A documentation of my preservation and preparation of local foods as I work through the seasons. This will serve as a reference tool for me in the future and as a sharing guide for family and friends...and anyone else interested. Hopefully, I can offer some useful methods, tips and recipes to share with everyone--be they novice or pro--and encourage them to join me in the exciting world of preserving and cooking with local foods.



Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Meal in a pot

For a hearty summer meal, with lots of leftovers, I get out my large pressure cooker and make a one-pot meal.  It's like preparing a pot roast with all the fixin's, but not heating up the kitchen to do so.  Here's how:
I start with a whole chicken or a beef or pork roast, approx. 6 pounds for each.  I surround the chicken or roast with lots of whole or quartered fresh veggies--usually as follows:  whole potatoes, whole ears of corn and whole carrots; quartered tomatoes, quartered peppers and quartered onions; hunks of celery and cabbage; some spinach greens; a few small cloves of garlic and a light sprinkling of fresh herbs.  Be sure pressure cooking pot is no more than 2/3 full.   Add two cups of broth or boullion of the same kind of meat you are cooking.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Put the lid on pressure cook as follows:
Chicken - 10 minutes @ 15 pounds of pressure
Beef - 35 minutes @ 15 pounds of pressure
Pork - 60 minutes @ 15 pounds of pressure
To serve it, I get a large serving dish, break the meat in pieces and arrange the veggies whole.
 We each take a large plate or platter and dig in!
The leftovers go to sandwiches and hash.  See next post for hash recipe.

No comments:

Post a Comment