Quick meals

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I feel like I'm always cooking under pressure!   When I worked outside the home, I think I was more organized with my meal planning than I am now.  Many times, however, I would stop at the store on the way home if I hadn't figured out what I'd cook before I left the house that morning.   Working at home, it's just too much trouble to run out and pick something up at 5 pm.  For one thing, this is peak traffic time because all the other moms are out there picking up their groceries for dinner!  Well, all those who aren't in a drive-up lane somewhere picking up food!

I can't remember married life without a Crock Pot, and it is one of my frequently used appliances.   Sunday is the day it gets used the most because I like to come home to a nice meal after a rather long day at church.  I usually prepare a roast with potatoes and carrots in the pot, but I've even become creative enough to cook lasagna, and my family loved it.  I cook the meat, add the tomato sauce, and then just briefly cook the noodles.  Assemble everything in the pot and turn it on low.   By using the pot instead of my oven, it keeps the house cooler and the lasagna isn't as dry.

One of the disadvantages to a Crock Pot is that you have to be prepared.  You've got to get up with the chickens and do all that chopping and peeling.  My alternative way to prepare a quick meal is to use my pressure cooker.  If you own a pressure cooker, it's probably because you grew up with a mother who used one!   I grew up in a home where the pressure cooker was mostly used for canning, but I have found that there's nothing better for preparing tasty, tender meat in a relatively short amount of time, without drying it out!

Just this week I made one of my husband's favorites -- Swiss Steak.  I put a little unflavored coconut oil in the bottom of the pan, cut serving size pieces of round steak, dipped them in flour, and then browned them in the oil.  Once I'd browned both sides, I added a can of stewed tomatoes, a bit of honey, then tightened the lid and attached the weight, using the 10# pressure.  I listened until it started to whistle, and then adjusted the heat so it wasn't whistling constantly.  While that was cooking, I peeled some potatoes and put them in a pot to boil.  I sliced some fresh cucumbers from the garden and then set the timer for about 20 minutes.   At that point, I turned the burners off and waited for the pressure cooker to cool down so I could remove the weight and the lid.

I had bought a huge slab of round steak at the grocery store, so one night we used about half of it for the Swiss Steak, and the next night, I made Pepper Steak.   I went through some of the same steps, but this time added other ingredients.  While it cooked, I made the rice and sliced the green pepper.  When cooking was complete, I added the green pepper, turned up the heat just a bit, added cornstarch to thicken, and dinner was ready!

If you have never used a pressure cooker, please talk to someone who can give you some guidance, or at least read the directions.   It's important to know that you NEVER, EVER try to remove the lid until the pressure has returned to normal.  You'll know that when there's no more steam escaping through the vent.  

Here's an excellent site with information just about all you'll need to know about pressure cookers, including some recipes.

http://www.fabulousfoods.com/school/cstools/pressurecooker/pressurecooker.html

The key to all of this is being prepared enough to have the ingredients.  While the Crock Pot demands that you're prepared the night before so you can do everything first thing in the morning, the pressure cooker allows you to procrastinate until the end of the day! 

Visit http://www.emersonpublications.comto read more of Joyce's stories, to subscribe to the Family First newsletter, to learn how to protect your family in your absence, or discover ways to make money at home. This site is dedicated to helping others create family unity in many different ways.

Contact the Author
Joyce Moseley Pierce
Family Preparedness
joyce@emersonpublications.com
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