Difference Between a Pressure Cooker & a Food Steamer
Both pressure cookers and food steamers use water to heat and cook foods. But water is the only common factor the two methods utilize. Cooks might have both types of cookware in their kitchens to create their various dishes. Does this Spark an idea?
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History
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For some people, memories of pressure cookers might involve their mothers ordering them out of the kitchen when the pot was put on the burner. That is because the tightly sealed pots sometimes had a tendency to explode. Modern cookers, however, have greatly evolved in convenience and safety.
How Pressure Cookers work
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Water boils at 212 degrees Fahrenheit. No matter how long you boil the water, it will not rise above 212. But containing the steam and, thus, increasing the pressure, courtesy of a pressure cooker equipped with a tightly sealed lid, does the trick of raising temperatures while simultaneously cutting cooking time.
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Steamers
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Steam cookers, or steamers, usually come in either bamboo or metal. The bamboo type normally sit atop a pan or wok filled with water. Placed on top a burner, the pan filled with water boils and the steam rises up, cooking whatever type of food is in the container. The metal types of steamers actually sit inside the pan, but they have trays above the boiling water so the food is steamed through.
Differences
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Foods cooked in a pressure cooker typically include stews, soups or beans. Steamers are often used for vegetables and Asian foods including dumplings.
Features
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While a pressure cooker is easier to control because of its various settings, it is also more expensive than steamers and takes up more room. The cheaper steamers do need an extra pot of water to do their trick, which means more clean up. Both types retain more vegetable nutrients than many other means of cooking.
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