Pressure cooker vs. stainless pot

[crankytank]

I was wondering, is the only reason a pressure cooker is preferred because it makes the cooking time faster? Are there other reasons why it is used often in the macrobiotic diet?

Thank you,

Tracie

[Bruce Paine]

Originally Posted by crankytank

I was wondering, is the only reason a pressure cooker is preferred because it makes the cooking time faster? Are there other reasons why it is used often in the macrobiotic diet?

Thank you,

Tracie

Tracie,

Though time might be the primary concern for many things cooked in pressure cookers (pcs), for short grain brown rice which often takes as long to cook in a pc, it tends "to be sweeter, stickier and more flavorful" according to Rebecca Wood (author of The New Whole Foods Encyclopedia : A Comprehensive Resource for Healthy Eating) in her The Splendid Grain: Robust Recipes for Grains with Vegetables, Fish, Poultry, Meat & Fruit.

Pressure cooked beans and legumes tend to be softer and more tender that those cooked in regular pots, and if you or your guests ever have difficulty digesting beans you'll find pressure cooked beans to be amazing, as long as you also include a small piece (postage stamp sized) kombu or wakame.

For almost all boiled and baked bean recipes presoaking the beans 6 to eight hours is suggested but is often unnecessary with pressure cooked beans.

George Ohsawa suggested in one of his books to eat beans to rice in a ratio of 1 to 6, so it is uneccessary in most cases to have the beans be the center of one's meal.

By the way what macrobiotic books do you have or have been reading?

Thank you, very much.

Bruce Paine

[crankytank]

I read The Macrobiotic Way by Michio Kushi, plus a few excerpts from different web pages. The websites pretty much said the same things as the book I read. Is there a book that I should read that is known as the "macrobiotic bible" or anything?

Thank you for the information. I am probably going to buy a pressure cooker after pay day.

-Tracie

[Bruce Paine]

Originally Posted by crankytank

I read The Macrobiotic Way by Michio Kushi, plus a few excerpts from different web pages. The websites pretty much said the same things as the book I read. Is there a book that I should read that is known as the "macrobiotic bible" or anything?

Thank you for the information. I am probably going to buy a pressure cooker after pay day.

-Tracie

Tracie,

No, unfortunately there is no macrobiotic bible.

Instead, there are many excellent macrobiotic books and often, different people will tell you their favorites.

For beginners, I first suggest The Self-Healing Cookbook: A Macrobiotic Primer for Healing Body, Mind and Moods With Whole Natural Foods by Kristina Turner

and also Pocket Guide To Macrobiotics by Carl Ferre

The Self-Healing Cookbook, I find to be a easier to read, more gentle approach to macrobiotic cooking and philosophy and Aveline Kushi's Complete Guide fills in most of the details of cooking that Kristina's book misses.

Carl's book put's everything about how to understand and practice macrobiotics in a compact little package that you can carry everywhere with you.

One other book that I suggest beginners get is: THE GREAT LIFE HANDBOOK: a practical guide to Health, Happiness, and Freedom by Denny Waxman .

There are many wonderful macrobiotic books including the ones available at Simply Natural .

Regarding, buying a pressure cooker, please visit the following site:

When you are under a lot of pressure...

Thank you, very much.

Bruce Paine