Tuesday, December 10, 2019

The Maiden Voyage Was Not Terrible

Yesterday we were awakened at four in the morning by thunderous thunder.  It was loud, the kind that shakes the house.  It pretty much rained pigs and chickens all day.  It's from that storm that came from the Pacific and is now marching across the US bringing terrible weather for all.  Today it's not warm but the sun is out.  Much better.

So before the terrible weather, there were hikes in the desert.  Jim has been riding some, but I haven't felt up to it.  Soon, maybe, but not today.  Here are some random desert photos.

This cactus has a lot going on.  He's waving at the very least.


Looking back at Golden Gate.



A Saguaro has died over the winter, it's always sad to see them on the ground.  This one is still in the process of drying out.


Sunday we took the Instant Pot out of the box.  There is a lot of stuff in that box.   I think there will be more of a learning curve than we anticipated.   We made Chicken Adobo as our first venture into cooking with pressure.   I will say, that we managed to mess up everything in the kitchen.  We were running late, so Jim did the water pressure test, while I browned the chicken in my giant pan.  We assembled the rest of the ingredients, put them in the pot and turned it on.  It's kind of weird watching it come up to pressure. 


It was supposed to look like this.


Ours was slightly more pale and had more liquid because we did not saute on high for 20 minutes at the end.  Next time we'll add more liquid so there's more to spoon over the rice.  We did the rice in the rice cooker, there is no chance that we'll be getting a second instant pot for rice.  While on Facebook I made the mistake of looking at the Instapot for new users group and somehow joined.  I think I'm getting 20 - 25 Facebook things a day from them.

I was wondering where the heck the Instant Pot came from.  They're everywhere.  Here is a good article on the founder of the product.

Other than cooking and hiking, there is not much to report upon.

10 comments:

  1. This guy does a good job explaining and easy to follow recipes:
    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWP5zYusIJqJCK27A0NlAKg

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  2. I had a Prestige pressure cooker about 50 years ago and it was brilliant, so it will be interesting to see how you get on with the Instant pot. Thanks for the link.

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  3. Yay, you broke the IP in! I joined one of those IP facebook pages and had to unfollow....way too many posts clogging up my feed.

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  4. Congrats on the IP!! It does take a little getting used to. Most times I just add a tad of cornstarch slurry to thicken up the sauce. One of these days look up Cheesecake #17. It's delicious!! By the way, that sealing ring will smell of everything you cook in the pot, giving the same lovely smell to cheesecake or custard. Forget all the lemon juice, sun and any other crazy suggestions. Just buy a second seal for sweet things. SO much easier.

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  5. All this November/December rain should make for a great wildflower spring!!! Love it...will be there post January :)
    Get all the way well, and soon.
    mark

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  6. that is such a pretty area. the beauty of the desert always surprises me. my daughter has an instant pot and she loves it. we still just cook the old fashion way. I did have a pressure cooker at one time. I think I only used it once or twice.

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  7. The Sonoran Desert is so beautiful. I was always amazed at everything that grows there.

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  8. I have some pictures today from that same storm on Monday. We had lots of rain and thunder and my friend even had big chunks of hail. You are braver than me with that instant pot. I actually bought one, took it home and got it out of the box, read all the instructions, put it back in the box and took it back. I've got a fear of the "pressure" part. Good luck with yours. Everyone I know who has one loves it.

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  9. That waving cactus doesn't look healthy. Not that I know much about cacti. Good luck with the new pot!

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  10. That round red ring was just one more thing to wash on our insta pot. I'm not sorry it has recently been relegated to a cupboard, as I am the dishwasher when the man cooks. And when he cooks, he too uses just about everything in the kitchen. I dont mind really. Enjoy the pot!

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