Once I first began working at Critical Eats, I wrote an article that explored the results of pre-soaking grains on their style, texture, and cooking time. What I discovered was that soaking did little or no to enhance the grains, and I concluded that skipping the pre-soak was usually the way in which to go. Then I closed with a line that, on the time, appeared like a given.

“I, for one, will simply settle for my grains as they’re and wait patiently for them to do their factor. That, or I will attain for one thing I do know will work: my strain cooker.”

It appeared apparent sufficient: Of course a strain cooker could be one of the simplest ways to cook dinner grains. I imply, I like my strain cooker and the magic it routinely performs. It cooks beans quicker, shares quicker, robust cuts of meat quicker, and—certainly one of my favourite tips—octopus, which turns into tender very quickly. Why would not it work simply as nicely with grains?

However as quickly because the article was dwell on the positioning, I began to surprise if it was actually true. The query gnawed at me—what if I had cavalierly acknowledged one thing as truth and been completely improper about it?

The Take a look at

I knew I needed to put my assertion to the take a look at. To do it, I cooked each complete (bran-on) and pearled/polished (bran largely eliminated) grains* in common boiling water and a strain cooker, then in contrast the outcomes. The grains I used have been polished (pearled) farro, whole-grain spelt, whole-grain rye, and whole-grain wheatberries. And to be doubly thorough, I did some batches with grains that had been pre-soaked (simply in case that made some type of distinction the place the strain cooker was involved), and others with grains that I cooked straight from dry. I additionally examined utilizing two totally different strain cookers, to account for attainable variations in cooker sorts: my very own Kunh Rikon stovetop mannequin, and the SE take a look at kitchen’s Breville electrical strain cooker.

Earlier than going into element on the outcomes, a fast word on how strain cookers work, and the way I used them in these exams. Stress cookers entice steam contained in the vessel; because the trapped steam builds up, the strain contained in the cooker will increase. As a result of the boiling level of water is tied to atmospheric strain, rising the strain within the cooker leads to larger temperatures (water boils at 212°F at sea stage, outlined as roughly 1 bar atmospheric strain; inside a strain cooker, the water’s temperature can go as much as round 250°F, relying on the cooker and its strain settings).

As a matter of apply, cooking occasions for strain cookers begin as soon as the cooker is totally pressurized, and don’t embody the pre-heating section. As soon as cooking is full, there are 3 ways to depressurize a cooker, which in any other case cannot and should not be opened—except taking a shower in an explosion of steam appears like a good suggestion to you.

• The primary is to press the cooker’s steam-release valve, which vents the steam trapped contained in the cooker, dropping the strain to the purpose the place the lid might be opened.
• The second is to run the cooker underneath cool water, which cools the cooker, condensing the steam inside; because the steam condenses, the strain drops (this methodology shouldn’t be used on electrical cookers).
• The final is to let the cooker quiet down by itself, till the strain has dropped sufficient to open the lid; this isn’t a super methodology for meals that may overcook as they sit contained in the cooker.

For my exams, I used each the steam-release valve and the tap-water methodology, for quickest strain launch.

The Outcomes

Earlier than going into element, I am simply going to get this out of the way in which: I hereby retract the closing line of my earlier piece, as a result of I now not suppose that strain cookers do a lot for cooking grains.

Let’s take a better look.

Pre-Soaked Grain Exams

Although I would already decided that pre-soaking is not crucial for cooking most grains, I made a decision to incorporate pre-soaking in my exams right here, simply in case it ended up being an essential think about strain cooking.

The primary soaked grain I cooked was polished farro. Proper off the bat, this take a look at uncovered one of many greatest dangers of strain cooking grains: as a result of a strain cooker is a sealed vessel, you’ll be able to’t see the meals contained in the pot whereas it is cooking.

For a comparatively quick-cooking grain like polished farro, that may be a dangerous factor. In common boiling water, the farro grew to become tender in about 20 minutes, and it was simple to watch its progress within the pot.

With a strain cooker, it took about 10 minutes for the cooker to develop into pressurized, and I then let the farro cook dinner for five minutes as soon as strain had been reached. I depressurized the cooker with the steam-release valve, and wasn’t proud of what I discovered inside: blown-out, overcooked farro grains.

In fact a fair shorter cooking time might have prevented this, but it surely underscores the danger of overcooking some meals in a strain cooker. Primarily based on this take a look at, quick-cooking pearled grains are higher off simply being boiled: your time financial savings are marginal in a strain cooker anyway when you issue within the preheating and depressurization occasions, and the shortcoming to see the grains means a a lot larger probability of letting them go too far.

Subsequent up, I cooked soaked whole-grain spelt. Right here, I’ve to confess that I ended up letting this spelt soak for 3 days earlier than testing it, as a result of, nicely, life occurs. That truly proved to be attention-grabbing: soaking grains in a single day (about 8 hours) could not make a lot distinction, however soaking grains for 3 days does change cooking occasions. With such a prolonged pre-soak, the boiled spelt took about 25 minutes to cook dinner. Within the strain cooker, I let it go for 10 minutes, not together with the preheating time of about 10 minutes, plus depressurization time. Altogether, it was within the strain cooker for a bit of over 20 minutes.

As you’ll be able to see within the picture, the starchy contents of the grain wished to blow out in each cases, probably the results of being super-hydrated after such a protracted pre-soak. Fortunately, the bran held all of it collectively and maintained its nice, chewy texture, proving that it is extremely arduous to overcook complete grains. Nonetheless, the 2 samples have been indistinguishable from one another. (For the document, I do not suppose 3 days of pre-soaking is well worth the discount in cooking time.)

As soon as once more, the strain cooker wasn’t demonstrating a lot of a bonus, although no less than with bran-on complete grains like spelt, the danger of over-cooked, blown-out grains is way much less of a difficulty.

No-Soak Grain Exams

To date, the strain cooker wasn’t impressing me. However possibly the pre-soaking was leveling the taking part in subject. Possibly grains cooked from dry would do higher within the strain cooker.

So for my subsequent exams, I attempted each dry whole-grain spelt and wheatberries.

Right here, the boiled spelt cooked in about 40 minutes. And as soon as once more, the strain cooker was carried out only a hair quicker, about 35 minutes together with pre-heating and depressurization. Out of the pot, I struggled to discover a distinction between the 2. Within the picture above, you’ll be able to see that the boiled spelt at left appears to be like barely drier than the pressure-cooked spelt, however as I tasted them side-by-side, I could not discern a lot of a distinction. I made a decision to change to my macro lens for a better take a look at the grains.

As I zoomed in, I had a more durable and more durable time distinguishing between the 2. Whereas the piles of grain had initially regarded a bit totally different, up shut they regarded principally the identical. Then I spotted that I had drained the boiled spelt first, permitting it extra time to air-dry; because the pressure-cooker spelt sat out, it began wanting increasingly just like the boiled spelt.

As for the wheatberries, they carried out nearly the identical, of their case 50 minutes for the boiled batch, and 40 minutes for the strain cooker. Rye grains, too, produced comparable outcomes.

Conclusion

In all circumstances, the strain cooker was barely quicker than a pot of normal boiling water, however to my shock, the variations have been small—about 10 minutes typically. The grains themselves have been indistinguishable from one another, no matter how they have been cooked, apart from the pearled farro, which overcooked within the strain cooker. Given these outcomes, I am afraid to say the strain cooker would not have a drastic influence on the cooking time or style and texture of grains, and, within the case of polished/pearled grains, has a higher threat of ruining them.

One of the crucial deceptive issues is the time given for strain cookers: Whereas it is smart to solely begin the clock as soon as the cooker has develop into pressurized (since totally different cookers and portions of meals inside may have totally different heat-up occasions), it hides the true cooking time, which incorporates the heating up and depressurization occasions. For grains, that finally ends up erasing a lot of the obvious time-saving advantages.

I will nonetheless use my strain cooker to cook dinner complete, bran-on grains, as a result of it would not do any hurt in any respect, however I will do it understanding the fact, which is that I am really reaching for a software that, no less than for this job, would not really work a lot better than a daily outdated pot of water.

June 2014