Why does this recipe always burn on the bottom?

[KathyD]

I have a PC recipe that I have made twice and twice it burned on the bottom. I am using a Fissler Vitaquick 8Qt cooker. What am I doing wrong? It is also the only item I’ve cooked that I have trouble maintaining pressure. I’ve made brown rice with no problem and no burning. Here is my recipe….I’d love thoughts on this.

2 TBPS Olive oil
6 chicken breasts
6 potatoes peeled and cut in 1/2″ slices
2 sweet onions
1 cup water
1 can cream of mushroom soup

Heat the cooker and add the oil. Brown Chicken and remove from cooker. Add onions and brown for 3 minutes. Add water and soup and stir to mix. Add potatoes and chicken. Lock lid, bring to pressure and cook 8 minutes at high pressure. Use the natural release to release pressure.

I have an electric stove and start this on one burner and then move it to another burner set at a lower temp. This immediately drops pressure for some reason and I had to put it back on the burner set to high for it to come up to pressure. No other recipe has done this so I’m wondering if it is something to do with the recipe.

Thanx for your help with this!
KathyD

[Laura Pazzaglia]

You didn’t say what brand mushroom soup you used, but I decided to go for the “gold standard”, Campbell’s.

Here is the ingredient list:

INGREDIENTS: WATER, MUSHROOMS, VEGETABLE OIL (CORN, 
COTTONSEED, CANOLA, AND/OR SOYBEAN), MODIFIED FOOD 
STARCH, WHEAT FLOUR, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF: SALT, 
MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE, SOY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, 
DEHYDRATED CREAM (CREAM [MILK], SOY LECITHIN), 
YEAST EXTRACT, FLAVORING, DEHYDRATED GARLIC.

http://www.campbellfoodservice.com/details.aspx?code=470%20

It contains both starch and flour which make the liquid too thick to boil in the cooker. If it cannot boil, the food cannot make steam to build pressure. This is why your cooker is not reaching pressure and why the food is scorching at the base of the cooker.

After looking at the ingredient list, I’m convinced that you could get the same flavor (probably better) by just using mushrooms, cream and salt.

Replace the water in the recipe with 1 1/2 cups with chicken stock, and add dried mushrooms and a teaspoon of salt (if the stock is not already salted). Then, after pressure cooking, simmer everything together with one cup of fresh cream until the desired thickness is reached or add a little slurry of organic corn starch to help things along.

No more burnt-up scorched dinner.

Ciao,

L

[KathyD]

Thank you Laura, that sounds like a great idea. Its odd that this recipe is in a pressure cooker book. I guess I’ll put it aside and just use my Hip Pressure Cooking Book. This site is also a great resource. I made the Boston Baked Beans over the weekend. A little too much water and not quite enough time so I tossed them in the oven for a bit and they were divine.

Thank you for all your work on this site and for a great book!
Happy Cooking,
KathyD

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