Blue Diamond Presure Cooker
A few years ago I bought a pressure cooker for making meals but I never used it. I thought it was too complicated compared to my old crock pot so it sat on the shelf until it ended up in our garage sale. Fast forward to a month ago when I received a 16 cup Blue Diamond Pressure Cooker to test. I had already had a Blue Diamond frying pan and I loved how nothing sticks to the pan and it’s next to impossible to burn anything. Even cleaning is a breeze.
Since I had to test this one out I couldn’t just store it on the shelf and forget about it but they are intimidating at first, at least to me it was. There are so many different cooking settings I wasn’t sure where to begin. I decided to go the easy route and steam corn on the cob. Lia helped me add a small amount of water to the bottom of the cooker and put three ears of corn on the wire rack. I locked the lid, set the steam button to four minutes and set the smart steam release. Was I amazed when the cover unlocked after releasing the steam to find three ears of the most delicious corn in the cob! When I boil corn, the kernels seem to fill with water and when eating the corn, water squirts out and it can be messy. But not with the cooker, the corn stays bright yellow, the kernels were fully cooked in four minutes and so tender but not mushy. It was delicious with Alaskan wild caught Sockeye salmon and brown rice!
Okay so I mastered corn on the cob, now what about making a meal? I had about a 3.5 pound roast that I browned all sides with a small amount of Avocado oil on the saute mode Next I added a cut up onion, 6 medium potatoes cut in chunks and tossed in some baby carrots. I had a package of beef gravy mix that I added a cup of water to and whisked until the gravy mix had dissolved in the water. I poured that over the meat and vegetables, sprinkled some seasoning mix and locked the cover on.
I set the cook button to 40 minutes and let the Blue Diamond pressure cooker do it’s thing Now the one thing about these cookers, there is a safety feature where you can’t manually unlock the cover untill all the steam has been released. The 40 minutes was up, the steam was being released automatically and there I stood waiting and wondering how long that would take.
It ended up taking almost ten minutes for all the steam to be released. Now this is where I started getting nervous. Since it took an additional ten minutes was it still cooking, did the juice evaporate while cooking and was the meat burnt to a crisp?
Finally the covered unlocked, I carefully removed the lid and I found the most delicious looking meal! The beef was so tender it flaked apart without needing a knife, the potatoes and carrots were perfect, not mushy and there was just the right amount of gravy!I I’m thinking next time I’ll set it for 35 minutes inside of 40 since it takes a while for the steam to release.
I was so impressed with my first meal I made in my Blue Diamond pressure cooker and just like my Blue Diamond frying pan, cleanup was a breeze! The inner cooking pot comes out, it’s coated so nothing sticks so no scrubbing is needed.
I’ve joined a few Facebook groups that share recipes and offer help for newbies. The net thing I want to try is making yogurt! Yes there is even a yogurt button plus you can bake a cake in the cooker! I’ve also got a pork recipe and can’t wait to try that. I can taste it now, pulled pork sliders with homemade potato salad!
The other neat thing about this cooler is it doesn’t heat up the kitchen like an oven does so this will be great in the hot weather. I’m looking forward to coming up with some delicious recipes to make in my Blue Diamond Pressure Cooker. Do you have a pressure cooker and if so what meals to you prepare? You can bet Lia and I will be experimenting with meals and desserts!
OK, you’ve convinced me – I’m gonna need to add a pressure cooker to my “stable” of kitchen gadgets!
I would have never thought of getting one if not receiving one to test. I love the Blue Diamond cookware and this didn’t fail anything! Easy to use and easy to clean, it’s a win win Nancy!
Hi Martha . . . I have visited your site previously. I am happy to be back today. Pressure cookers make me anxious, however you have given me more confidence. I love your pictures
Thanks for visiting again Debra. Yes that’s what happened when I had my first one but I know what you mean about making us anxious. I had heard so many scary stories about burns from the steam but this one won’t even open until all the steam is released. Now I’m anxious to try other recipes!
I also have a pressure cooker that I got about a year and a half ago and have only used it a handful of times. I need to hunt up some recipes to try and put this thing to more use. I am glad you finally tried it and liked it!! I have a Blue Diamond frying pan and it is super easy to clean up, I didn’t know they made other things. I will have to check them out. Thanks!
I love my Blue Diamond frying pan Anita, it’s so well made and easy to clean! I want to try yogurt in my cooker, Lia would love that.
No pressure cookers for me. But, glad you seem to like them. (I only used mine to sterilize microbial apparti.)
Back years ago my grandmother had a huge pressure cooker when she did canning. I have always been afraid of them but I’m learning as I get older Roy! LOL This one works so easy and safely releases the steam before the cover unlocks.
Your experience with your first pressure cooker is mine — except I haven’t sold it yet. I am going to use it! I haven’t heard of this brand before but one that is easy to use and clean is A-OK with me.
YAY glad you are going to try your Dominique. I’m so old school, I was even afraid to try a rice cooker. LOL I’m so glad I got this to try out, I’m hooked on it now.
Yes, Martha, these pots are amazing! I just ordered a similar one, different brand for my parents. They both don’t mind cooking, but I thought they would appreciate something that would help them cook food and clean up with less effort. Your food looks delicious! I am going to go see what my parents want to make for me, lol 😀
Sending lots of love and gratitude,
Jaime
I think they want to make you a big pot of chicken and dumplings Jaime! That’s going to be one of my next things to try since I just got 20 pounds of chicken breasts!
I’ve never heard of Blue Diamond. Looks like it did a great job in cooking a meal.
I have the Instanr pot that I’ve actually brought with me when we stayed at hotels while we worked.
Amazing what we can create in these machines.
Thanks for sharing. I’ll try corn 🌽 in mine next time.
Yes when I think back to when my grandmother had a huge heavy duty pressure cooker for canning Claudette. Who would have thought they would make something to cook an entire meal in! I love how tender my roast turned out! Great idea to bring your pot with you when traveling!
Martha, wow! I read the Tale of the Blue Diamond Pressure Cooker, closely and carefully! It does sound like a total winner, for those of us who cook a lot. Never have I seen so many wonderful-looking controls! Thanks for sharing your experience of this great device.
I’m so happy I was lucky enough to get this to test and the best part I got to keep it! I loved how tender the beef turned out and only took a fracture of cooking in the oven. Looking forward to making yogurt soon, Lia will love that. Thanks for visiting Kebba, off to steam some corn!
We use a pressure cooker all the time for Indian cooking.. and this one looks cool too – similar to an instant pot
Yes it is Vidya. When I first heard of the instant pot I had no clue on what it was. I like how I can throw just about anything in my cooker and come up with a delicious meal! Maybe I’ll try an Indian meal some time!
Wow, enjoy your cooker.
I’m loving it Amanda!
How do I set just pressure cook and set time is there a manual button like instant pot
There is a button to push for pressure cook and then you can adjust the amount of pressure needed. Thanks for visitiing Mike.