Cooking beef stew in the pressure cooker is extremely simple that anyone can do it. You too should try cooking beef stew in the pressure cooker.
“Shouting come eat me” That’s what beef stew actually does. This mouthwatering delicacy is a meal that you’ll relish for days after you’ve cooked it, and before you know it, it becomes one you can’t do without.
While it is true cooking beef stew is very tiresome and takes up a lot of time you may or may not have, the pressure cooker is a game changer for all this.
Below are some of the common ways to cook beef stew in the pressure cooker.
1. Beef stew in a pressure cooker recipe.
Procedure.
- Begin by first seasoning your beef using salt, pepper and garlic if you wish.
- Brown the beef. You can do this either in the pressure cooker or using a skillet.
- To brown the meat in a pressure cooker, add vegetable oil to the pressure cooker. Butter will be even better.
- Set the pressure cooker to sauté, and once the oil is well heated, brown the beef. Do this in batches for best results, letting each cook for 5 minutes at a time.
- Remove the beef from the pressure cooker and put it in a plate.
- Add a little oil to the pressure cooker and add in the diced onions.
- Sauté the onions for a few minutes until the onions become tender.
- Add beef broth to the pressure cooker to deglaze the pot
- Add back the beef and sautéed onions back to the pressure cooker.
- Carefully close the lid to the pressure cooker and let it cook for about 10 minutes, setting the pressure on high.
- Add in dried parsley (about 2 tablespoons), crushed tomatoes and any other spice you may wish to have.
- In a fairly sized bowl, mix cornstarch or all-purpose flour with cold water. They should be mixed in equal parts. i.e. for every ½ a cup cornstarch, use ½ a cup cold water.
- When the 10 minutes are over, turn off the pressure cooker. The pressure should release naturally for at least 5 minutes, ended with a quick pressure release.
- Remove the lid carefully once the valve drops.
- Take out 1 cup of hot broth from the pot. Stir it in the bowl with the water and cornstarch mixture. Ensure you get a smooth paste.
- Add carrots, celery and any other vegetable you wish to have into the pressure cooker. Carefully close the lid, and for at least 2 minutes, let the food cook with the pressure set high.
- After 2 minutes, just like earlier on, release the pressure naturally for at least 5 minutes, ending with a quick pressure release.
- Once the valve drops, remove the lid from the pressure cooker. Stir in the slurry mixture to the beef in the pressure cooker.
- Set the cooker to sauté, while frequently stirring.
- You can add in more pepper or salt to taste.
Whatever you do, remember to first brown the beef before cooking in the pressure cooker. It may take up some of your time (quite negligible, I must say), but it is very much worth it. The flavor will be bolder and the meal even more delicious.
Go slow with the cornstarch. Stew tends to thicken more as it cools, so try to be moderate with the thickening sauce.
Don’t try to add the vegetables in the pressure cooker before the meat is properly cooked. Doing so, will only overcook the vegetables and destroy the flavor.
If you want to cook meat in a pressure cooker. Read this post.
2. Pressure cooker beef stew with dumplings.
Beef stew with dumplings makes for a fully flavored delectable dish.
Cooking beef stew with dumplings in a pressure cooker is not only easy but takes up less time than other methods. It is quite similar in some respect to beef stew cooked in a pressure cooker, with the major difference being the addition of dumplings.
As for the dumplings, you can choose to use already made dumplings, i.e. canned biscuits or use homemade dumplings.
So how do you make home-made dumplings?
Making dumplings is a fairly easy process.
You will need: Flour, baking powder, margarine, sugar, milk and salt.
Procedure.
- In a fairly sized bowl, add 1 cup flour (all-purpose), 1 tablespoon margarine, 2 teaspoons baking powder, ½ a teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon sugar.
- Mix all the ingredients until they form a smooth paste.
- Add milk (½ a cup) and stir the mixture to form a soft dough.
If you have self-rising flour, don’t use the baking powder.
The dumplings are now ready to be cooked
Now back to cooking beef stew with dumplings in a pressure cooker.
Procedure.
- Season your beef first, using pepper, salt and garlic.
- Brown the beef on a skillet over medium heat.
- Sauté the diced onions on a skillet too.
- Add the browned beef and the sautéed onions to the pressure cooker. You can add in any other spices at this point.
- Carefully close the pressure cooker lid, and set the pressure to be high. Cook for at least 10 minutes.
- Once the 10 minutes are over, release the pressure naturally for 5 minutes, ending with a quick pressure release.
- When the valve drops, open the lid and add in other vegetables like carrots, potatoes and close the lid again.
- Set the pressure on high and let the food cook for a further 2 minutes.
- Release the pressure naturally once again for 5 minutes, with a quick pressure release
- Once the valve drops, open the lid, and carefully add the dumplings to the pot using a spoon or tongs.
- Set the cooker to sauté, and stir gently.
- Let it cook for around 8-10 minutes before serving.
Conclusion.
Cooking beef stew in the pressure cooker is very simple, and the food almost always turns out delicious, if done right.
When it comes to releasing pressure, if in doubt always consult the manufacturer’s manual on how to release pressure for the pressure cooker.
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