Pressure cookers are very popular with urban dwellers across the world because they conserve cooking gas, electricity or charcoal depending on whichever fuel one prefers.
Convenient, super-fast, and easy to use. That is what pressure cookers are. But are they safe in terms of the food that comes out of them? For instance, is it normal for food to cook so fast at such high temperatures?
Experts say healthy eating is not just about choosing the right foods but how you cook them also plays a role. For example, exposing food to high levels of heat may cause the food to lose its nutrients.
Studies have linked excessive consumption of meat cooked at high temperatures to increased risks of colorectal and pancreatic cancers.
Advantages
There are claims that it keeps the nutrients intact because the food is exposed to heat for a much lesser period.
Pressure cooking is a kind of advanced steaming and steaming is considered to be one of the healthiest cooking methods as it helps retain the nutrients. In pressure cooking, it is the steam and pressure that cooks the food, and not the high heat.
Therefore, it is considered safe to cook food in a pressure cooker as long as the cooking time is carefully regulated.
A study conducted by the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture revealed that pressure cooking reduces the lectin content from food. Lectins are naturally occurring proteins in most plants that reduce the nutritional value of food by hindering the absorption of minerals. So the less lectins, the better.
Disadvantages
Let us start with starchy foods: rice, potatoes, cassava, the lot. Experts advise not to use a pressure cooker on those. Reason; they may form acrylamide, a harmful chemical, when pressure cooked. Consumption of this chemical on a regular basis may lead to health issues like cancer, infertility, and neurological disorders.
Say no to aluminum pressure cookers
Pressure cookers made of aluminum may leach into your food when the cooker is overheated. Exposure to high levels of aluminum has been linked to neurotoxicity (damage to the brain or peripheral nervous system).
Using a stainless steel pressure cooker is a safer option.
Slow cooking is the best
Slow cooking is a better cooking technique as it not only retains the nutrients but also makes the food easily digestible.
Generally, slow cooking is a food preparation method that relies on using low heat for a long amount of time. This method of cooking helps maintain both the flavour and nutrients of the food.
With slow cooking, the food also becomes incredibly tender as all of its connective tissues break down. This makes digestion easier.
Bottom-line, keep pressure cooking to a minimum.
