always trace the problem back to ingredients that were inaccurately measured or badly prepped. Buy the right size roast or chicken, measure liquids accurately, and grab a ruler when prepping vegetables.
Problem: Undercooked Food
Solution: Continue to simmer the food gently on the stovetop.
Since it’s impossible to test the doneness of food as it cooks under pressure, sometimes food might be slightly underdone. We intentionally undercook some foods so we can monitor them as they finish. Simply finish the recipe by gently simmering it, adding extra liquid as needed.
Problem: Sauce is too thick, or too thin
Solution: Add additional liquid, or continue to simmer.
There are a lot of variables that affect the texture of a sauce, including your stove’s heat level and freshness of ingredients. Sauces that are too thin can simply be simmered uncovered on the stovetop to thicken up before serving, and thick sauces can be thinned out with additional broth or water.