Sweet and Sour Beef Stew - Pressure Cooker

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tenspeed

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I've made this for years on the stovetop and adapted it to the pressure cooker, which I much prefer. Our daughter asked for the recipe (she has an Instant Pot), so I verified the ingredients and steps when I made it last night.

Sweet and Sour Stew - Pressure Cooker

2 - 3 lbs. stew meat (I prefer chuck roast)
2 - 3 Tbsp. flour
2 Tbsp. oil or mix of oil and butter
2 medium onions, cut in large chunks
4 carrots, peeled and cut in 1" pieces
1/2 cup catsup
4 Tbsp. brown sugar
4 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp. worcestershire
1/2 cup water

egg noodles (cooked)

· Cut meat in 1" cubes, trimming excess fat
· Dredge meat in flour, brown at least half the meat on all sides in the pressure cooker
· Remove meat from pot, deglaze with 1/2 cup water, scraping up any browned bits
· Combine catsup, sugar, vinegar, worcestershire, add to pot
· Add meat, onions, carrots
· Cook on high pressure for 25 minutes, allow to release naturally for 15 minutes (if using an electric pressure cooker, turn off, not allowing it to go to keep warm)
· Serve over egg noodles, sprinkle with parsley
 
I don't have (or want) a pressure cooker but I'm sure I can make this recipe work with the watched pot method. ;)
I'm never happy with my liquid combo and this sounds just right. Thanks TS.
 
I've made it in a slow cooker, on the stovetop, and in a pressure cooker, and I like the pressure cooker version the best. When I make it in the IP I brown the meat in a skillet, deglaze the skillet with the water, then add it to the IP. A deglazed skillet is a snap to clean, and the IP is too small for browning this amount of meat in a reasonable time.
 
Looks good! Now that I think about it, my Sauerbraten is actually sweet & sour. Once the thickener is added (ginger snaps) it gets some sweetness in the gravy.
 
I've made this for years on the stovetop and adapted it to the pressure cooker, which I much prefer. Our daughter asked for the recipe (she has an Instant Pot), so I verified the ingredients and steps when I made it last night.

Sweet and Sour Stew - Pressure Cooker

2 - 3 lbs. stew meat (I prefer chuck roast)
2 - 3 Tbsp. flour
2 Tbsp. oil or mix of oil and butter
2 medium onions, cut in large chunks
4 carrots, peeled and cut in 1" pieces
1/2 cup catsup
4 Tbsp. brown sugar
4 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp. worcestershire
1/2 cup water

egg noodles (cooked)

· Cut meat in 1" cubes, trimming excess fat
· Dredge meat in flour, brown at least half the meat on all sides in the pressure cooker
· Remove meat from pot, deglaze with 1/2 cup water, scraping up any browned bits
· Combine catsup, sugar, vinegar, worcestershire, add to pot
· Add meat, onions, carrots
· Cook on high pressure for 25 minutes, allow to release naturally for 15 minutes (if using an electric pressure cooker, turn off, not allowing it to go to keep warm)



You need at least a cup of water or other thin liquid to get a 6 quart (common size) Instant Pot up to pressure and you should never use flour or any thickener to pressure cook with. Flour thickens water and prevents the pot from pressurizing. Likewise the ketchup will thicken the small amount of water that's in there, possibly preventing the pot from pressurizing. This could cause all of the sugar to burn on the bottom of the pot.

Id suggest doubling the water or use beef broth and thickening the stew after it cooks.
 
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You need at least a cup of water or other thin liquid to get a 6 quart (common size) Instant Pot up to pressure and you should never use flour or any thickener to pressure cook with. Flour thickens water and prevents the pot from pressurizing. Likewise the ketchup will thicken the small amount of water that's in there, possibly preventing the pot from pressurizing. This could cause all of the sugar to burn on the bottom of the pot.

Id suggest doubling the water or use beef broth and thickening the stew after it cooks.
If you add up the amount of liquid in the ingredients (water, vinegar, catsup, and ignoring what is in the carrots and meat ), there is enough liquid to bring the pot up to pressure. I've made this many times, and never had a problem. Worst case scenario is it doesn't come up to pressure, starts burning on the bottom, and the IP generates an error message and stops. I've never seen any tests on the subject, but I doubt that flour changes the boiling point of water (please correct me if you have data showing otherwise).

Here's a pressure cooker recipe from Kenji that has NO water added:

https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2017/03/easy-pressure-cooker-pork-chile-verde-recipe.html
 
If you add up the amount of liquid in the ingredients (water, vinegar, catsup, and ignoring what is in the carrots and meat ), there is enough liquid to bring the pot up to pressure. I've made this many times, and never had a problem. Worst case scenario is it doesn't come up to pressure, starts burning on the bottom, and the IP generates an error message and stops. I've never seen any tests on the subject, but I doubt that flour changes the boiling point of water (please correct me if you have data showing otherwise).

Here's a pressure cooker recipe from Kenji that has NO water added:

https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2017/03/easy-pressure-cooker-pork-chile-verde-recipe.html

I agree... Been fiddling with liquids in my IP and have only twice gotten the error message.. A quick adjustment takes care of it and lesson learned..

At times, a recipe or even following "rules" makes a too wet dish..

Ross
 
If you add up the amount of liquid in the ingredients (water, vinegar, catsup, and ignoring what is in the carrots and meat ), there is enough liquid to bring the pot up to pressure. I've made this many times, and never had a problem. Worst case scenario is it doesn't come up to pressure, starts burning on the bottom, and the IP generates an error message and stops. I've never seen any tests on the subject, but I doubt that flour changes the boiling point of water (please correct me if you have data showing otherwise).

Here's a pressure cooker recipe from Kenji that has NO water added:

https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2017/03/easy-pressure-cooker-pork-chile-verde-recipe.html


The ketchup doesn't count -- and actually counts against the liquid amount, as it is too thick.

Flour, like I explained above, thickens water when its boiled, inhibiting the pot from coming to pressure. It has nothing to do with the boiling point of water.

Worst case scenario is that your dinner is ruined since its been par-cooked until you get the burn notice. Then you have to release pressure, clean out the pot, add liquid and start over. How long to cook? You don't even know when you get to that point.

Just saying that its better to follow the "IP rules" to ensure it works properly.
 
The ketchup doesn't count -- and actually counts against the liquid amount, as it is too thick.

Flour, like I explained above, thickens water when its boiled, inhibiting the pot from coming to pressure. It has nothing to do with the boiling point of water.

Worst case scenario is that your dinner is ruined since its been par-cooked until you get the burn notice. Then you have to release pressure, clean out the pot, add liquid and start over. How long to cook? You don't even know when you get to that point.

Just saying that its better to follow the "IP rules" to ensure it works properly.
I'm trying to imagine under what circumstances this might happen. Once you start cooking vegetables and meat, they release water. This is true of any method. Once the IP valve closes, no water vapor will escape, and there will be a continued release of water from the cooking items. There is waaay more free water in the finished stew than what I added. I've made Kenji's pork chili verde that does not have any water added, and it works.

I got an error from the IP when I browned the meat in the IP and didn't do a good job of removing the fond from the bottom of the pot, and had to add a bit more water (which resulted in a more watery stew than usual). Now I brown meat in a skillet and deglaze with a liquid, as the IP is too small to efficiently brown a quantity of meat.

Are you telling me that if you add flour to pan drippings to make gravy it won't boil? My recipe calls for an equal amount of ketchup and water, so if ketchup offsets water, it shouldn't boil? I didn't know that I can't make the stew that I have made many times.
 
Disclaimer: I have never used an IP. I don't think it's a question of boiling point when the liquid is thick. It's a question of how much water vapour it gives off, which is what raises the pressure. I suppose that heating the air in the pot accounts for some of the increase in pressure.
 
Once the IP valve closes, no water vapor will escape...

I'm not addressing the question of the amount of liquid needed. Just wanted to mention that the IP does allow water vapor to escape through the valve after it has come up to pressure, in order to regulate the amount of pressure. It's one of the safety features.
 
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