[Photographs: J. Kenji López-Alt, Vicky Wasik]
I never thought much about pressure cookers until I visited India, where a woman asked my traveling companion if she had one and was shocked when the answer was no. I couldn't quite understand why the thought of preparing food without a pressure cooker was so crazy, but I did know that the aromatic lentils and flavorful stews our host made were absolutely delicious.
As it turns out, pressure cookers really are amazingly useful tools, unparalleled in their ability to quickly tenderize meat and vegetables and extract flavors. A dish that would take hours of simmering on the stovetop can be ready in under an hour with the help of a pressure cooker. To find this out for yourself, check out these 15 pressure cooker recipes that turn chicken stews, chile con carne, and even risotto into simple, fast, totally weeknight-appropriate meals.
Colombian Chicken Stew With Potatoes, Tomato, and Onion
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
Because the extreme altitude (over 8,000 feet) means some dishes can take hours on end to cook on the stovetop, residents of mountainous Bogotá, Colombia, pretty much live off their pressure cookers. This Colombian stew has just five ingredients—chicken, potatoes, tomatoes, onion, and a bay leaf—and in the pressure cooker, they all release enough juices to create an intense broth, no added water required.
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Quick and Easy Dairy- and Fat-Free Colombian Vegetable Soup (Ajiaco Negro)
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
This completely vegan soup is made with nothing but potatoes, carrots, corn, fava beans, peas, and broth. As the potatoes break down, they release enough starch to make the soup creamy without the addition of any dairy, and using the pressure cooker cuts cooking time from 45 minutes to under half an hour.
Get the recipe for Quick and Easy Dairy- and Fat-Free Colombian Vegetable Soup (Ajiaco Negro) »
Pressure Cooker Corn Soup
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
Corn soup is great for those times when you want all the sweet flavor of corn on the cob without the mess of picking corn skins out of your teeth—in other words, it's perfect for a cook-at-home date night. The secret to this soup is its infusion with whole cleaned corncobs, which maximizes the corny flavor and gives the soup its hearty, starchy texture.
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Quick and Easy Pressure Cooker Chicken, Lentil, and Bacon Stew With Carrots
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
You can make this rich chicken stew with a whole bird, but to avoid breast meat's tendency to dry out, stick with juicier thighs and drumsticks. The chicken stock adds flavor, but also a lot of liquid, so reduce the stew on the stovetop for a few minutes after releasing the pressure.
Get the recipe for Quick and Easy Pressure Cooker Chicken, Lentil, and Bacon Stew With Carrots »
Quick and Easy Pressure Cooker Chicken and Black Bean Stew
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
Similar in theme to classic pork and beans, but a lot more grown-up, this chicken stew pairs black beans with smoky andouille sausage and gets some additional heat from Hatch chilies. Thanks to the pressure cooker, you can start with totally raw beans and still finish up this dish in just an hour.
Get the recipe for Quick and Easy Pressure Cooker Chicken and Black Bean Stew »
Pressure Cooker Thai Green Chicken Curry With Eggplant and Kabocha Squash
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
One potential downside to making stews in a pressure cooker is their tendency to come out a little watery, because all the trapped steam condenses back into the dish. There are ways to get around that, though—here, the eggplant and squash cook down into all that liquid and turn it into a thick sauce. Coconut milk and Thai green curry paste quickly add delicious fragrance and flavor to this weeknight main.
Get the recipe for Pressure Cooker Thai Green Chicken Curry With Eggplant and Kabocha Squash »
Easy Pressure Cooker Chicken and Chickpea Masala
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
There's certainly a time and place for making elaborate curry powders to flavor Indian-inspired dishes. But if that time and place is not here and now—say, if you're blowing in the door at 8 p.m. after both your meeting and your train ran late—know that you can put together this mild British-Indian dish using just cumin, paprika, coriander, turmeric, and black pepper. The key to making the most of these spices is to bloom them in butter first, which intensifies their flavor and prepares them to seep into the dish.
Get the recipe for Easy Pressure Cooker Chicken and Chickpea Masala »
30-Minute Pressure Cooker Pho Ga (Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup)
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
A pressure cooker makes it possible to turn out a 30-minute pho ga that tastes like it's been simmering all day. The high pressure is especially adept at extracting the collagen from chicken bones, which gives the soup that fatty, lip-smacking texture that you want from a good bowl of pho.
Get the recipe for 30-Minute Pressure Cooker Pho Ga (Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup) »
30-Minute Pressure Cooker Chicken With Chickpeas, Tomatoes, and Chorizo
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
Using canned crushed tomatoes in this stew is less time-consuming than chopping up fresh ones, and fire-roasted tomatoes in particular will add a little extra smokiness on top of the Spanish chorizo and smoked paprika. The punch of those ingredients, combined with the power of the pressure cooker, means you can have this dish of flavor-packed, falling-off-the-bone chicken and tender chickpeas ready in just half an hour.
Get the recipe for 30-Minute Pressure Cooker Chicken With Chickpeas, Tomatoes, and Chorizo »
1-Hour Pressure Cooker Texas-Style Chile Con Carne
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
Two ingredients, and two ingredients only, are vital to an authentic Texas-style chile con carne: beef and chilies. Trust us—you're asking for a fight if you add beans and tomatoes and try to call it "Texas-style." Chile con carne is usually cooked low and slow on the stove, but you can cut your preparation time dramatically by using a pressure cooker. Just use less stock, since it won't reduce as it would during a long simmer.
Get the recipe for 1-Hour Pressure Cooker Texas-Style Chile Con Carne »
The Best Tamale Pie With Braised Skirt Steak, Charred Corn, and Brown Butter Cornbread Crust
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
Take any two different foods that are frequently served together, and you'll inevitably find that someone has married them into one whole. Tamale pie is a long-standing example—beef chili and cornbread are a beloved combination on your plate, so what's not to like about a chili topped with cornbread and baked in a single, uber-American dish? Here, we update the old-school recipe with shredded skirt steak, charred corn, and nutty browned-butter cornbread. Got a pressure cooker? Your cooking time for this just dropped from four hours to a little over two.
Easy Pressure Cooker Green Chile With Chicken
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
This green chile is based on tart tomatillos and a mix of peppers: poblano, jalapeño, and Anaheim (plus Hatch, if you're lucky enough to have access to them). Cook them up with chicken, shred the meat, blend the sauce, and you've got yourself just about the easiest chile imaginable.
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Easy Pressure Cooker Chicken Enchiladas
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
By cooking down chicken and vegetables in a pressure cooker, you can make a filling for enchiladas and a sauce simultaneously. Just dump everything into the pot—no searing or pre-cooking necessary, since browning the ingredients first doesn't add significant flavor. Once the chicken and sauce are done, it's a simple matter of dipping tortillas in the sauce, rolling them up, showering them with cheese, and baking the dish for 15 to 20 minutes.
Get the recipe for Easy Pressure Cooker Chicken Enchiladas »
Pressure Cooker Mushroom Risotto
[Photograph: J. Kenji López-Alt]
Risotto has a reputation for being difficult to make, but that's not quite a fair assessment. What it takes, more than anything, is time, and pressure cookers are expert at making short work of traditionally time-consuming dishes. We infuse this risotto with mushroom flavor in several ways—well-browned fresh mushrooms, dried porcini, and a mushroom stock all contribute layers of flavor, while a little soy sauce and miso paste add even more umami depth.
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Pressure Cooker Butternut Squash Risotto With Frizzled Sage and Brown Butter
[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]
The sweet butternut squash flavor permeating this risotto is achieved by tossing some of the squash with maple syrup and some of it with apple, then roasting it for a relatively short time. (Use the ripest squash you can find for the sweetest results.) The rest of the process is easy—all it needs is a brief cook in the pressure cooker, then a generous swirl of browned butter and a grating of Parmesan cheese.
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