Versatile when time pressures abound

Remember those big steel pots hissing steam and rattling away on the stove? They were pressure cookers and they were scary. But not so today.

The new modern pot takes cooking to a new level and can be used to serve up easy, delicious meals in just under an hour.

Lisa Loveday promises tasty economical recipes for busy Kiwi cooks.

"A hearty soup in three-quarters of an hour, roast chicken in 30 minutes and even better," she says, the pressure cooker is expert at turning cheap cuts of meat into "mouth-watering tender morsels of flavour in no time at all".

Sounds good to me.

The cookbook includes a wide variety of recipes, from home-made stock to a classic lemon cheesecake. Yes, a cheesecake made in a pressure cooker. Amazing.

All the recipes are accompanied by lovely photos by Alan Gillard. There are also tips and tricks on using your cooker including ways to adapt your own recipes for the pressure cooker.

If you already own one of these handy appliances, this book is a must. If not, take a look. You might be surprised at just how versatile they have become.

The New Zealand Pressure Cooker Cookbook

by Lisa Loveday,

Renaissance Publishing, $34.99