Introducing Everyday Pressure Cooking

A preview and a few other announcements....

Hello!

First off, I know I have snuck in mentions here before, as well as yesterday on my Instagram grid but I wanted to share with you a few more details about my new book, Everyday Pressure Cooking.

You can find a link for pre-ordering here. Not just Amazon!

As you might expect from the title, it is a collection of recipes designed to get you using your pressure cookers/multi cookers as often as possible, hopefully on a daily basis. This means that while there are a lot of one pot type meals, I’ve also included chapters on the thermos lunches I do every day for my children (useful for anyone who doesn’t work from home too), meals where elements are pressure cooked rather than the whole thing (think about all the salads where you have one or more cooked elements, quick dinners made from things you can batch cook - eg. beans). I have created pressure cooker versions of favourite carby comfort food dishes, and of course there are side dishes - even if the main part of your meal is cooked elsewhere, the chances are at least one of your sides - even a pile of greens - can be cooked faster/cheaper/better in your pressure cooker.

Basically, as you all know, using a pressure cooker gives you options when you are time pressed. It opens up a lot more possibilities than you would otherwise have - bestows freedom - purely because the cooking time is so much faster. I found - and still find - it miraculous, and it is a comment I never tire of hearing from other people, including India Knight who says Everyday Pressure Cooking will “change your cooking life.”

I will be extracting a little bit from the book in the run up to publication and here is the first - a very simple, quite autumnal chicken casserole which is really mellow, creamy and comforting, with the prunes adding a sharp little hit. You can serve any greens alongside - and if you are cooking in a deep pressure cooker, you can add them either directly on top or on a steamer basket after you have added the leeks.

The main time drain on this recipe is making sure that the chicken pieces are browned properly. There is a temptation to hover and fiddle, so I would recommend that you get the chicken on and prep everything else while they fry. You can take a shortcut and use skinned thighs if you like. And you can take a further shortcut by using fillets too. But I think the flavour and texture is better with both.

Chicken Casserole

2 tbsp olive oil

4 large to 8 small chicken thighs, skin on

100g bacon lardons

1 onion, finely chopped

250g button or chestnut mushrooms, halved if large

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

Leaves from a small bunch tarragon, finely chopped

150ml white wine or cider

500g waxy potatoes, sliced if large

12 soft prunes, pitted

100ml crème fraiche or soured cream

2 tsp Dijon mustard

2 leeks, cut into rounds

To garnish:

A little more chopped tarragon

Heat your pressure cooker and add the oil. Add the chicken thighs, skin side down, and fry on a medium high heat until a deep golden brown – don’t stint on this. Turn over and continue to cook until any skin on the underside has also had a chance to crisp.

Remove the chicken from the cooker. Add the bacon, onion and mushrooms and stir until the lardons have browned. Stir in the garlic and tarragon then pour in the wine or cider. Deglaze the base of the cooker thoroughly. Return the chicken to the pan and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the potatoes on top and tuck in the prunes.

Close the lid and bring up to high pressure. Adjust the heat so it is just high enough to maintain the pressure, then cook for 6 minutes. Remove from the heat and leave to drop pressure naturally.

Push some of the contents of the cooker to one side so you can easily add the crème fraiche and mustard. Make sure they combine well with the cooking liquor already in the cooker, then add the leeks. Return the cooker to high pressure and immediately remove from the heat. Leave to stand for a minute, then release the remaining pressure. Serve with your choice of greens.

I know some of you have already pre-ordered - thank you! These pre-orders do help new books enormously, not just because a climb up a sales ranking means more visibility - but because it means that all the wonderful independents are likely to pick it up too. My books have always sold best through word of mouth - I have often heard from readers that a bookshop has stocked my book after a customer has ordered it and they have therefore had sight of it when it has come in. So if you are able to pre order, please do, I really appreciate it. Here again is the pre-order link to various online retailers.

I also want to tell you about a few demos I have lined up….

These are all ahead of publication and I will (hopefully, fingers crossed!) have advance copies of Everyday Pressure Cooking to sell too.

First up, I am back at Omved Gardens on Saturday 12th October. This is a vegetarian/plant based demo. The setting is really something - an amazingly peaceful, productive and sustainable garden, with far reaching views, tucked away in Highgate, North London.

Next up, I shall be in Suffolk at Mrs Portly’s Kitchen on Saturday 19th October.

Then the following day I am demoing in Norfolk. The venue is Eastgate House, near Aylsham on 20th October. For further details of this one, please email janesteward@eastgatelarder.co.uk

Regardless of which demo you attend, there will be plenty of food to taste - come hungry! - and plenty of opportunity to ask questions. Some people come with a list….

Thank you for reading! This is a free post so please do share with anyone you think might be interested in the contents!