I Happened to come across a review on Hawkins Pressure Cooker as ROTD- Good review by The Guru but too technical, frankly speaking, though I must used Hawkins Pressure cooker innumerable times, I never bothered to know which part is called WHAT.
At home, my people were accustomed to using Prestige Pressure cooker (Not actually for the reason given in the TV ads...Jo biwi se kare pyar......),but when I was posted in a town for my rural Internship, I had to buy a small cooker, so I chose hawkins 2L, which was small enough and yet not so small that you cant even rotate the CHAMCHA inside !!!
There were 4 female doctors including may staying in that apartment, and I was the COOK incharge, not only coz I loved cooking but also, because I could rustle up meals in minutes with my Hawkins-after all of us would return from the hospital at lunch time like a pack of hungry wolves.
My co-interns must have blessed me many a time for relieving their hunger pangs-our favorites were:
Misal and Rice
Curd Rice
Dal Fry
Pyaz Batata and tamatar ka gravy wala shaak
Any veggies that we could lay our hands on in a tangy tomato gravy
Tomato Rasam
Khari Bhaat
All these were made exclusively using Hawkins.
I would love to give some practical tips and a cooking enthusiasts' version of the review.
Pressure cooking has the following advantages :
You can cook 30% faster than in a microwave healthy cooking –
Doesn’t destroy the nutrients while cooking, you retain vitamins and minerals; you can prepare healthy meals with a minimum of time and energy
What does the pressure cooker do best?
Sterilizes food thoroughly–cooks at 22% higher temperature than the boiling point of water.
Steams low calorie, low fat, high fiber foods to perfection.
FOr convenience-I shall divide the uses of pressure cooker into Food related and Others:
For breakfast:
1.One can make crispy steamed veggies:
CUt all seasonal veggies like carrots, cauliflower, potatoes, beetroot , French Beans into long thin pieces.Add a table spoon of cooking oil in which a flake of garlic has been crushed and steeped, mix it well into the veggies, steam it for around 7 min-(minus the whistle)-remove and add, salt , pepper, fresh coriander-finely chopped, one can also add, lightly sauted capsicum and onions, healthy breakfast
- Steamed Idlis
3.Moong soup (green lentil soup)
One cup moong (green) soaked overnite-
Pressure cook this for 2 whistles with lots of water, after its done, mash it thoroughly with hand blender, add pepper, salt, some butter , very nutritious, high protein (for all those into body building) soup ready. Just pour hot into a tall glass and guzzle !!
4.Alu chaat - just need to pressure cook potatoes for 3 whistles (with a cup of water or so) takes around 5 minutes- peel, dice, and add masalas of ur choice, low cal and yummy
5.Lapsi Porridge -shall give recipe on request
There are many other Breakfast ideas to be writing here, shall keep adding in comments
Lunch '/ Dinner
Many main course vegetable, dal, rice can be very easily cooked in Hawkins directly, no need to use any utensils inside.
For rice, just clean and wash rice well, for one cup good quality rice, add one and half to two cups water directly in cooker, add few drops of lemon juice and drop of ghee and a bay leaf, for wonderfully cooked aromatic rice. Need to keep for 3 whistles and then on sim for 2-3 min . Put flame off , and open after 10 min or so.
For dal- clean and wash dal of your choice- tur/ masoor/ udad/ moong-
add thrice the quantity of water- add little haldi, pinch of salt, pinch of hing (asafoetida)-{this is to avert the gas formation in intestines that dals produce}, cook for three whistles, sim for 3-5 min and put off flame.
For dal fry , simply add, the mixture of finely chopped onions and tomatoes,plus red chilli powder n ginger garlic paste sauted in little ghee-garnish with coriander and lemon juice. WOW-mouthwatering dal ready, to be eaten with steamed/ jeera rice. Dont forget to add tadka(tempering) of Zeera and some pepper and whole garam masalas to the dal for that extra zing !
Hey more recipes on gravy veggies later
Hey ONE CAN ALSO USE COOKER FOR BOILING AN EGG- JUST LITTLE WATER, LAY THE EGGS, ADD SOME SALT AND ONE WHISTLE, AND PUT THE FLAME OFF. BOILED EGGS IN A JIFFY.
Now for the non-foodie uses of a cooker:
Being a doc , I know this secret of using a cooker to sterilize steel instruments like tongue depressor, forceps etc ina cooker, good substitute for autoclave.
White clothes can be pressure cooked (ooops washed ) in big size cooker with a little edible soda, for absolute hygienic wash !
MORE SUCH USES, I SHALL RECOLLECT AND ADD.
The best thing I noted while using hawkins is it takes much less time cooking than other Outer Lid models like prestige, whistles blow in much less time,that means faster cooking.
Cleaning the lid is little difficult, but can immerse in hot soapy water for good results. Otherwise its very long lasting, no real problems.
All your comments are welcome, have taken ages to finish this review ! And im really hungry now ;-)
Happy cooking and happier eating
Bon appetite
