Cooking gear

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

I just saw this in a Macy's ad.Last year I picked up a set for the camper.What I was cooking on was crap.IMO this set makes for some useable cooking gear and the price is great.They store nicely under the sink and lids fit behind the sink and stove on a rack.They would be great if you need a new set at home.

Frank

 

[MarkBC]

Reviving this old thread with a question:
Has/does anyone here use(d) a pressure cooker while camping?

I just got one for the first time -- a small one -- 4qt, since I usually just cook for myself. I got it for home use.

But the key feature of a pressure cooker -- faster cooking -- sounds like a quality desirable in camping, too: use less fuel.
This would be especially desirable, I'd think, when camping at high altitudes where the boiling point is significantly reduced and cooking times are longer (when cooking something water-wet).

I guess you'd have to weigh the likelihood of using it (you'd have to think what foods you'd use it for) against the "cost" of carrying another kitchen item -- a large-ish one, at that. In my case I think that this 4-qt pressure cooker will nest around the 3-qt pot that I already carry and still fit in the cabinet...or maybe replace the 3-qt.

 

[Lighthawk]

Behold the Weber Q100, by far one of the finest BBQ's I have ever owned. While not the most compact unit, I will always make room and never leave home without it.

X2
We've got the Q120 with fold out shelves. It fits underneath the Hawk bench, just barely. It goes on every trip. Love the instant piezo ignition. Snap, cook, eat!

In addition I carry a #7 Griswold cast iron pan. I bought it on Ebay because my #8 was too big and the #7 is the size of a standard issue tortilla. While I was at it I found a #6 and #5. I became a collector of cast iron. I also use a 'comal' (flat circular tortilla cast iron pan) that lives on my gas stove at home.

Nesting inside the #7 pan, we carry a 3 qt. pot for pasta, etc. and a colander. Sometimes I bring one of the smaller pans for sauces, etc. And, not to forget, Susan's parent's 1950's percolator for the all-essential morning coffee.

 

[MarkBC]

Has/does anyone here use(d) a pressure cooker while camping?

I just got one for the first time -- a small one -- 4qt, since I usually just cook for myself.

Not really camping-related, but:
Somebody asked me if this pressure cooker works on an induction cooktop.
Yes, this stainless steel one does work with induction.

 

[Smokecreek1]

That Weber reminded me about that old habachi i carry around with me under the couch-it's real old and greasy,.but small, and with a little charcoal can cook just about anything-and keep me warm too-also have an old lodge 10" skillet with cover; it's to big for the camper stove, but great for any outside work on the habachi , fire, coleman stove, BBQ grill or buried in the coals-and I've never dumped my old back packer stuff, still use it all the time!

Smoke

 

[leadsled9]

I use an Olympian Grill with a quick disconnect to my Hawks main propane tank.

 

[EdoHart]

Reviving this old thread with a question:
Has/does anyone here use(d) a pressure cooker while camping?

I just got one for the first time -- a small one -- 4qt, since I usually just cook for myself. I got it for home use.

But the key feature of a pressure cooker -- faster cooking -- sounds like a quality desirable in camping, too: use less fuel.
This would be especially desirable, I'd think, when camping at high altitudes where the boiling point is significantly reduced and cooking times are longer (when cooking something water-wet).

I guess you'd have to weigh the likelihood of using it (you'd have to think what foods you'd use it for) against the "cost" of carrying another kitchen item -- a large-ish one, at that. In my case I think that this 4-qt pressure cooker will nest around the 3-qt pot that I already carry and still fit in the cabinet...or maybe replace the 3-qt.

Use it carefully. That is, never open it to look inside and see how your meal is progressing until the pressure inside the cooker is down to atmospheric pressure.

I was taught that opening a pressure cooker (or even removing the thimble which helps to relieve pressure in a controlled manner), while it is under pressure, was likely to create a Phreatic Explosion. The pressure which can be built up inside a pressure cooker is the reason that pressure cookers have such strong components to lock the top and bottom together.

I looked for a link to describe a phreatic explosion, but I didn't find one which describes it well in relation to a pressure cooker. I'll be glad to write a small thesis on the subject (3-4 paragraphs) if you wish.

 

[Mark W. Ingalls]

Use it carefully. That is, never open it to look inside and see how your meal is progressing until the pressure inside the cooker is down to atmospheric pressure.

I was taught that opening a pressure cooker (or even removing the thimble which helps to relieve pressure in a controlled manner), while it is under pressure, was likely to create a Phreatic Explosion. The pressure which can be built up inside a pressure cooker is the reason that pressure cookers have such strong components to lock the top and bottom together.

I looked for a link to describe a phreatic explosion, but I didn't find one which describes it well in relation to a pressure cooker. I'll be glad to write a small thesis on the subject (3-4 paragraphs) if you wish.

Who's gonna take advice from this guy? I mean look at him -- he's just another talking dog in a cool hat...

 

[EdoHart]

Who's gonna take advice from this guy? I mean look at him -- he's just another talking dog in a cool hat...



When you say it like that is sounds just weird. At least this dog looks good in hats.

 

[Mark W. Ingalls]

When you say it like that is sounds just weird. At least this dog looks good in hats.

OK, I'll give you that... You're a cool dog in a cool hat. I still don't trust your advice, 'cause you got a tail. Just sayin'.

 

[MarkBC]

Use it carefully. That is, never open it to look inside and see how your meal is progressing until the pressure inside the cooker is down to atmospheric pressure.

Pressure cookers have interlocks preventing them being opened when there is (gauge) pressure inside.

If somebody disables the interlock then they may learn why it's wrong to disable interlocks.

 

[EdoHart]

OK, I'll give you that... You're a cool dog in a cool hat. I still don't trust your advice, 'cause you got a tail. Just sayin'.

What you don't know about me is that I don't have a tail. It was bobbed before I was 6 weeks old. I can't swat flys away from my fanny, and that is literally a pain in the bumkiss.

I rarely have to tell my master (what a joke it is to call him master, because I have him wrapped around my little dew claw) that it is time to move so that I can get away from the flies and other biting bothers.

Pressure cookers have interlocks preventing them being opened when there is still (gauge) pressure inside.

If somebody disables the interlock then they may learn why it's wrong to disable interlocks.

I did not know that there were interlocks in pressure cookers.

About twice a year I like to camp in the Inyo Mountains between 7-9,000 feet. I never considered a pressure cooker before, but this thread has given me pause (not paws)...

 

[Barko1]

When you say it like that is sounds just weird. At least this dog looks good in hats.

Here is my new step-dog in his hat

 

[EdoHart]

Here is my new step-dog in his hat

I'm afraid we may have drifted from the original topic of this thread (caused in no small part to me), but this is a very good looking dog wearing a hat.

 

[MarkBC]

I did not know that there were interlocks in pressure cookers.

Yep, they do!
Here's a look at the underside of the rim of the lid of my new pressure-cooker:

When there's pressure inside the pot, the pin (silver surrounded by white gasket) is pushed up, which activates some mechanism that prevents the lid from being rotated and opened. My Mom's 50-year old pressure cooker (lid) also has an interlock which is mechanically simpler (probably better) but has the same approach: Pressure pushes a pin up which prevents the lid from being turned and unlocked when there's pressure inside.

About twice a year I like to camp in the Inyo Mountains between 7-9,000 feet. I never considered a pressure cooker before, but this thread has given me pause (not paws)...

Exactly! I knew this wasn't a silly idea...

 

[EdoHart]

[snipe]
Exactly! I knew this wasn't a silly idea...
[/quote]The question I have is:
How does one adjust the cooking time for noodles, beens or steamed vegetables, using a pressure cooker at given altitudes? I'm an OK cook as long as I can sample the food to see how the various ingredients are progressing, but that requires opening the pot often, which precludes the use of a pressure cooker.

 

[MarkBC]

The question I have is:
How does one adjust the cooking time for noodles, beens or steamed vegetables, using a pressure cooker at given altitudes? I'm an OK cook as long as I can sample the food to see how the various ingredients are progressing, but that requires opening the pot often, which precludes the use of a pressure cooker.

I'm not an expert with the pressure cooker -- I just bought my first one this month.
But I am experienced at web searches

, and I found this:
Pressure Cooking at High Altitudes

First of all, you need to be using a recipe specific to cooking whatever in a pressure cooker in the first place (at low altitude). Turning to the source of all knowledge and wisdom, the Internet, turns up this:
The ULTIMATE Pressure Cooker Cooking Time Chart

Then apply the rule of thumb from the "high altitude" link: "For every 1000 ft above 2000 ft elevation, increase the cooking time by 5%" to the cooking time recommended from the "ultimate...chart" link. Example, if you're at 6000 feet: [(6000 - 2000)/1000] X 5% = Increase cooking time by 20% over what the "Ultimate Chart" recommends.

As I said, I'm not an expert at pressure cooking, but I have read that certain foods -- things that produce starchy foam or things that can boil up particulate matter, can be potentially hazardous in a pressure cooker. Apparently if the starch or whatever foams up enough it can plug the regulator vent -- the thing that regulates the pressure cooker internal pressure at 15psig -- and if it can't regulate itself it may blow. Actually, the pressure-relief plug should blow -- not the metal pot -- but it still sounds like something you'd want to avoid.