Product review (5 stars): 10 Bean Soup and many other fun things with absolutely great results in this fantastic appliance
when starting any recipe with primarily water as the cooking fluid, a high temperature may be used to bring the closed pressure cooker up to a boil (noted by the rise of the little red pressure indicator in the handle, as well as the beginning of steam production out of the pressure regulator valve on the front of the lid opposite the long handle), but then it is ESSENTIAL to lower the cooking temperature of the PIC so that steam only exits the regulator valve intermittently in small puffs rather than a continuous heavy and steady stream.  If this is not done, so much water will escape as steam that the cooker will exhaust its water and the food will burn before reaching the desired degree of doneness!!!!  If a more viscous cooking fluid is used, such as a tomato based sauce, it is wise to bring the temperature up more slowly by starting at a lower temperature on the PIC.  Gosh, I was used to the old-time weight on the steam outlet which would vibrate and hiss loudly to warn the user to turn down the cooking temperature!!  Most of the recipes in the book list a high temperature to bring the item up to boiling, but there is no mention as to then reducing the heat so that just puffs of steam are produced in an intermittent fashion, and many of the novices are complaining that the Nuwave pressure cooker loses so much water that their food burns before it should be done according to the recipe.  I have already made Firehouse Chili, Beef Pastrami, 10 Bean Soup and many other fun things with absolutely great results in this fantastic appliance.  I might add that when one turns down the cooking heat on the PIC, it's necessary to spend some time to make sure that the internal temperature of the pressure cooker has stabilized before leaving the appliance.  I found tonight, for instance, that the spices and salt I had added to the 10 Bean Soup had lowered the boiling point sufficiently that I was able to maintain the #2 (high) pressure setting by setting the PIC cooking temperature to only 200 F.  There's absolutely no way to tell someone exactly the temperature they need to use to maintain the production of steam at an appropriate level, for that depends no only upon what they've put into solution in the pressure chamber, but also their barometric pressure, etc.